I personally as well as others I know, have known that God does exist, and what amazes me is why so many people are so afraid to find out who is right on the issue of His existance.
Last edited by BlessEwe; 1st July 2009 at 12:01 AM.
Those are things I thought I was promised before, but I only found pain instead when I sought God. Doesn't it make sense that I'd be afraid to open myself up again?
I would be worried if you weren't afraid, but that is exactly the point. God is love and perfect love casts out all fear, therefore, according to scripture, you couldn't have known the real God, only image you thought God was....
I personally as well as others I know, have known that God does exist, and what amazes me is why so many people are so afraid to find out who is right on the issue of His existance.
And what gets me, to go further, is why so many non-believers feel the need to try to disprove "something" they deem as "non-existant".
__________________ "A man's own folly ruins his life, yet his heart rages against the Lord." - Proverbs 19:3 (NIV)
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And what gets me, to go further, is why so many non-believers feel the need to try to disprove "something" they deem as "non-existant".
What confuses me is why the nonbeliever would think it important to proclaim God does not exist, on a thread for Christians...by definition, wouldn't a christian be someone who believes that there is a deity, not someone who doesn't believe in one?
Turning this logic around, the church definitely does exist, and is not at all imaginary, therefore there ought to be nothing whatever to prevent you or anyone else from going to church. I would not recommend it, however. It sounds as if your doubts are far too strong to survive for long in an encounter with that God you are so keen to assert does not exist.
Keep saying it often enough, and you may start to believe it. Meanwhile, you just keep on praying for a stronger non belief.
__________________
A bruised reed shall He not break, and the smoking flax shall He not quench.
Isaiah 42:3
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
Ad Jesum per Mariam
Last edited by BlessEwe; 1st July 2009 at 12:00 AM.
Reason: clean up
Turning this logic around, the church definitely does exist, and is not at all imaginary, therefore there ought to be nothing whatever to prevent you or anyone else from going to church. I would not recommend it, however. It sounds as if your doubts are far too strong to survive for long in an encounter with that God you are so keen to assert does not exist.
Keep saying it often enough, and you may start to believe it. Meanwhile, you just keep on praying for a stronger non belief.
Boy howdy! Quoted for truth.
__________________ "A man's own folly ruins his life, yet his heart rages against the Lord." - Proverbs 19:3 (NIV)
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I can list 10 non-Christian writers and authors that lived within 150 years of Jesus that wrote about Jesus and are considered HISTORICAL PRIMARY SOURCES for his existence and works. Of these 10 that wrote of Jesus only 9 of them wrote of the Ceaser of the time and nobody has ever questioned the historical purity of the Ceaser.
They are: Flavius Joseph, Cornelius Tactitus (Roman historian), Pliny the Younger (Roman historian & politician), Celsus (Roman philosopher), Lucan (Greek satirist), Phlegon (freed slave & historian), Thallus (1st century historian), Mara-Bar Serapion (Jew that mentions first hand witnessing detail of Jesus to his son in letters), Suetonius (Roman historian), The Jewish Talmud (important account as they did not acknowledge Christ).
Now, historically, if you piece together just these 10 you'll have record that:
Jesus lived during the time of Tiberius Ceasar
He was a "wonder-worker"
He was acclaimed to be a Messiah
He lived a virtuous life
He had a brother named James
He was crucified on the eve of Jewish Passover
He was crucified under Pilate
DARKNESS & EARTHQUAKE occurred in Jerusalem AT the time of his death
His disciples denied Roman gods & Worshipped Jesus As GOD
His disciples claimed he rose from the dead; he was witnessed in bodily form, alive, AFTER being put to death
All of his disciples died for their belief in Jesus' ressurection
Christianity spread rapidly, as far as Rome itself
All of this from non-Christian accounts!!! It is irrefutable and backs up the Holy Bible. Paul said if Christ was not resurrected then he wasted his life.
__________________ "A man's own folly ruins his life, yet his heart rages against the Lord." - Proverbs 19:3 (NIV)
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Ok, so I'm getting the general advice that I should seek God but not rush things. I should find out who God is, but not necessarily open myself up to him. So to understand God, I thought I'd ask some questions about my previous experiences with him. I'd like to know what was going on.
A recap of what it was like:
I always had a picture of the man I wanted to be. I wanted to be strong, noble, honest, selfless, and caring with a solid relationship with God. But I often encountered a bad attitude inside me that would drag me away from these goals. When I wanted to be selfless, I found that deeper down I wanted everything to serve my comfort. Realizing this, I would petition God to send me his Spirit to live through me as a noble person. I begged him to allow me to love him and to love others. Sometimes I would be able to, but those times would disappear quickly. I hated being so depraved, but I couldn't change my attitude through willpower and God wouldn't change it for me. I spent hours pleading with God to destroy the evil in me that I loved too much. But he never did and I finally realized that the bad attitude within me was a more honest depiction of myself than the God-loving Christian I was trying to be. So I gave up and was, although missing a foundation for life, more stable than I was during the back and forth struggle.
