I respect everyones believes I'm just curious.
It's difficult to answer this. One because I will probably get hate because some things will sound controversial, and because I don't know how to answer so this reply will not be well structured and instead will be all over the place. I don't know if I believe or am still searching. I don't know what is what. I think my view on God might be different from someone else's and that's what scares me. The possibility to our image of God being so different. Who is correct, or does God come in many forms? Like the brush speaking to Moses.
I know that the mind can be a very powerful thing. Belief can get you through a lot of things, but so does sheer will power. Just like depression, listening to the negative thoughts. Are the negative thoughts the Devil or is that just you? Is you getting an idea to do something great from you or God? That's what my struggle is. Just like my DID. Is it actual DID or a possession?
Would you believe it if I told you I met someone or something unnatural that resides in my city? The voice sounds off and distorted, eyes glowing, the literal agility of an animal, fangs. Until someone else passes by and all those features go away in the blink of an eye. Yet I am never harmed. Why not? What is she? Am I being protected or is that a choice of her own. The features scream textbook demon, but what if it isn't? What if it is something Holy? What if it is a spawn from Hell? Or a whole different entity? Whatever she is, I still bump into her every now and then.
Does God only appear when we pray? Only when things go bad? Only when things go well? I believe God to be everywhere all the time, but not as interactive.
A few days ago somebody asked a question that was more a statement of the asker's friend saying that "Bad people are put here to put the good people to the test." Partly I agree with that statement, that our time on Earth is a test. Life is the greatest gift in my opinion and how we live it is the ultimate test. However, I don't believe that "bad people are just put here". Rather people who are good who may have failed the test. That brings me to another question. To you, and other believers who hopefully haven't shunned me for what I've told you so far... What is a good person? Don't answer that. I'd like to rephrase it. Referencing to my second paragraph... Do you agree that we perceive differently on what's a good person and what is bad? What if the friend says he is being tested right now by a bad person who is actually a good person? Just like what we perceive God is, could be different.
I hope that explains things :(
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I found God in fiction quite often.
Reality? not so much
When I was younger, I left myself open to religion even though I was raised in an atheistic home. As a free-thinker into my teens I had more questions than answers, and less people were convincing. When I was about 21 I met a man who was an evangelical youth pastor, and we struck up a friendship. We amicably disagreed about how we saw the world, but I respected his point of view simply because he was my friend, a nice guy, and I quite liked him. Nothing ever convinced me though.
In my mid-20s I dabbled into some pagan spiritual practices that had nothing to do with Christianity, but I still felt like like none of it was for me, and saw through most of it as being nonsense. It was a bit of fun, but mainly the people involved were into dress up and reciting slick words to make themselves seem like something they weren't. It wasn't for me, and I didn't believe in any of it.
Since then, I've just been happily accepting that I'm an atheist and make no apology for it. I have friends from all walks of life, and I do like them as people, but their religion is something left to be desired for me. I'm into science too much to leave that to the side just to have faith in something that I don't see or know is there, and to be honest, has never really done anything for me anyway. I'm happy to not have faith in my life. I'm okay with just ending my days indefinitely when I die and have nothingness thereafter.
I am not Atheist, I am agnostic. I was raised Christian, I wore cross on my neck and went to church on Saturdays and Sundays. I prayed every night, and believed in God, truly.
After 15, I slowly realized my belief was more of a beautiful fairytale than a reality,
first I realized people are same everywhere in the world and everyone believes in their religion with the same intensity as I beoieved in mine, then what made my religion special? What made me different from all these people proving “No, my God is real, no our God is real”. Childish. I realized if there was a God, he myst have been only one and religions were silly,
Religions are created to better control people, and yes, maybe in the past they were sometimes helpful, but today we have laws.
Religion provides poor reward, if you live kindly in this life, you’ll get rewarded in afterlife.
Can anybody imagine a lion going vegetarian so that in heaven he can finally taste the meat?
