personal experiences

my belief in God came before I was a Christian. I had what I would call a few "spiritual experiences". I can't really explain them, because it was a personal thing. But when I was younger, simple ideas got me really thinking and believing. Like the fact that when I cut myself, my body would perfectly heal the wound. Also, the fact that I have eyes to see, ears to hear, and the rest of the body that is so perfectly designed to keep myself healthy. I figured there must be a creator, and whoever designed humans and oceans, nature, animals etc. is so great and beyond my understanding that it must be true. I also knew I didn't create it, or myself, and I know it wasn't an accident. I don't know if any of this makes sense to you, but when i was younger, that's what got me started. I did have a near death experience when i was 10, and that's when I got interested in religions, spirituality, and what everyone else believed in. If my parents ever took me out, I would question every single person in the room about their beliefs. It probably got a little irritating for some. But that's the gist of my story

I should also add, that my life now is so unbelievable because of it. I don't mean because of what I have or anything like that, but because of the love in my life, and the happiness I feel every single day. I can't even remember what it feels like to not feel an extremely powerful love and God's presence in my life. God definitely is Love!!! I can't stress that enough

hey brother,
there have been many people who have had deep experiences with God that did in fact solidify their faith. For me, there are countless experiences I have with God that reasure me. For starters, I was born with a looped vain in the back of my brain. The doctors told my mother that they HAD to opperate on the vain or I would surely die due to the blood being cut off (like when you bend a water hose to cut off flow). God told my mother not to do the opperation, and she didn't. I have been living healthy ever since and the doctors don't know why I haven't died yet. That's just one event that sticks out, but there have been many more revelations and personal experiences and coincidences that defy all odds. Another example; the day before I got arrested, my friend told me he had a dream that I got arrested. Could that be coincidence? What are the odds that my friend could have this dream of me getting arrested and then me actually getting arrested the very next day? Like 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 to 1?

My friend, there have been many upon many proofs of God's existance to me in my life. Those are just a couple "events", but there is also life! Look at the birds in the sky, and the fish in the ocean, and try to tell me that all of this came from nothing? How could something come from nothing? The only answer you can conclude, is that it was created. There is so much evidence out there for God's existence, but the only evidence you will ever be satisfied with, is within your heart. You must first truly seek God and He will begin to fill your heart with His graces. Only then will you be able to fully understand what it means to follow God. Read your bible, and pray pray pray! I can't stress how important it is to talk to God. He is your Father and the only way you can know Him is if you talk to Him. Let the cries of your heart pour out to Him. Open yourself to Him, and He will make His home in you. That is really the best advice I can give.

May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you always.

There are so many things I'd like to share with you but how could i post it all?
I did have an out of body as a child but I think that I'll share how I became born again.

I was a female body builder with a 22" waist....I noticed that my lower belly each day seemed to be getting bigger and bigger. I was unmarried and wondered if I might be pregnant. I bought an at home kit to use the next morning. Around 2am i went to the bathroom and a horrible pain enveloped my body. I collapsed in the flood thinking I was having a heart attack! My boyfriend (now 18yrs my husband) his cousin and my room-mate rushed to me and thought they should call an abulance. I didn't want them to as I couldn't afford it but thankfully they did anyway. By the time it arrived and wanted to know where to take me all I could say was "the closest". I arrived at a small private hospital where they had to call to get someone to unlock the doors and turn on the lights. Inside, they ran a pregnancy test....positive. They told everyone to go home, that they would keep me overnight and run tests in the am so there I was alone. The pain was increasing to where I was begining to have seizures. The orderly called a doctor at home to ask what should be done (no doctor was there) they were talking about a test but the orderly said he didn't know how to do it so the doctor had to get dressed and come in.
The thing was, was that I knew and I mean knew, that I was dying.
Funny how things become so very clear when your dying....all the trivial things we spend so much time and energy on.....grades, good jobs, finances, who ****ed me off yesterday etc.
It was like "game over" and I lost.
When your face to face with God things become very clear.
He doesn't care if I got good grades or not, my job ambitions, how nice my house was, how clean I kept it, how much money I made.
There I was and what could I say to justify myself? What could I say at all?
I said: "Lord, you know I always told myself that I wouldn't be the kind to try a deathbed salvation. I have no reason for you to save me nor excuse for my life, there's nothing of my own that's worthy of you. there is only your mercy and grace and I know that I don't deserve it and I am truely sorry. If I die tonight, I accept your will but if you give me life, I will give my life to you and never take it back."

