alexleo: @Uyi,

Experience remains the best teacher. What you experienced can only be best understood by you so asking atheists to advice you is not necessary. Each of us came into this life on different days, from different angles and we are going back differently. Whatever you choose to believe thats left for you.

What if God used the dream of your mum to speak to you knowing that she is the one that can best communicate with you in a way you will understand?

You cant tell the mysteries behind your birth more than your mum. You dont even know her dialogue with God concerning the kind of child she wants before you were born. You dont know whether she made a covenant with God before you were born. What if God is trying to honour the agreement by sending you the warnings in dreams and events surrounding it? I believe your mum has done her best in putting you on this track, the rest is left for you. God help you my brother.

Zikdik:
Silence, not silent. Basic English Grammar.

If it is because we have weird experiences then just about anything that accommodates weird experiences is true. But as far as I know Christians are Christians because they believe that the God that the Bible talks about is not a liar.

MizMyColi:
If you don't know where to go, just make sure you're following the right people.
That's how I got here.

Okay first off, without the english(es) attached to it, who is a deist? @UyiIredia



@Ihedinobi2, how do you reconcile the God of the old testament wit the God of the new testament?
Do you believe in eternal damnation?
Do you think Jesus would be any real to you without the bible?
Are you of the convinction that the bible is the word of God?


This would be the first time I'll be asking direct questions on religion.
The reason is obvious enough, I think

ihedinobi2:
Hey MizMyColi, good to see you here

I reconcile "them" the same way you would reconcile the change in parental treatment of a kid when he is a child and when he has become an adult. It's the same God dealing with humanity at different stages of its development.

Yes, I do believe in eternal damnation.

It's hard to imagine not having the Bible. But I'm certain that if I never had it, Jesus would still find a way to make my acquaintance. I've never really seen reason to call His resourcefulness into question. But the Bible probably makes it a fuller experience.

I have no doubt whatsoever that the Bible is the Word of God.

Goodmorning Ihedi

I'm just all smiles.
And I'm happy, happy at the person I'm becoming.
I'm happy because even at the fact that I do not agree with your position or religion, I can still look at your post and feel warmth, love and compassion towards the person behind the post.

The emboldened is the only common ground we have in this regard.
I could go on and tell you what I believe or think, but I think that at this moment, it'd be an exercise in futility.
Trust me.
I asked you those questions out of sheer curiosity, I'd stumbled on your diary and your personality resonated a lot.


So, I followed my friend here, having seen a quote from him that sounded weird. Turns out he quoted you.
I saw you were viewing the thread too, so I spontaneously decided to ask you those questions.
Perhaps, you noticed a particular "like" from your diary at about 9-10, that was me.
I wanted to know more about where you're at in this journey of belief/unbelief.

I could deduce from your diary:
That you have a very kind heart, more like a heart of gold.
You do not like being a source of pain or hurt to people. If you ever get a hint that you do/did, you'd prolly go out of your way to make amends.
That there were times when you felt like you had it all together and other times, it felt like things were coming apart.
You like knowing that you're in a control of sorts.
You can't stand tatteredness (sic) of any kind.
You are very unselfish.

You've probably come across my posts as it pertains belief or unbelief.
I talked about it here. (It was more like a defending myself though).
I also created a thread where I talked about why I stopped believing in hell and eternal damnation.

What it is for us is what it is.

Let's keep giving each other grace.

MizMyColi:

Goodmorning Ihedi

I'm just all smiles.
And I'm happy, happy at the person I'm becoming.
I'm happy because even at the fact that I do not agree with your position or religion, I can still look at your post and feel warmth, love and compassion towards the person behind the post.

The emboldened is the only common ground we have in this regard.
I could go on and tell you what I believe or think, but I think that at this moment, it'd be an exercise in futility.
Trust me.
I asked you those questions out of sheer curiosity, I'd stumbled on your diary and your personality resonated a lot.


So, I followed my friend here, having seen a quote from him that sounded weird. Turns out he quoted you.
I saw you were viewing the thread too, so I spontaneously decided to ask you those questions.
Perhaps, you noticed a particular "like" from your diary at about 9-10, that was me.
I wanted to know more about where you're at in this journey of belief/unbelief.

I could deduce from your diary:
That you have a very kind heart, more like a heart of gold.
You do not like being a source of pain or hurt to people. If you ever get a hint that you do/did, you'd prolly go out of your way to make amends.
That there were times when you felt like you had it all together and other times, it felt like things were coming apart.
You like knowing that you're in a control of sorts.
You can't stand tatteredness (sic) of any kind.
You are very unselfish.

You've probably come across my posts as it pertains belief or unbelief.
I talked about it here. (It was more like a defending myself though).
I also created a thread where I talked about why I stopped believing in hell and eternal damnation.

What it is for us is what it is.

Let's keep giving each other grace.

ihedinobi2:
Good morning dear.

Yeah I'd just left the thread then. Went to bed soon after.

I understand about the conflicts in comprehension or religio-philosophical realities. The reason that I bother with arguments is to make sure that each person knows exactly what the other believes and why and has a chance to let another person examine their stand for authenticity. I've been on Nairaland since 2011. I started to really engage in 2012 and I engaged a great deal across faiths, across philosophical persuasions and across doctrines. And I learned a lot and changed a lot in my walk with God because of the conflicts that I experienced.

