Im mad/jealous that God doesn't talk to me or anyone I know.

reply to post by sputniksteve


Exactly it's hard to really describe what would consider religious versus those who are deemed mentally unstable. I grew up in a Baptist home went to a Catholic school and slowly turned toward Buddhism It's wasn't so much that I disbelieved in a God or higher power just that Buddhism struck better cords than the others and didn't ask for much. From what I've learned (from my teacher who taught a class on Zen) pretty much Zen is a carefree religion [words I have chosen]

On the topic of past lives seems like it would border on the idea of the idea in which we are all part of a collective consciousness and once we hit the level we need we all group back into one big unit. I forgot what that theory was but eh not so sure about that one. I just think that it's pretty much one's soul is either A. Tapping into a higher plane, or B. remembering a past life sometimes both at the time.

Originally posted by ErgoTheConfusion
reply to post by sputniksteve

 

You've been taught to believe the thoughts in your head aren't God talking to you.

This is why you never hear.

When we stop talking and listen, we hear. But you have to remove your expectations of how it will happen. Just because one person hears a booming voice, another may simply notice something new in something they read that answers a long lasting question.

Then when you start to sense that *every* experience you have is God/Tao/Infinity/The Universe talking to "Him/Her/Itself" through your unique position, perspective, and filters, then you can start to hear.

This is what is meant by "I hear/see God/Tao/Infinity in everything", whether you are a Deist, Christian, Buddhist, New Ager, Atheist, Taoist, or no label at all.

You are constantly being talked to. We've been trained not to listen, or even that there is anything to listen to. Your mind is unique, thus the way The Universe will speak to you will be unique. Others can point to their experience, but theirs is unique too even if there may be shared similarities.

Namaste!

edit on 2011/12/28 by ErgoTheConfusion because: (no reason given)

I understand your point, but I have to disagree to a certain degree. I think being brought up in a Christian home or environment is doing the opposite of what you are suggesting. I think I was being trained from the get go to listen to that voice and recognize it as God. But that is where my problem lies, I have been listening and expecting that conversation to happen but it never has. I was told over and over again that it would happen. Now obviously you could be right in that my expectations are the problem not the event itself. Maybe I misunderstood that it would be an actual conversation, and instead it is something I am just supposed to interpret as a conversation when in fact it isn't in the normal sense.

Originally posted by FissionSurplus
I have a friend who was not raised as a Christian. Her parents were new-age hippies. She was an intravenous user of meth and had gotten way out of control. The very last time she shot up, she was on the verge of overdosing. She claims that the spirit of Jesus came to her and told her that she must stop, that He loved and forgave her, and would help her to get clean.

Ten years later, she is the most devout Christian I have ever met, and really lives as a Christian is supposed to live. She gives testimony at church and states that God used that last hit of meth to speak to her. Naturally, most people who hear her story are uncomfortable with it and reject the idea that God would use a drug to speak to somebody.

It sounds like drug-induced psychosis, but God works in mysterious ways. I have another friend who was so depressed he put a gun in his mouth and was ready to pull the trigger, when suddenly he heard a voice say gently, "I forgive you". He put the gun down and cried himself to sleep. When he awoke, he decided to follow a righteous path and put all his troubles in God's hands.

I think that God comes through loud and clear when you hit rock bottom. The rest of the time, He communicates in other ways, and we have only to open our eyes and look around to see His presence. Sometimes religion blinds us to the obvious. Have you ever thought that God uses others in your life to speak to you?

I think this is an example of why I am confused, and why I am asking this question. Whether those people were religious or spiritual before the event wouldn't change the fact that when this happened to them they made the assumption it was God talking to them, because they already knew about God whether they believed in it or not. So if this same person had lived on an island their whole life and didn't have this prior knowledge would they still think this was God talking to them or would the attribute it to something else?

I realize there probably is no way to answer my question, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to ask.

reply to post by sputniksteve


ErgoTheConfusion is right my friend... being brought up Christian is yet another distraction to add to the millions of distractions we deal with every day.

You hear the voice of God every day, yet you don't realize it...

The church teaches you to "pray" to God... so you end up talking to him, and not listening.

Remember matthew 6... God knows what you need before you ask.

Realizing what God is can also help those looking for him... God is not an entity... He is the all... the whole, everything without exception.

When you meditate you are listening to God... when your conscience speaks to you you're also listening to God. Though many do not hear him...

Originally posted by sputniksteve
So it seems that the responses are saying its not so important who you think its from, or how you get it but whats in the message that counts? So if we cut out all of the church attendance, praying, lent, communion, etc. as long as we are living righteously and understand the message it is all the same?

