Finding God in the Questions: A Personal Journey, By Timothy Johnson

Finding God in the Questions

A Personal Journey

by Timothy Johnson

Finding God in the Questions
paperback
  • Length: 232 pages
  • Dimensions: 5.5 × 8.25 in
  • Published: February 07, 2006
  • Imprint: IVP
  • Item Code: 3347
  • ISBN: 9780830833474

*affiliate partner

  • Named one of the 2004 Top Ten Religious Books by the Massachusetts Bible Society
  • #8 on the New York Times Hardcover Advice Bestseller List! (June 14, 2004)
  • #7 on the Publishers Weekly Religion Hardcover Bestseller List (October 2004)

Do you wonder whether or not God is real?

Do you doubt that religion can be relevant?

Do you wish that faith were possible for you?

Don't shy away from your questions, says Dr. Timothy Johnson, medical editor for ABC News. He believes that's where God meets you--in the midst of honest grappling with heartfelt issues.

In this remarkable book, Dr. Johnson discloses his deeply personal journey of faith. With the same keen mind accustomed to medical and scientific examination, he investigates the plausibility of God's existence and explores the significance of the person of Jesus. Despite all the difficulties of faith, he explains what he believes and why. He writes,

"As a physician, I have committed my professional life to healing and wellness. But my public work is only a small part of who I really am--or rather, who I want to be. This book is, in a sense, 'the rest of the story.'

"For many people, religion provides answers to the big questions of life. For others, the absolute claims of religion raise more questions than they answer. I have lived on both sides--and in some senses, I still do. My path of faith has wandered through both doubt and belief, often at the same time.

"Doubt doesn't have to tear down belief, however; it can purify it. When it does, the beliefs on the other side become more certain. This is why I would like to affirm that it is possible to find God even while you are still asking the big questions."

Come join a fellow pilgrim on the journey. Ask your questions--and perhaps find God behind them.

This new paperback edition includes a new afterword and a study guide with questions for personal reflection or group discussion.

"I've worked with and admired Dr. Tim for more than fifteen years. His life and career--the way he conducts himself both in private and on TV--have always been extraordinary role models for me. That's why I'm thrilled that readers around the world will now be able to get to know the Dr. Tim I've come to cherish--a man of rare integrity and wisdom, boundless generosity and deep faith."

Michael Guillen, former science editor, ABC News

"Tim Johnson has excelled in two of the most skeptical arenas of American life--media and medicine--while holding on to a strong and intelligent faith. Now America's best-known TV news doctor shares his own questions and his decades-long journey making sense out of the faith that shapes his life."

Peggy Wehmeyer, host and managing editor, World Vision Report, and former religion correspondent, ABC News

"Dr. Johnson treats the soul as a wise physician treats the body, with honesty, tenderness and compassion. His introspective look at his own spiritual journey helped illuminate my own."

Philip Yancey, author of Rumors of Another World and What's So Amazing About Grace?

"Dr. Timothy Johnson takes the reader on an exciting and highly informative spiritual journey. He casts a medically trained and critical eye on the evidence for answers to questions that haunt every human being--questions concerning our identity, our purpose in life and our destiny. Both the believer and the unbeliever will find this excellent book so challenging and so absorbing they will find it difficult to put down."

Armand Nicholi Jr., M.D., Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, and author of The Question of God

"If you've ever wondered whether Christian faith can hold up to the toughest questions of our day, this is the book for you. Dr. Timothy Johnson gives us a relentlessly honest exploration of the biggest questions of all: Can we believe in God in the face of the discoveries of science? And can Christian faith really be credible for a tough-minded seeker? Dr. Johnson never settles for easy answers. Along the way he offers wonderfully practical counsel for living not just the spiritual life but the good life. He has given us a wise, vigorous, inspiring guide for the religious quest."

Dr. Sam Lloyd, Dean, National Cathedral, Washington, D.C.

"To all of his colleagues here at ABC News, Timothy Johnson has always been a generous dispenser of medical advice and balm to the soul. To accompany him now on these chapters of his own spiritual journey is to find confirmation of the possibility that great accomplishment and humility can coexist."

Ted Koppel, former Anchor and Managing Editor, ABC News Nightline

"Dr. Tim Johnson, minister and physician, brilliantly analyzes his struggle with religious belief when juxtaposed to emerging scientific discoveries. The result is a deep humanitarian exposition of the significance of the teaching of Jesus, which provides a firm foundation for addressing life's challenges."

Dr. Joseph Martin, Dean, Harvard Medical School

"While peppered with gently humorous asides and personal observations, the overall focus of the book is not on Johnson himself but on the questions he explores."

Publishers Weekly, March 8, 2004 (starred review)
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CONTENTS

Preface

Acknowledgements

Section 1: Does God Exist?
1. Why Do the Questions Keep Coming?
2. Is the Universe an Accident?
3. How Did We Get Here?
4. Who Are We?

Section 2: What Is God Like?
5. Why Bother with Religion and the Bible?
6. What Did Jesus Teach?
7. Who Was Jesus?

Section 3: What Difference Does It Make?
8. How Should Faith Shape Our Lives?
9. Is God in Control?
10. Can We Bet on the Heart of God?

Epilogue

Suggested Reading

Notes

Bibliography

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Timothy Johnson

Dr. Timothy Johnson (MD, MPH) is well-known as the medical editor for ABC News. He has reported on health care issues for Good Morning America since 1975. He also provides on-air analysis of medical news for World News Tonight, Nightline, and 20/20. Johnson holds joint positions in medicine at Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He is the founding editor of The Harvard Medical School Health Letter and coeditor of The Harvard Medical School Health Letter Book. He is the author of Dr. Timothy Johnson's OnCall Guide to Men's Health and coauthor with former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. C. Everett Koop of Let's Talk. Having completed seminary before medical school, Johnson also serves as assisting minister of the Community Covenant Church in West Peabody, Massachusetts.