‘One Simple Equation’: A Former Atheist Shares His Testimony
By Sarah Whitman/ Tampa Bay Faith
David Heizer remembers how he used to think about life.
Growing up in Baltimore, he was raised atheist. He viewed religion as bits of history mixed with foolish myth. He attended a highly academic Catholic High School but never adopted the faith.
For 42 years, Heizer dismissed any mention of God. He studied scientific and mathematical theories to form a more logical explanation for the universe. He sought success to fill the void –
Until the void became too great.
A series of life events led Heizer to view the Bible from a different perspective, open his heart and embrace the God he once discarded.
Heizer, who attends Limitless Church in New Tampa and works as an insurance sales manager for Humana, wants unbelievers to know the answers found in science and number theories don’t discount the Gospel, rather the two are linked together.
So, Heizer wrote a book, One Simple Equation: f=tl3, about his life as an atheist and the overwhelming evidence that led him to Christ and deep desire to share the gospel.
I spoke to Heizer about the book, its interesting title and the testimony behind it.
So, tell me about your book? Are you a mathematician? What does this title mean?
No, I’m not a mathematician. When I was an atheist I used to read every book I could by physicists and on subjects like the theory of relativity. Everyone knows Einstein’s equation ‘e=mc2.’ I wanted to title the book with a different type of equation, so ‘f=tl3’ is ‘Faith = Trust in the love of God.’ The cubed part symbolizes the love of the Son, the Father and the Holy Spirit. In my life, I went from being a devout atheist to someone who attends church regularly. I used that equation through the process.
You were raised atheist?
Yes. My mom was raised Catholic. My grandmother was actually a young Catholic nun who, in the convent, became ill. She left and moved to New York where she met my grandfather, then had my uncles and my mom. My mom was Catholic in the 40s, 50s and 60s, but she had bad experiences in the church. When she met my dad, who was an atheist, she had no interest in trying to convert him. So, that’s how we were raised.
My dad is still an atheist. My brother is an atheist. Really, part of the reason I wrote the book is I hoped it might spark something in them, that they would see the truth of it all. A good friend sent the book to reach one of her children and she said he is attending church now.
What happened that changed your outlook and led you to become a Christian?
It’s complicated. I was going through a brutal divorce about 10-11 years ago. I was being torn down every way you can imagine. In the midst of all that, I was diagnosed with cancer. Then, I started to feel as if I was being lifted up by something or someone. Things started to happen that I couldn’t explain with only scientific theories.
I started seeing a woman and attending church with her at Bayshore Baptist. I was there trying to understand what was going on in my mind. Then, we moved to New Tampa and found Limitless Church. The pastor said the way to truly experience the Body of Christ was to come to church, to get involved and serve others. I thought, ‘I don’t have the time,’ but I made the time. He said to join small groups. I thought, ‘I definitely don’t have the time,’ but I made the time. I slowly came to the conclusion that it wasn’t my time, it was God’s time. I was baptized in April, 2016.
Did writing this book open your eyes to anything you didn’t realize about your own story?
The whole process of coming to Christ shed light on so many things from throughout my life, even my childhood. I can see God was always there even though as a family we weren’t looking up. He was in everything.
How does the book address the connection between faith and science?
In the book, I share my experiences and understanding of the world as an atheist and as Christian. I had never read the Bible. Now, I’ve read it through twice. Nowhere in the Bible is any physics theory contradicted. A lot of my life, I dismissed it because there are these intricacies missing. In Genesis it doesn’t say exactly how the earth was formed, it says, ‘God said..’ People try to dismiss it because there isn’t enough detail but that’s not what the Bible is about.
The Bible was designed to be a love story between man and God. The Old Testament is about God pursuing His people, being rejected and continuing to pursue them. The New Testament is God saying, ‘You don’t believe me? I will sacrifice my one and only Son to prove how much I love you?’ And that’s exactly what He does for us.
Do you think atheism often stems from a bad experience or feeling hurt by the church, and that can be passed on through generations?
It certainly can be the case, but I also believe it goes deeper than that. I was raised by a very loving family. They were atheist but they were still at all my sporting events. They were supportive. I didn’t personally have a bad experience.
For me, being atheist was more of a pride thing. I thought of religion as a crutch that I didn’t need to use to get through life. I thought, ‘I can do it on my own. I got this.’ Now, I know it was Satan telling me that. I know, ‘I don’t have this.’ I need Jesus.
As an atheist, I was all about how much I could grab for myself. It was like I was always looking up a mountain at a box with a ribbon on it. I would climb the mountain, open the box and see it was empty inside. But then, there would be another box. It was just this series of empty boxes. I was always fighting up hill. Then, I realized what I was looking for was Christ, that gift was already there, the gift of salvation.
And everything changed?
Now, I know ‘God’s has this.’ I tend to be less anxious. I still feel anxious, only because I’m human, but it’s not the same type of anxiety. I get angry but, instead of trying to just deal with it, I trust God. If you know Christ, even if your physical body is going to die, you know in Him you will live forever. That’s what it’s all about. Whatever I go through, I know He loves me no matter what.
For more information on One Simple Equation F=TL3, visit https://www.facebook.com/onesimpleequation/. To purchase visit, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1400329957/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1.