I am asking a serious question, which I came away pondering after doing some blog searching. How many of you have ever seriously contemplated the existence of God? Do you wonder about it? Have you ever really taken time out to think it through? Or do you just believe or not believe because of your parents, peers, or what you’ve read or heard through the media? Some evolutionists have a real attitude of disdain when it comes to a debate on the issue. Why is that? Many so called Christians get uptight, when questioned. Why is that? Could it be that most don’t have a real basis for the reality of their theories? If someone pressed you on the issue, could you, with bold assurance, give them an adequate answer? Think it through before you comment…
Mid's Point 
Since you removed the comments does that mean you really don’t want us to comment?
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I’m so sorry, Eagleswings!! I did a bad when reposting to upload my image…and I didn’t have a way to find you. I searched yesterday and found three possible sites, but didn’t have time to track you down. Please PM me with an email location and I’ll send your original post for you to repost…unless you have it saved! I should have posted what happened, so you’d know…forgive me–I’m still learning how to navigate!!! blessings, mid
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“Funny that I think you are outside of me.”I wrote this in my journal after my memory loss. I had experienced a full year of rebuilding consciousness. Up to this date, I know that God lived inside me. It seems the human experience is about separateness. Each of us sits in the driver seat with limited visibility of “the guy” in the back with the map. Trust; in this way, we learn to trust. Michelhttp://crap-cakes.blogspot.comhttp://meta-dna.blogspot.com
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I question daily the exsistance of God and Jesus. I was not raised in the church and have only been attending a Christian Church for less than 2 years. Almost always I have known about him, prayed to Him in times of dispair, but now I am questioning more, reading more, becoming involved with bible studies. Belief in something you cannot see or touch is hard. I lost most of my ability to trust as a child abuse victim. I can honestly say I would not be alive today if a higher power, God, Jesus, whatever you call Him, had not saved me from myself. God is merciful and loving. Good luck on your search, Mid.Tamara
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It is difficult, no, impossible for me to give a “yes” or “no” answer to this question. I was taught to believe in what the Bible says, and after a childhood that included some pretty interesting religious experimentation, I settled on a church where I stayed, raised my children, became a leader, and had many people coming to me for prayer and guidance.I was told over and over that I was an asset to God and the church. It was “obvious” to the pastors and other leaders in the church that I was “one of them.”Then came the day I confided a burden that had been on my heart, a question that had been on my mind since high school, and despite all the promise I showed at being a leader, a friend of the church, even a prayer warrior, I was told flat out that I would go to hell for my burden.Just like that. From leader to leper in a matter of moments. I left that church and never looked back.After several other attempts at regaining my Christian faith, I decided it was no longer a good fit for me, as I could not love an intolerant diety who would not love everyone. However, letting go of a higher power is something I am loathe to do, as I firmly believe Someone is in charge. But I do not like to think of that Someone as being male, it smacks too much of the pain I was handed when my faith was pulled from under me.Now I walk the Wiccan path. “Harm none” is my creed. I worship a diety that I refer to as the All. Creator, Mother, Father, Guide…She is more than nature, He is more than power. Other Wiccans worship the Goddess and the God. For now, The All is my preference. It is still new to me, and it may settle into the more traditional Wiccan role.Wicca is not about casting spells on people, rather it is a way to live in harmony with the world around me. This is a good fit for me, and I am finally happy.Someday, I hope to be able to give you a shorter, more direct answer, but for now I am still exploring my direction.Thanks for the topic. It’s good to think about these things every day.Karen
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This from Eagles Wings and was accidently deleted…”When I was in high school I looked around at everything that was going on and thought there couldn’t possibly be a God. I did not grow up in the church and did not have much influence one way or the other as to whether there was a God or not. This was 20+ years ago. Then it happened, the Lord started drawing me toward Him. It was as if I had been oblivious before and out of the woodwork people started saying things to me related to Jesus Christ. Over a period of 6-7 months my outlook really changed and I received Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. As I grew I saw the Lord’s work more and more in my life. I suppose you could say that my personal view of whether there is a God or not is neither here nor there. Where is the proof? The proof is in Bible prophecy. There are 8000 verses of prophecy in the Bible, 90% of those prophecies have been fulfilled. Scholars have listed over 100 prophecies in the Old Testament relating to the birth, earthly mission, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Everyone of them fulfilled. The odds of one man fulfilling only 48 of those prophecies is 1 to 10 with 157 zeros following it. There is historical proof that Jesus lived from the writings of Josephus, Tacitus, Pliny the Younger, Lucian and the Babylonian Talmud. Yes God exists and He sent His only Begotten Son to die for our sins. I don’t know why He loves us, but He does. I can’t imagine living in this world with no Hope and no God. It must be absolutely terrifying.”
