Pathways to Joy

By Frank Lunn

Do you have a loved one who is an atheist ? This author started to write a letter to a loving family member. The letter became this short but compelling work. In simple prose, Frank Lunn describes two life events that led him on a search for joy, peace and contentment. He finds that this elusive goal has been achieved, surprisingly, by notable

• Language: English
• Publisher: Frank Lunn
• Release date: May 24, 2021
• ISBN: 9781639016754

Book preview

PATHWAYS TO JOY

Notable Atheists and Their Search for Truth

FRANK LUNN

(c) 2017 by Frank Lunn

Revised 2021 by Frank Lunn

All rights reserved solely by the author. The author guarantees all contents are original and do not infringe upon the legal rights of any other person or work. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without the permission of the author. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version (NKJV). Copyright (c) 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-63901-675-4

Contents

PREFACE

EYES OF JOY

THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA

THE COMMUNIST SYMPATHIZER

THE REALITY OF THE MYTH

THE SECULAR JEW

THE HOMICIDE DETECTIVE

THE ENGLISH POET

EVIDENCE CONCLUSIVE

BOGGED DOWN IN TIME

THE NOTORIOUS ATHEIST

THE IMPOSSIBLE MATHEMATICS

FREE WILL, EVIL & FAITH

PRAYER & JOY

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PREFACE

THIS BOOK is about JOY. In it, you will read of the extraordinary experiences of joy which overwhelmed these individuals as they concluded their search for the meaning of life.  They all shared a similar emotion, that of complete joy: the joy of receiving the grace of the Holy Spirit through their discovery and acceptance of Jesus Christ. 

This work began as a letter that I wanted to write to my daughter-in-law and my niece. These two beautiful and loving women are wonderful wives and mothers, and both are agnostics, if not atheists. I simply do not believe that a mother can truly believe that the child that she carried, delivered and nurtured is only a biological consequence and has no soul. I’ve wrestled for years as to the best way to address this, without causing some level of family conflict.

I gave considerable thought about the method of delivery of such a letter. My first idea was to attach it to my last will and testament. However, as a reasonably healthy sixty-six-year-old, the letter may not reach its addressees in such time as to make a difference.  As I began to write, and to try to say the things that I believed could make a difference, I was relying on my own difficult experience with understanding and accepting the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As I point out in the book, if I were God, I surely would have done it differently. Did He really have to make it so hard to understand, accept and believe?

I was very successful in my research: joy; peace; the end of doubt!

It then occurred to me that many people have no time or interest to do all the research that I did, and that perhaps a book, rather than a letter, could reach more souls. This book summarizes the joyful experiences of atheists who converted to Christianity and some of my thoughts on God, love and eternity. I hope that all the authors that I extensively quoted recognize that I’m just a retired engineer and have no great facility with the English language. It is easier to use their excellent opinions, experiences and observations to present the facts. I thank them for the contributions that they have made to my now joyful life.

Chapter I

EYES OF JOY

HAVE YOU EVER encountered anyone who just shone with joy? Completely content and at peace? I have.

In my sixty-six years, I’ve met only two people whose demeanors and attitudes challenged me to seek what they have found. I did a bit of reading and found numerous examples of similar incidents and have chronicled them in this work. All these examples have had a major impact on my attitude and have given me a path to personally experience a truly joyful life.

I’m still not there but I’m getting there, happily and peacefully; and in this evil world, it is a challenge, a real challenge. But, I’m proof that it can be done.

I’m writing this to share with you my rocky path to this smooth, but occasionally bumpy road, in hopes that you too will find joy. You can, but it does require some work, thinking, investigation and presence of mind.

Margaret, my wife, and I attended a Harlem Gospel Choir performance at BB King’s Blues Club and Grill in New York City. My memory is a little foggy, as it was over twenty years ago, but we were fortunate enough to be in the same place at the same time as the choir group. My recollection is that we were in the lobby when the choir came through the front door, and they hung around in the lobby for a few minutes.   

There she was!

It really is impossible to describe in words this choir singer’s radiant face. I could not take my eyes off her eyes: then her smile, her personification of happiness, and again.... those clear-as-a-bell eyes. Breathtaking! The absolute personification of happiness, delight and being completely at peace! I was awestruck and envious. I’ll never forget her and the impact she made on me that morning.

Simply and truly, this gospel singer had no doubts; you could see that in her eyes and her expressions. Isn’t it doubts that are at the root of our unhappiness? She was completely confident in her position in life and beamed with joy. She was so happy in the moment, in BB King’s place, in her life. She had accomplished that which so few of us ever do; no doubts, contentment, complete trust, and it shone in her eyes and her smile.

The second person who found complete peace was my own father. He lived to almost make his eighty-seventh birthday and struggled with various health issues in his last three years, but fortunately, never lost his mental health. I spoke with him weekly but was able to visit with him only once or twice a year. He was forty-five years older than me,