The doctor arrived and was going to run a spinal needle thru my cervex. By then the seizures were so bad that although strapped to the table the nurse had to throw herself onto my body. When he did blood shot everywhere and he began screaming " My god! She bleeding to death! We gotta get her into surgery now!"
I had a tubal pegnancy that had ruptured and my lower belly had been getting bigger as my bodies blood was filling it like a balloon. My body seizuring with my hearts inablity to function with the severe blood loss. A Partial hysterectomy that left me where I would not have anymore children.

I awoke with my head turned to one side and when my eye's opened the first thing I saw was a Gideon's bible on the table next to the bed and I knew that He had accepted me.

I took that bible home and still have it today. Within 3 days a witnessing team came by my apt. "God was holding my to my word."
I invited them in, accepted christ as my savior, was filled with the spirit and radically changed all in an instant.

I ended up going to that church, marrying in that church and as a baby christian, I read that "God said be fruitful and multiply" I thought, must be God's will. I will believe God before a doctor. So we prayed for a child and our church prayed with us. 4 months later I was pregnant.
It was a difficult pregnancy. Satan tried to steal our blessing but God saw us through it all and I had a beautiful daughter. 11 months later I had to have a full hysterectomy. The surgeon was amazed that I had had my daughter as my only overy was bound in scar tissue and grown onto my kidney, my tube was a ball of scar tissue, I had a fibroid tumor in the center on my uterus the size of his fist and endometriosis on top of the uterus extending up into my chest cavity.
A miracle? Absolutely.

Wow, I could go on for a long time.

1. When I was little, I had warts all over my feet. One night, an evangelist came to our church and specifically asked if there was someone with warts on their feet. I went forward and he prayed for me. The next morning in the bathtub, the warts all fell off.

2. In 1991, we went to Russia with Teen Mania to do street drama and witnessing and to help start churches. When we went to the half-Muslim city of Kazan, I said, "God's going to have to do miracles for Muslims to accept him." I had no idea how prophetic that statement was. There was a woman who had had a stroke and she was healed and holding her walker above her head. There was a boy who was deaf from birth who we prayed for and he could hear. 4000 people filled the soccer stadium to see what we were all about in a country where less than 6 months earlier it would have been illegal to do so.

3. When I was 16, I went to youth camp. I got filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues for the first time. I still don't know how it happens except faith that the Holy Spirit will give you the next syllable. Later that night, when the extended service was winding down, six youth pastors and a 13-year-old kid were praying for a girl who was laying on the ground. Suddenly, as she threw the 6 guys off and they scrambled to hold her back down I realized what was happening. She was demon-possessed and proceeded to prove it by speaking in a voice that was clearly way too low and evil to be hers. The 13-year-old was casting the demon out of her in the name of Jesus.

4. I was working at an auto parts store and there was this guy that would come in and mumble things about Nostradamus. He acted like he was not all there and "felt" really evil to me like the girl that had the demon cast out. He would come in from time to time and then leave. One night, I was working with a Catholic girl and I could feel the evil presence right out in front of the store. I said, "The Nostradamus guy is here." She said, "Where?" I said "Out in front of the store." She said, "Where at?" Then I pointed to the wall and I continued to track him as he got to the glass and there he was right behind my finger! Needless to say, she was a little freaked out by this. Unfortunately, at 18 I was too afraid to cast the demon out of him by myself.

There's more, but I'll stop now.

I was watching the Christian channel one day and this woman had cancer all over in her body. She got a big group together to pray for her and in about a year (I think it was) she was comepletely healed.

I knew a girl who had this one disease, I don't know the name of it though. It caused her to get really itchy rashes on her arms in a some-what small area and on her legs a little bit. She had a group of Christians together including me to pray for her. We prayed for about 9 months; (the time that we were together ran on a school schedule) and it was almost comepletely gone then she stopped praying for the three months over summer and then I saw her the next year and it was comepletely back!