Then I realized the world was a cruel place, not a nice place for people as idealistic as I was and I figured, God, must either be cruel sadist or blind, to let all this happen.
I took off my cross from my neck for the first time in life and put it next to my childhood belongings in my big box.
I don’t need religions to be kind. I am kind not because I will be rewarded in heaven, but because that’s who I am and I can’t be any other way.
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I've never been an athiest. But I have been a non-believer ( whether you want to call that an agnostic is up to you). But I have debated many atheists and while I don't want to paint all atheists with the same brush. The one one thing that permeated most of them is "arrogance". Most looked at "faith" as illogical and laughable. And many of them didn't have so much of a problem with Christians except for Christians perceived arrogance. And I get this notion. Because as I said, at one time I was a non-believer. At one time I found the cross offensive. The very idea! That you get saved and now you think you know something I don't.
I think a lot of Christians in thier zeal to share the gospel lose sight of this fact. I'm absolutely not ashamed of God. He is my well of strength. He's there when I know no one or nothing else is. But I also am aware my experience is not anyone else's. This is why I'll tell anyone atheists included. That I don't know anything they don't hell even if I did it wouldn't matter. Satan knows the Bible forward and backward. He could quote the Bible if it served his purposes. I don't know for an absolute fact what happens when I die. The only thing that is different about me now from 20 years ago when I didn't believe was I now have FAITH that I didn't have before. And faith is something that fluctuates. Some days it's easier to have faith than others. This is not a weakness nor does it make God any less real
2 years. Ago I was in the hospital praying to God. Everything in my life was going wrong. I prayed to God for an answer... Silence. I remembered from the bible that Jesus said "ask and it will be revealed to you". Now I knew that didn't mean God was going to text me. It means he will, you can trust God to always keep his word. That doesn't mean it'll be answered the way you expect or on your timeline. And that's at the heart of this. My faith waned in that time. But it's those times that your faith is tested. God never left me. And now I can look back and see how I grew in that time. Growing requires growing pains. Not only am I better off now but my faith is stronger.
These are feelings that you simply cannot explain to someone that doesn't believe. My 20 year old self would never have listened to me.
So yes, I can respect an athiest if they tell me in thier heart of hearts that they have bended a knee to thier creator asked him truly from thier heart to come into thier heart. To change thier life and give them faith. But I know most have never done that. I know most are too full of arrogance to do that. Some are angry with God, some are too scared to admit that they are not in control that they aren't the apex of creation. God had to squash my pride before I would listen. So I get it.
Religion is so confusing, especially Christianity. I'm still confused on what to believe. Out of all the religions I've read about, Christianity I must say is the most confusing. Some of the stories in the Bible make sense, but it seems like there are so many contradictions. And then there's a whole universe out there. There has to be life on other planets as big a space is, so I don't they would believe in God because the story of Jesus being crucified happened on Earth. Maybe I'm overthinking it, and me being a writer, a lot of times I try to make sense out of a little too much.
I was reading something earlier today, this article that was talking about how hell is on this Earth, and this Earth is actual hell because there's pain, suffering, hunger, wars, disaster, and a whole lot of evil, and I was talking about when you die, you just get reincarnated and keep coming back, unless you gain the knowledge that you're supposed to. I'm pretty well read, I like to read as many books as possible. My favorite genres are mystery, horror and fantasy, but I like to read nonfiction also, especially books on historical facts and a better understanding of life.
I've tried going to church and listening to sermons. Last year I went to some sermons at the salvation army while I was staying there and they are bigots against homosexuals, saying homosexuality is wrong and marriage should be between a man and a woman and all they can do is pray for him. I myself am not a homosexual, however, I thought those were ignorant remarks from the major giving the sermon. I understand most churches don't support homosexuals but this guy completely overstepped and offended a lot of people.
