Serious question about religion.?

Question

I was born into a catholic family raised morally right polite bible follower, and after a while i realized that god was a crutch. i only needed god when someone died and i couldn't accept that i'd never see them again, but i didn't really believe in god, because anytime i actually needed something, rather than just an imaginary friend, no matter how hard i tried and prayed i didn't get anything. and i also think its really wrong to believe in god just because its low risk (if there is god and you believe in him you go to heaven and if there isnt a god and you believe it doesnt matter you rot either way) so its low risk. i thin kthats a really bad reason to believe in God don't you? I can't take it on faith, because God never helped me anymore than what I can do for myself. So I think its all a crock and a money making scheme from churches, can a religious person help me out here? am i missing something? I went to church and read the bible for like 18 years. fact is i quit.

Since I told God to go f*ck himself, I've been way more prosperous in my life, honestly. If only I could tell you what a better life I have made for MYSELF in 1000 words in the last 2 years since I stopped worrying about following gods rules, and praying and believing, and just working off of my own steam. I kind of love athiesm, and the idea of mortality. its weird.

I'm confused as to how God could give me this much free will and logical reasoning if he intended for me to believe in him. And then gives no proof. It just doesn't makse sense for me to believe in God according to me, who's personality was created by God (supposedly.)

First of all please dont assume i prayed for an n64 and didnt get it for christmas, ok i think you are seriously underestimating me as a moral person. I mean maybe instead of helping me deal with someone's death, how about when i prayed for them to not be pulled into iraq, if that got answered, or how about for the surgery to go well, but instead the prayer is for help me and his family cope with his death.
Now as for the other part, I can pray to god, and he can reply "yes, no, or maybe later" i have exactly the same odds, if i do nothing at all. no praying. I don't see a benefit to praying, nor do i see evidence that i should try it, is what im saying.

Answer 1

First of all...you've been missing a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Religion is man's way of trying to reach God. It usually involves rules and regulations, ceremonies and traditions. You must do this, this, or this in order to be Holy or acceptable to God. NOT TRUE!!! God Loves you.

He is seeking a relationship with you. He loves you.

Relationship is God's way of reaching us, through Jesus Christ.

You've been living in the flesh and natural and not in the Spirit. God is Spirit; His word will set you free but you must have faith.

Stop thinking about it. You thought about it to death...

You know in your heart Jesus died for your sins...and mine. He loves you like no one else ever could...and He wants you to have a PERSONAL relationship with Him.

May you find the Grace of the Living God and His Son Jesus...may your search be short and your life long.

He's knocking on your hearts door, will you answer?

Grace to you and God Bless!

P.S. There are three answers to prayers...

1) YES!

2) No

3) Wait, it will happen in my perfect time.

Answer 2

Wow. I am a Christian. I am not a catholic and am not familiar with all catholic beliefs but I do know one thing. I believe. Sometimes the things we ask for are given to us but if you don't believe they certainly won't be given. On the other hand, when you ask for things or something to happen, the answer might be No. Faith is believing without seeing. You surely have faith in something don't you. If God is a cr utch, He is the best crutch you can ever have. God doesn't let you down. Situations let you down. Besides that, God never promised us a perfect wonderful life. Some Christians get harder knocks that non believers do. Have you ever known someone you think is completely evil and it seems like that person always gets everything and you get nothing? Guess where that comes from. Not God. I am so sorry you feel this way. I have had so many things in my life to set me on my butt but I could not have made it at all without God. It also makes me a little more compassionate about others and a little less self-centered. I don't know why it works out sometimes that bad people seem to get good things. Whoever you lost in life, you will see again. That is promised.
You are allowed to speak to The Lord directly. He gave his Son for you and all of us. He also gives us free will, that is to chose the way we live our lives. May be those things you think you did by yourself, God was helping you do.

Now about organized religion. Yes, definitely there are some people or churches that fall into a money making category rather than trying just to help others. Not all religions are like that, usually it is the TV evangelists, and some of them are really nice people, and not so so nice.There are all kinds of churches. Usually a real church will lend you a hand or help you in time of need. Please don't throw away your life thinking that you are going to rot either way. I go to church because I need to, because I am sinful myself. All of us are. Christians just want to try harder. Maybe you were in the wrong faith for you while it may be the right faith for someone else. I don't know. I just know that I will pray for you. Please get a bible that is written in plain understandable English and even if you don't think you believe, join a bible study and work on it just for the heck of it and see what happens. I do not want to knock any denomination but there are some churches that are going to non-denominational and these churches are growing and growing. You can wear jeans, and sandals or whatever. God is still waiting for you and if you are his child, He will not let you go. There is nothing you can do about that. If you are His child, you just are and you can't change it.

