A cat grows a fish tail

By Liu Fan

Grandfather came to say good-bye

When some of my friends heard that I had become a Christian they reacted with questions like, "Why ever would you believe in Jesus? Are you all mixed-up? Did something happen to make you depressed so that you needed to find some kind of 'mental opium' to dope yourself with?" "Are you turning into a simple superstitious old woman?" "You've studied materialism from childhood. What's happened to your intellect?"

These friends think that Christians are a group of nice but weak and naive people who have problems in their lives and have to dope themselves up with "mental opium". I can understand their thinking because I used to think that way too.

I was born in China, an atheist country. Materialism and evolutionism are accepted as true and authoritative, the symbols of science and "truth". From first grade in elementary school through to being seniors in college, we memorized the doctrines of materialism: "Matter is the first property and conscience comes second. Matter guides the conscience; conscience is a response to matter."

This kind of compulsory learning is actually not "education" at all, but "brain- washing". It is treating a theory as absolute truth. People have no choice but acceptance. According to materialism, if we are unable to prove the existence of God in the same way as we prove the existence of a table, we can state that there is no God and declare that an unseen God is merely the product of man's imagination. However, many things used to puzzle me and made me question, "Is there really nothing beyond this material world?"

I remember when I was in the 81st section of the People's Liberation Army, a roommate once told me a story: "A certain political party committee member once had a heart attack. His heart stopped beating for a few minutes. After emergency resuscitation, he regained consciousness. He then shared what had happened to him during those minutes when he was out of this world. He had walked through a bright tunnel and there he had seen God. Incredibly this resulted in him repenting and going on to be a preacher of the gospel." For a long time this story provoked many private discussions. We did not understand how an atheist like him could believe in God. Was he crazy, or had he really seen God?

Later, I read a book called "Between Life and Death". The author, Lo Ling, is a heart specialist and he recorded similar stories. A number of his patients had been technically dead for a few minutes, but had revived after being resuscitated. Their after-death experiences were very like the earlier story. Some may say that these experiences were simply imagined and attributable to a normal pre-death reaction of the brain. But why would so many people imagine the same thing? Is it possible that behind all these similar experiences, there really is a "life after death"? Do we really come face to face with God after we die?

Something that happened in my childhood also puzzled me: One night in July 1967, Wu-Han was as hot as an oven. I was one of the swimming team for Central Vocational School in Hu-Bei Province and was staying in a dorm beside the swimming pool with a lot of other young members of the team. That night I couldn't sleep because of the heat. Sitting on my bed fanning myself, I suddenly heard a familiar voice calling to me in the darkness, "Little Fan, little Fan." I recognized it as my grandfather's voice. I was pretty shocked. Wasn't he still in bed following surgery? Had something bad happened to him? I tossed and turned for the rest of the night. The next morning, my father came to see me. Before he even said anything, I asked, "Has something happened to Grandfather?" Dad was surprised: "How did you know? He passed away last night." At that time my mother was working in a place 100 kilometers away. On the same night that I heard Grandpa's voice, Mother dreamed that Grandpa, dressed in white, was standing in front of her. The dream woke her up. Later it was confirmed that Grandpa was indeed wearing white. How can materialism explain supernatural experiences like these?

A cat with a fish tail

Evolution is viewed by many as "absolute truth", yet it is questionable. The basis of evolution is that life evolved from the inorganic to the organic, from the simple to the complex; from lower forms to higher forms. Things evolve step by step. But I could not understand how a few lifeless chemical elements could develop into a living organism? Is there any scientific evidence of the inorganic changing into the organic? Over all these thousands of years, how come no one has ever found an inorganic element suddenly turning into something alive?

Although a cell is tiny, it is not composed of random inorganic chemical elements. Thousands of processes take place on the way to a cell nucleus becoming part of the formation of the endomembrane (inner membrane) system.. For instance, when the DNA in a nucleus is replicated, 500 nucleotides are made every second. On average only one tiny error occurs among 10 billions of nucleotides. It would indeed be a model factory if there were only one tiny defect found in every 10 billion products ! 

