Posted: 12/19/2006 3:36:02 PM EDT
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Did any of you have any personal experience with God (or other sprits)? I'm not talking about reading the book or listening to what other people say and then just having feeling about it. I talked about it with some of my friends and sometimes random people and they behave like religous people, but when I talk about God and angels, they look at me like I'm a lunatic. |
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Basically: why do you believe in God, angels or/and others (specify)? I just don't want to see the usual answers (I heard them already) "book says so" "some guy at my local church says so" "my local imam promised 72 virgins if I believe or cut my head off if I don't". It would be especially interesting to hear from muslims, but I suspect there aren't any here. |
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Seriously, I believe in God because I've put his promises to the test and found them to be true. I've read the scriptures and prayed and received a confirmation through the Holy Ghost/Holy Spirit. I've also had several experiences that I've personally witnessed involving healing, divinely answered prayer, gift of tongues, etc. However, these are personal and sacred things. Many of them too personal to share in a public forum of this nature. Of course, you aren't asking me to provide you evidence to convince you, only explaining why I myself believe. 
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LDS church? It's the only church where I saw people truely believe. What does it mean "received a confirmation through the Holy Ghost/Holy Spirit."? I couldn't ever understand what it is. I'm not saying it is not real, but these things can be explained away by self-hypnosis. I witnessed healing without any religious prayer and I definately had my personal prayers answered, more than once in pretty amazing ways. All of these things can be explained away without using God. I'm not asking for evidence, just a few words here about your experience. IMHO, people who ask for evidence, deep down know pretty well why people can't produce any scientifically verifiable evidence. |
Yes, LDS. Generally speaking, we use the same method to know if anything spiritual is true, whether it be scripture or the counsel of an ecclesiastical leader. I can understand what you're saying about scientifically verifiable evidence. In reference to praying and receiving an answer one has to recognize the "fruits of the Spirit": peace, love, calmness, sometimes a still small voice, clarity of thought, etc. It absolutely requires an element of faith. For me personally, it wasn't a voice in my mind or a vision, but rather an inner calm and confidence. I found that the scriptures became clearer to my understanding. It wasn't an "all at once" experience either (though those do happen for some people), but rather a subtle influence that has been experience for many years since I was a boy. Here's another spiritual experience of a different kind. As a missionary I served in Venezuela. Despite having studied Spanish in high school, I really, really struggled. Most of my struggles came from the strong differences in accent as well as regional dialect differences in the language. It was at least six months before I felt like I could speak in Spanish without making a complete fool of myself. I was doing everything I could to immerse myself in the language: scripture study in spanish, living with hispanic missionary companions, etc. It was really humbling. I remember frequently seeing a family over the course of three months and never understanding a word out of the mother's mouth. Then about a year into my mission I was made a district leader (responsible over a few missionaries) and a branch president (like a bishop but over a small congregation) out in Betijoque. A small miracle happened. I found that my Spanish abilities suddenly increased. I understood most of what people were saying to me and had no problem properly communicating myself to others. It brings to mind that saying, "who the Lord calls, He also qualifies." About five months later I was transfered to Maracaibo and made a zone leader (responsible for supervising and training 20+ missionaries). Again I experienced a sudden increase in my Spanish abilities. I understood everything. It was disconcerting at times. I can remember taking a cab and being shocked at how foul-mouthed the driver was as he yelled at other drivers. I'd never even learned the words or phrases that he was using, yet I understood it all crystal clear. My own Spanish speaking abilities exponentially increased as well. It was a literal (and practical) example of the gift of tongues. It isn't something that I can scientifically replicate for someone else (the sudden increase in understanding the language), but it was a very real experience for me. It was as if my ears were suddenly unplugged and they were speaking in my native language, the contrast was so sharp. Unfortunately I haven't kept up on Spanish since I returned home and my abilities are marginal at best now. |
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Nobody else has anything to say? Only one person? All of these discussions in this forum and the only faith people have comes from books or other people? I never seriously read Bible or koran, only a passage or two just to know what people argue about. I do not believe (but would not be surprised if I’m wrong) that these books are direct word of God, although I believe they were divinely inspired, especially koran. I believe God and other spirits talked to me in my dreams. In some dreams I just knew what I saw was the other side (where spirits are) and in some I saw future events here on earth. Some of those dreams about the future events are too unique to be considered just random dreams (nightmares would be the right word). There’s more to it than just a book or church or even ar15.com. |
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bs16, Many Christians believe in something referred to as the, "Light of Christ." It could be described as the influence of the Creator emanating through the universe. We are all exposed to it. This Light of Christ helps all mankind to understand eternal truths: Murder is wrong, stealing is wrong, the existence of God, etc. Generally speaking, it is our conscience. As we strive to hearken to it we become attuned to it, allowing us to more clearly understand spiritual things. We can also, through our selfishness and selfish actions, dull our senses to the Light of Christ until we can no longer discern it. I also believe that all people who strive to do what is right are entitled to revelation from God in respect to their stewardship. A parent can receive revelation for his/her family. A teacher can receive revelation in regards to teaching a class. A student can receive revelation in one's studies. A president or even a king can receive revelation for a nation. A biblical example could be the dream of Pharaoh or the dream of Nebuchadnezzar. The Lord had something to tell these rulers though they weren't necessarily part of God's "chosen" people. Today I submit that President Bush or the leader of any other country could potentially receive a revelation about their stewardship. The more that leader prays and seeks guidance from God, the more likely that leader will receive heavenly help. As for you, personally, I have no doubt that God has things that He wants to tell you. I believe that God has things to tell each of us, especially if we are trying to listen to Him. As we show our willingness to listen and do what God asks us, the more we open ourselves to continued communication from God. I don't know if you wanted this to get so deep, but I felt that this was something along the lines of what you're looking for. edited for spelling. |