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This is the comment I posted before:I became an atheist as the result of a lot things but mostly a lot of reading, a lot of thinking and a lot observing. Could I give an adequate answer? That depends. For some Christians I’ve run across both on and offline there is no adequate answer. No matter what you say to them it will never be never be good enough.On why people get defensive…I think it is because there has been a lot of victimization on both sides. The theists feel the atheists are trying to take their god(s) away and the atheists feel as though the theists are trying to shove religion down their throats. I’ve been on enough forums and websites to know that both sides make valid points. There are many zealots out there that are hurting people with their veiwpoints and making it difficult for the opposing sides to come to any type of compromise.And this is the reponse I posted to Eagles Wings:What an interesting testimony Eagles Wings. That’s great that you were able to find something that makes you happy.I can’t imagine living in this world with no Hope and no God. It must be absolutely terrifying.I have plenty of hope. 🙂
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Christians have nothing to do with whether or not God exists. That’s something I dismissed in three seconds flat as a no-brainer way back twenty years ago (http://www.ohzone.net/dhowie/fourwords.htm – Four Little Words). For me it has never been a question of whether God exists, but whether or not He is a personal God Who loves His creation…and I have proven THAT to my complete satisfaction over and over and over again for more years than I care to let on. God is good, ALL the time. I can, and do stake my life and eternal security on that fact every day of every year. Read all about it on http://www.ohzone.net 🙂
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For Ms. Karen. Don’t look at the people of the church as your guide as to Who God is and what He is about. People can not condemn someone to hell. People are not the judge, as much as they would like to think they are. God truly loves His creation take a look at this article.http://www.cuttingedge.org/news/n2105.cfm Title: GOD’S GREAT LOVE — HE FORCES SINNERS TO “CLIMB UP” OVER HUGE OBSTACLES TO GET INTO HELL! Subtitle: A review of Scripture reveals that God loves people so much, He created huge obstacles and placed them squarely in the life-path of people, to keep them from ever entering Hell. Sinners have to deliberately climb up over these obstacles to get into Hell. God has even created extraordinarily huge obstacles for people living at the End of the Age.
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When you have the rug pulled out from under you, especially by people who have made studying the bible a lifetime commitment, it feels more like being pushed over those “obstacles.” However, instead of finding the hell they promised me, I found peace.For years I read, and followed, the words in the bible, yet despite constant prayer, “letting go and letting God,” fasting, whatever I felt lead by the Spirit to do, I could never feel truly accepted and assured of a place in heaven.I keep an open mind, and I hope that others can accept me for who I am, not for my faith alone. I’ve heard the message, I’ve read the words, and despite what I’m told awaits me in the end, now I have peace. Not only that, but I am truly happy for those who have found their peace with their God. It is a good thing. :o)Namaste.Karen
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Ms. Karen, what denomination were you in? Doctrine makes a huge difference. If you are in fear of losing salvation constantly you certainly aren’t going to have peace. If someone declared that you were going to hell because of a particular sin they were way out of line. After much studying I have come to the conclusion that we have free will to chose Jesus’ gift of forgiveness of our sins. Once we are truly born again salvation can not be lost. We are saved by God’s grace, we are not saved by any effort of our own. Works are like dirty rags to the Lord and most of them are done to please ourselves anyway. This world, as terrible as it can be and is going to get, is not hell. You aren’t going to find hell in this lifetime. It is the afterlife we need to worry about. What happens to us after we die? What is your hope based upon?
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Eagles wings found this meaning for namaste:Namasté or Namaskar (नमस्ते in Hindi, from Sanskrit namaḥ te) is a South Asian greeting originating in India, which is used when both hello and goodbye would be used in English. The meaning is quite different, however.Sanskrit namaḥ means “bow, obeisance, reverential salutation, adoration”. Te is the dative of the personal pronoun tvam, “you”. A literal translation of namaḥ te is thus “reverential salutation to you.” It is commonly accompanied by a slight bow made with the hands pressed together, palms touching, in front of the chest.In a religious context this word can be taken to mean any of these:The Spirit in me meets the same Spirit in you. I greet that place where you and I are one. I salute the Light of God in you. I bow to the divine in you. I recognize that within each of us is a place where Divinity dwells, and when we are in that place, we are One. My higher energy salutes your higher energy. In other words, it recognizes the equality of all, and pays honor to the sacredness and interconnection of all, as well as to the source of that interconnection. Namaskar is the term for such greetings, and is also used as a greeting itself.