That happens to be my thoughts on it to be honest, like I said I think I live more Christian like than most Christians I know but I don't go to church, I regularly curse and take Gods name in vein, masturbate furiously, and abuse drugs. But really that isn't even what I am trying to ask in this thread.

In less convoluted terms: Is there any evidence of God talking audibly to a person that prior had no knowledge of God or any religions that God is affiliated with? Was that person then able to determine after the conversation that it was in fact the God affiliated with Christianity, Judeism, or Islam, even though they didn't even know those terms or ideas prior to the conversation?

Have you ever had a friend you would do anything for but the way you speak to each other is not 100% respectable. You would do anything for that friend and love him in a way. I am like that with god/source/all. It is up to you to decide your relationship with god not some unenlightened priest with an ego who don't really know more than you. I curse, yell at him and make demands on god that I will make sure gets done. I have told him/source/all that I will not allow eternal hell for any soul and would fight him in any way I can if he is doing that. What was his answer: After making me hit rock bottom he woke me up with the three knocks on heavens doors that just I could hear after figuring out the law of One. And I was a person that hated the bible with a vengence for all the manipulation that religon has created. I love you god but you are a prankster sometimes. Do not worry about being 100% right. You can reach god from any direction/religon. I know I will be terrably off the mark on how everything works in the end but I will laugh at it. It's what you are that matters not how you belive the world works. My dad is an ateist and a very nice person and he will like everybody else go where he is needed or where he can learn the most when he dies. Ego and pride is the true enemy for spiritual growth and connecting with god.

Everything is my point of view. If it don't fit ignore it. Namaste

reply to post by sputniksteve


OP, I probably have thought that way at some point.

The following video is about a lady who was seeking God and even though she had supposedly allowed him into her heart, she still hadn't experienced that profound peace that others said they experienced after accepting him into their hearts. This video is pretty intense, what this woman says, but after you listen to it, it will probably give you a new perspective on what you are asking for, about wanting to see God.

Originally posted by sputniksteve
I think I was being trained from the get go to listen to that voice and recognize it as God. But that is where my problem lies, I have been listening and expecting that conversation to happen but it never has.

And it never will.

God communicates (I shall not use the term "speaks") only with his Messengers. And even that, NOT DIRECTLY, he has the angels bring His messages to His Messengers (Prophets). Or He "inspires" the Knowledge into you, but he does not SPEAK directly to anyone (except Moses, to him he spoke).

Usually though, with most prophets, He relays His messages through his angels.

Now, if there was a case that some spiritual "being" would speak to you, you would immediately KNOW if it is an angel, God, or not - because if that being would command you to worship ANYONE except God (Allah, Yahweh, the Creator) - than you would be 100% sure that being is NOT God nor an angel - in fact, most probably it would be a Jinn (Demon) who is trying to lead you to your own destruction.

Your ancestors CANNOT see you (no matter what you do in your private time), nor can Jesus do that, neither Mary, not any other "saint" - therefore, they can also not "communicate" with you.

If an entity would appear to you, or you would hear his "voice" telling you that he is Jesus, "your Lord" or "God", therefore directly or indirectly commanding you to worship him, then you would know that it is a demon, because Jesus himself told you: "Hear oh Israel, the Lord, our God, the Lord is ONE". While he was alive he never told anyone to worship him, so why would he do it now (from the "other side")?

This also explains many of those "channelers" and modern "prophets" who are convinced that they are talking to Jesus, or Mary, or the Holy Spirit, etc.

Ever wondered how come that the "prophecies" these people got from "Jesus" or "God" never came true. We are witnessing their falsehood every day - just visit the "Predictions and Prophecies" Forum to have a good laugh.

There are NO MORE prophets for over 1400 years now, so if anyone or anything talks to you, claiming to be Jesus, or God, or whatever - KNOW that you are being misled by the Jinn.

reply to post by sputniksteve


i havent had a conversation with God, but He did issue a stern warning and command in my dreams when i prayed heavily for it... this is what He said in His thunderous voice: DON'T LOSE FAITH. and from my experiences, God's voice is very very very loud, its booming... when i was dreaming, i viewed everything like i would when awake, i felt pain like i do in reality, but when God spoke, it was just so indescribably loud.

like you OP, i hope that i can have a full on face to face conversation with Him soon... not face to face, but a conversation i would have with an another person.

you say you fully believe in God and heaven; only God knows if your heart is in right place... am i saying your heart is not? no, but maybe that is the question you need to ask yourself. do you want to have a conversation with Him because you love Him? or do you want to have a conversation with Him because your envious of other people having a full dialogue with Him?

this is my assumption: i believe He's not going to talk to you until the time is right. like the person that was about to commit suicide, that was his preordained point in life where Jesus would reveal Himself...

i desperately want to see the face of Jesus too, but i feel as if the time is not right for that to happen. but who knows? maybe the time is right, that's for God to judge. i am still crawling to fit to the measure in which He demanded us to be, which is apart from the flesh.

