There are over 6 billion people in the world, each having their own ideas and thoughts about God’s identity and His purpose within their lives. Who is God? What is God? Where do we find Him? The questions are infinite and multifaceted, and I’m not certain if there will ever be definite answers to fill the intricate paradox of GOD.
I can only explain a small amount of a great puzzle that I have come to experience during my life of a quarter-century insofar. I don’t think any one individual, or group of individuals, can give an accurate account of God because despite common beliefs, or those uncommon, everybody has their own unique experience of God.
I heard this somewhere: “The kingdom of God is within you and around you. My Church is not made of wood, stone or mortar. Split a piece of wood and I am there. Look under a rock and you will find me.”
Although I was raised a Roman Catholic, I find myself lost and adrift, searching for the correct path to take in terms of my spirituality. I do not belong to any denomination whether it is Catholic, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist or Jewish. I am not prejudice or racist against any religious denomination or any individuals belonging to a certain religious group. I respect their choices, their beliefs, and their cultures.
My choice not to belong to a specific religion is because I am a firm believer that religions divide societies more than they bring societies together. Looking back throughout history, religion has played a major part in many conflicts and ethnocentric suppression among societies all over the world. There have been bloody and brutal wars fought and countless lives lost over whose interpretation of GOD was more righteous.
This is not to say that I do not adopt certain principals or ideas from religion because I do. The morals and the ethics from most religions are relatively similar, and I think everybody should verse themselves with these qualities and virtues.
Take the seven virtues from the Bible: Love, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Gentleness, Joy, and Self-Control. Shouldn’t everybody practice these? What about the Buddhists who are all about honour, respect, inner/outer peace, and tranquility? The Jews and the Christians with their Ten Commandments: “Thou shall not kill, steal, or cheat…?” These are things we should all know and ethics we should exercise everyday.
Most people find God in Churches, Mosques, Temples or Synagogues. Some find God in the Qu’ran or the Bible and others find Him in unexplained miracles or events. Some see God in Prayer, and sadly, some can only find God in the form of bread.
There are better days than others, but there are always signs that God is with us and all around us. All we have to do is look, listen, breathe and feel. Breathe, smell, touch, taste, and breathe.
God is present when the sun rises, trees sway to and fro, leaves flicker, a flower blooms in adversity, birds sing harmoniously, a baby is born. He is with us when warm moist air rises, clouds are formed, a raindrop falls, wind blows across our ears, a crash of thunder erupts, ocean waves slam the shoreline, and the Auroras dance blue, green, red, and purple. He is there when somebody smiles, another plays music for your ears, a boy opens a door for an elderly lady, when a friend embraces you, and a loved-one kisses you.
God is present when we find inner courage, strength, and perseverance to accomplish challenging goals and endeavours. During our struggles he walks alongside, juxtaposed, and points to the right people that are meant to help us back to our feet. And when we’re growing as human beings, sometimes certain individuals will cross our paths for a reason, and it is up to us to either learn or pass on something unique from the moments spent together.
The only way we can truly find happiness is by being grateful for everything we have and beginning to appreciate every aspect of God, and all the small clues he leaves for us to find; to remind us he is still there and that he loves us.
God is in your heart, my heart, his heart, her heart, their hearts. All you have to do is Love and you will find God.
“The kingdom of God is within you and around you. My Church is not made of wood, stone or mortar. Split a piece of wood and I am there. Look under a rock and you will find me.”
This is my experience of God.
I can only explain a small amount of a great puzzle that I have come to experience during my life of a quarter-century insofar. I don’t think any one individual, or group of individuals, can give an accurate account of God because despite common beliefs, or those uncommon, everybody has their own unique experience of God.
I heard this somewhere: “The kingdom of God is within you and around you. My Church is not made of wood, stone or mortar. Split a piece of wood and I am there. Look under a rock and you will find me.”
Although I was raised a Roman Catholic, I find myself lost and adrift, searching for the correct path to take in terms of my spirituality. I do not belong to any denomination whether it is Catholic, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist or Jewish. I am not prejudice or racist against any religious denomination or any individuals belonging to a certain religious group. I respect their choices, their beliefs, and their cultures.
My choice not to belong to a specific religion is because I am a firm believer that religions divide societies more than they bring societies together. Looking back throughout history, religion has played a major part in many conflicts and ethnocentric suppression among societies all over the world. There have been bloody and brutal wars fought and countless lives lost over whose interpretation of GOD was more righteous.
This is not to say that I do not adopt certain principals or ideas from religion because I do. The morals and the ethics from most religions are relatively similar, and I think everybody should verse themselves with these qualities and virtues.
Take the seven virtues from the Bible: Love, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Gentleness, Joy, and Self-Control. Shouldn’t everybody practice these? What about the Buddhists who are all about honour, respect, inner/outer peace, and tranquility? The Jews and the Christians with their Ten Commandments: “Thou shall not kill, steal, or cheat…?” These are things we should all know and ethics we should exercise everyday.
Most people find God in Churches, Mosques, Temples or Synagogues. Some find God in the Qu’ran or the Bible and others find Him in unexplained miracles or events. Some see God in Prayer, and sadly, some can only find God in the form of bread.
There are better days than others, but there are always signs that God is with us and all around us. All we have to do is look, listen, breathe and feel. Breathe, smell, touch, taste, and breathe.
God is present when the sun rises, trees sway to and fro, leaves flicker, a flower blooms in adversity, birds sing harmoniously, a baby is born. He is with us when warm moist air rises, clouds are formed, a raindrop falls, wind blows across our ears, a crash of thunder erupts, ocean waves slam the shoreline, and the Auroras dance blue, green, red, and purple. He is there when somebody smiles, another plays music for your ears, a boy opens a door for an elderly lady, when a friend embraces you, and a loved-one kisses you.
God is present when we find inner courage, strength, and perseverance to accomplish challenging goals and endeavours. During our struggles he walks alongside, juxtaposed, and points to the right people that are meant to help us back to our feet. And when we’re growing as human beings, sometimes certain individuals will cross our paths for a reason, and it is up to us to either learn or pass on something unique from the moments spent together.
The only way we can truly find happiness is by being grateful for everything we have and beginning to appreciate every aspect of God, and all the small clues he leaves for us to find; to remind us he is still there and that he loves us.
God is in your heart, my heart, his heart, her heart, their hearts. All you have to do is Love and you will find God.
“The kingdom of God is within you and around you. My Church is not made of wood, stone or mortar. Split a piece of wood and I am there. Look under a rock and you will find me.”
This is my experience of God.
2 comments:
God touched me once...
I was 17, grade 12, and I was on the edge of my life...teetering and holding on for the sake of living after making a calculated mistake.
He came, my mind cleared, and for the first time in my life I knew I would be OK. I'm not saying God is God in the Christain sense, Jewish, Hindu, etc; I can't tell you who he is. The only thing I do now if I'm not alone...and neither are you.
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