My Honest Thoughts on Religion
- Locked due to inactivity on Oct 21, '20 3:54am
Thread Topic: My Honest Thoughts on Religion
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I can't honestly say I can label myself as anything, now.
Sure, I believe there is a God, and yes, I keep some Christian morals, but I'm beginning to disagree with so much of what my parents and family say about the Bible and what's right.
And whenever someone tries to correct me on the matter, I feel like they're "preaching s---" to me. (These are honest thoughts.)
I do believe that God can fix things and it will get better, but I DON'T believe that everything will always be okay like how the story goes in those faith-based movies and stupid stories "based on real life".
I'm sorry, but I just can't take this.
I'm not sure what to call myself, and I'd rather be neutral to believing as well as not believing.
Labeling myself as anything just feels out of place, now. After all, I can't be a Christian if I'd rather chunk my Bible and do something unmentionable, and I can't be an atheist if I'm still believing that there is a God who cares.
I don't know what I am, but trying to figure it out makes me feel more stress than just leaving it be and not associating myself with either names.
I think this is what causes me stress and conflict with my family. This is why we don't get along. This is why I feel I should be on my own.
I feel better admitting this, though.
I'm not perfect, whatever I am, and I don't want anyone to believe I am even for a second.
I don't prefer to sit around in churches all day and scream and shout like the rest of the family. I've always found it weird and uncomfortable.
But I'm not going to sit around and make fun of "the guy who died on a cross" either.
So, my religion? I don't know. Talking about who I should be regarding it makes me feel sick, so I'd rather not. -
@Clara Ford
Honestly, I relate to you on this subject. I go to a Christian church with my grandma, and she and our church knows I’m gay and they accept me! Our Christian church opens its doors, but why can’t the world?
I go to a Christian church but don’t consider myself a Christian. -
Welcoming you is just a matter of opinion. Even if you weren't gay, there are still people who wouldn't like you for another reason and the world just sucks like that.
I don't know what to say about not considering being a Christian because that's my conflict. I don't feel I can say that I am, but I don't feel I can totally say I'm not. -
Honestly, I know how you’re feeling. I was raised Catholic and then in my teen years I went off and did witchcraft (still have tarot cards), but now I would say that I’m more of a mix of different religions (Hinduism and Buddhism is pretty cool and peaceful). I have always believed that there is a higher power/god, but I was personally just angry at god during my teen years because nothing that I wanted to do, I could actually do (I was in cross country and wanted to run for my college but then when I was a freshman in high school, my shins got injured to the point where if I was just sitting down, it felt like someone was stabbing my legs and I would cry sometimes cause the pain was really bad). However, it took me a very long time (like 6 years later) to realize that that could’ve been God’s way of telling me that I was not suppose to continue that path of running in college and he had to do it then before recruiters started looking at me my sophomore year (because I had knocked a minute off my 5K time to running it in 21minutes) and that severely because I wouldn’t have stopped unless if I was in that severe of pain.
For you though, your issue seems to come from the church and people themselves and not actually God. I don’t think you have to go to church to be Christian. I think you’re a Christian if you believe in God; plain and simple. You don’t have to follow the preachers or anyone else in control because you can talk to God yourself. You don’t need to go to church, just do it yourself whenever you feel like it. -
That makes sense, but the Bible clearly states that God doesn't like people who aren't decisive on what they do. I could love the Lord, but it doesn't mean anything if I go off and do things he says not to do and I would like to do them.
That's the biggest problem in figuring out where I stand in this. -
You have to figure out who you are in order to be decisive though. I think my perspective on God has changed over the years because I used to be scared that if I do something wrong, then I’m going to go to hell. But why should I be scared of someone I’m suppose to love? God gave us free will and is supposed to already know and see everything in our lives. He’s also suppose to be forgiving. I think the bottom line is that as long as you believe in him and lead a good life and be a good person, then you should be able to do whatever you want to do without fear of making him mad. He gave you free will so you can figure out who you’re meant to be
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I understand. Thank you.
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Something I'd like to point out is that you can't really base a lot of things on movies.
I remember watching War Room, and the old lady was about to get stabbed, and she said something like, "Stop in the name of Jesus Christ!" and the guy seemed to be unable to stab her.
I made sure I realized that that probably wouldn't happen if I did that when I was about to get stabbed. The movie creators are also trying to keep things interesting.
So yes, your life isn't going to turn out like the people in movies are. God doesn't promise a trouble-free life.
I'm sorry if that sounds like I'm trying to persuade you to Christianity, I know that's not what you want. -
It's not really about what I want, but I guess it is. I don't really know what I want in entirely, but I know what I've wanted lately doesn't seem to match what I should want as a follower of Christ. But...I don't want to change, right now.
It might be pain-related. Being involved in everything just seems too much. I just want to do what I want to do, which is never an option.
The more I try to do what I want, the more I find I'm ripping away from what my parents want from me.
