Godless: How an Evangelical Preacher Became One of America's Leading Atheists

by Dan Barker

I used to think that everything that happened to me had a spiritual significance. If I was looking for a parking space and a car pulled out of a space right near where I wanted to be, then I would say, “Thank you, Jesus, for giving me a place to park.” If I had to park six blocks away, I would say, “Thank you, Jesus, for teaching me patience.” The bible says “All things work together for good to them that love God.” I viewed all income as an undeserved gift from heaven. I tried to interpret every news event as fitting into God’s plan for the world. If something bad happened then I would say, “There is the price for evil.” If something good happened then I would say, “There is a sign of God’s blessing.” Any news from the Middle East was a sign that God was focusing attention on the site of the arena for the last days, which was just around the corner. Nothing in my life was accidental. Every occurrence was a lesson to be learned, or a part of divine purpose, or a temptation from the Devil. Behind the visible world was a very real spiritual world inhabited by angels, demons, spirits and saints, all fighting to win my soul and demolish the other side. As you might imagine, this made my life very interesting.