Just reading through your post, and then the replies, illustrates the diversity among us - but that doesn’t mean we are not the same, or that one is better than another. As someone who 50 years ago accepted Who Jesus said He is, and what He says He did for me, I need to say that I honestly don’t give any more credence or credibility to what one person here thinks/feels/says over another based on their “religion”. The majority of the time I don’t pay attention to who posted what - I am here for knowledge, not to compare “religious” beliefs. I believe I have a relationship with a higher power or intelligence that I know as “God”. That said, it’s nice to find like-minded people here, but my Faith isn’t why I’m here. I’m here because I want to be aware and awake about what is happening in our world. Do I believe there is a plan that is influenced by this “higher power”? Of course I do, but I believe that about everything else in my life as well. It is part of my life experience and who I’ve been for the past 50 years. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I don’t think any of us has to make judgments here about what anybody thinks or feels based on their perceived “religious” leanings, but you are doing exactly that and whether you mean to or not, it comes across as an attack. On the one hand it seems you are saying you feel judged simply because you don’t believe, while on the other you decree that (in your opinion) “Christianity” (specifically) is all a lie, and you lecture us about the beliefs of the founding fathers and proclaim that America was never a Christian nation. So who is being judgmental? I disagree with those who have tried to persuade you that your beliefs are wrong - even your family members. They should not be trying to convince you of a Truth you don’t want to even consider. What I would say is this - just as you would not be judged because you don’t believe, extend the same courtesy to those of us who do. We are united here in a common quest for America and our world. We all come from different backgrounds and belief systems and if we are being honest about our quest to be free, that absolutely includes affording each one here the freedom to express (or not) their own belief about God, Who He is, why Jesus came and how much that plays into what is happening in our world today. I think what stands in your way is not God Himself, Jesus Christ and His claims, or even the Bible’s validity. What stands in your way is an attitude that says if you don’t understand it, it’s automatically bad. That closed mind is what the enemy will continue to use to keep you from being really free. In the end, the Truth will come out. What will Believers have lost if we are wrong? What will non-believers have lost if we are not wrong?
Just reading through your post, and then the replies, illustrates the diversity among us - but that doesn’t mean we are not the same, or that one is better than another. As someone who 50 years ago accepted Who Jesus said He is, and what He says He did for me, I need to say that I honestly don’t give any more credence or credibility to what one person here thinks/feels/says over another based on their “religion”. The majority of the time I don’t pay attention to who posted what - I am here for knowledge, not to compare “religious” beliefs. I believe I have a relationship with a higher power or intelligence that I know as “God”. That said, it’s nice to find like-minded people here, but my Faith isn’t why I’m here. I’m here because I want to be aware and awake about what is happening in our world. Do I believe there is a plan that is influenced by this “higher power”? Of course I do, but I believe that about everything else in my life as well. It is part of my life experience and who I’ve been for the past 50 years. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I don’t think any of us has to make judgments here about what anybody thinks or feels based on their perceived “religious” leanings, but you are doing exactly that and whether you mean to or not, it comes across as an attack. On the one hand it seems you are saying you feel judged simply because you don’t believe, while on the other you decree that (in your opinion) “Christianity” (specifically) is all a lie, and you lecture us about the beliefs of the founding fathers and proclaim that America was never a Christian nation. So who is being judgmental? I disagree with those who have tried to persuade you that your beliefs are wrong - even your family members. They should not be trying to convince you of a Truth you don’t want to even consider. What I would say is this - just as you would not be judged because you don’t believe, extend the same courtesy to those of us who do. We are united here in a common quest for America and our world. We all come from different backgrounds and belief systems and if we are being honest about our quest to be free, that absolutely includes affording each one here the freedom to express (or not) their own belief about God, Who He is, why Jesus came and how much that plays into what is happening in our world today. I think what stands in your way is not God Himself, Jesus Christ and His claims, or even the Bible’s validity. What stands in your way is an attitude that says if you don’t understand it, it’s automatically bad. That closed mind is what the enemy will continue to use to keep you from being really free. In the end, the Truth will come out. What will Believers have lost if we are wrong? What will non-believers have lost if we are not wrong?