Why am I a Christian, anyway?

Discussing my thoughts about Dawkins arguments in my last post naturally begs this question. And I would like to share briefly how I became a Christian, and more importantly, what keeps me going, in spite of the obvious challenges that being of a curious, analytical mindset raises.

First, I became a Christian at the age of fourteen, or at least that's when I made it my own, and chose to follow Christ for myself, not just because it was the way I had been raised. I made the decision at a moment of crisis when, confronted with ideas from other religions, I realized I needed to decide what I believed. Although I respected the idea of constant searching for truth from Eastern traditions, I felt that Christianity had the most cohesive argument of any religious system I was familiar with at the time: it explains where we all came from, why things don't seem right in the world, and what the God who created it all has done and is doing about it, and what will become of everything in the end.

Created by a Holy, just God in His image, man sinned and was separated from the creator. Man's sin is so pervasive that he cannot earn forgiveness on His own, because God's holiness and justice cannot be attained by man. Yet God is also loving and merciful, so He sent Christ to die on the cross, thereby satisfying the justice of God, while allowing Him to extend His love and mercy to man. But man must accept it in order to escape the justice of God.

That still makes more sense to me than any other belief system out there. But what really keeps me going in Christ is the growth I've experienced in all the years since, the experience of living the Christian life. Thinking Christianly about world issues, consttantly seeking to grow and learn more, and to deepen my relationship with God through Christ, as well as to take action and actively love people as Christ loves them are all the reasons I still find Christianity to be the most satsifying, freeing, and enjoyable experience of faith.