Liberal Pundit Details Converting From Atheism and Agnosticism to Christianity After Seeing Jesus in a Dream

Liberal pundit Kirsten Powers stunned some political observers when she recently opened up about her evangelical Christian faith in an op-ed for Christianity Today, offering readers an inside look at her journey from atheism and agnosticism to a passionate belief in the Almighty.

Powers expounded upon this conversion on Sunday, telling television host Howard Kurtz that she was at first "creeped out" when a boyfriend asked her, "Do you believe that Jesus is your savior?"

Kirsten Powers (Credit: Fox News)

But during a yearlong journey of more closely examining theology, to her own surprise, Powers, who is regularly seen on Fox News, inevitably became an evangelical Christian.

As a former Democratic operative, she told Kurtz that much of her adult life was predicated upon her career in politics before converting seven years ago.

Living in a liberal and secular world, Powers said she was so isolated from people of faith that she didn't even know anyone who went to church (she did attend an Episcopal church as a child growing up in Alaska, but she described her faith then as being "flimsy"; by her 20s, she no longer seriously entertained belief in God).

But despite her liberal and secular political surroundings, something profoundly changed in 2006.

"I had an experience … it wasn't a one moment kind of thing, it was something that over a year probably of going to church and studying the Bible and a lot of different things," Powers told Kurtz.

There was an event, though, that catapulted her toward her faith. Powers described having a dream that "upended" her world -- a dream that led her to seek out her faith and to inevitably become a Christian.

In her Christianity Today article, Powers described the experience as follows: "Then one night in 2006, on a trip to Taiwan, I woke up in what felt like a strange cross between a dream and reality. Jesus came to me and said, 'Here I am.' It felt so real. I didn't know what to make of it. I called my boyfriend, but before I had time to tell him about it, he told me he had been praying the night before and felt we were supposed to break up. So we did. Honestly, while I was upset, I was more traumatized by Jesus visiting me."

That event led Powers to attend a Bible study, which, in turn, changed her theological worldview. While she said that it may have simply just been a dream like any other and not an actual apparition of sorts, Powers said that the incident helped move her faith along its course.

Of course, the conversion process wasn't simple and it didn't happen overnight. Powers, who is still politically progressive, told Kurtz that many people have questioned how she can be both politically liberal and theologically conservative.

While Powers has, at moments, felt what she described as "a real culture shock," she noted that she has met many like her who are Democrats, but who are conservative in their faith.

As for why she chose to come forward to share her faith, Powers said that Christianity Today approached her and asked if she would write the "coming out" article.

"I felt like, you know, this is a big part of my life … I couldn't think of any good reason to not write about it," she said. "I just thought, yeah, now's the time to come out of the closet."

Watch Powers describe her faith below:

Powers said that her conversion article sparked many positive comments and emails, even among her atheist friends who were intrigued by her experience. In the end, perhaps no one is more stunned by the fascinating faith story than Powers herself. She encapsulated this surprise in the lede of her article back in October.

"Just seven years ago, if someone had told me that I'd be writing for Christianity Today magazine about how I came to believe in God, I would have laughed out loud," she wrote. "If there was one thing in which I was completely secure, it was that I would never adhere to any religion -- especially to evangelical Christianity, which I held in particular contempt."

And now Powers is sharing her life and faith with the world. Read more about her faith journey here.

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Featured image via Shutterstock.com

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