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PostPosted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 4:05 am    Post subject: Who is God to you? Reply with quote

I'm wondering... just wondering... Who is God to you guys? I've been asked that question by a friend and I explained to said friend.... God was the creator of the earth and he knew what was right and wrong before us all, and even if we couldn't see him... that he created each of us in his own vision that he is a ghost who lives in our spiritual heart, that it will never leave you, that God forgives everything you do or say, all you have to do is pray and believe in him, that the heavens we believe is above us, but no one knows where it is... I want to know honestly what you think...?
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 7:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I don't think it's any secret about my own religious convictions. But the curious thing is, when I try to say what God is, I find it's a lot easier to say what he isn't; and a very wise man I had the honor of meeting once had this to say about understanding God:

"The trouble is that people try to define God without accepting him, and you can't. You have to know him to know what he is."

I don't mean this as a criticism of anyone or anyone's beliefs; I just think it sums up the situation very well. That poem about the six blind men and the elephant can apply to people outside of faith as well as people of different faiths, and even the same one.
There is a dilemma here: It's very difficult to fully understand something from the outside, when you have no direct experience of it, but it's also impossible to be perfectly objective about your own opinions and experiences.

Take it from someone who's been on more than one side of the fence concerning God, whatever you believe; there is always a degree of uncertainty, and more to learn.
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 7:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Interesting question. I don't think you can really answer that without first asking what evil means to you, and what roll is has in life. I could air my own pretentious oppinion on the matter, but a far better writer than me already said it excellently:

"Who made thee, demon?"

"God, as light makes the shadow."

"Is God therefore, evil?"

"God is all light, and in the heart of light, no shadow standith."

"What art thou?"

"I am the price that all things pay for being. I am the shadow on the world, thrown by the world, standing in it's own light..."

If you ahven't read The Devil to Pay, go read it, right now. I don't care if it's obscure.
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 6:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

As an Atheist, I would have to say: I am god. Bow before me and praise the great Chinagod.

Very Happy

Oh, and I accept sacrifices of nubile wimin, money and beer.
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 6:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Chinaren wrote:
As an Atheist, I would have to say: I am god. Bow before me and praise the great Chinagod.


Somehow I'm not sure that's the official definition of atheism...

As for my opinion, I shall say it with haste before I submit to the urge to go for the comedy option.

And it is thus: I don't know, and neither do you. But it's probably not a matter of 'who'...or singular terms, for that matter.
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

O I understand, but I had dificuilty describing him to said friend, said friend was reading johannes vers 1 line 1, and said friend asked me who god was, and why couldn't we see him and where was heaven? I told her what I've learnt from the bible and from asking my own questions. Then at the end of the conversations she came to a realisation that god was the spoken word that god is a holy ghost and that the heaven is where souls rest... that is what she learned from what I said... So I won't mind if you give me some athieths qoutes, or tell me what you don't know about him. But one thing is for sure that I believe in God, my life was saved by people who cared when I lay in the road, that I forgave the person who hit me, but It was partly my fualt... So Ya. I believe there is a God somewhere...
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 2:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

if i strted explaining who God is to me, i would never stop. all i can say is this; at certain times i felt like cussing him out.
But im a walking medical crisis and God always saves me no matter what.
For example, there was this time my nose bled everyday for three weeks in a row. i would be standing there just crying because i thought i had leukamia or TB.
As a matter of fact, i once texted positive for diabetes. i went back three times to make sure and all of those times, there it was. diabetes. Not only that, i had all the symptoms according to my doctor.
Now i'll be honest with you. i don't like shots and i'm scared to death of them so it was hell. Two months later i took another test. Somehow, mysteriously, the diabetes disappeared. I have had near death experiences-- like the time i almost picked up a snake and the time i woke up and there was a scorpion in my bed. And everytime God saves me.
No matter what i do, he'll always love me. even if i sin.
the only way to get God to turn his back on you is blasphemy. I've also learnt one very important lesson from how God is with me. To be the leader, you must be the servant.
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 9:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That is very insperational! I've never broken a bone on my life, but my nose bled once, only once... I've had trouble with people all my life and when I asked ED about it he said nothing, so Instead It got answered at highschool... Very Happy
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 8:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

yea.... i'm getting over my problem with people too. At first it seemed God didn't want to answer but now i know why. Now that i'm getting over my problem with people, it seems that my dream world* is slipping away from me slowly. I think God knew this was going to happen.
Now, i think i want to go back to being the shy, quiet girl in the corner that barely ever speaks and always has her head in a book. Dealing with the real world is too difficult. It's painful when every time i finish, and close a book, there is the real world waiting for me. Believe me, it hurts. But if i don't learn to take a stand now, when will i?


