"Only real people can ask questions and mean them. The longing for answers stems from an ability to grow. The need for answers stems from a need to grow. It is our desire for communication that makes us who we are. The one who answers grows just as the one who asks, that which was hidden is revealed and put into the light."

"Are you saying I should ask more questions?"

"I'm saying you should watch for the answers. God knows more about you than even you know about you, but you must be careful to accept the answers you need over those you want."

Tom looked me straight in the eye, having the look of one wise well beyond his years. "They say to go to church you have to turn your brain off. Now I will ask a question: Do you feel any dumber yet?"

"Maybe 'they' don't want to give up who they are," I replied. "People value their independence. They don't want to give it up to a God they can't see, or whose book makes no sense."

"Are Christians any less individual?" Tom asked. "Are non-Christians any less dependent on each other? Even the most self-sufficient person relies on others constantly. Where does the electricity come from? Who wrote the books they study from? Who grew the food they eat and purified the water they drink? Why... even a man living off the land without a single luxury is at the mercy of his natural environment. If we all have to serve something or someone outside of ourselves, doesn't it make the most sense to serve the One who made us, cares for us, and loves us?"