What's the essence of this thread. It's to share my experiences with God, and to encourage you to do same too.

Let me start with my religious experience.

I was born into an Orthodox Christian religion. Completed the orders of the church, aside from marriage, before I clocked 11years.

I left for boarding school the year I clocked 11years. And spent most of the break with a relation who belonged to a millennial religion. Eventually at 16years I formally joined the group.

An event happened after five years, that made me leave the fold. During the period another event happened that made me come back. Coming back even stronger, took it more seriously and grew in the fold.

When I moved to another state, and encountered two other religious sects who also have a millennial leaning, I saw nothing special in what mine had.

During this period, I became open to reading materials from other religious circles.

I experimented with Pentecostalism, read their books, attended their gatherings, etc. At the end of the day, in good faith I couldn't become a member of any.

I started reading materials outside the Christian fold. Books on Asian religion, New age movement, Islamic materials, even attended some events of what I will term mystical religions.

Also, I delved into atheist and agnostic materials. Their arguments, didn't make sense to me. Back then, most of my reading time was spent on religious materials.

After some findings, and seeing that I could not in good faith remain a member of the millennial religious group, I stopped engaging in the activities of the fold, mentally ready for any consequence that may follow.

Being six years now, and I have stuck to my decision.

Overall, I am grateful to the Orthodox church for introducing me to God. I am grateful to the millennial group for opening the bible to me me how to marshal bible debates. I am also grateful to the pentecostals for opening the holy spirit to me.

For a seeker, it comes at a point in your life, you feel you are ready to piece together your own approach to God, and follow through on it.

I was conversing with a friend of mine, now in Europe and one thing led to another and we both learnt we have both left the millennial group of our youth.

He was leaning into agnostic beliefs. And he said one thing that really touched me: "You are fortunate to have pieced something together that makes it easy for you to hold on to Christianity."

Frankly, I don't know if I would call what I practice Christianity. Well it is, for my form of personal worship makes use of all that makes sense to me from the bible. Especially the new testament.

With Love.

After two or three years of searching, reading, etc, I had to come to a conclusion.

My options were broken down into three:

a) Open Spirituality: That is, Align with any religion that believes in God.

I know this won't work for me. It's too broad, I will not really know what I stand for.

b) Christian Spirituality: Align with any religion that has a Jesus factor in it. And build my personal approach to God, with Christ as the centre.

c) Sect Spirituality: Choose and become a member of a particular christian religion that seems to harmonize with all I believe.

This was tempting, and is still tempting, because the Orthodox group I was born in, perfectly fits as that christian religion.

I choose B. That's where I am right now.

I have my personal approach. All I will say is this: It takes discipline to strike out on the spiritual journey without the support system of a formal religion.

Yet, for any that feels that's the point they are right now, when by God's grace and some personal work you keep pushing, the benefits are much more than you will gain from not breaking forth.

And for those still in a formal religion, it's okay, in as much as you also take seriously your personal relationship with God as you take the group's activities. It's okay if it isn't adversely affecting your mental health.

Experiencing God, is born from our personal encounters with him. It can happen to anyone be you inside institutional religion or outside it.

So, how have you experienced God recently?

With Love

God is all knowing but unknowable. That's the ultimate explanation of God that I can give. Another way round is that God is everywhere and in everything. That being said, HE is the ultimate source of everything that exist.

Thanks.

Theological explanations of God is endless and more will continue to pour in. Some contradicting themselves.

I believe God known experientially goes deeper in one's soul, than just knowing God intellectually.

That's the idea behind the thread's name: Experiencing God.

One way, I daily experience God is through my worship. Especially my early morning worship. Moreso, when my faculties are focused during the worship.

With Love.

Templee333:
God is all knowing but unknowable. That's the ultimate explanation of God that I can give. Another way round is that God is everywhere and in everything. That being said, HE is the ultimate source of everything that exist.

Anjinsan:
Thanks.

Theological explanations of God is endless and more will continue to pour in. Some contradicting themselves.