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This is an email from eagles wingsHi, I am responding to Ms. Karen. If you ever look at my posts and think they are too overboard let me know and don’t post them. I don’t want to scare people away, but I am really curious about Ms. Karen and where she was going to church. My hunch is that she was in a denomination or possibly a cult that is works based. If she answers I guess we will find out.
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This is an email from MsKaren:Hi Mid, Thanks for being patient with me on your blog. I feel like I may have overstepped the bounds when I responded, and I really hope I didn’t offend you or anyone with my post. Please publish Eagles Wings post, as she has some good points. I promise to behave myself. 😉 I remember when I was involved in the church (Church of the Nazarene), and I would fret and worry about people I knew hadn’t accepted Christ as their savior. I don’t know that I was ever truly saved in the first place. Everyone said, “oh, you’ll know. You’ll feel different” or some such thing. It never happened like that. When I explained that to someone, I was told there was something I wasn’t giving to the Lord. There was a booklet put out by Billy Graham that talked about letting God clean your spiritual house, even the disgusting corners and closets. I did that, I opened up every part of my life, begged to have my burden lifted, released it over and over again, but nothing changed. In fact, my burden grew heavier. I accepted it as mine, thinking it was a test, and went on my merry way, always remembering to “give it to God” even if it wasn’t heavy. Every day when I woke up, every time I thought of it, and every night as I went to bed, I’d give it to God, yet he never took it away. I still have it, but it is no longer a burden, it is just a part of who I am. It makes me…me. It has made me understand people and become much more tolerant of those who might be “different.” Tonight I had dinner with a lovely couple, she is from Missouri, he is from Pakistan. There was a time in my life, I would have sought out some way to “cure” him of his religion in order to lead him to Christ and eternal life. Now, I see that man for the wonderful fellow he is. Funny, kind, and an amazing host, all of which would have been lost on me at one time. There are so many who have been through the spiritual wringer, the fact that they have been able to find their peace within the church is wonderful. At one time I would have envied them, but the only thing I miss is that coming together in a common bond, especially the bond of faith. Thank you for taking the time to moderate this discussion, as it could get very wierd and out-of-hand if people aren’t careful. Thanks also for including the definition of Namaste. I forget that not everyone knows what it means. Namaste, (I definitely recognize the divine in you, Mid.) Karen
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I want to say how much I appreciate the spirit in which all of you are posting. This is a difficult issue for some, and a personal one as well. Just the fact that we can have this discussion with respect and consideration for one another’s feelings makes me glad I stepped out in faith and broached this subject. My hope is that we will all take more time to consider the matter, for I feel it is one of great importance in light of the times in which we live. Be blessed! Mid
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Sorry, I haven’t had much computer time the past couple of days. I want to reply to Ms. Karen’s post, but not at the moment. I have alot running through my head and want to organize my thoughts so it makes sense. Karen, I do understand what you are saying and alot of what you say is familiar. I will try to get something written this evening.
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Sorry I haven’t had any time to be on the computer the last day or two. From what I know of the Nazarene church part of their doctrine is that you can lose your salvation. This is something I have gone back and forth with over the years. I have come to the conclusion that you can not lose salvation if you have really had it. Is it right that the Nazarenes teach that you can become sinless on earth? Believe me that is impossible and doesn’t that make life very legalistic? There is only one Man who lived a sinless life on earth and that was Jesus. We are incapable of not sinning. To that all I can say is thank goodness that the Father loves us enough that He provided a solution to the problem. http://www.thebereancall.org/Newsletter/html/1989/jun89.php I really like Dave Hunt, he has a website that has alot of really good articles regarding many Christian issues.How do you know you have salvation? It certainly isn’t a feeling. Alot of churches these days want to make everything about feelings, works, speaking in tongues, performing certain rituals etc. http://www.thebereancall.org/Newsletter/html/1991/aug91.php As my husband likes to remind me, Christianity is very simple, man complicates it (I am sure with a lot of help from Satan). Here is a quote from Dave Hunt “When the Philippian jailer cried out, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Paul and Silas gave a simple answer: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31). Surely that means more than simply believing that someone called Jesus Christ existed. Who was He? Lord means God; Jesus means Savior from sin; Christ means Messiah, the one promised in the Scriptures. His very name indicates that He is God who became a man to die for our sins in fulfillment of what God’s prophets foretold.” It is very simple. Perhaps you have already done this. :)I don’t know what your