There are miracles proving God is real and alot of people can feel God. I can really feel Jesus when I'm worshiping Him. God has also some put prophecies in the Bible that have come true and some that are coming true.
So, there are many things proving that God is real!

blessed2,
what a wonderfull story. Amen!

Heres JUST a few experiances that make God real for me....that make me believe He indeed does exist.

1. When I was born the doctor told my mother that I wasn't going to make it, they said that I may only live about an hour. As the days went by I went in and out of conciousness, and at one point was almost dead. My family prayed for me and my mom came to see me every 2 weeks of the 3 months I was in the hospital. Needless to say I survived (why nobody really knows for sure) and I think that it was God that saved me from death as an infant. I have lived long past my expectance and will be turning 18 on 11/11.
2. I survived horrible seizures as an infant and thankful have them no more.
3. I was almost a victim of a hit and run when I was eight, and luckly my brother was there to shelter me from harm.
4. I survived a horrible misscarriage, an abusive relationship, and threats from my mothers boyfriend.

I have had lots of things happen to me that probably shouldn't have...but you know what? The Lord is the ONE who helped me get throught it. And if it wasn't for our merciful and gracious God, I wouldnt be who/what or where I am now. I am a Girl for Christ. I am a walking/Talking/Praising proof of Gods existance. I have strength, life and love, and its all cause of Him.

I've never really had any experiences like these other people have talked about.

I was not raised in church or raised learning about God. When I was 16 I started going to church. I accepted Christ not long after. I experienced such a peace. Just a peace about everything in life. I was gone from church (and God) for several years. When I went back, it was like "coming home". Not to the people, but to God. I just felt complete.

One thing I notice is the happiness I have in my life. I look around at other people and feel so sad for them. People who just generally aren't happy. People who are having a rough time and have nowhere to turn. They are just sad and don't know what to do. No matter what kind of bad thing happens, I am comforted by God and it is so sad to see people who don't have that kind of comfort.

There are days I see God better than others. Like sometimes when I'm driving to work in the morning and see the beautiful sunrise and think (not a very romantic thought) "If the sun were one teeny-tiny millimeter closer I'd burn to death and if were one teeny-tiny millimeter farther away I'd freeze to death." That can only be because of God! The fact that the Earth is spinning in such a way that I don't fly off into space or get squashed into the ground has to be God! I'm sorry, but the miracles of nature and science can NOT be a conincidence no matter what anyone says. It's absurd. I have been an Environmental Educator for 2 years and at times I question why I'm doing this job because I work with "scientific" people who believe totally differently than I do. Well, I think God has used me in their lives, but I also think He put me there to see Him in nature. It's so amazing.

I don't need any kind of tangible proof to know God exists, but He sure does give me a lot of it! We've had a very hard time getting pregnant (still aren't) and through everything I've learned about conception, it can only be a miracle of God when a baby is born!

Aside from all the physical proof He gives me, feeling His love is an important thing, too. Like I said above, the happiness is a big part. I'm no better than anyone else on Earth. I don't have anything they don't have....except for JESUS! That's the only explaination!

Tracie

alphasnake1965 said:

When we are growing up, our parents tell us all about God.

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Just wanted to say that`s a false assumption. I grew up in a staunchly secular (and in most cases atheist) neighborhood of Istanbul. Even my grandma is an atheist So if it wasn`t for my mother, I would have received no curioisty about any faith in all likelihood.

Wow I don't have any stories like these ones... well... I did have my appendix removed right before Thanksgiving and when I woke up and turned on the TV in the hospital it was Adrian Rogers preaching "How to give thanks in tough times" lol But that didn't really settle it for me

Mine is much easier. Very much easier. I have dreams that come to pass. (I knew my prom date and what kind of car she drove 3 months before I ever met the girl) just wierd stuff like that but the one that verifies God is this...

