OT Yes, God does speak to me (and others)

[GoBlueInAtlanta]

Does God pee? If u have anything that mentions that, I'd love to see it.

Yeah, me too. I was taken aback by it and mumbled something like, "I don't think so." Then I laughed for about five minutes.

 

[GoBlueInAtlanta]

I'm starting to recall some things that happened to folks who shared them with me through the years. Here's a short one.

My former pastor said he was on the way home one evening when he heard, "Go to the Hydes." He ignored it and continued on his way. Again he heard, "Go to the Hydes." and he again discounted it because it was the opposite direction from his house. The third time he heard, "Go to the Hydes." he couldn't ignore it and he turned right instead of left. When he arrived the street was blocked by several cop cars. There had been a family tragedy and he was able to help the family in their time of need.

 

[Monster]

Again, you place yourself above Him and you said it yourself twice now, you judge Him. You hold yourself to higher standards than God? That is the quintessential definition of pride.

Getting to heaven has nothing to do with "being good." We can't earn our way there, otherwise why would Christ have to die?

Basically, anything God has done is okay because he is bigger than you? Forgive me, but that is something an abused woman does for her abusive husband. And since I do not believe in this God, i feel it is his responsibility to show why I should follow him. You can't truly be faithful if you are blind. Would you or would you not agree that the things God did in the bible would be unforgivable if he were not your god. id like an honest answer, because you keep hiding under the "im not able to question god" portion of the bible.

 

[GoBlueInAtlanta]

Less than 200, half of that as a matter of fact. The writing of Matthew has been much discussed, but no convincing reason has been given for discrediting the traditionally accepted date of A.D. 37. And the date for the writing of Revelation has been determined to be A.D. 96.

I used to have a link for a site that compared the historicity of the Bible to other very old works (The Iliad, The Odyssey, etc) and found to be something like 50 times more reliable in its origin. I'll see if I can find it.

This isn't the link I remember but it has the info none the less. And, man did I underestimate the reliability factor when I said 50 times, it's actually in the thousands.

http://www.christianity.co.nz/bible-3.htm

 

[GoBlueInAtlanta]

Basically, anything God has done is okay because he is bigger than you? Forgive me, but that is something an abused woman does for her abusive husband. And since I do not believe in this God, i feel it is his responsibility to show why I should follow him. You can't truly be faithful if you are blind. Would you or would you not agree that the things God did in the bible would be unforgivable if he were not your god. id like an honest answer, because you keep hiding under the "im not able to question god" portion of the bible.

Never said you or I can't question God. I have questioned Him many times, and like any loving Father, He doesn't reject me for doing so. James 1:5 "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him."

There was a point in my life when I could have easily turned away from Him because I didn't like what had happened to me. I asked "Why?" for years and He helped me understand that life is about more than what I want, what I get out of it, basically, selfishness.

If He were not my God He would be human just as you and I are and therefore under the same restrictions as any other human being. He is not restricted with His creation, as you and I are. It is akin to saying that the creator of an automobile must get into the vehicle and remain within it. God is not restricted by time or space or matter, as we are. He operates outside of the creation and is not subject to it.

 

[GoBlueInAtlanta]

Another short one.

Mrs. Mercer's husband, Doc, who was an evangelist and traveled with Billy Graham for some time, had passed away and her family told her she needed to sell the big house they had shared on Apalachicola Bay. I stayed there once and it was huge with a Widow's Walk around the roof line. She agreed, so her children (grown, of course) said they needed to find a realtor to list the house. This woman of faith said, "No. If God wants me to sell the house, He will sell it."

Her kids were/are Christians and I have to admit that I thought as they did, there's no way that will happen.

A short time later a man came to the door and asked, "I love this old house. Would you be willing to sell it?"

Not an instance of God speaking directly to her regarding that issue, but she had had enough of those times previously that she trusted Him to do what was best for her.

 

[Sbee]

Leaving it in gods hands, right? Should we do that if we're sick? I went through an experience where my infant son was very sick and required major surgery. Should I have said "if god wants my son to be healthy, he'll cure him?"

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2

 

[alonzomoseley]

Every Sunday my mother dragged my sister and me to church, where we would listen to the silly preacher regale us with meaningless anecdotes like these. I think I was about 8 years old, sitting in that pew one day, when I realized, "What a bunch of utter horseshit this whole thing is." About a year later that preacher was run out of the church for propositioning a couple of the female congregants. Believers know they are right and they know god talks to believers, and they themselves want to hear god's voice in their ear, to confirm their belief. And voila, they hear him. GBIA, I don't know you. By the tone of what you post here, I take it that you are a decent sincere guy. You back homemade bread for people ferchrissakes. So I apologize, because you can't not be offended by this. But I just find it comical when you and other believers offer up stories like the bread story as evidence that god exists. It's just an interesting coincidence. There's no proof in it of anything. People can believe what they want, obviously. And if these stories lead a guy to follow god, what's the harm? But I'll take a helluva lot more than a bunch of stories of these little meaningless coincidences to get me back in a church.