I believe God known experientially goes deeper in one's soul, than just knowing God intellectually.

That's the idea behind the thread's name: Experiencing God.

One way, I daily experience God is through my worship. Especially my early morning worship. Moreso, when my faculties are focused during the worship.

With Love.

What does "experience God" mean?

Frankly, there is this consciousness I have that my needs will always be met.

I have been aware of this consciousness, right from my early twenties. I remembered when I finished my NYSC, I rarely bothered about where a job will come from.

I did what I can, and relaxed. One, two small jobs came along. Then an admirable job showed up.

I used that experience to encourage those within my religious circle, who were fresh in the labour market.

Often, I told them, "This time you have now, use it well o. Because soon a job will come and you won't have this free time again."

And so has it been with me, that my needs were always met, even when I started a family.

As a married man, initially, it was scary. Especially when I left full time employment for to try my hands for the second time on my thing. "Will this mindset still see me through even as a family man?"

For now it has always held through.
In fact, I remember during the early years of marriage I will often tell my wife: "This home is self sufficient. Please don't ask for things from anyone (especially her relatives) If they give you gifts fine. But don't initiate the asking...

So far, we have been able to meet our needs without going into debts.

Yet, Experiencing God should not be mainly about material things.

Why?

Even the rich who aren't spiritual or moral have these things. They possess universal faith and other universal wealth making principles, that doesn't care whether you are a puritan or not, believer or not.

There is Faith as a universal concept. There is Faith as a christian concept.

Faith isn't an entitlement for God knowing persons.

In developing countries such as ours, these material successes are the main bait that drive most people to God or to a group of like minded worshipers.

Alas, such motivation will not result in a one to one personal relationship with God.

So, most of my own experiences with God will be based on non-material things.


With Love.

"Experiencing God" is a term I use in describing:

1) Divine consciousness/Spirit filled/Spirit led.

2) Noticing God's fingers in one's personal affairs. Especially as it relates to helping the person live up to his/her noble values.

With Love.

LordReed:


What does "experience God" mean?

Anjinsan:

"Experiencing God" is a term I use in describing:

1) Divine consciousness/Spirit filled/Spirit led.

2) Noticing God's fingers in one's personal affairs. Especially as it relates to helping the person live up to his/her noble values.

With Love.

I can't claim to understand 1 but why do you need to experience a god to live up to noble values? Do you think people can not act with benevolence towards their fellows without a god? I certainly do act with benevolence towards people without a god.

There are persons who adhere to noble values without a god factor.

There are even moral purists, who don't even believe God exist.

The human will is something tremendous, the human mind powerful.

And there are those who wish to go about these with God in the picture.

First, they acknowledge God's existence.

Second, they do their best to centre their lives around God.

For such persons, prayer among other spiritual exercises helps them adhere to their noble values.

It helps in their practice of making God the centre of their life.


With Love.

LordReed:


I can't claim to understand 1 but why do you need to experience a god to live up to noble values?
Do you think people can not act with benevolence towards their fellows without a god? I certainly do act with benevolence towards people without a god.

Anjinsan:

There are persons who adhere to noble values without a god factor.

There are even moral purists, who don't even believe God exist.

The human will is something tremendous, the human mind powerful.

And there are those who wish to go about these with God in the picture.

First, they acknowledge God's existence.

Second, they do their best to centre their lives around God.

For such persons, prayer among other spiritual exercises helps them adhere to their noble values.

It helps in their practice of making God the centre of their life.


With Love.

Well if you can achieve this without a god how are you able to tell the difference?

One's choice is the difference:

Mr. A acknowledges only his will, his mind. There is no divine consciousness.

Mr. B went beyond, by calling also on a higher power - God. There is divine consciousness.

To each his own.

With Love.

LordReed:


Well if you can achieve this without a god how are you able to tell the difference?

Anjinsan:

One's choice is the difference:

Mr. A acknowledges only his will, his mind. There is no divine consciousness.

Mr. B went beyond, by calling also on a higher power - God. There is divine consciousness.

