Bill Powell - I Dare You To Read This Book: The Whole Thing

ISBN: 9781624884337

Thanks to all the many people who crossed my path and influenced me along the way. I dont take claim to much of the content. I only drew from mine and others life experiences in an attempt to sort out the fact from the fiction, the truth from error, philosophy from reality. Some say your truth is your truth and mine is mine when in reality your faith is your faith and mine is mine. I ask you, what is your faith based on?

I am now in my sixties and I have been a fairly active guy. I have been on my Christian journey since I was 21 years old. I have met some wonderful people along the way and made a lot of mistakes. If you learn the most from your mistakes then I must be a pretty smart guy. My life has been an evolution of sorts. I have seen so many changes. I remember in the 70s someone asked me, What is the only permanent thing in life? The first thing out of my mouth of course was death and taxes.

The reply was No, you only pay taxes if you earn an income and many dont earn an income; they are dependent on others. Many believe the rich dont pay any taxes. Well, if you buy anything you pay taxes. No, there are some people who dont buy anything; so taxes are not permanent. To those who believe in an afterlife, death isnt permanent. I am actually quite excited about my life after my death. So death isnt permanent.

The answer is the only permanent thing in life is change. Change seems to be constant. Change can be good and it can be bad. I have to admit lately I wake up and find myself dazed. Where did that come from or when did that happen? Have you ever said, No way, I cant believe it! or Who would have thought? A common phrase for me now is, Youre kidding me! Much has changed in the course of my life.

I would never have believed that the mention of Jesus Christ would bring so many court cases and angst in our society. Manger scenes, crosses, Easter, Christmas, prayer, and the Ten Commandments were once non-controversial parts of every day life. Today there are people who even fight to have crosses removed from graveyards and many chaplains cant use the name of Christ.

Homosexuality was rarely a topic. In the course of my life until recently I never knew of anyone that was gay. Sodomy was against the law in most states. Cross-dressing was considered a deviant behavior. Today these things are taught in some schools and many champion the gay cause as if it qualifies as civil rights that must be accepted, taught and protected.

Animals have been elevated to human status. We have Mosques everywhere. Being against the killing of unborn babies is considered being political. Freedom of speech is gone unless you want to be accused of being politically incorrect, slandered or jailed.

We have microwave ovens, the internet, 80 inch HD TVS, phones that are mobile and you can talk and see each other any where in the world. Forty years ago these things would have been in a science fiction movie.

I remember in the early 70s a guy showed me an article that said gas would one day be $1.00 a gallon. Yeah right, I said maybe in a hundred years. Another guy told me there is enough oil in Texas to last forever. Automobiles that had 100,000 miles were considered a miracle because they lasted so long.

I remember being taught in schools about the evils of Communism and the fear of nuclear war. Our freedoms were the bedrock of our nation. We were proud of our freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom to bear arms and the freedom of religion. We were proud to be Americans and we were the number one producers of almost anything you could mention, even food. If it was made in Japan or China it was laughed at and considered junk.

Well, the purpose of this book is not to send you down memory lane. Change is not the only permanent thing. Some things never change and one of them is truth. 2 John 2 because of the truth which abides in us and will be with us forever: (NKJV)

God never changes. Malachi 3:6 For I [am] the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. (KJV)

Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday, today, and forever. (NKJV)

The title of this book is not just a ploy to get you to buy it. It is my chance to have that complete discussion with anyone willing to make the effort to consider his or her eternity. If I can get you to read this whole thing, I know I may make you angry, challenge you, or maybe, just maybe change your life. To be honest, I hope to aid in changing your eternity. I will be happy if I can at least get you to think and consider what you believe and why you believe it if I can just get you to read the whole thing.

One way to describe this book is to say it is a book on Epistemology. What is that? Well, here is the Wikipedia definition:

Epistemology (from Greek (epistm), meaning knowledge, science, and (logos), meaning study of) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature and scope (limitations) of knowledge.[1][2] It addresses the questions:

• What is knowledge?
• How is knowledge acquired?
• To what extent is it possible for a given subject or entity to be known?

Much of the debate in this field has focused on analyzing the nature of knowledge and how it relates to connected notions such as truth, belief, and justification. Another perennial concern of the field is the possibility that there is very little or no knowledge at allskepticism. The field is sometimes referred to as the theory of knowledge

Actually, this is a book of common sense about distinguishing which knowledge is true and required. I hope you enjoy it and I dare you to read the whole thing.

The purpose for this book is simple. I hope to encourage everyone willing to read it to evaluate his or her belief system and decide if it is based on valid information. Simply, do you know what you believe and why? Have you ever heard the expression, you dont know what you dont know? Are there things you dont know that are essential, and do you perhaps hold to beliefs that are based on a false premise? What is your foundation?

I think all of us have to agree we have made decisions, formed beliefs, established traditions and cast judgments based on erroneous information or what others have told us and in some cases what we have pulled out of thin air. We all have to agree we have been wrong or just didnt know. Are you wrong on some of your positions? Do you even consider that you may be on the wrong side of truth? Are you misinformed or just plain ignorant? As a kid you may have believed in the tooth fairy or Santa Claus. I dont want to use this book to take on the right or wrong of that belief, but as kids, sooner or later the facts come in and we quit leaving cookies for Santa and stop putting our teeth under the pillow. I intend to challenge you to look at what you think and believe. Now you may say I never did stupid things like that. I contend maybe you didnt do stupid things like that but you have done and believe stupid things if you are honest with yourself. Do you want to be ignorant, stupid, or maybe just clueless?