When I was volunteering there ring ringing bells around Christmas time, I had newspaper reporters and television reporters coming up to me asking me to make comments on the salvation army's problem with homosexuals. I want it so badly to say I don't respect their decision but I couldn't because I was a volunteer representing them. My point is though, if I'm going to believe in God, I'm going to do it on my own terms and and believe what I want to believe, and a lot of Christian beliefs, I think are completely disrespectful. Especially that ordeal with that organization last year.I really tried when I was a kid. But it was always just a hollow emulation. I saw the way others in the religion acted & I tried to mirror it to feel something & convince myself & others that I was "saved." But I never truly was.
My whole life I was raised an evangelical Christian. But then around 13 when my cognitive ability increased, I noticed that I was finding little things about the Christian religion very annoying. Didn't help that being a Christian wasn't exactly a very popular thing to be in school. So I was constantly mocking it along with other people in my school so that I may fit in more. As time went on, I noticed that I really didn't enjoy going to church. A contributing factor to that decision was also the loud environment of church. The music service & people were too loud for me. Environments like that are probably part of the reason I have severe hyperacusis.
Now, the reason why I identify with atheism now is because I have a extremely strong feeling that humans do not & will never know the true origin of the universe. And when we analyze any religion very thoroughly, we can see that there are many flaws in it that aren't discussed in a critical way. Flaws that go back to it's very foundation. So, I swapped it out for philosophy instead. I began to religiously consume large amounts of philosophical videos on YouTube & I'm glad of it because they often were critical & presented very good valid & true arguments to follow.
However, I am not a full atheist when I'm not on the topic of religion. Apart from religious views in general, I am an agnostic. For instance, if there were no humans on the planet, I'd have no reason to even be an atheist. So I'd revert back to what I truly am. An agnostic. I am this way because I do not believe that we are meant to know certain things about the universe. And that even if certain truths were able to be observed, we wouldn't have the proper makeup to decipher it. I believe we are like microorganisms of the universe & whatever is beyond it. It is not our destiny to know the truth behind it all.
When I was 9 or 10 and found out that there are many religions. They can't all be there, and at that moment I realized that there is no evidence for any religious beliefs. Then I took pre-baptismal classes but I wasn't feeling it. By 14 or was all over. I was done with religion. I've never looked back. Almost everyone I know in Seattle feels the same. I don't know anyone who attends services.
I was Christian growing up.
I stop believingAnd that's when I found God.
The real God. I don't believe God exist... I know God exist.In the end they will feel dumber.
You’d be surprised how many current atheists grew up in the church just to leave it when they recognized it as an institution more than a community
I submitted to God, and he cured me of my drinking problem
That depends on what you mean by "tried to find". I have thought about and considered the veracity of various religious dogma as well as pondered the likelihood of a greater cosmic or extra-cosmic intelligence.
The conclusion I always come to is that apart from those religious tales which are quite obviously horse shit, there is no way I can be sure enough to warrant actually believing there is anything more than nature.
That's like asking a flat earther if they've went up and "touched the dome".
Atheists, like flat earthers, aren't interested in facts, evidence, or enlightenment, only their opinions of them. In their insular minds they're "fighting the majority".
Bless their fucking hearts.
Yes I tried, and I am neither an atheist nor homeless anymore. 💀
Not an atheist but for me God has a different meaning and we should really stop blaming everything bad on Him.
He will determine our fate but I don't expect divine interventionYes and i still haven't found him. I have even tried lost property as well. Do you think is should file a missing persons report.
Why look for something that doesn’t exist besides your god is your higher conscious
We all know exactly where to find “god” We just have a very different idea of WHAT that is
I wasn't aware God is missing? Have you looked behind that suitcase in the closet?
I always believed in god until about 5th grade when an interaction with a classmate changed my views. I've been an atheists for over 20 years now.
atheists do not try to find. easier to decide to be a lazy atheist. or when the shoplifter hesistated because he believed god saw but then became atheist.
It's a waste of time. If he even existed, he wouldn't care. And by the way, why God is always referred as 'he'? Maybe its 'they'? 😂
I didn't know God was missing!
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