To each his own.

With Love.

So it is a god doing it because you say so?

One of the most beautiful piece of creation, I find amazing is the clear blue sky.

There was a period some years ago, I would spend hours, just gazing up and contemplating the white blue sky.

How it stretches forth, the dashes of white on the blue.

Beautiful!

Creation opens to us the endless beauty of the Grand Creator.

Today, after a fulfilled day. My head went up, and the sky was blue, with dashes of white.

What beauty!

And I uttered a thanksgiving to the Grand designer behind these beauty.

#Experiencing God

With Love.

So it is God, not doing it because Mr. A believes so?

With Love.

LordReed:


So it is a god doing it because you say so?

Anjinsan:



So it is God, not doing it because Mr. A believes so?

With Love.

Hence the question HOW do you know, simply stating it is a god doesn't tell me HOW you know.

If you did not get that from the earlier posts, kindly bear with me, and keep hanging around, who knows sooner or later, a post may give you the answer you seek.

Thanks for your interest in the thread

#Experiencing God

With Love

LordReed:


Hence the question HOW do you know, simply stating it is a god doesn't tell me HOW you know.

It wasn't an easy decision. Left to me, I won't.

Then this afternoon, after a session of meditation, there was an urge to present the issue before God.

So I did. And I heard what I know I would hear.

"You have to keep greeting them. In fact you have to keep addressing them with the sir/madam title."

I have listened. It wasn't easy to obey, because I felt they were unjust in their decision.

Yet, I wanted to obey.

So, I said a prayer, asking the Almighty for the strength to comply with what was expected of me.

In the evening, as I walked into the wing of my apartment, the man sat in front of his, at the other end of the compound.

I got his attention, by saying hello to a child. Then with an ease and smile, I can't really explain. I didn't even struggle with, I greeted him, "Good evening sir."

And the rapturous joy that went through my entire being for obeying, is something beyond what words can tell.

#Experiencing God

With Love.

Anjinsan:



If you did not get that from the earlier posts, kindly bear with me, and keep hanging around, who knows sooner or later, a post may give you the answer you seek.

Thanks for your interest in the thread

#Experiencing God

With Love

Which of your previous posts are you referring to?

LordReed:


Well if you can achieve this without a god how are you able to tell the difference?

Big facepalm on your behalf 🤦‍♂️. Achieve what, human nature? Every human being has spirit, soul and body, though not all developed in same proportion. Having a keener conscience or stronger will has nothing much to do with God. You MUST be born again.

Anjinsan:
■ I was conversing with a friend of mine, now in Europe and one thing led to another and we both learnt we have both left the millennial group of our youth.
He was leaning into agnostic beliefs. And he said one thing that really touched me: "You are fortunate to have pieced something together that makes it easy for you to hold on to Christianity."
Frankly, I don't know if I would call what I practice Christianity. Well it is, for my form of personal worship makes use of all that makes sense to me from the bible. Especially the new testament. With Love.

Why hold on at all to someone that does not make sense as a whole to you? In your own words there, none of what you have tried so far makes sense as a whole so you continue to pick pieces to cling to and pieces to reject. Why question is why?

Anjinsan:
■ I have my personal approach. All I will say is this: It takes discipline to strike out on the spiritual journey without the support system of a formal religion.
Yet, for any that feels that's the point they are right now, when by God's grace and some personal work you keep pushing, the benefits are much more than you will gain from not breaking forth.
And for those still in a formal religion, it's okay, in as much as you also take seriously your personal relationship with God as you take the group's activities. It's okay if it isn't adversely affecting your mental health. Experiencing God, is born from our personal encounters with him. It can happen to anyone be you inside institutional religion or outside it. So, how have you experienced God recently?

But this all sounds pretty much like the same bagpipes played by the religious minded so what convinces you that you are any different from them when your idea of who God is not based on Him but on you deciphering Him in your personal way -- God according to you, and not God according to God?

Of course all spiritually conscious persons have something in common - the Divine. No matter their approach or labels.

