Why do you believe in God, a god or other higher power?

Question

Just curious as to what personally makes people believe in God, gods or other higher powers. What specifically made you choose to believe in a god, ie. signs, family pressure, peer pressure, fear of death, scientific evidence, etc... And do you really truly live your life according to your beliefs or only when the beliefs are convenient?

Answer 1

What makes people believe in god? well, imagine you are a child, and someone tells you "if you dont believe in god, and dont do what his book says, you will burn in hell for all of eternity"

Somehow I think fear has something to do with it.

Answer 2

I do believe in a God, or in God, I have read the Bible, it intrest me alot, lately I have been trying to find the connections with Revalations and whats going on in the Middle East right now, you know, Babylon is right smack in Baghdad, God cursed that land, ever since,its had problems, the Harlot as the Bible speaks of , gets drunk off the blood of the innocent ones, who could that harlot be? The US? or Iraq? The seven heads and crowns of the dragon, are those the super powers? These times, I do believe , are the signs of the end. I would like to believe the part about how God said he would not allow the earth to be destroyed again as he alowed when he flooded the earth, so maybe it will do away with a big astroid hitting us. ANd then sometimes, u know, since this universe is so vast, why are we the only ones here? If God made all these plntsin universe because he loved us so much, how on earth are we going to be able to see them? Or is there another race already doing that, hence UFO's and such. Or maybe there isnt a God, maybe its these space beings that have orchestrated a book of standards for the human race to follow as an experiment, now we are being checked on and monitored more than ever. But never the less even then, imho, inside, there is implanted something, that makes us aware that we are created, that we need to percieve as greater than mankind, that we need to worship. I kinda think , u know, since Jesus was around how important it is to do Gods will, he warns us of our impending doom if we dont, I think, man, thousands of years have passed and there is still people carrying out what Jesus did, if there is a hell, rather than a personal hell, is it really that bad that we have to heed a warning that has been passsed along for thousands years?

Answer 3

Fear has nothing to do with it for me. I believe because I have seen the power of God at work in my life. I should have been dead 3 or4 times over but by the grace of God I am still here. My faith in God got me through high school after being told that i would have seizures 7 times a day for the rest of my life. I was then told i needed to be put in a private school which my mother had no way of paying for. i went on to get through those last two years at the private school owing no money and I stopped having seizures altogether!!! If that's not God I have no clue what it could have been.

Matthew 17:20 (New International Version)

20 He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.

Answer 4

Well - everyone has a different answer for this question. But for me personally - its because the existence of God answers all questions from live and love - to the chicken and the egg.

A common misconception is that people can be 'forced' to believe something. But I can gaurantee to you that whether I offered you a billion dollars or held a gun to your head, that would not have any affect on what you actually believe whatsoever. i.e. The worst 'christians' I have met had firmly christian parents (not to say that this is a common occurence though) - and the best examples of christians I have met had the absolute worst history/past/upbringing.

Trying not to dribble on too long with these deep questions, but I should also answer that not many people, with ANY belief system live 100% according to their beliefs. i.e. how many people always, always do what they way they will do? or live how they say they will live? People only live what they say they believe, when their heart (aka desires) is the same as what they say they believe.

I hope thats not too confusing... its 45 degrees here (celcius).

Answer 5

1. becasue there is.
2. i had a personal experance, i.e. i remember on a windy day my face was chapped and my legs were all sunburned (in the desert) and there was a sandstorm. i prayed Lord, please let this storm pass. and, in a matter of breif seconds it was all clear. yo can blame this on coincidance, but i choose to serve the Lord.
3. it makes more sence than any other religion. Islam dosn;t make sence, and was created to keep the peace between tribes (ha and it's working well?) darwinism dosn;t take a God but it has been disproven NUMBEROUS times and therefore is false. Eastern religions are murky self-help clinics, mixed with pegan rituals. the Jews worship the same God i do, yet i see the obvious proficies that have come true.

since when is beliving in God conveinat? i dont call going to church every sunday conveinat, nor do i think that not haviing sex all the time is fun. but it's right so therefore i follow God's commands (or at least try to.) is it convenient or me to tithe? no. or to love the hated neighbor? not at all.

Answer 6

I believe in the God of the Bible because of the overwhelming amount of evidence. Everything the prophets have prophecied has hapened accordingly. Science proves the Bible over and over. Even if I didn't believe in the God of the Bible I would believe in a God for many reasons , but this on alone carries enough weight for me, and that is that there is no way life could have come to be out of nonliving matter. Our extremely intelligent scientists can't figure out how to create life, and they have all the components in their labs. How could I believe that inorganic material swished around for so long and eventually it began to live. It's just not possible. You can't make living matter out of nonliving matter. Can't be done.

Answer 7

Well one reason is this--some kind of power changes the seasons. Something made the trees turn all colors in the fall. Something made the universe to continue on and on for ever. Something made you have the brain to be able to ask this question. When I look out at night at all the stars, I know their is a power greater than myself. And greater than you also. I hope you believe in some kind of higher power.

Answer 8

Forget about family pressures, peer pressure, science. Bah, hambug! It's a heck of a lot better than believing in another mere mortal, or what we call a HUMAN BEING, isn't it??

Think about THAT one for a second.

We're NOTHING more than a speck of sand in this place that we call Earth, in one of the smaller planets of a dying star, that is among a gadzillion other stars, that is only one of millions of other galaxies in this Universe! Come on...

How much more EGOTISTICAL can Man really think he can ever be...??!!

Let's try some humility for once, shall we?

Peace be with you.

Answer 9

I'm a Christian and I follow God because I have witnessed many many miracles happen in the family of God (read: church). People help other people out. People pray for other people. I guess it's the love and care that I see between people that draws me into it.

I saw bad people (alcoholics, drug abuser, etc) turned into good people with the help of the church. I thought it didn't really take a rocket scientist degree to figure out something good was going on. I wanted to know more. I learned more. I got baptized.

Answer 10

I believe in God. I was born to a Cristian home, but I'm old enough to decide to leave it or not. Personally, I can't deny the existense of God because I have seen His power and love in my life. I have a personal relationship with Him and talk to Him every day. And though I don't physically hear His voice, I know He talks to me through the love of my friends and family and all He has created. I have seen many miracles throughout my life and His grace comforting me when I'm going through tough times, that I would be a fool to even question the fact of His existence.