Why do you believe in (a) "god"? Why don't you believe in (a) God?

Question

To be honest, I'm not religious, I just want to know what draws people to believe in God. I'm not looking for any "Bible thumping" wackos to post here...I'm looking for people that have real answers like... "I'm afraid to die, and that scares the **** out of me"...Something real, something about YOU, or about your life.

Answer 1

I believe because my grandmother who raised me introduced me to God. She told me every time I have a problem pray to God and have faith that what I prayed for would be given. I have done this most of my life and when I pray to God and have faith, just like my Grandmother said, it was given to me. Sometimes it would not come when I wanted it to, but it always came at the perfect time and when it was the best time for me to have it. I also believe in God because I was taught to love my neighbor as I would love myself and the wonderful art of forgiveness. Forgiveness has really helped me let go of painful memories and baggage so better things could come to my life. May God bless you and take care.

Answer 2

Why do I believe in God? To give you an honest answer...it's kind of hard to explain, but I'll try. I know that I would go to church often as a child with my grandfather but those times were few and far between it seemed. My grandparents believed highly in God. Their faith went beyond any religious realm and went right into the spiritual realm, transcending the religion, despite the fact that my grandfather had been a minister. My grandparents, I suppose, gave me that faith. Or at least a taste of it. I feel as if there must be something out there watching over us. Something that must love us despite our shortcomings as humans, somthing that loves us so dearly and so unconditionally that no matter what we do it will say "Do not worry, what ever you did, who ever you are, I still love you for in my eyes you are perfect. No matter what your imperfections may be, they are what make you whole and perfect to me and that is what I love." I believe that God, or whatever the being is and whether or not it actually created us (for I do not know), is out there and that it is always near even through the hurt and pain and through the happyness. All the time this God is with us because of the love that he, or whatever it is, has for us. I believe in God because.....I have known what that overwhelming love is. That love that hurts so much that you couldn't care less about the imperfections of someone or something because those imperfections just make you love even more. That love is so strong that I can't imagine it coming from anywhere else than a spring of renewing strength and love that is, what I believe, makes God. God is love, not vengence or hate. God is the best kind of love. And I know that it is love, ultimately, that is the reason I believe in God.

Answer 3

I am an atheist.

Even if I am such a confirmed atheist that my friends say that should there be a god who incarnated before me the first worm of doubt that would wriggle in my brain would be that he must really be a ghost.They add that even god has self respect and he would never dream of appearing beforfe me even in his worst nightmares.Suits me.

I ,however, do not deride the theists.I can understand their predicament because I have gone throujgh it in my childhood. I felt so lonely without a god for company .Even a thunder and lightening at night albeit I was in the secure environment of my bedroom would send a shiver through me.This small me and the grown up believers now are on the same wavelength.They cannot understrand(I would rather say they don't try to understand)even this many-splendoured world and find a solace in a godhead who presides over it all.If only they could take the pains of taking this god under a microscope. But then it requires the steafastness of a Sage like Kanad. He was a philosopher and as his name derived from 'kan(atom) signifies he was the originator of the theory of the atomic theory long, long before the modern scientists. His treatise the Vaisheshki Darshan is atheist in its message and holds that the world is made up of atoms. When he was on his death bed the people by his side pleasded with him to at least go surrender before god at this stage so that he could have mercy on him, Karad typically folded his hands and saying I salute you atom'thrice breathed his last. Yet anotherDarshan called the Samkhya is alsoatheist in content and sees the world as the interplay of praksruti(the female principle) and purushj(the male principle). The simple theist sould who are afraid even of a roaring thunder would certainly be terrified with the prospect of oncoming death further deiving them into the arms of god. While they pray to god to keep they away from death realising that this favour was given only to a select few(precisely seven in all )it was a tall demand and they pray , as an alternative, for god to keep looking after them in the other world.The fantasies of the Arabian Nights are interesting to listen to but even if engrossed in this we deep within know that this is all make-believe. Unfortunately, the theists either do not know that it is such a tale that is being told to them which has no basis in real life.Nobody can deceived us more than we can deceive ourselves.

Answer 4

I believe in and work with several gods and goddesses. Frejya, Odin, Heimdal, Thor, Easter, Holda. I'm a polytheistic New Age Pagan. I see the human spirit as universal. There is no One True Faith. All faiths are valid and have wisdom to offer on living a moral, ethical, loving, and compassionate life. Therefore, I choose to worship and have a relationship with the gods and goddesses of my anscestors. I will be measured by my gods, not by gods from a religion that I do not follow. I see so much violence, hate, and dishonesty from the Middle East that I never want to get my theology from their cultures again. I people did not come up in a resource poor environment and had to force extreme social conformity to survive.

Answer 5

Believe in God is exactly that: It is a belief. For example, Christian's believe that the Christian bible is God's word as spoken through the prophets. Oddly enough, there is no proof that God exists in the bible, it is assumed.

God reveals and man observes. Belief in God is accepting something that can not be observed. For example, God created the heavens and the earth this means He/She/It (God has no gender) existed before (outside) and created everything we can possibly know. In other words, there is no scientific theory about God; man can not observed Him/Her/It.

Now to your question: You are real; you have beliefs; what are those beliefs? Search within and see what you can and can not believe. Asking us a question about your belief will not you find an answer.

Please forgive me, but I would like to give you a technique about searching the scriptures specifically in the Gospel of John focusing on the words belief, believe, believer and even nonbeliever. I won't quote any verses, but this might help you in your search

Answer 6

Those are both excellent questions. Caution: This may be the devil himself trying to lead you astray!

I don't believe in God because I just don't see the whole point. Why create all this in the first place? Because he was bored? Oh please. If I were God I wouldn't create a world where people born in unfortunate circumstances would be sent to hell thru no fault of their own.

The theory of evolution sounds much more reasonable to me. Plus there are so many different religions, you would think if it were all that plain they could get it right with one. I myself find the scientific method much more intriguing and exciting.

Answer 7

I will offer you my testimony of my first day of The Christian Faith. I was not looking for Jesus on that morning... but before it was over I had found Him.

It is good that you are not "religious". religion is man invented... Nothing to do with what God is offering all who will come to Him in The Way he proscribes... If you are not blinded by man invented religion there is a better chance you will evetualy hear God's call to you... as I did.

My testimony is not that long a read and I can state that part of it is that God did at one point "scare the Hell out of me"... took 29 more years but I finaly answered His call to me.

here is the direct link

http://pages.zdnet.com/mikevanauken/mikesinternetoutreach/id109.html

All honest seekers welcome

Answer 8

I don't actually. There are too many examples in our past and present of people explaining away things we didn't or don't currently understand, or excusing irrational behavior with religion for me to believe than any one religion is not a made up story to ease people's inner fear about the unknown.

P.s. Plus, I think it is our own egoes which lead us to believe that we are special, and not just smart animals. Watch that video of the age playing Pac-Man Fever for a good example of what I am talking about.

Answer 9

I believe in a "god" because I'm too damn useless to be a scientist and prove things with facts, but I'm also too damn logical to buy into all the Bible stuff, considering all the humans that have tainted it, and considering how much the Church as an institution has used it to their advantage.

Answer 10

I dont believe in god as I chose to put my faith in my partner, family and friends the ones who I dont need to close my eyes and imagine are there and get pretend help, they are already there, by my side at the ready!

I have read the bible and it only strengthened my views that god does not exist!