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

For the same reason my nephew would ask out of the blue, "Does God pee?"

Did God pee on him right after he asked that?

 

[Monster]

Another short one.

Mrs. Mercer's husband, Doc, who was an evangelist and traveled with Billy Graham for some time, had passed away and her family told her she needed to sell the big house they had shared on Apalachicola Bay. I stayed there once and it was huge with a Widow's Walk around the roof line. She agreed, so her children (grown, of course) said they needed to find a realtor to list the house. This woman of faith said, "No. If God wants me to sell the house, He will sell it."

Her kids were/are Christians and I have to admit that I thought as they did, there's no way that will happen.

A short time later a man came to the door and asked, "I love this old house. Would you be willing to sell it?"

Not an instance of God speaking directly to her regarding that issue, but she had had enough of those times previously that she trusted Him to do what was best for her.

Yes, there is no chance that someone would fall in love with a good looking, old house and want to buy it once they find out the owner had passed. Even if they hadn't known the owner had died, it's a real possibility they had some money to throw around and just liked it.

Actually, one time I put a note on a man's car that said, "I'd like to buy your car. Call me if we can work something out. Cash!"

The only difference between your story and mine is that the woman said that if God wanted her to sell, he'd sell it. If you invoke the name of God enough times, things will always happen that you can credit to God.

I have a wonderful life and I'm more happy than I've ever been. I do not hate God. I didn't have a traumatic experience that shook me from my Christian faith. I simply grew up and realized the difference between fairy tales and reality. I do get angry when people claim to have experienced things like some of your stories when all I see are millions of starving children and innocent lives taken in a ridiculous holy war.

I can not debate with someone who ignores fact and spins it with the typical Christian babble. It's just not possible.

 

[redandguilty]

No, you had Where's Red?

I think that the cases where God speaks to none, very few, some, or most of the people that claim to hear Him look identical to a non-hearing observer. My best guess would be in the very few to few range (but not none.)

I also don't have the mathematical chops to assert probabilities. On one hand, if you frame your questions right, everything that happens is a ridiculous long-shot. On the other, it's hard to shrug all some of the long-shots.

Chalk me up as a believing scientist. I can add to the conversation if that seems funny to anyone. I get sucked into conversations most easily when people assert there's incompatibility between science and religion or logic, reason, and faith. Other than that, you might find my middle-of-the-road interpretations a little more bland than the rest of this thread.

 

[RABID]

Oh, I'm agnostic, too. I just think it's easy to figure out that these man made gods are just myths. I doubt that a god created us, but i wont say it's impossible. I just need more proof than a book.

Q and I are on the same wavelength here. Much of what he has posted could have come directly from my thought process as well. Many of the inconsistantcies and explanations in the bible are just so far fetched by todays knowledge base that it is obviously put together as a means of controlling the flock by addressing their questions of who we are and why we are here.

In order to lead the uneducated ancient masses, the rulers devised intricate explanations that supported the "why you should follow us" and "why we are right" and "how you will be rewarded in the afterlife".
The christians have the bible. Had the Christians not assembled the strongest armies and killed off the most "savages" you very well could have gotten your bread idea from Zeus or Odin rather than Jehova/Yeweh and Jesus.

The bible states that god is loving and just.
I have seen no evidence of that. Quite the opposite.
If there is a god, his policy seems to be to ignore and disregard.
I see no justice in a god who would damn those that do not follow his teachings to an eternity of torture and suffering, wether they were ever afforded the oppertunity to learn of him or not.

Let's ask the slaughtered "savages" of the crusades, or those put to death as witches and detractors of the inquisition if god is just and caring.
I'm sure the disgusting gluttons like Joel Osteen and Benny Hinn that make an ultra rich living off fleecing their flock feel that way, but the ultra religious poverty stricken poor simply have no place else to turn, and putting all of their faith into the "great spirit" to save them is detrimental and unrealistic.

And studying the bible for 40 years... All of them? Which religion or interpretation? I think in ordser to truly study the bible, you would need to read the original Hebrew untranslated version. There is so much that can be lost in translation.

 

[Michchamp]

Didn't Jesus tell his followers not to proselytize on internet message boards? Only give Sermons from Mounts, or better yet in the Wilderness where people can come to listen if they want.

