Faith or something of it

Fruiteloop

Fruiteloop

Regular Poster
MBTI
INFP
I do not or cannot view God as other than abstract.

I had a hard time growing up because I had no one to tell me what to think or believe.

My mom took my brother and sister to church often but I was just afraid the whole time.

I was confused also because even if I knew bible stories I wasn't capable to looking into them myself.

I have never been an atheist but rather agnostic since nothing spiritual ever happened in my life accept a few things I cannot explain other than as miracles.

It is like this for me where I am alone. But I never doubt that something exists behind things, it is just hard to feel.

Faith is a strong belief as in trust in something that if you hope then it will come through.

Even when nothing seems to show you that there is something, deep down there is something inside you, to keep going.

Many times I could have given up because nothing was there but I had this sense that if I am here then that is the place I should be.

I look at myself as having perspective on what it means to be lonely. That does not make it so I doubt anything. I have learned from it.

This makes me feel I can help those around me, I just need to have less fear of what happened in childhood.

Some people often feel a great connection to what is beyond them and I have been working on doing that.

Whatever it was that was holding me back is gone now.

I just need to feel better in what I have experienced.

Feel the feels and all that.

Many things make me happy even if they were sad sometimes.
 
Ok?
 
It is just that some people have direct access to God by prayer well I can only have ideas.

I do not know if its the same for everyone but some people look outside or close their eyes and feel God is there.

The presence of God that is, as a person like any other person.

I cannot say I get that close.

But with all the things in life I cannot for sure say God does not exist.

I think I saw Gods foot print once when four years old like mosses saw God pass by.

But that could just have been a cartoon? It seemed real at the time.

Other than that my dog can pass through walls if you believe it.

You do not have to but that was a big event I cannot explain. With others.

A man once walked up to me looked like Cristopher Robin in a hurry and I shook his hand and gave him 5 dollars.

He looked worried but it was in the middle or a car lot and he acted as if he knew me because I had no idea who he was but I felt I needed to give him something and felt really happy afterwards. That was the first time I felt like someone thought I was the people to ask like we were friends. He just seemed like a friend that needed help and I never felt anything like that before. This was several years ago.
 
I do not understand the point of this thread other than it being some personal ramblings
I guess if that is the point though, carry on
 
Well this is my experience with faith.

Not sure how others have a relationship to faith but it be nice to here if any of you do.

Coincidentally I knew a woman age 60 named faith who was a therapist. Not mine but we talked. She was Buddhist.
 
Why are you interested in hearing about other people's experiences?
What specifics interest you/are you looking for?

I think for most people, actively engaging in exercises of faith is what leads to them feeling a higher presence.
Which to me initiates a certain kind of chicken or egg situation.
But if something triggers something so powerful that your brain tells you it is real, it's probably worth some amount of consideration at least.

I won't get in to my own experiences, as I've had my own answers for a very long time.
And I lack the language to describe them in such a way that they will be properly absorbed anyway.
Such things must be experienced, and cannot be intellectualized.
 
Oh

In that case I suppose its personal and hard to explain so I will not infringe on that space.

Yes we have to have it be real to us, in some way.

I was just making is clear that anyone who wants to say anything, if they want to can do so.
 
There's no infringement, it's just my opinion
Also you didn't answer my questions
 
I want to know if people have faith in anything because just because that be a shared experience maybe.

bonding perhaps is the word but not the best word

that's is what people usually do when discussing faith I have seen

I am not sure people do that here exactly but I just was thinking about it subconsciously?

hope my answer is adequate
 
Fruiteloop said:
I would grow in faith if it heard how it helps others.

Then I'd become a better person.

(this was clear to me at first)
Click to expand...

Ok that makes sense.
So you are oriented in a way where the group gives you substance, more or at least equal to the individual.
 
@Fruiteloop I don't know if you remember learning to swim or how to ride a bike, but faith in a religious sense can be like that. There is a time when you cannot and maybe you are afraid of letting go - trusting that the water will support you, or that the bike will do the seemingly impossible and stay upright while you are riding it. Then there is the triumph when you finally get the technique right - and then the sheer pleasure of being able to do these two things. Then the novelty wears off and they just become a part of your life and you have to think hard in order to remember what it was like when you couldn't do them and were afraid to try.

But faith is such a complex topic with many ramifications. On the one hand, as a Christian I know that I am essentially immortal, with a very different world view to someone who believes their existence will end at their death. On the other hand, as a Christian I am a member of more than one Christian community and have made many friends as a result, so it provides social opportunities. This isn't unique to Christianity and I'm sure that Moslem, Jewish and Hindoo religions offer very similar social possibilities.

