I asked this before but got no good Christian answers.
Can you make yourself believe that there is a giant red hippo on my lap? Please try now and let me know if you are successful. I am completely serious. I say believe in that you ACTUALLY believe it - in the same way you believe in god. I don't mean that you say you believe it. I mean that you DO believe it.
If you cannot, then how do you expect me to choose to believe in god when I currently do not?
2007-01-09 08:20:37 · 25 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Baby K: But can you believe I have a red hippo on my lap?
2007-01-09 08:24:42 · update #1
Nofreedomonrsomething: I want to believe in god. Tell me how, Chief.
2007-01-09 08:26:54 · update #2
Gary B: If only go can drag me, why has he not done so? How can he punish me if he chooses not to drag me?
2007-01-09 08:28:15 · update #3
Exactly I'll bet none of you can do it. You all say you need proof. So why is it bad for me to ask for proof of god's existence before I believe it?
2007-01-09 08:35:17 · update #4
Someone said: "If you WANT to believe in God, start reading the Bible with an open mind and praying to Jesus and ask Him to show you He is real, and to help you to believe. I can't convince you to believe; only GOD can."
I have done all of this and it did not work.
2007-01-09 08:42:50 · update #5
Yes, you can choose to believe something you do not currently believe. By repitition, you can persuade yourself that nearly anything is true, particularly if you attach some great emotional import to what you are repeating.
It doesn't make the newly chosen belief true, it just makes you believe it.
2007-01-09 08:24:13 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
look, if i say that there's a red hippo on your lap, then nobody would believe me. basically because no one has ever experienced it before. that's the difference between God and red hippos. hey, i'm not saying that i've experienced God personally, but i'm pretty damn sure that with all the people in the world, there's a reason why belief in God still exists. Maybe you have experienced God as well. He doesn't have to be the one described by Catholics and other religions, i don't like them as well. I'm an agnostic. God could be pure energy, or he could be the epitome of human evolution. there are a lot of explanations this days. my advise is don't limit yourself on what you see or hear from traditional beliefs. those stuffs are just sooo outdated. open your mind.
2007-01-09 08:41:52 · answer #2 · answered by wildeye_checks 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Steve,
This big red hippo you claim to have has not had his hoof on the top selling group of books compiled into the Holy Bible....the top selling book every year ever since those records have been kept.
Your big red hippo does not have historical evidence as well as scientific evidence to support that he exists.
Your big red hippo is not supported by anything.
My God laid His hand on all things recorded and kept in the Holy Bible and keeps it Holy to this day.
There is significant historical and scientific evidence pointing to the validity of God, the One and Only, and all you have to do is seek out this knowledge. If you study all the facts and try to understand how I, as a Christian, can believe not only the facts but also have faith....and you still can't come to grips with this red hippo comparison, then by all means come back and ask again.
God Bless your seeking!
2007-01-09 08:39:26 · answer #3 · answered by Buff 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is no hippo on your lap. If I was mentally ill I might believe there was but I am perfectly sane. I am sorry you don't believe in God. He does exist. Where do you think we came from. The Holy Bible explains to you who God is. If you read Genesis with an open mind and heart and ask God to come in your heart and help you to understand who he is, you might be suprised how your outlook might change. He is your creator and your father and he desires to have a relationshipwith you. When you develop a personal relationship with Christ your outlook on a lot of things change. You are reborn. Life takes on a new meaning.
2007-01-09 08:35:47 · answer #4 · answered by jacksonvillegarycollins 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm always open to new ideas, and if you were to give me some extra hints - like maybe that giant red hippo could be a stuffed toy - I could see that being a possibility.
What I'm saying is, I'm willing to investigate things further and think about believing.
With belief in God, you can't just turn it on and off like a light switch, it's something you have to personally investigate. You have to personally try a little prayer or pondering on the subject first - it's really a slow process.
2007-01-09 08:28:11 · answer #5 · answered by daisyk 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
YES you can. Let me try to explain. When you are saved you know it. First you might not believe. Then you get called by God. This is hard to explain unless you have experianced it because it is different for everyone. Kind of like being filled with the Spirit.
I know it is hard to believe that there is a God, I can understand why some choose not to believe. It is quite logical in my opinion to not believe until you get called by him. The fact that you are asking questions might mean he is calling you. Keep asking questions and don't let anyone tell you "it just is". There is a reason for everything. Even God.
I dont think I explained that very well but I hope it helps.
2007-01-09 08:28:21 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
There is a huge difference in believing with all your heart in God & in deceiving yourself into believing in a red hippo. My doctor would call that was a mental delusion (by the way my doctor is Christian too). There are no red hippos.
2007-01-09 08:29:47 · answer #7 · answered by Wolfpacker 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Can you make yourself believe that there is a giant red hippo on my lap?
-i can only get a far as a light pink hippo, sorry.
seriously, you do have a point. i think christians try to persuade you to accepting that there is a God.(Wowee, maybe there is a god who loves me) like if you spend enough time with someone you'll probably start to like them, but its not really the same thing.
but whats funny is, atheists do the same thing. for example, can i make you believe that i am a robot? so its really 2 groups in a kind of 'war of attriction', seeing who can give up first.
2007-01-09 08:28:34 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋
I don't. The Bible clearly teaches that no man can believe in God - you, me, or anybody else - unless God himself "draws" him. This word "draws" does not mean "entices to make a decision" - it means to "drag". It was used of how Paul was dragged into his trials, and I understand was also used to describe pulling buckets of water out of a well.
Do I hope and pray that you will believe in God? Absolutely. But you cannot choose to believe in God yourself. Only God can drag you, just as only He could have dragged me when I was in your situation. I have been through it, I know. Seriously, please contact me personally if you want to talk more.
2007-01-09 08:26:09 · answer #9 · answered by Gary B 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
because you finding me finding out there is a hippo on your lap is different then you finding out after you die that God is real and now you have to go burn in hell for forever. I know that for me before i got baptized i was like, what if i'm worshiping the wrong God, but i started praying and spending more time reading the bible and going to church more. Then one day i was at a church retreat and everyone was praying and singing to God and you could just feel gods pressence, you felt bad for how unworthy you were for god to even know your name but on the other hand you were so filled with joy because he knows and cares who you are!!! it was so amazing.
Who Am I
by Casting Crowns
album: Casting Crowns (2003)
Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name
Would care to feel my hurt
Who am I, that the Bright and Morning Star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart
Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are
I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
Vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours, I am Yours
Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin
Would look on me with love and watch me rise again
Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea
Would call out through the rain
And calm the storm in me
2007-01-09 08:29:48 · answer #10 · answered by Jen 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