No Atheist Protest But Time Well Spent With One Atheist

Last Thursday, I was working from home on my newest research project on stromatolites, when I received a call from our Director of Outreach, Steve Ham, asking if I would be willing to fill in for Dr. Dave Menton at a conference with Ken Ham and Todd Friel that weekend in Charleston, West Virginia. I wanted to immediately say yes because I knew it would be an awesome opportunity, but I needed to check with the hubby first. He was able to not work on Saturday, so he could take care of our daughter Elizabeth, and by Friday afternoon I was on my way. (A special thanks goes to my hubby and daughter—Chris and Elizabeth—I couldn’t do this without their support!)

I am a big fan of Wretched TV and Radio, so it was a pleasure to hear Todd Friel speak in person for the first time. He interviewed me at the museum last year for his show, and he is not only tall but has a personality that is larger than life. He is a very funny guy but also has a tremendous heart for the gospel. It was great to share a few meals with him as well. Ken gave presentations on the importance of biblical authority and most-asked questions. I gave presentations on the cell and DNA (I even added a few new animations to this presentation, and it turned out awesomely!) A local atheist group planned a protest but it never materialized—literally (see Ken’s blog and Facebook page for more information).

On Sunday Ken presented at a local church, which I also attended. At a brunch that the church provided between the two sessions, one of our outreach coordinators introduced me to a young atheist, Dennis, who had come that morning. He had many questions and we had a lively conversation for about 30 minutes. Dennis is sitting directly across from me at the table in the picture below. He had several questions that pertained to changes that bacteria and viruses undergo and wanted to know if that was evidence for evolution. I explained it was not, and why. This has been the focus of research I have done in the past, so I hope he will email me and I will be able to send him links to my articles on the topics (see here, here, and here).

We briefly talked about the basis for morality, and I shared with him how good and bad can only be determined if we start with the God’s Word as the ultimate authority. His other “big” question was basically, How could a loving God . . . ? This is one we hear a lot. I shared with him about my own trials and the importance of the framework of Scripture to understand why we live in a cursed and fallen world (a result of man’s actions) and the hope we have in Jesus Christ. He shook hands with me when we finished, and I gave him my card and suggested a couple of resources like The Ultimate Proof of Creation and Genetic Entropy and the Mystery of the Genome. Dennis is searching for the truth; please pray that he finds it in God’s Word.

I was glad for the opportunities God gave me on this trip, but am glad to be back home and looking forward to the celebration of many birthdays this month (including my daughter’s—she’ll be seven!) and Thanksgiving with family and friends.

Conversing with an atheist