Much of the disagreement served to make me ask God questions and think hard about His responses to them (He tends to answer questions with questions, but not all the time). And I've learned. However, I don't force a debate. I know that people are by default protective of their beliefs. So I only engage when someone is disposed to examining the foundations of their lives. After all, a cracked foundation means a ready-to-collapse life. And we are all yet in school even if some of us like to play truant.

Thanks for bothering with my diary. I've read yours (well, some of it really ) too. And thank you for your kind comments. Whatever I am, it is the grace of God that is responsible. I'm still learning and having the character of Christ formed in me. Obviously, like you saw, I stumble in this journey. But God has never left my side. He has been giving me grace.

So why would I not share?

I think that we (you and I) will still engage some over our points of disagreement, very likely in private. But that is of you're disposed to it, of course.

I'm Game!

I have a reason to be frightened though .

I hate Arguments and Disagreements. Especially the confrontational kind, which is what religious arguments tends to gravitate to(wards).

I fear it might get to a point where I'm no longer able to find my way back to them i.e, relating with them based on their personality, not their belief or unbelief.

MizMyColi:

I'm Game!

I have a reason to be frightened though .

I hate Arguments and Disagreements. Especially the confrontational kind, which is what religious arguments tends to gravitate to(wards).

I fear it might get to a point where I'm no longer able to find my way back to them i.e, relating with them based on their personality, not their belief or unbelief.

ihedinobi2:
If only life were not so full of risks, right?

I think it's it might be worth it. What do you think?

I think so too!

ihedinobi2: I saw the beginning of this story and I don't know if this is the end. I doubt that it is.

Paul saw a vision of Jesus Christ glorified. But was that what saved him? I think it was what forced him to really consider if he had not been wrong the whole time. If there was no room for doubt then Paul could never have become a Christian.

As it is, even today, people are making excuses for Paul that he could have made based on his wide knowledge. He may have had a seizure. Perhaps he was struck by lightning and subsequently hallucinated. The human capacity for imagination is difficult to overestimate. Why did Paul believe that it was Jesus Christ he saw?

Why does anybody believe that they have been born again as children of God and saved from sin? Why do we believe at all?

If it is because we have weird experiences then just about anything that accommodates weird experiences is true. But as far as I know Christians are Christians because they believe that the God that the Bible talks about is not a liar.

Kay17:

Because the average Christian is superstitious. Religion is a form of superstition, so it is not unusual for Uyi Iredia to experience seizure like reactions and want to believe it is a religio-spiritual communication.

The human capacity for drama is unprecedented among all life.

Oduduwaboy:

Ahhhhh....please!, dont pressure him into identifying with any label.

Kay17:

Because the average Christian is superstitious. Religion is a form of superstition, so it is not unusual for Uyi Iredia to experience seizure like reactions and want to believe it is a religio-spiritual communication.

The human capacity for drama is unprecedented among all life.

ihedinobi2:
Hmm

Sounds to me like you just made a whole bunch of assumptions. What makes you say that religion is a form of superstition?

Kay17:

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superstition

Oduduwaboy: Uyi !!! i missed you here!!!
So how is church?
Atheists have no business preaching to anyone to de- convert; choose your path as reason serves you. One thing i know though, is that, you can no more be a true christian because you tend to apply reason to issues a lot while christianity is about total faith which is a total denial of reason. Its still a lose-lose situation for you because according to the bible you will most likely still find yourself in hell-fire! am sorry but that is the truth.

texanomaly:

What is your story? Do you have a deconversion story? You never give anything away, which makes me want to hear the story even more. Hmmm

Kay17:

Not quite a long story. I was originally a Christian, but once I adopted an healthy skepticism towards my religion, it fell apart in pieces. Of course, the change wasn't mild but a fundamental change in my outlook on life.

ihedinobi2:
Surely you have a reasoned argument of your own, right?

UyiIredia: if there's a doctor here I would like to hear his take. But even then I have seen skilled doctors testify of things that atheists outrightly deny. Out of body experiences are quite common and have been testified of by doctors operating on brain-dead patients. Yet atheists deny them.

Kay17:

Life can be much simpler. You accused me of making hasty assumptions from thin air and I bring a formal source of "authority" and now I'm being accused for the lack of originality.

Shouldn't you be satisfied that religions are superstitions?!

honeychild: @Uyi
I would suggest you lay a strong foundation for your Christianity. Study your Bible. A faith based on your personal experience is shaky. Personal experience can be manipulated by others....our senses can be easily deceived.

That's why I was so excited about your Bible reading posts...Please go back and study. A faith based on the clear understanding of the simple truths in the Bible is not easily shaken.

texanomaly:

*sighs*

masonkz:

Tell me this please. Is God termed to be partial?

masonkz: why then do these experiences have to happen to a certain group of people. Isn't everyone supposed to feel the Christian God's presence? independently too?. Bear it in mind that these people were of Christian backgound.

masoknz: How if such an experience is to happen to a non-Christian (say Muslim or Buddhist or Taoist..etc), who never knew who Jesus was, would this non-Christian therefore conclude that the Christian God has visited him/her, thereby making him/her convert to Christian?

masoknz: I need answers please.