burden is. I actually thought that my life would be easier if I was a Christian and I was very wrong about that. My life fell apart 7 years into my Christian walk. I have struggled with depression and anxiety for years, it was bad enough in the early 90’s that I was not functioning in the world. Ten years I was on antidepressants. I have prayed, I have been in therapy, I have had “deliverance” and it is still there. Why won’t the Lord take it away? I don’t know. Maybe it keeps me more dependent upon Jesus. My husband is a paraplegic. He has been in a wheelchair for over 26 years. He was 19 when he had a car accident. His life was just beginning, why did he have an accident? Why did the accident paralyze him? Why has the Lord chosen not to heal him? He has people come up to him regularly telling him he is going to be healed. He has had people tell him that his faith isn’t strong enough and that is why he is still in a wheelchair. Is that helpful to him? No. That accident changed his life and he will tell you that he would not have it any other way. The accident was not caused by God, but used by God to get his attention. He realized he needed to have a major lifestyle change. He chose to receive Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour. He has chosen not to listen to those who criticize his faith and he is grateful for everyday of his life. Burdens don’t have to be a bad thing. Paul prayed many times to have his “thorn” removed and it wasn’t. I have unfortunately found that often the “church” shoots its wounded, especially those who have been abused in some way. Believe me that is not how it is supposed to be. That is not how Jesus treated people. Some seem to think if you aren’t perfect then you aren’t saved, if you struggle with depression you surely can’t be saved, your faith isn’t strong enough to get you out of that wheelchair, surely you aren’t saved. That just isn’t the way it works. We struggle because there is sin in the world and we will struggle until that day we go to heaven. Again I say, thank goodness the Lord loves us enough that He provided us with a solution. I have babbled on long enough. I hope that all of this makes sense. :)PS- Sorry I had to split the links, they weren’t fitting in the space.
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A friend sent this little blurb this morning and I keep going back to it. I think it is worth a read. Thanks Doris. :)”I’ve been reading Connie’s book (Harvest House Publishers, 2005; ISBN-10: 0-7369-1528-1; http://www.harvesthousepublishers.com) and just HAD to share this section with you – NOT that it’s the only home truth that’s hit me – not by a long shot; it’s a super book, and I heartily recommend it – but because it is SOOOOO integral to our faith-walk, and I haven’t seen it stated so clearly before. It sure is a missing ingredient in many churches, who seem to be walking backwards towards our common goal. Anyway, read on, and see what YOU think, k? It starts on Page 203:’YOU HAVE A FRIENDPerformance-based religious service is crippling Christians and emptying our churches. Jesus gave everything, forsaking heaven–for what? Because He loved the Father. ‘Wasn’t it because He loved me,’ you ask? Yes, Jesus died on my behalf, of course. But He died because it was the Father’s plan. He endured the cross because of His love relationship with God the Father. That was His primary motivation and what sustained Him throughout His hideous ordeal.”And that same love relationship is what God desires to have with each one of us. He wants it more than He wants your wonderful singing, or preaching, or telling, or going. He wants you to love Him and to know the depth of His love for you. Who among us would die for a stranger? Yet most of us would die for our children. Why? Because we love them more than we love our own life. That’s the type of love available to us in relationship with the Father. That’s what motivates us to serve, to tell, to go. Anything less is empty works. It drains us and makes us bitter. It makes us resent the church and all the jobs we do there. It burns us out and leaves us casualties. It keeps us from talking about Jesus with our friends. Why would we tell our friends the ‘good news’ when it is so burdensome to us?”‘Jesus is the uncontested delight of my life,’ Beth Moore writes:”‘I never intended for this to happen. I didn’t even know it was possible. It all started with an in-depth study of His word in my late twenties and then surged oddly enough with a near emotional and mental collapse in my early thirties. At the end of myself I came to the beginning of an intensity of relationship with an invisible Savior.3′”In brokenness we finally see clearly. We see who we are. And who He is. Once that happens, the Father can meet us on a personal level and take us to places we can’t go on our own. ‘The dark night begins at the point at which we end, where our will and abilities are no longer enough to get us by, and God begins.'”
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Well that’s the question!It’s as easy to believe that God exists as to believe he doesn’t.It’s not something one can prove in a materialistic way,however,there are quite a lot of things in this world that let you believe there is a certain power behind the universe as there is a secret behind our existence
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Anonymous said, “It’s not something one can prove in a materialistic way,however,there are quite a lot of things in this world that let you believe there is a certain power behind the universe as there is a secret behind our existence “Perfect! I do belive that is a good part of what I’ve been wanting to say. Good job!
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