There are many people who have a hard time allowing themselves to believe in God. Yet they don't want to totally deny the possibility of the existence of God either. Basically they feel that the arguments are strong on both sides and they cannot come to a conclusion that will allow either belief to take hold. Blaise Pascal, writing in his Pens'ees (Thoughts), in the 17th century, proposed his famous wager. He addresses this issue head on.
As originally proposed by Pascal, he assumed that using pure logic alone, one cannot decide for or against the existence of God. But at the same time, the question is of such importance that one must make a decision. Therefore, after weighing not only the evidence, but also what is at stake, we must place our bets.
If you bet on Gods existence, and you are wrong, you lose nothing. If you bet against the existence of God, and you are wrong, you could lose everything. The flip side is this: If you bet on Gods existence and you are right, you could gain Heaven. If you bet against the existence of God and you are right you gain nothing.
Please think about this. What would a smart gambler do? If you bet on Gods existence and are wrong, you will never regret it. Because if at the point of death, the soul ceases to exist, then you wont even have time to regret your choice and will have lived a life inspired by hope of eternal reward. If you bet on Gods existence and you are right, the possibilities are endless. Eternal life, Heaven, the joy of spending eternity with a knowledge of the truth, etc. So therefore, if you bet on Gods existence, there are only two possible outcomes. First, you're wrong but lose nothing. Second, you're right and could gain everything.
So now you have a choice to make. You have just entered the Casino of life and there are two betting tables. One to bet against the existence of God. If you win at this table, the Casino give you nothing. If you lose the Casino takes everything. So why even consider betting there? At another table you can bet for the existence of God. If you lose at this table the Casino wont take anything from you. But if you win at this table the Casino will give you the eternal joy of Heaven. You are wagering your soul. Where will you place your bet?