Simple Faith: Something Worth Living For (Paperback or Softback)

As Christians, how do we know what we know? This simple question challenges the nature of information, how we learn, decision making, who we are, and who this God is that we worship. If this challenge appears optional; it is not—our post-Christian culture questions every faith assumption. Simple Faith examines these questions and discusses implications for faith and life.An important implication of this study is that faith plays a critical role into how we think, learn, and make decisions in the context of limited resources and an uncertain future. Even scientific inquiry requires faith, which normally gets hidden in untested assumptions and presumptions about what is interesting to investigate. Often the critical arguments driving our decisions are not cold hard facts, but the stories that we tell in the midst of complex decision environments.The timing of this inquiry is critical. The movement from modern to postmodern thinking has upended most institutions, but especially the Christian church. The separation of heart and mind, which characterizes modern thinking, eroded faith leaving the church in a weak position to adapt to the rapid changes accompanying postmodernism. Ironically, postmodern thinking that values storytelling favors Christian faith because the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the best story around.Keywords: epistemology, faith, Christian philosophy, theology Christianity, knowledge, decision makingCategories: Spiritual growth, apologetics

Author Stephen W. Hiemstra lives in Centreville, VA with Maryam, his wife of more than thirty years. Together, they have three grown children.

Stephen worked as an economist for twenty-seven years in more than five federal agencies, where he published numerous government studies, magazine articles, and book reviews. He wrote his first book, A Christian Guide to Spirituality in 2014. In 2015, he translated and published a Spanish edition, Una Guía Cristiana a la Espiritualidad. In 2016, he wrote a second book, Life in Tension, which also focuses on Christian spirituality. In 2017, he published a memoir, Called Along the Way. In 2018, he published a Spiritual Trilogy (an eBook compilation) and his first hardcover book, Everyday Prayers for Everyday People.

Stephen has a Masters of Divinity (MDiv, 2013) from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC. His doctorate (PhD, 1985) is in agricultural economics from Michigan State. He studied in Puerto Rico and Germany, and speaks Spanish and German.

Correspond with Stephen at T2Pneuma@gmail.com or follow his blog at T2Pneuma.net.