I hope I have helped you. Remember that satan can appear to be the most beautiful thing in the world and he is the biggest deceiver of all. I am not going to worry about you because I believe God is watching over you and waiting.

Answer 3

Read your question.

" I only needed god when someone died "
"anytime i actually needed something, rather than just an imaginary friend, no matter how hard i tried and prayed i didn't get anything"

It's evident to everyone, except you, why He didn't answer.

He's not a rabbit's foot that you pull out only when something is not the way you want it.

You're missing the relationship of your life.

You've read Matthew 6:33 already.

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Seek HIS will in your life. He has the greater plan for your life. It's OK to ask for stuff but always include "Thy will be done".
I guarantee you it will work out for you.

As for the "money making scheme" thing....if you have an issue with that, leave your wallet at home.

2Corinthians 9:7

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, [so let him give]; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

God created the universe without your cash. Tithes and offerings are to be your worship of Him - not given grudgingly out of a sense of necessity or guilt.

May God richly bless you.

Answer 4

I don't want to hurt your feelings, but you are just trying to take the easy way out, it seems to me. What difference does it make what other people's reasons are for believing?

A Baptist minister's wife, who was a friend of mine, once said,
"I know there are a lot of hypocrites who go to church, but it takes a pretty small person to hide behind one of them."

How can you say that God never helped you? You were born with an excellent mind, parents who cared enough to get up every day and take care of you, take you to church, teach you right from wrong, plus you have free will. Think of all the people in this world who have it much worse than you. Do you not understand that all this came from God? You are blessed, and too spoiled to acknowledge it.

Money-making scheme? That's malarkey and you know it. The Catholic Church is the most charitable organization in the world.
Their clergy are not rich men; they live on just what they need.

God isn't there to give you goodies and toys... nor even to help you find a job or a date, or whatever you were praying for.
Remember the story of Solomon, who prayed for wisdom and was given wisdom plus riches. You may be praying for the wrong solutions to your problems. God has already given you the tools you need; it's up to you to make the right things happen in your life.

Finally, take a look at this story, which you should remember from the Bible. See if you can figure out which brother you are.

http://www.angelfire.com/sc3/we_dig_montana/Gracech1.html

Answer 5

I felt just like you about 12 years back. Kind of a moocher for God and only looked for him when I needed something.

Just to keep things imparcial and not promote any religious group, I am not going to tell you what religion I am.

Religions are a business and 99% of them don't follow the Bible teachings.

My only advice is the following. Make a real heartfelt prayer that you would like to find the truth and have all of your questions answered.

Now I don't want to come off as a fortune teller but here it goes.

In a short period of time someone will approach you to offer a bible based conversation. It may be a few people, but when you hear that one person that is using the Bible to speak to you and explaining things in a way that is simple for you to understand..then the truth is at your disposal. This source will not be from the internet but from a face to face encounter.

I was also catholic and I did this a long time ago.

Remember...don't be parcial and let them speak and feel free to ask all of the questions you want to ask. They will have all of the right answers.

Zepaniah 2:2,3 and 1Tim 2:3,4

Answer 6

God is not a candy store, despite the 'candy' greed motivated words that are preached by 'faith' preachers. The Bible is clear that we live in a world that is a war zone between good and evil. The headlines and our own personal world around us prove that without a doubt. The Bible is also clear that it is not just about believing because it says that even the demons believe and they will not be saved in James 2:19 and even Judas believed but will not be saved.

The Gospel is about relationship! It is WAY more than just calling on God when someone needs God. Read Mark 7:15-23 and notice where Jesus says “depart from me.. I never KNEW you. That is relationship! Also note that these people appeared (to men) like they were doing the work of the lord!!!!! Luke 10:27 states that we should 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'. How can we have this love without a relationship with our creator. Jesus himself said in Mat 10:37 “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me” Strong words but we know many Christians including the disiples that gave their life and everything they owned for their relationship with Christ. Not everyone is called to that extreme but the principal is the same. Even though we love our family very much our love for God is called to be stronger! This Biblical point does not fill churches pews!