So what was wrong with my relationship with God? Is it normal for it to always feel like a strain to love him? Is it normal to only have a few memories of actually appreciating what Christ did? Is it normal to often have a bad attitude that renders you uncaring, selfish, evil-loving, and God-hating? I'd like to know what it was I was struggling against. Was it sinful nature? Was it depression? Or was it that I never really became a christian and was frustrated by trying to live like one without a truly changed heart?
I don't see how I could have even been a Christian with that kind of evil thriving inside me. All I wanted was to be a helpful, productive, and loving Christian, but my heart was always in the gutter. Why would God allow that?
What does a healthy relationship with God look like? Maybe all I need is a good description of this. What does sin look like in the midst of it? Is there ever a deep inexplicable evil attitude that ruins things? All I have is my experience to go on.
I realize now that I don't really know what I'm trying to ask. I have so much confusion about my past and I don't know where to start clearing it up.
Ok, so I'm getting the general advice that I should seek God but not rush things. I should find out who God is, but not necessarily open myself up to him. So to understand God, I thought I'd ask some questions about my previous experiences with him. I'd like to know what was going on.
A recap of what it was like:
I always had a picture of the man I wanted to be. I wanted to be strong, noble, honest, selfless, and caring with a solid relationship with God. But I often encountered a bad attitude inside me that would drag me away from these goals. When I wanted to be selfless, I found that deeper down I wanted everything to serve my comfort.
the bible tells us to crucify self, that we don't live for our own comforts anymore. So seems to me that is your first problem. Just a thought for what it's worth.
Realizing this, I would petition God to send me his Spirit to live through me as a noble person. I begged him to allow me to love him and to love others. Sometimes I would be able to, but those times would disappear quickly. I hated being so depraved, but I couldn't change my attitude through willpower and God wouldn't change it for me.
another thought for you, God doesn't force Himself upon us, even for "noble" causes. The HS can only work through the person who yeilds control to Him, not who presumes to know God's will.
I spent hours pleading with God to destroy the evil in me that I loved too much. But he never did and I finally realized that the bad attitude within me was a more honest depiction of myself than the God-loving Christian I was trying to be. So I gave up and was, although missing a foundation for life, more stable than I was during the back and forth struggle.
So what was wrong with my relationship with God? Is it normal for it to always feel like a strain to love him?
not sure about a strain, but there is a constant battle between the "old man" and the "new man" a battle that we take on daily until the two become as one, living in harmony, and even then, it is a daily thing. The bible says we work out our salvation daily....it also says that we should crucify ourselves, which is a painful process.
Is it normal to only have a few memories of actually appreciating what Christ did? Is it normal to often have a bad attitude that renders you uncaring, selfish, evil-loving, and God-hating?
I think there is no norm with God, so not sure how to answer this.
I'd like to know what it was I was struggling against. Was it sinful nature? Was it depression? Or was it that I never really became a christian and was frustrated by trying to live like one without a truly changed heart?
or maybe a part of all the above? I think those are only answers you and God can conclude for sure, anything we might off to those questions would be pure speculation in that we don't know the heart, only God does. Why not ask God to search your heart and tell you?
I don't see how I could have even been a Christian with that kind of evil thriving inside me. All I wanted was to be a helpful, productive, and loving Christian, but my heart was always in the gutter. Why would God allow that?
One thing I'm not sure from your post, that you need to understand is that just because you come to Christ, doesn't mean you suddenly stop being evil...consider David, he was very much a man of God but even in that did some very evil things. We do not suddenly become perfect.
What does a healthy relationship with God look like? Maybe all I need is a good description of this. What does sin look like in the midst of it? Is there ever a deep inexplicable evil attitude that ruins things? All I have is my experience to go on.
wow, interesting question....I'll answer the best I can based on how I understand your question, if I'm missing something, I apologize and ask for clarity so that I can address it.
I think the best way to describe a healthy relationship with God is to say that we need to seek God, through prayer, through attempts at Godliness, and also through yeilding ourselves to HIm, accepting Him as the authority of our lives, and the authority of all. Beyond that, I don't think there are really any rules. Consider this, what makes my husband and I work is not the same as what makes another couple work, there are some basics to a healthy marriage, like communication and commitment, but beyond those very basics, it's as individual as we are. Our relationship with God is the same, there are some basics, but beyond that it's individual. I just thought of something else that might help you understand the basics. The bible tells us that Christ is the bridegroom and we the Church (body of believers) is the Bride. So maybe looking at that relationship will help...what are the basics of a good marriage relationship...in fact, the mystery of our salvation is like the mystery of a marriage where the two become as one. The goal is to live in such a way as the two, you and God become as one.
I realize now that I don't really know what I'm trying to ask. I have so much confusion about my past and I don't know where to start clearing it up.
I don't know if anything so far has helped, but at least we can try to find answers together...
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