I pray and stuff happens. Simply put... I have had a friend lost and I prayed with another friend that we would find him (it was on a mountain where we were skiing) and right after we prayed... here comes Danny off the ski slopes saying "oh well I took a wrong turn and got to a lift... so I just went back up I'm fine" Or praying that I could have something to eat, and then having a friend ask "hey man have you eaten anything yet?" The list could go on....

prayed to have someone to eat with
prayed for 3 people to each get a date to homecoming (each happened in 2 days)
prayed about a bowling alley showing up and one just did
prayed about waking up at a certain time without an alarm clock
prayed for a prom date (ha ha that's when I had the dream a couple days after I prayed about it)

dude I used to keep a journal of what all was being answered by prayer... I had about 3-4 pages of stuff filled up. God is just so awesome.


BUT YEAH if you want to start believing in the One True God, try this out: take a notebook and make bold prayers about wierd stuff to God. If it's not answered right away keep on praying. Not all of them will be, because God knows some things may not actually be good for us, but you will definitely be surprised at how many prayers God really does answer.

my whole life has changed in so many ways in just the past three months when I finally heard God's hand knocking on my door. Its just a peace and a confidence that I have now in my life that I could never have imagined before I accepted and believed in the birth, death, burial, and resurection of Christ for my sins. God has given me so much, and I have not even yet earned the gifts that he has given me. On top of that he is giving me heaven and eternal life and joy in his company. Simply put, AMAZING GRACE!

Years ago, I lived in a town house in arlington Tx. It was pretty late and I needed diapers for my infant daughter.
My husband stayed home to watch our son while I took the baby and ran to the corner super market. When I got there and turned off the car, I realized that I had forgotten the checkbook and had no cash...not a penny.
I tried to start the car but it acted like the battery was dead. Suddenly, the worst feeling came over me.
Forboding, anxious....We didn't have a home phone so I couldn't call. My mind began racing....I could walk across the field to the townhomes but I was oddly fearful of walking through a field at night with my infant child. I could walk around on the sidewalk, near the street but was equally afraid. I couldn't put my finger on what was going to happen to me.....jumped in the dark field.....drug into a car, kidnapped?....
A car pulled up with 2 guys in it and asked if I needed a ride some where. Now I had 3 dangerous option, a baby in my arms and certainty that I was standing on the edge of something dreadful. Silent Prayers started gushing up and out from the very pit of me..."Father help me!" "Father Help me!"

I got into the back seat of that car. If these guys were the danger, they already knew I was stranded, they would just follow me and catch me in the dark field or kidnap me from the equally dark street.
I got into the back seat and just kept praying.
The two men in the front seat never spoke to me nor to each other....although there seemed to be a silent communication going on between them. Several times the driver would look over to the other and he would look back for a few seconds then the driver would turn away, neither speaking a word. No chit chat, no radio, no expressions no interacting with me at all just that silent conversation they were conducting in the front.
I held my breath at every corner afraid that they wouldn't turn...but they did and we soon arrived in front of my townhome. When the car stopped I stepped out of the car. The driver still had his window down and I tried to thank him for the ride. He nor the passenger so much as turned thier heads in my direction....they just continued to look straight ahead and with total lack of facial expression said, "DON'T.....EVER.....get in the car with a stranger again." and drove off.
I have replayed this over in my mind a thousand times...and to this day, nearly 17yrs later, I still am not sure what had happened.
A) These two men were going to kidnap & kill me and by the grace of God who heard my desperate prayers overcame them and brought me safely home...or
B) I indeed was in dire danger that night and the Lord sent me two "messengers" to take me home and warn me that I would find danger in a strangers car.
A few things I am sure of is that I was in serious danger that night. I felt it so thickly that I could almost taste my own fear, And that the Lord rushed to my aid....something miraculous happened that night to which I owe my life and the life of my child.
And to be sure, I never take rides from strangers.

How do I REALLY know that God is real? Without a moment's hesitation, I would say...answered prayers. The odd, various, conjangled, out of the way and miraculous answers I have had to countless prayers puts the issue far out of the hands of the law of probability. No, someone somewhere intervened in each case and set aside physical laws, in many cases, to alter what would have been called "fate". If I know one thing at all, it is this: Nobody cannot answer desperate prayers, Someone must of necessity be answering them, and that Someone is the Creator.