If it is so easy to get to heaven as some claim then why did Jesus say in Mat 7:12-14 that “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” It is because preachers are tickling mens ears with works and sounds that fills their churches with money when the real road to heaven is loving Gods Word(s) enough to have a REAL relationship with Him and following Him only in everything that is spoken from the Word of God no matter what. At one time I read the Bible too but I did not know the Creator who spoke the words!! The Words at that time was menaingless. If I don’t know Him then how can I recognize His voice? God is good beyond imagination and He is still closely involved in every aspect of your life up to this very moment!

Answer 7

I can only give you one word as an answer. Relationship. I know what you are talking about with the whole God was never there when I needed what I wanted thing. What I have to say is that until I got serious and truly started seeking a relationship with Him, there was nothing there. But I can tell you that once I got serious about that relationship He began showing Himself in many different ways. To believe based on fear is a poor reason to believe. If it were all a money making sceme then people like Jesus were setting us up hundreds of years before profit. A Lot of people who have faith, and even a lot of those who spread His word are destitute. As to your response that God is a Crutch. You are absolutely right. But that is exactly what He wants to be. Just look at the teachings of Paul. "In weakness My Strength is made complete."

Answer 8

Your position is well understood. For many years I shared the same view and wondered how the hell "the kind loving father" could allow the Holocaust, Stalin, Hitler, etc. As I've gotten older, I haven't gotten any more religious my percetion of God has changed. In Catholic school (12 yrs) they taught us about God in the same way they taught people in the Dark Ages. It's what they knew. Also, it helped keep the populace in line.
However, now we are a bit more aware of our spiritual environment. What's the difference between a stiff lying in the morgue and the person they were just hours before? Some kind of "life force" is how I see it. Taken in its entirety, all "life forces" put together might be God. Why not? It sounds as plausible as anything else I've heard.

Answer 9

I'm not a religious person and I never was. My mom is Jewish and my dad is Catholic, so we just celebrated both Christmas and Hanukkah and that's it. I recently concluded that I do not believe in God because there is no proof of his existence. Faith does not do anything for me either. I think back in the day different cultures invented God to make them feel better about an afterlife and so on. You don't need another person to tell you what to believe in. Just follow your gut instinct and stick with it. Basically people need to believe in a higher power to comfort them, and if you don't need that comfort that just proves your are strong and can live in the REAL world. So don't feel bad that you don't see what other people see in God.

Answer 10

Yes, you are missing a big something! God wants to be our friend. Knowing him personally is a lot different than "just believing there is a God". That is why sent His Son Jesus....to identify with us on a personal level. Until you realize that need for Him and ask Him to be your Savior, you will not have that personal connection. What can you lose? You need to have a direct talk and ask Him. If you truly and with our heart do this, you will know it. God Bless you.....I pray you make your decision soon. John 3:16

Answer 11

In your case, intelligence has obviously helped you see the light, because all religious preachers just pump their one theory (God exists) down our throats.

When the science community makes a discovery or modifies a theory they publish a paper for all to view, speculate on, and debate. Invariably such discoveries open up our simplistic minds and expand our horizons. Examples would be the works of Einstein and Hawking, to name a very small sample.

So why do preachers have to continually pump their one theory (God exists) down our throats. Why do they stand on street corners and hand out leaflets, yell at passers by, gather huge crowds and push unsuspecting victims over in the belief they will be cured of whatever mental or physical ailment invades them, if they just believe in the theory of God.

Why can’t the believers of religious theory just behave in a decent manner, in much the same way as the scientific community does. The answer to all of these questions is simple. They know their theory of God is wrong, and saturation mental and verbal bombardment is the only way they can convince people, and they do it directly or indirectly for money.

God is just another fake creation by man.

Humanity has created many Gods, for example – Gods of Olympus, Ancient Egypt, Babylon and so on. Most of us are atheists about most Gods humanity has created, except the latest craze, the current God in the Bible. Learned atheists have also rejected this version of a God, but some hard-core believers still hang on, presumably until a better image of God is created by man.

Faith in God seems to be nothing more than humans attempting to run away from reality, an excuse to avoid thinking and evaluating evidence. Faith is just an emotional escape and really just a substitute for opening your eyes to reason.

Believers talk about God creating man in his own image. It’s in the Bible so it’s fact – get a grip, get real. The facts suggest the exact opposite. Man created God in his own image. I’m sure humanity will disregard this God, as they have disregarded all previous Gods, it’s just a matter of time before humanity creates another God that better serves their emotions and image.