Originally posted by DelayedChristmas
reply to post by sputniksteve

 

i havent had a conversation with God, but He did issue a stern warning and command in my dreams when i prayed heavily for it... this is what He said in His thunderous voice: DON'T LOSE FAITH. and from my experiences, God's voice is very very very loud, its booming... when i was dreaming, i viewed everything like i would when awake, but when God spoke, it was just so... indescribably loud. like you OP, i hope that i can have a full on face to face conversation with Him soon...

you say you fully believe in God and heaven; only God knows if your heart is in right place... am i saying your heart is not? no, but maybe that is the question you need to ask yourself. do you want to have a conversation with Him because you love Him? or do you want to have a conversation with Him because your envious of other people having a full dialogue with Him?

this is my assumption: i believe He's not going to talk to you until the time is right. like the person that was about to commit suicide, that was his preordained point in life where Jesus would reveal Himself...

i desperately want to see the face of Jesus too, but i feel as if the time is not right for that to happen. but who knows? maybe the time is right, that's for God to judge. i am still crawling to fit to the measure in which He demanded us to be, which is apart from the flesh.

edit on 28-12-2011 by DelayedChristmas because: (no reason given)

Actually I don't believe in God at all, not even close. I realized later as an adult that I never did either. I just can't see how I am really supposed to, I don't see anything at all that requires a God in order to exist or happen. I understand why I am supposed to believe, I can recognize an amazing thing when I see it but I just don't see God behind any of it.

I am sure the response will now be "well that is the reason you don't hear from him because you don't believe he exists". Well that is why I posed this question in the first place. If God won't talk to me because I don't believe in him then why/how is he going to talk to someone that never even heard OF him?

reply to post by sputniksteve

I want to believe in God and Heaven more than anything in life, I desperately want to know that there is a reason for living and doing the things we do. I feel like I need it like my body needs water. Only every part of my senses and intelligence is telling me not to, because there is 0 proof that I can personally validate.

i wish i can tell you the answers, but i can't: i don't know how God's mind works.

but i will give you this word of encouragement: maybe this is your test of faith. you want to believe. maybe your life journey is to have ever lasting faith in God. faith is a VERY VERY hard thing, because your heart must be pure. faith is complete trust. on your journey, maybe He will talk to you, maybe He won't until your death, i don't know. all i know is that He will do on His own time and when He knows when the time is right. you must have complete trust that He will, and not be down when He doesn't, instead praise and thank Him for not revealing Himself yet. this reminds me of the story of Job. he thanked and praised God for his misfortunes as well as the good part of his life.

for example: you want to go to heaven for the sole purpose of having wonderful treasures in heaven: God knows this and searches through your heart. do you want to go to heaven because of your wonderful treasures or because you love God?

Maybe because God doesn't speak...ever thought about that?...
Not like he's built with vocal chords and all, and it's not like the thing has telepathy

reply to post by sputniksteve


Yes, it can happen. God is more than the Christian God, we believe God is for all people in all times and in all places. Has God not spoken to people in rice paddies in Cambodia? Do you know this for certain?

How do you know God has not spoken to you? God can speak to us in so many different ways, God can speak on ATS, if He chooses. Don't try to limit God. Have you ever said at any time when something has happened "I think someone is trying to tell me something" and then you learn by it? Just because there is not always an audible voice does not mean He has not spoken, remember that God speaks in the still, small voice, usually within us.

Originally posted by DelayedChristmas
reply to post by sputniksteve

 

I want to believe in God and Heaven more than anything in life, I desperately want to know that there is a reason for living and doing the things we do. I feel like I need it like my body needs water. Only every part of my senses and intelligence is telling me not to, because there is 0 proof that I can personally validate.

i wish i can tell you the answers, but i can't: i don't know how God's mind works.

but i will give you this word of encouragement: maybe this is your test of faith. you want to believe. maybe your life journey is to have ever lasting faith in God. faith is a VERY VERY hard thing, because your heart must be pure. faith is complete trust. on your journey, maybe He will talk to you, maybe He won't until your death, i don't know. all i know is that He will do on His own time and when He knows when the time is right. you must have complete trust that He will, and not be down when He doesn't, instead praise and thank Him for not revealing Himself yet. this reminds me of the story of Job. he thanked and praised God for his misfortunes as well as the good part of his life.