I'm not sure if it's what I want, but I'm not against Christianity. Just lost and testing the waters, now. I'm probably (according to what my parents would say) messing around with things I shouldn't.
But I feel too pressured to keep this form as a Christian when I can't honestly say I feel like doing it with all my heart. I don't anymore. If I'm being honest, I can't. -
Being Christian is your choice. Following God is your choice, not your parents. And I think a lot of what you're trying to figure out is what you want to believe for yourself instead of just going with how your parents raised you.
If you want to give Christianity a chance, and this is your decision, then I would say you should read the Bible on your own and do your own research. Like Daughter of Apollo said, you can go to God directly on your own.
Christianity is not an easy thing to follow. Because it does mean forgetting what you think you want, and instead obeying God. (But God loves you, so ultimately his choices for your life are going to be better than choices you could make for yourself. He won't necessarily put you in comfortable places, but better and with more purpose.)
Christianity can get pretty legalistic, but you always have the choice to obey God or not. And once a Christian, then no, I don't believe you can lose your salvation. (Some Christians do believe you can though). I do personally think it would be a shame to go through life without God. Not everything is going to be easy and kind like the movies, but God is the one in the fire with you. When I understand just who he is and what he did to love me, then I trust him even if it means having a terrible life. Just think of Paul and his example in the Bible.
Also sorry if I sound like I'm preaching. I think I just started rambling here. Bottom line, it's your choice to choose what to believe. -
Thanks. I just need to find my way, then.
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It sounds like you are really wrestling with this decision/question, and I just want to encourage you that it is good to be thinking about your beliefs and trying to determine what is true and what isn't. Instead of blindly following, or simply giving up on the whole thing, you are actually taking the time to consider things for yourself, and I admire that.
Personally, I think the first question you should think about is what it means to be a Christian.
Lots of people use that term but mean different things. My understanding, from what I've read in the Bible, is that to be a Christian doesn't just mean believing that God is real. (however it also doesn't mean following all his commandments or living a good life)
You're probably familiar with this verse, but
John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son [Jesus], that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life."
and in John 14:6 "Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes unto the Father but by me."
To become a Christian is to believe, not just in God, or to know that he exists, but to believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins and God raised him from the dead. That's all it takes. To believe that Jesus died to save you. From your sins, because, yeah, we all sin. A lot. (aka do bad things) And most of the time, we enjoy doing it. This is why we are called sinners but the penalty for sin is eternal suffering in hell. However, because God loves us he made a way for us to be saved from our sins and to have a future in heaven with him. Christianity is actually in essence very simple. It doesn't matter if you go to church or not, it doesn't matter how bad you mess up, and it doesn't matter how many good things you do, the only thing that makes you a Christian is whether or not you believe in Jesus as your Savior. -
That being said, I think you have some very good questions as to whether or not you should be a Christian.
You mentioned that you aren't perfect, but the truth is, you can't be, and better yet, you don't have to be. No person can live perfectly, not even Christians. The Bible says in Ephesians 2:8-9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith, it is not of yourselves, it is a gift of God; not of works lest any one should boast." We can't earn our salvation or God's favor through good things we do, and we won't lose his love when we make mistakes. This doesn't mean we should go around doing whatever we want because there are still consequences for our actions, but when Christians try to do what is right, it's out of love for God and a desire to please him rather than an out of obligation or a fear of punishment.
I completely agree with you that everything will NOT always be okay, and it is so frustrating and misleading when movies portray Christianity like that.
I don't know if this has been your experience, but I've known many well meaning people who say things like "Well, all things work together for good" and "Just keep praising God" and things like that, when I'm in the middle of something really challenging/painful, and it just sounds so shallow and doesn't seem to work.
The truth is, this world is so broken. Filled with destruction and confusion, pain, hate, suffering...none of this is as it should be. And the Bible tells us this.
And while God doesn't want to see us suffering, he gave man the ability to choose their own actions and, since man is sinful, there are painful consequences.
But God also doesn't tell us to ignore the difficulty of our circumstances, as some people may say, instead he wants us to bring all of our pain and confusion to him. For, as you said, he IS a loving God, and cares deeply for you personally.
And while everything might not be good now (in fact, it definitely isn't) there WILL come a time when God will make all things right again. Not necessarily in this life, but if you are a Christian you can be confident in knowing that your future is secure. That no matter what happens on earth, heaven is a real, beautiful place where there is no pain, no evil, and you really will be happy.
Being a Christian doesn't mean you'll have an easy life, but it does mean you will have a sure future and, like Stardust said, God will be with you through it all. Psalms 46:1-3 says "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble."
Once again, I really appreciate you being so open about your struggle, and I think it's really important that you ask yourself these questions, and to decide what you believe.
Keep thinking! Keep looking for truth! <3 -
That's a lot of words 😯
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Lol, I know...sorry ;)
Just something that means a lot to me. <3
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