I think that my swimming and bike analogies break down a bit if we look further though. Most folks of faith do have spells of doubt about what they believe - being a member of a faith community can help a lot here because we help each other through the rough times, and the routine patterns of worship also carry us through when our personal tide has gone out.

All religions provide a possibility of a personal encounter with god, or with a state of being beyond the ordinary world. These encounters are like being born blind then suddenly being able to see for the first time in your life - they can be filled too with a sensation of being overwhelmingly embraced by love. But these experiences only seem to happen to a relatively small number of people of faith, and those who do have them find it hard to talk about them except to those who have had similar. These are mainly inward facing experiences, not events that take place in the external world - for example we may find that god lives in the very innermost core of our own self and has always been there.

I think many of the folks who have had deep experiences have been filled in the past with an equally deep longing for they know not what, and a restless dissatisfaction with the everyday things of the world around them. It they find what they are unconsciously looking for (or maybe more likely, it finds them!) it can be life changing.

But there is another way to look at faith too - an atheist is as much a person of faith as is a religious person. I think choosing to believe there is no god and no other reality than the one presented to our senses can be liberating for those who follow that path out of conviction. It offers the same level of clarity and a way forward as any other form of faith but is not a way I could choose myself. What I would say though is that most folks' understanding of who god is is wrong - the great adventure is discovering who he or she really is, and that's a journey of infinity.

I don't know if any of this is what you are looking for?
 
Fruiteloop said:
I do not or cannot view God as other than abstract.

I had a hard time growing up because I had no one to tell me what to think or believe.

My mom took my brother and sister to church often but I was just afraid the whole time.

I was confused also because even if I knew bible stories I wasn't capable to looking into them myself.

I have never been an atheist but rather agnostic since nothing spiritual ever happened in my life accept a few things I cannot explain other than as miracles.

It is like this for me where I am alone. But I never doubt that something exists behind things, it is just hard to feel.

Faith is a strong belief as in trust in something that if you hope then it will come through.

Even when nothing seems to show you that there is something, deep down there is something inside you, to keep going.

Many times I could have given up because nothing was there but I had this sense that if I am here then that is the place I should be.

I look at myself as having perspective on what it means to be lonely. That does not make it so I doubt anything. I have learned from it.

This makes me feel I can help those around me, I just need to have less fear of what happened in childhood.

Some people often feel a great connection to what is beyond them and I have been working on doing that.

Whatever it was that was holding me back is gone now.

I just need to feel better in what I have experienced.

Feel the feels and all that.

Many things make me happy even if they were sad sometimes.
Click to expand...
I can somewhat relate, I have had my ups and downs in my relationship with God and am currently dormant. I believe in the stories but at times find it hard to see him working in my own life. It’s not that I don’t believe, it’s complex. Sometimes I feel touched and other times distant. I was born and raised a Seventh-day Adventist, and recently moved to a new church. The people are friendly but I just have an off feeling. The late church I was a part of fell apart because of the corrupt leaders. I’ve always felt outside of a community no matter the setting, even if I’m involved. I hold some resentment towards some church folk, parents, and even God. I’ve been through crippling and desolate periods of loneliness. I’ve felt abandoned and never found a place where I can confide. I attended church weekly and listened to the sermons on and off when I was helping out or drawing.

I’m working through my past as well and trying to live with no regrets. I work to be a character who people can just feel at home with and can say or do anything. I plan to rebuild my relationship along with other issues I am facing in health.

I would also say I've just skimmed the top of being religious and haven't personally felt direct access to him. I think it's just like relationships need to be maintained and nurtured.

This place has been a joy to relate with like minds and brings hope that I will meet others in the world.
 
Heyzxk411 said:
I would also say I've just skimmed the top of being religious and haven't personally felt direct access to him. I think it's just like relationships need to be maintained and nurtured.
Click to expand...

Be ye Spiritual, as I am Spiritual.
I don't get the second sentence: How do you feel relationships need to be maintained and nurtured? Just curious how the two sentences are related to each other.
 
just me said:
Be ye Spiritual, as I am Spiritual.
I don't get the second sentence: How do you feel relationships need to be maintained and nurtured? Just curious how the two sentences are related to each other.
Click to expand...
I meant it as a comparison, of sorts. Faith is a process much like a relationship, it can go through difficult times and dry spells. Through prayer and scriptures, it is a bit easier to understand him more. I flip through the Bible from time to time and hardly ever pray unless I have an exam or something coming up. It's a commitment that is hard to balance in today's times.
 
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