In the endomembrane system, there are many organelles, which all collaborate together in the processes of production, storage and transportation. It's a perfect example of networking. We know that even a small factory will require a certain ratio of human creativity and organization. For a complex high production capacity cell factory, it would need to be even more so. Isn't it unreasonable for us to believe that these super cell factories only exist by accident?

Every morning when I gaze at the green fields and trees outside my window, I think about those wonderful green cells. At any precise moment how many green cells are diligently working away? How much oxygen and nucleotides are they producing? Every evening when I look up into the sky and see the beautiful moon and stars, I marvel at the greatness of the universe. How minute a human being is ! Yet in this huge universe, each planet has its own orbit, and all are subject to some kind of traffic regulation. No mistakes are made. Was this order simply the result of some random big bang? Explosions only bring about destruction. How could this one have brought about an orderly solar system?

The most inexplicable phenomenon of all is our beautiful rich earth. It contains not only oceans and mountains but also a thick outer layer of atmosphere which can burn up even the tiniest stone from outer space. The oxygen in our air is of just the right composition. If it was too rare, human beings could not live, but if the oxygen was too concentrated, our human lungs could not handle it.

The sun always shines between the north and south poles. If the sun shone beyond the poles, the ice and snow at the north and south poles would melt and bring floods to many parts of the globe. The distance between the sun and the earth is just right. The sun provides for both the greenness of the hills and for the water. Then there is so much beautiful scenery in our world which inspires us to create poems and songs. If these songs and poetry are created by human beings, how could the Nature which inspires men in this way have been created by accident?

One of my neighbors has a lovely multi-coloured cat which often strolls through our back yard. It makes me think about all the amazing organs that are working away inside one animal. Inside the small body of the cat there are so many cells and networks all linked together by the circulation system and working in with the heart, lungs and other organs. They seem to operate together by following some kind of system. How could such a complex body have evolved from one single cell? If animals evolved from lower forms to the higher, why do we not find some animals that are only half-developed? For instance, what was a cat before it was fully evolved? Shouldn't its body have some kind of fish scales, or tail, or lungs?

Is it possible that Darwin noticed that the physical bodies of humans and monkeys had many similarities so he surmised that man must have evolved from the monkeys? In fact, a cat's physical structure is quite similar to a human being's. I remember when I was taking anatomy in college, because we did not have enough human cadavers, some of the students were given cats for dissection. If the muscles and inner organs of a cat are similar to those of human beings, should we conclude that one day cats will evolve into humans or some other kind of high class animal?

And another question - can evolution explain why an animal can feel satisfied after being fed and having a good sleep, but a man cannot? Humans are not satisfied simply by having their basic needs met. Man also has needs at the mental level, so that he may be inspired to create poetry and or paint a picture. People need inspiration for their creativity. They seek for the meaning of life, because there is an emptiness in their hearts.

Is this seeking a part of their evolution from animals, which have no such demand? Our elementary school textbooks always said, "Labor makes the man." Does this mean that after a monkey had finished its work, such as hunting or farming, it developed an ability to write poetry or draw pictures? If not, then where would a monkey get an urge to work and then advance to making tools to facilitate its work? If man evolved from monkeys, shouldn't there be more new human beings being evolved today?

Evolution has no answers to any of these questions. But the Bible has clearly told us that matter, human beings and all other life-forms were created by God. All belong to their own species. The reason for the physical similarities between the bodies of human beings and animals is because they have all come from the same Creator. Man is different from all other living beings, not because they belong to a different species but to a different category. Man has a spirit, so he is able to write poetry or produce works of art. This is because God "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being." (Genesis 2:7). In addition, God created man according to His own image. (Genesis 1:27); Therefore, man has wisdom and a moral sense, as well as free will. Man is able to know God.

Not to honor or flatter the western foreigners

If man is created by God, he must have been created for a purpose. What is the meaning of human life? Why do we often feel so empty?

