The Christian and the Atheist Agree: Nothing Matters

I'm an unapologetic, evangelical born-again Christian.  There are enough adjectives in that statement to let you know I'm serious about my faith.

I also happen to be very good friends with an unapologetic, militant atheist.  One who is as determined that his extreme position is correct as I am about mine.

He's a delightful person and we have incredibly stimulating conversations that leave my neurons buzzing for hours afterwards.

And we have more in common than you might think.
Here's the absolute truth that both of us believe.  (Although, ironically, he would argue here about the existence of absolute truth!)

Nothing matters.

That's it!  Two words we can wholeheartedly agree on at the end of the day.

His circumstances don't matter because he doesn't matter.  He's a conglomeration of cells that came together purely by chance and for no obvious purpose.  There's no moral imperative for him to behave by any set of rules other than the ones he determines matter.  He will live his life and die and turn into so much worm food; ashes to ashes and dust to dust and the world can continue turning, oblivious to his birth and his death and everything in between, as new little piles of ashes and dust are birthed into new people to take his place with no apparent purposes of their own.  In his worldview, nothing matters.


My circumstances don't matter, either, but for different reasons, all of them completely opposite of my friend's.  I was woven together in the secret place of my mother's womb and all of the days ordained for me were written down before one of them came to be.  God chose the time and place of my birth, my life, my death.  He numbers the hairs on my head and collects my tears in a jar.  He is familiar with all of my ways:  the words on my tongue before they're spoken; the thoughts of my mind; the motives of my heart.  He looks upon my inward being.  He created good works for me to do in advance and fills me with His Spirit and His power to complete them. My life is brimming with purpose and what I do in His name will last forever in His eternal kingdom. And the reason that my circumstances don't matter is that everything - EVERYTHING! - that comes my way is considered and approved and tempered by His will for my life.  Whether blissful or tragic, I can trust that the Creator of the Universe is working on my behalf, wasting nothing in His plans to finish the good work that He started in me the day I became His child.  Even death has lost its sting, because ultimately some tragic circumstance will steal the breath out of my lungs and use up my very last heartbeat.  On that day, my eyes will open to a more glorious reality than anything I've asked or imagined as I see my Heavenly Father face to face.

Nothing can thwart God's purposes for my life, so great is His love, His power, His grace towards me. This is why I can laugh during a biopsy, smile through tears at a funeral, face the endless tasks of the day with joy in my heart.  Because everything about my life matters to God, nothing that happens in this world has to matter all that much to me.  As I place my life, my hopes, my dreams, my circumstances under His lordship, I can also release my fears, doubts, and concerns for the future into His capable hands.  The more days that I walk in His light, the more quickly my heart settles into this restful mindset when circumstances spin out of my control.

When tragedy strikes on a random Thursday afternoon, my friend can only shake his head and consider that nothing really matters.

I can do the same, resting in the full assurance that God has everything under control.  I pray daily that my friend will eventually come to the same wonderful conclusion when he puts his faith in Jesus.