Or was that an Old Testament thing? They often contradict themselves you know. I guess that's the point: take it on faith, and do as we say, not as we do.

 

[Michchamp]

RABID, it's spelled r-e-l-i-g-i-o-n, btw. I was agreeing with you until I noticed that.

 

[RABID]

So, that being said, I take literally the things that are literal and symbolically the things that are symbolic.

And then there are those that are "not as sharp" as you, or don't understand the original translators intentions as well as you (assuming the original translation was correct) who will kill or be killed insisting their understanding and belief of the bible is how the scripture is meant to be interpreted, old testament and new.

There are some very popular religious nuts out there. There are cultists who are sure that their beliefs are God's true will, and you have misread the scriptures, or fail to understand them to their true meaning.

There are many desperate people that just need something to believe in so badly that they will believe anything preached to them from a pulpit.

Not all preachers are wise, or intelligent, or trustworthy.

 

[RABID]

RABID, it's spelled r-e-l-i-g-i-o-n, btw. I was agreeing with you until I noticed that.

Yeah. I caught that during my last post. Thanks for pointing that out before I could go back and edit. Appreciate it. :argh:

 

[GoBlueInAtlanta]

Leaving it in gods hands, right? Should we do that if we're sick? I went through an experience where my infant son was very sick and required major surgery. Should I have said "if god wants my son to be healthy, he'll cure him?"

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2

No, not unless you had spent a good portion of your life listening to God and had direction from Him to do so, and, yes, I have met people who have done that and seen their child healed.

Their have been many blind studies which show that ill patients recover more quickly when prayed for than those who were not. In the case you present I would have recommended surgery and asking people of faith to pray as well.

 

[RABID]

Another short one.

Mrs. Mercer's husband, Doc, who was an evangelist and traveled with Billy Graham for some time, had passed away and her family told her she needed to sell the big house they had shared on Apalachicola Bay. I stayed there once and it was huge with a Widow's Walk around the roof line. She agreed, so her children (grown, of course) said they needed to find a realtor to list the house. This woman of faith said, "No. If God wants me to sell the house, He will sell it."

Her kids were/are Christians and I have to admit that I thought as they did, there's no way that will happen.

A short time later a man came to the door and asked, "I love this old house. Would you be willing to sell it?"

Not an instance of God speaking directly to her regarding that issue, but she had had enough of those times previously that she trusted Him to do what was best for her.

People find a house they like and ask if it is for sale everyday.
Coincidence. Nothing more.

The fact that the wife of an evangelist had a huge house tells me the church must be very generous to the people that control their money. A comfortable living for the clergy is one thing. Preaching of giving "as much as you can" and then living in excess doesn't seem very pious. Billy Graham is not a name I would throw around for credibility, God obviously talks to him, and tells him to be sure to get his fair share... And then some.

 

[GoBlueInAtlanta]

Yes, there is no chance that someone would fall in love with a good looking, old house and want to buy it once they find out the owner had passed. Even if they hadn't known the owner had died, it's a real possibility they had some money to throw around and just liked it.

Actually, one time I put a note on a man's car that said, "I'd like to buy your car. Call me if we can work something out. Cash!"

The only difference between your story and mine is that the woman said that if God wanted her to sell, he'd sell it. If you invoke the name of God enough times, things will always happen that you can credit to God.

I have a wonderful life and I'm more happy than I've ever been. I do not hate God. I didn't have a traumatic experience that shook me from my Christian faith. I simply grew up and realized the difference between fairy tales and reality. I do get angry when people claim to have experienced things like some of your stories when all I see are millions of starving children and innocent lives taken in a ridiculous holy war.

I can not debate with someone who ignores fact and spins it with the typical Christian babble. It's just not possible.

It appears the fact-ignoring is being done by someone other than me. All I asked is for you to look at the probability of all of these things happening AND that I heard a direct statement. The fact here is that there were so many convergent "coincidences" (some of which I didn't even list) so as to make the probablility of it happening mathematically astronomical. I'm the one talking facts and science and you keep going to your thoughts and feelings. Giving instances of one coincidence does not equate.

I see that you addressed the house story (which I admitted was not a direct quote from God, and , no, the buyer had no idea that there was a death in the family). I did happen to notice that no one addressed this story -

My former pastor said he was on the way home one evening when he heard, "Go to the Hydes." He ignored it and continued on his way. Again he heard, "Go to the Hydes." and he again discounted it because it was the opposite direction from his house. The third time he heard, "Go to the Hydes." he couldn't ignore it and he turned right instead of left. When he arrived the street was blocked by several cop cars. There had been a family tragedy and he was able to help the family in their time of need.

 

[redandguilty]

Judging religions based on televangelists is like judging science based on snake oil salesmen.