When I was a freshman in college, I often felt a sense of sadness about life and even wept. Before this, I had worked hard to pass the college entrance examination. I did pass the exam and went on to the University of Wu-Han. But the joys of being successful lasted only a short time. This college life, envied by so many, was not really all that special.

A lot of people told me, "If you want to be fulfilled, you must have big dreams, like getting rich or achieving a high status." So I set another goal for myself - to find a good husband and a good job. Pretty soon, this goal was reached. After graduation, I was assigned to teach in Hua-Chong Engineering College. I was then quickly given an opportunity by the research and curriculum division to study for a master's degree in Wu-Han University. After a few months, instead of going on to further study, I married a Ph.D. student who would be going abroad to study. So we came to America.

I came with so many wonderful dreams. America is a strong wealthy country, the place many people long to come to. I dreamed of finishing my studies and enjoying life here. I thought I could ask no more of life. In the early months when I first came to America, I was very happy. But the happiness was soon replaced by loneliness. I could not make any use of my professional skills and could only work illegally in a restaurant.

Every morning when I woke up, I would stare up at the ceiling and wonder whether today would be different from yesterday: "Is this the only purpose of my life?" Then, I set another great goal for myself - I wanted to own a house and cars and have sons, as well as a good job. To be just like so many Americans. I even wanted to dye my hair blonde and to have blue eyes. I wanted Americans to envy me!

After more than 10 years of struggle, I had everything I had dreamed of. But when I looked at my big house and car and our two sons, I did not have the joy and contentment I expected. I only felt that all these things that many envy were not really that special. I juggled my life between career, housework, and raising children. As day followed day, my life felt increasingly boring. My heart was like the description in Ecclesiastes: "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless. What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?" "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun." (Ecclesiastic 1;1-3,9) I asked myself, "What's the meaning of my life?" 

After I believed in Jesus, I realized that when God created man, He left an empty space in man's heart. Worldly things like career, money or position cannot fill it. This space needs to be filled by God Himself or man simply labors in vain.
Friends ask me why I worship a western God and not a Chinese one? They think I am honoring and flattering a God who belongs to the western world. My grandmother was a very devout Buddhist. All her life she was a vegetarian, and worshiped the Buddhist gods, but she struggled so much with pain and worried a lot. Her religion brought her no sense of peace or blessing. Why should I worship such an incompetent god? But after I believed in Jesus, the emptiness in my life was taken away. Every day I am filled with joy and thankfulness. Often I sing praises to God in my heart. Why should I not worship this God just because some one thinks He is a "western god"?

The creator of Buddhism, Shi-Ja-Mo-Ni , did not claim to be the God who created the universe. Why should we exalt him as God? And he is already dead. How can we expect a dead person to bless or love us? A Buddha is made of clay and cannot even save itself if it falls into the water. How can it save us?

I remember that it says in the Bible, "But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see; they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but they cannot smell; they have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but they cannot walk; nor can they utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them." (Psalm 115:4-8). Is this kind of god worthy of man's worship?

The originator of Islam, Muhammad, never claimed to be God either. He is dead also and has nothing to do with me. There are so many Muslim terrorists, and Muslims do not treat women fairly. They don't have the God who loves me. I believe that God is the totality of "truth, goodness, and beauty". Those who believe in Him will have God's qualities. From the fruit of a tree, you can judge how good the tree is. No matter how many beautiful words you use to decorate a false god, you will see its falsity from the bad fruit produced by its followers.

Only Jesus, when I did not even know Him, because of His love for me, died for me on the cross. "God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8). Therefore, He is not only the God of western foreigners, but also the God of the Chinese. He is the God of every person in this world.

Why do I believe in Jesus? Because I cannot convince myself that there is no God, and so reject the existence of God. I believe that He is the only true God. Apart from Him, all we are left with is emptiness.

Now I live in His presence every day. Unconditionally, He gives me His joy and peace. Do I have any reason not to believe in Jesus?

There is a verse in the Bible: "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matt. 16:26). I am exchanging faith for life. Isn't that the most valuable investment? Now, my friends, you know why I believe in Jesus!

The author is from China and, now lives in CA.