Random Designer: Created from Chaos to Connect with the Creator
206
Random Designer: Created from Chaos to Connect with the Creator
206Hardcover
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Overview
Random Designer proclaims a new vision of God’s creation. Written using simplified language and illustrations for working professionals, pastors, teachers, students and general audiences, Random Designer establishes a whole new creation paradigm. It describes how the forces of randomness and chaos, which play central roles in our physical existence, are actually creative. The Creator simply taps these apparently random physical processes to accomplish his higher goal – the creation of human beings capable of consciously perceiving and acknowledging him.
With this new awareness, we, as his ultimate creation, are free to explore the limits of our physical and spiritual potential. For the first time, we can freely consider what it means to be made in the Creator’s image, to sense and acknowledge His presence and to experience a close meaningful relationship with Him.
If you have ever been told that to be a Christian you must choose between science OR faith; evolution OR creation; Biology OR the Bible, the message of Random Designer is that this is simply untrue: God is in them all. Thus Random Designer invites believers and non-believers to reconsider the question of God.
Random Designer takes a more positive and constructive approach. Introducing a concept called random design, Random Designer explains many basic principles of life, then uses these insights to reveal how science and biology - including evolution – are fully compatible with belief in God.
The essence of Random Design is elegantly simple: No Limits! From the formation of the heavens to the development and nurture of life itself, all possibilities are automatically assembled and tested. Thus, in the most unexpected and extraordinary ways, random design endows all creation with boundless life-giving potential. The ultimate result is nothing less than spectacular - Us!
For ages, Christians have huddled in fear behind scientifically indefensible concepts of creation, like 6-day creationism and now intelligent design, quaking in the thought that science might somehow have the power to disprove God’s existence. Random Designer helps show that this is not true. Science has no such power! On the other hand, God is not limited to literal interpretations of scripture, nor will He remain confined to rigid, man-made religious doctrines. His creation and revelation are ongoing. People must never be required to deny the realities of God’s living world in order to be accepted into the community of Christian faith.
The truth is that the science-religion conflict is but a man-made myth: There is no conflict in the mind of God. Faith and intellect really can go hand in hand: They need never be at war.
If the ultimate goals of Christian apologetics are to seek out truth and to credibly keep God in the equation of life, Random Designer accomplishes this goal. By building credible bridges between science and faith, it establishes a safe harbor – a place where one can freely explore and embrace the wonders of God’s creation revealed by science while at the same time holding fast to faith and belief in God. Reflecting the highest intelligence, Random Designer creates a scientifically accurate conceptual framework where science is free, but just as importantly, God’s place is permanently secure!
Random design seems like a paradox – a contradiction of terms. But random does not mean unimportant or without design. A message of hope, purpose, and peace resonates from the apparent randomness! In fact, it has always been this way. In the midst of the most profound mysteries and apparent paradoxes, there one encounters the miraculous.
Random Designer is a relationship quest - the story of an eternal Creator who harnesses the apparent random forces of nature for an exquisite and divine purpose – to draw mankind to Himself.
Join the journey to discover the true Random Designer - God. The adventure begins with a single step of faith!
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780975390405 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Browning Press |
| Publication date: | 09/21/2004 |
| Pages: | 206 |
| Product dimensions: | 6.36(w) x 9.38(h) x 0.80(d) |
About the Author
Richard Colling has served twenty-seven years as Professor and Chair of the Biological Sciences Department at Olivet Nazarene University. He has bachelor's degrees in Zoology and Chemistry, and a Ph.D. degree in Microbiology from the University of Kansas. He also completed a post-doctoral research appointment in molecular oncology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. His academic teaching experience is broad; having taught courses in biochemistry, genetics, molecular/cell biology, microbiology, immunology, and general science and biology courses for non-science majors. He is a passionate classroom instructor, and has also served as a biotechnology consultant.
In the past decade, an ever-widening gulf has developed within the evangelical Christian community regarding the understanding of evolution and its relationship to the Christian faith. Random Designer attempts to bridge this tragic and unnecessary divide.
Recognized for his outstanding Christian example, teaching, leadership, and service to the community, Colling believes that open honest inquiry nurtures a strong resilient faith. Derived from many years of experience at the cusp of science and Christian education, Colling's unique scientific perspective as well as his personal faith offer a fresh new voice in the science-religion discussions.
Recreationally, Colling enjoys baseball, golf, racquetball, and spending time with family and friends. He and his wife Sally have four grown sons.
Read an Excerpt
Random Designer has been many years in the making and comes at a time when the forces of science and religion seem increasingly at odds with one another. I have watched the debate for decades, believing that the flawed assumptions driving this controversy would inevitably be exposed, allowing the truth of science and the truth of religious faith to find common ground. Unfortunately, the rhetoric has only intensified and the positions hardened. The result is an ever-widening chasm within our society that even invades the Christian community. The growing atmosphere of accusation, fear and distrust is destroying relationships and in subtle ways systematically undermining the credibility of religious faith in general. I wrote Random Designer to help bridge this tragic and unnecessary divide by reassessing some of the most common theological assumptions about God and His creativeness. I recognize the process may be slow: Changed thinking can only take place in minds open to change. Therefore, I hope you will read Random Designer as I attempted to write it, with an openness to truth regardless of how it is reavealed.
"The truth is the scientific facts are also God's facts."
"The intellectual credibility of those who refuse to let God out of the box will be weakened and their authority to speak on other important issues will be significantly compromised."
"Maybe this is what it really means to be fully human - to not only be self-aware but also God-aware."
"There can be no doubt that we are exceedingly more than just our chemistry."
"We are created for connection and relationship."
"He alone can tell us who we really are and what we can become."
"When all is said and done, the ultimate objective and purpose in life apears to boil down to this one crucial action - to answer His invitation to relationship. If this is the case, then what further evidence is required before we say, "Yes?" He is the hope that never goes away - unless we send Him away."
What People are Saying About This
Max Reams, Ph.D. Professor of Geology, Olivet Nazarene University.
"In each decade, a few writers turn a key that opens a new door to understanding how God acts as Creator. I encourage those who might have rejected worn-out views of God as Creator to read Random Designer before checking out on Him altogether. You might just find yourself drawn to a real, loving, and compassionate God who is concerned enough to inspire someone to write this book for you."
Teresa K. Woodruff, Ph.D. Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.
"I strongly recommend Random Designer for those who desire to understand how to more effectively integrate science and faith."
Dan Boone, President, Trevecca Nazarene University, Nashville, Tennessee.
"Dr. Colling has strong scientific credentials. I have strong theological credentials. I wish I were as good a scientist as he is a theologian. I strongly recommend Random Designer to all who are willing to face the mystery of life as an explorer."
John C. Sutherland, MD. "for all Christians, especially those who feel threatened by evolution, Random Designer is a must-read."
Richard Thompson, Chair, Dept of Religion and Philosophy, NNU, Nampa Idaho.
"Here is a book that brings faith and science together in fresh ways!"