*dream world-- what motivates me to write. my ideal world where anything is possible.
* For those of you who are asking how it's possible to find a scorpion in your bed, i lived in West Africa, where a bullet from a nearby police station can burst through your ceiling fan and you being a senseless six year old find the bullet and thinks its a cake decorator( no not me, my sis lovely tunic). i lived there for ten years.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 5:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I feel like the antogonist when I say this but I can't bring myself to believe in any sort of higher power. I do not believe there is a God, which leaves me with only one logical choice. I believe in the oblivion. As sad and bleak as it sounds, I don't think there's anything for us. All I know is whatever happens to me, the same thing is going to happen to the rest of us. With this knowledge I can find peace, because it is fair. The universe is a dark place with only a shroud of light. It is up to us to make every person and being we come in contact with as happy as possible. Because really... If like I, you believe in the great void which waits for us all, then you must accept that every life and personality is precious. We are all but a blink in the eye of existance. Make the most of what you've got. Wink
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 6:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I know my life's a pain and but a span,
I know my Sense is mock'd with every thing:
And to conclude, I know myself a MAN,
Which is a proud, and yet a wretched thing.

-- Sir John Davies
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 8:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote


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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 12:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

What about the wise man on the mountain, he lived for years and as ages passed poeple's life span became shorter.... When I was accepted in the church to become part of the church, we were asked last year questions... like what would stand on our grave? or what paragraph out the bible would you want? so when I stood last year in the church they showed our bible verses and we had to take this rope aswell so I guess I lost my rope, but that doesn't mean God hates me for it...
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 5:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Gallant wrote:
I believe in the oblivion.


So do I. I've ridden it.

*shot*
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 5:50 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Phang wrote:
Gallant wrote:
I believe in the oblivion.


So do I. I've ridden it.

*shot*


So have I. 4 times on the trot. Don't look down!


Sorry. OT. Carry on carry on!
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 4:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

"Who" is God? That's a broad question, don't you think?

Rather than asking "who" is God, I'd be more interested in meeting Him (assuming he's actually a male). He must be an interesting guy if he created the Universe and all that, don't you think?

It'd be sort of interesting to find out exactly why he'd want to create everything and all that.

But if He truly exists then I'll say, without a doubt, that it won't be a Christian, or even anyone of any religion that would find him.

If God is truly as omnipresent as one may be led to believe, then it should be safe to assume that, in a sense, God is "everything", and therefore a belief that hampers your view in any way cannot possibly let you see Him.

Thus forms the basis of my own... "rules" that I live by. If I had to put it into words, then I would have to say:

To not deny the existence of others, and strive to affirm one's own existence.

If possible, I'd rather only try to understand something, but make as little attempt to "believe" or "disbelieve" as possible.

So to conclude my own string of thoughts, I shall answer your question with a question of my own:

Who are you to you?
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 9:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

WOW... *almost doubts self...* Me. I'm a... well how can I put it... I'm caring of others... but I do love reading qoutations, when I do feel like it I live by only one qoutation and that is the 10 comandments... really it's hard to describe myself... sometimes I don't know myself... and sometimes I do... As said person said after he did some research of my outbreak about three months ago... I might be childish at times. So I say that I'm mature and I only protect those I love, that I protect myself. Cause as they say in the bible you should love one self like your closest... and my closest is my family especailly my twin... I... Wish I could answer your question and make you wonder aswell... sometimes i'm hard to read, but even when I'm not myself I protect those I care about even those who I don't like... I'm a soldier of God... that is what i am...
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 10:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Who am I? Well now, if that relates to the existence of God, then that means He created this mostly-senseless universe for a joke which nobody gets. He couldn't get His point across to us without boring Himself. ...There ain't no Male Pronouns that've slipped through the net, is there?

Anyway, Chri, have you had, like, an epiphany or somethin'? This is all kinda sudden...
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 10:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

No I just like to believe the world is a beautiful place in which God has created it for us, even if it is his little playground and we can't see him... I just like to believe I'm a soldier of God... but I've never felt the courage to see myself as one... So I hope one day I might live up to the soldier side of God... as we as little children were taken in by the church and taught that we are soldiers... it's even in a song and we are the future race...

Ek is nie a stap soldaaitjie nie
Ek is nie 'n ry soldaaitjie nie
Ek is nie a skiet soldaaitjie nie
Ek is nie a skiet soldaaitjie nie
want ek is jesus se soldaaitjie
Ja mineer!

Something like that...
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 11:21 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Let me translate that....

I'm not a walking soldier
I'm not a driving soldier
I'm not a shooting soldier
I'm not a shooting soldier
Because I'm Jesus's soldier
Yes Sir
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 27, 2009 11:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I don't particularly believe in God. I'm more of a science person than a religious person. I do remember a guy saying once 'The bible, that is the biggest book of fiction I've ever seen'. Now as bad as that sounds, he sorta does have a point. I know theres an explaination, but how do you know anything in the book is true? I know it sounds bad, but its just one of those questions.
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PostPosted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 3:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

If God (or, indeed, more than one god) exists then it doesn't matter if we believe in him/her/it/them or not. If God(s) exists only as a belief then it doesn't matter if we believe or not anyway.

Personally, I am an atheist. However, I do mumble along when we have services at school (two hours at the end of each half term, and then some if it's a special occasion... ugh) because it can do no harm. Some of my friends say this is a little hypocritical, but I think that if I live as I think if right (and that includes respecting other people's beliefs and mumbling along to their songs) then I will have nothing to regret and that has to count for something.
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