The goal is same for all - God.

I won't be dogmatic to say I 100% comprehend God according to God.

Who has?

Yes, I agree, for me it's God according to my own experiences.

And even these experiences for the spiritually conscious are more powerful, more convincing than a thousand books of intellectual theological explanations.

Thanks for the interest in the thread.

With Love.

Kobojunkie:
But this all sounds pretty much like the same bagpipes played by the religious minded so what convinces you that you are any different from them when your idea of who God is not based on Him but on you deciphering Him in your personal way -- God according to you, and not God according to God?

There is something that comes with rising, when the world is a asleep to engage in spiritual exercises.

It takes strength to shrug off sleepiness, and proceed to your special spiritual space.

Once I am there, the allotted time and even some extras must be met.

Usually, I go back to bed to rise again by 5am.

Experientially, I notice that on days I wake in-between, my mind is more keen. Spiritually, I feel more at ease.

When I don't wake in-between, but wake by 5am., to engage in spiritual exercises, my mind is alert, though not as the first.

And when I don't wake in-between and 5am, ahhh... experientially, I struggle through that day. I can't wait for that day to be over.

When I use those in-between and 5am for anything else (secular/domestic work) it adds nothing to my spiritual consciousness during the day.

Because of this, even if I must work, first I ensure I give at least an hour fully engaged in spiritual exercises.

The type of spiritual exercises engaged in also matters. I will talk about these later.

#Experiencing God.

With Love.

Anjinsan:
■ Of course all spiritually conscious persons have something in common - the Divine. No matter their approach or labels.
■ The goal is same for all - God. I won't be dogmatic to say I 100% comprehend God according to God. Who has? Yes, I agree, for me it's God according to my own experiences.
■ And even these experiences for the spiritually conscious are more powerful, more convincing than a thousand books of intellectual theological explanations. Thanks for the interest in the thread. With Love.

1. The divine or their particular delusions of this with they each refer to as the divine?

2. God according to your experiences is not God but delusion specific to your person. So how can that serve as God for anyone else but you?

3. Makes no sense since all you keep talking sounds a whole lot like that confined to the mental -- individual consciousness. Seems a lot like you have reduced God to nothing but the mental musings of the individual? Pretty much the same thing most religious folks do and also what those in mental asylums are notorious for.

Thanks. The 'delusion' has served me well, it has given me an ultimate meaning in life. So I will keep 'deluding' It's my 'delusion', not another's.

#Experiencing God.

With Love.

Kobojunkie:
1. The divine or their particular delusions of this with they each refer to as the divine?

2. God according to your experiences is not God but delusion specific to your person. So how can that serve as God for anyone else but you?

3. Makes no sense since all you keep talking sounds a whole lot like that confined to the mental -- individual consciousness. Seems a lot like you have reduced God to nothing but the mental musings of the individual? Pretty much the same thing most religious folks do and also what those in mental asylums are notorious for.

Anjinsan:
■ There is something that comes with rising, when the world is a asleep to engage in spiritual exercises. It takes strength to shrug off sleepiness, and proceed to your special spiritual space. Once I am there, the allotted time and even some extras must be met. Usuqally, I go back to bed to rise again by 5am.
■ Experientially, I notice that on days I wake in-between, my mind is more keen. Spiritually, I feel more at ease. When I don't wake in-between, but wake by 5am., to engage in spiritual exercises, my mind is alert, though not as the first. And when I don't wake in-between and 5am, ahhh... experientially, I struggle through that day. I can't wait for that day to be over. When I use those in-between and 5am for anything else (secular/domestic work) it adds nothing to my spiritual consciousness during the day. Because of this, even if I must work, first I ensure I give at least an hour fully engaged in spiritual exercises. The type of spiritual exercises engaged in also matters. I will talk about these later.
■ #Experiencing God.

1. So never mind the fact that there are those out there awake working the night shift, and also more than half the population on the other side of the globe awake and busy with their hustle even at those very same hours, you would rather pretend that the world is asleep and you alone awake in it?