for example: you want to go to heaven for the sole purpose of having wonderful treasures in heaven: God knows this and searches through your heart. do you want to go to heaven because of your wonderful treasures or because you love God?

edit on 28-12-2011 by DelayedChristmas because: (no reason given)

Good post but I am always questioning the subject of heaven and hell. Heaven and hell is also a mental state that a soul on earth can be in. And are you sure that higher states of being is just heaven? Im not. Some people think this is the third dimension from below and not because it is three dimensional. Next life I want to go to the highest dimension I am able to be in without doing harm to that dimension and those living in it, because after this life I will need a more or less uncomplicated life. After that life I will probably go where I can evolve the most/or is needed the most. I can love god/all/source from any dimmension as long as he/she/it wakes me up and connect to me. Namaste

reply to post by apushforenlightment


my inference on heaven and hell: i think there are levels of heaven, with what we describe as "hell" as one of the lower part of heaven. if i am not mistaken, i believe the original word of hell that was translated from the hebrew is SHEOL, which means like a grave, or a rest. there is no direct word for word translation of SHEOL, so there is/may be room for correction. the lake of fire, which is the lowest part of heaven, is the 2nd death, as mentioned in revelations, which satan and his followers will be thrown into after Christ has returned.
do not take my word for it, but this is the conclusion that i personally have come to after some research.

Originally posted by DelayedChristmas
reply to post by apushforenlightment

 

my inference on heaven and hell: i think there are levels of heaven, with what we describe as "hell" as one of the lower part of heaven. if i am not mistaken, i believe the original word of hell that was translated from the hebrew is SHEOL, which means like a grave, or a rest. there is no direct word for word translation of SHEOL, so there is/may be room for correction. the lake of fire, which is the lowest part of heaven, is the 2nd death, as mentioned in revelations, which satan and his followers will be thrown into after Christ has returned.
do not take my word for it, but this is the conclusion that i personally have come to after some research.

We will probably be told in the end how it is or maybe we will just get born in another place with birthamnesia. One more of lifes mysteries . Wherever we end up I wish you good luck in your spiritual evolution. Namaste

reply to post by DelayedChristmas


I believe Gehenna is the word you meant...

Sheol and Tartarus were also used... but "hell" is translated as Gehenna... Which is an actual place outside of Jerusalam... Not a firey place of torture which Christians like to push

it's because the whole world is lying to themselves and each other about god

reply to post by Akragon


can you provide some links or studies for your claim? i would truly appreciate it and conduct some research about it myself, because that is the first i'm hearing of that.... never too old to hear something new!

Originally posted by Akragon
reply to post by DelayedChristmas

 

I believe Gehenna is the word you meant...

Sheol and Tartarus were also used... but "hell" is translated as Gehenna... Which is an actual place outside of Jerusalam... Not a firey place of torture which Christians like to push

True, it is a place outside Jerusalem. But the problem is when Christ was teaching on the doctrine of Hell He simply used a disgustingly wretched and constantly burning smelly place outside the city walls that these people could sorta relate to. He didn't mean all the billions of wicked will spend eternity in a burning trash heap outside the city walls of Jerusalem.

Originally posted by NOTurTypical

Originally posted by Akragon
reply to post by DelayedChristmas

 

I believe Gehenna is the word you meant...

Sheol and Tartarus were also used... but "hell" is translated as Gehenna... Which is an actual place outside of Jerusalam... Not a firey place of torture which Christians like to push

True, it is a place outside Jerusalem. But the problem is when Christ was teaching on the doctrine of Hell He simply used a disgustingly wretched and constantly burning smelly place outside the city walls that these people could sorta relate to. He didn't mean all the billions of wicked will spend eternity in a burning trash heap outside the city walls of Jerusalem.

edit on 28-12-2011 by NOTurTypical because: (no reason given)

I agree...

I believe him using the term "hell" is just reinforcing what he taught... The first will be last, and the last first.

Once the body dies you can't be punished physically... Though i believe your actions in this life will reflect the next... if a "next" is necessary.

reply to post by Akragon

Once the body dies you can't be punished physically...

Well, no, but IMHO the emotional punishment is far worse. Apart from God there is no love, no compassion, and especially zero hope. How horrifying would that be, to have absolutely no hope for the future. That's the ONLY thing that kept POWs in WWII going. The hope that they'd be freed, the hope that one day they could return home to their loved ones.

People look at the flames of Hell, that's not the bad torment. The terrible torment is eternal separation from God.

Edit: And I want to add for clarity that before final judgment the dead will be resurrected with a new body that can also be subjected to the physical torment of Hell as well.