@ThorinSmolderingshield , created a thread in Exploring Christianity that made me think. Here is the thread ( http://www.christianforums.com/threads/why-do-you-believe-in-god.7929064/ ).
I recently saw a sermon by Dr. Charles Stanley on Trinity Broadcasting Network called "Walking Away from God". (Sorry, I can't find a link to the video, but maybe somebody else can post one.)
So here is the thought (partly just paraphrasing Stanley's sermon): Christians believe that God has a purpose in their lives. Sometimes there are events or conditions that seem to be inconsistent with the Christian's understanding of God's purpose in their life. St. Paul had the mysterious "thorn" that he asked God to remove without success. People can also have addictions, tragedies, etc. The Christian cannot see how these things are consistent with God's purpose in their lives.
According to Stanley, many Christians walk away from God when confronted with these adversities (that is what happened to me several times). However, other Christians trust that these adversities are part of God's purpose - even though they can't understand at that time. Those Christians grow in maturity.
Atheists often chuckle about Christians telling them that they rejected God because "they wanted to sin", but I think there is some truth to the broader idea that some atheists rejected God because events and circumstances in their lives seemed inconsistent with belief in a God that had a purpose for them. Speaking for myself, losing faith in the purpose of your life is not healthy psychologically.
I'm not sure if this thread fits the SOP for this forum. It seems to me that belief and disbelief have a psychological ingredient that is often overlooked in apologetics. Sometimes the apologetics arguments presented by both Christians and atheists are only rationalizations of a belief that has been reached for psychological reasons.
EDIT: Another thing that comes to mind is the teachings of Jesus. The Lord's Prayer says "Thy will be done". The night before Jesus was crucified He asked God to find another way if possible, but he concluded with something like "Thy will be done". So Christians facing adversity need to trust that God's will is good - even if they can't understand. Sometimes people understand later in life. Sometimes it remains a mystery. But atheists face the same problem. Everybody needs to have faith that life has purpose - no matter the source of that purpose.
I recently saw a sermon by Dr. Charles Stanley on Trinity Broadcasting Network called "Walking Away from God". (Sorry, I can't find a link to the video, but maybe somebody else can post one.)
So here is the thought (partly just paraphrasing Stanley's sermon): Christians believe that God has a purpose in their lives. Sometimes there are events or conditions that seem to be inconsistent with the Christian's understanding of God's purpose in their life. St. Paul had the mysterious "thorn" that he asked God to remove without success. People can also have addictions, tragedies, etc. The Christian cannot see how these things are consistent with God's purpose in their lives.
According to Stanley, many Christians walk away from God when confronted with these adversities (that is what happened to me several times). However, other Christians trust that these adversities are part of God's purpose - even though they can't understand at that time. Those Christians grow in maturity.
Atheists often chuckle about Christians telling them that they rejected God because "they wanted to sin", but I think there is some truth to the broader idea that some atheists rejected God because events and circumstances in their lives seemed inconsistent with belief in a God that had a purpose for them. Speaking for myself, losing faith in the purpose of your life is not healthy psychologically.
I'm not sure if this thread fits the SOP for this forum. It seems to me that belief and disbelief have a psychological ingredient that is often overlooked in apologetics. Sometimes the apologetics arguments presented by both Christians and atheists are only rationalizations of a belief that has been reached for psychological reasons.
EDIT: Another thing that comes to mind is the teachings of Jesus. The Lord's Prayer says "Thy will be done". The night before Jesus was crucified He asked God to find another way if possible, but he concluded with something like "Thy will be done". So Christians facing adversity need to trust that God's will is good - even if they can't understand. Sometimes people understand later in life. Sometimes it remains a mystery. But atheists face the same problem. Everybody needs to have faith that life has purpose - no matter the source of that purpose.
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