By the way, what "spiritual" exercises would those be? More day dreaming?

2. Interesting...

3. Sounds a lot more like experiencing you to me. You are finally reaching into the crevices that is your own mind only you keep confusing it with God for weird reasons.

Anjinsan:
■ Thanks. The 'delusion' has served me well, it has given me an ultimate meaning in life. So I will keep 'deluding' It's my 'delusion', not another's. #Experiencing God. With Love.

I get that it serves you well kind of the same way people also claim religion serves them well too when their is near no evidence to back up their many claims. What I have a problem with is you confusing your personal delusion with a God experience that is meant to apply as far as all and not just you. Again, this is sort of the same thing religious folks do only they do it enmasse.

A friend once asked me, "So when you left your former group, how did you handle those you helped come into that fold, and others who looked up to you?"

Fortunately, I had moved to a new city when I pulled out.

I did not see the need of communicating my decision to them.

Why should I?

If I create doubts in their young minds of all they know, what do I have to offer them as an alternative?

If they must find the holes in their belief, let them do that on their own, at their own pace.

Thank God for Google, they can get the best out of two sides of any debate. And draw thier conclusion. I had more important use of my limited time and energy

It's easy to critique, to pull apart. You don't need to be an Albert Einstein to do that.

What's more difficult, more creative, is to build. To pull together.

With Love.

Temptations are real:

Lust.

Hate.

Greed.

Envy.

Indolence.

Etc.

These temptations, gives me an opportunity to Experience God.

At each moment any of them knocks, I have three choices:

Fall.

Resist

Experience God.

The easiest is to fall, it takes nothing. Just give in.

It's harder to resist like a stoic. This method tends to repress the urge. It's hard because it seems like going against a flowing current.

More so, the repression keeps accumulating like a dam. A day will come the water becomes too much, and gboa...there is a bust, an outburst. At that moment one gives in to the temptation.

The third is to see the temptation as an opportunity to Experience God.

Not going down (fall), nor pushing against (resist), rather it goes up.

It goes up through prayer that involves:

1. Acknowledge what's happening.

2. Requesting for strength and wisdom to godly rechannel the urge.

3. Thanksgiving.

In doing so, temptations when they bring up their ugly head serves as an opportunity to Experience God.

#Experiencing God.

With Love.

Employees guided by a handbook.

Citizens are guided by the constitution

What guides you?

I have settled on mine - the Bible. Foremost, the teachings of my Master - Jesus Christ, as contained in the gospel.

Luke 18:1. "Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up."

Prayer keeps a christian in faith. It keeps a christian in faith as he does everything practical to overcome a challenge.

It keeps a christian in faith when everything practical have been done.

Prayer is a christian's first, major, best, and last remedy to any challenge.

Let prayer be an essential part of my day, as the water I drink.

#Experiencing God.

With Love.

I have reached that stage of my life where I know experientially, that peace in my life is achieved by:

1) Living a holy life.

2) Regularly engaging in spiritual exercises.

In these ways, I have the opportunity to experience God every second of the day.

I am not yet there on a consistent basis. I am not a saint. But I don’t make a practice of vices.

There is a difference between someone who fell for a vice once once, and someone who takes such a vice as part of his life style.

The first happened, the second is intentional.

Life with God is beautiful. Experiencing God is something that can’t be contained in words.

#Experiencing God.

With Love.

Experientially, I know that when I give in to temptations, mentally and spiritually I groan.

Even during the process, the agony is more than the benefit of the act. Why I kept on with it even then, is something that puzzles me.

The good thing is this, after that episode, I evaluate the situation prayerfully, and prepare for the next which is around the corner.

In all these, it has helped me to overcome some once stubborn thorn in the flesh. It has contributed to a life of holiness.

Ah! This evening, I had time to notice the blue sky today with dashes of white.

Then, there was a point where the rays of the sun pierced through.

Magnificent!

And more magnificent is the designer.

#Experiencing God.

With Love.