15-04-2005 10:22									#31
	Re: Does God speak to you? Get a bigger avatar today!

quote: Originally posted by bfg9000 One of the things that I used to find difficult to deal with when interacting with religious types is this idea of, "I need to find out God wants me to do about X"... To an outsider, these people sound crazy - "Are they hearing voices from God?" "How does God TELL you to do something?"

Yeah, God talked to me, and he told me there's no God.

When I was riding on the local subway several years ago, I overheard a couple of Christians talking to each other, something like the following:

A: "Can you hear God talking to you?"
B: "No."
A: "Oh, I hear him speaking with me all the time."
B: ""
A: "You just need more practice. First the voice would be far away, but it will become closer and closer."

What a bunch of loons.

	15-04-2005 10:29									#32
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There's different gifts UR.

	15-04-2005 10:29									#33
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christians are deranged. it all makes sense now

	15-04-2005 13:31									#34
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I have never heard God's voice as such, but there are times when my thoughts seem to be sourced from God, usually in times of quiet contemplation while I am preparing a sermon, these thoughts guiding my sermon so that it meshes in with other teaching in the service (our church can have up to 6 people contributing messages in a single service with 1 person being the main speaker delivering the service, the others for periods up to 5 mins each) and provides specific teaching that members of the congregation needed at that point in time. The coincidence of people who have not consulted with each other prior to the service given coordinated teaching that meets the needs of the people on the day (this happening very frequently) is proof to me that sometimes my thoughts do come from God through his Holy Spirit.

	15-04-2005 13:40									#35
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I don't mean to be insulting to christians in my above post. I was just joking.

As you know it annoys me when people badmouth religious people as nuts. Most of my relatives are religious. Mormons even! They aren't nuts (well... some of them are). Misinformed possibly. But not stupid.

As for the topic at hand. Yes, it does seem strange. My relatives never talk of god talking to them. Why is it acceptable for the commander in chief to have symptoms of a delusional man?

	15-04-2005 13:40									#36
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I wouldn't necessarily say that I've actually heard God, but there have been times where I'm doing something that is beyond reckles and life threatening and there's that voice that don't necessarily hear, but it's telling you to either stop, or don't give up.

And it's not a feeling like your conscience...it's different. Had it happen to me a few times. Once driving on the roads wasted off my mind..."something" told me to get my a** straightened up and pull off the road and fall asleep. Another time I was drowning and basically gave up when that same thing said to just do one more kick and you'll make it to the surface.

God? I dunno. It's something tho.

	15-04-2005 13:43									#37
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I never hear any voices in my head. Not even my concience. It is entirely possible I don't have a concience. I can be a bit insensitive at times...

Not even thoughts. The only thoughts in my head are my own, and easily recognizable as my own.

	15-04-2005 13:55									#38
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Hearing voices in your head is usually a bad thing. Conscience is more like a gut feeling.

	15-04-2005 15:26									#39
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"God said to me" is a way of speaking, for some christians. They don't actually mean they heard a voice in their head. I never have heard God actually speaking to me. Me myself would not say "God said to me...." since it's very arbitrary to say so. Too much people have done certain things and backed themselves up by "a message from God"

On a personal side though I believe God 'speaks' to me. Though not (yet) through a literal voice.
In example, next year I'll start studying to be a preacher. I believe that's what God wants me to do.
Why? Not because I heard an actual voice.
Why then?

What does people make to believe God speaks to them?
- Other people said certians things at a very specific time. (ie. I feel not loved and alone, I pray to God and ask him to help me. 15 minutes later my phone rings and a friend says he just want to tells me how he cares about me and how we should meet soon again)
- You read something in the bible which is very appropiate for something you're actually dealing with.
- You feel a strong desire to do something. (which is not pleasing yourself, since most people feel a strong desire to pleasure themselves all the time) (example: I need to call him or her and tell him/her that I love him/her)
- Things are happening in a certain way and you feel God's hand in your life.

There are many more things though.
And I would agree with everyone that any of these 'ways' are very arbitrary. for that reason I say: "It's a personal things", like believe is a personal thing.

I think no christian should act in a way that would affect other people because they think God told them to. I do support Bush for going to war in Iraq. Though I think such a decision should not be made because one believes God told him to do so. (which Bush actually never said!!!!! people lay those words as if God acts bc God told him to act in his mouth all the time) (correct me if I'm wrong)

Unless of course God would actually literary speak to me. Though that shouldn't happen (for me presonally) when I'm tired or sick or drunk (ok. I'm never drunk) because I'm very sure that those are conditions that will be very good for my mind to play tricks on me.

	15-04-2005 16:28									#40
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quote: Originally posted by Ben Kenobi No, prophecy is still a gift of the spirit, and that requires God speaking to you, or revealing things to you, that cannot otherwise be known.

Good grief.

Or proved- such as the gift of prophecy actually existing, rather than being a figment of the imagination, just like the auditory hallucinations.

	15-04-2005 17:44									#41
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"God alone truly is, and . . he is intellect or thought, and . . he is thought alone to which no other being is added."

"I have occasionally spoken of a light in the soul which is uncreated and uncreatable. . . . This light is not satisfied with the simple, still and divine being which neither gives nor takes, but rather it desires to know from where this being comes. It wants to penetrate to the simple ground, to the still desert, into which distinction never peeped, neither Father, Son nor Holy Spirit. There, in that most inward place, where everyone is a stranger, the light is satisfied, and there it is more inward than it is in itself, for this ground is a simple stillness which is immovable in itself. But all things are moved by this immovability and all the forms of life are conceived by it which, possessing the light of reason, live of themselves."



Johannes Eckhart, Christian mystic - 1300 AD

	15-04-2005 17:45									#42
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He tells me to kill people who dress poorly.

	15-04-2005 17:48									#43
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He tells me:

If only I made more people like you and less like Fez.

Spec.

	15-04-2005 18:32									#44
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quote: Originally posted by Q Cubed quote: "There's a difference, when Lincoln prayed, he talked to God. When Bush prays, God talks to Bush." --Mario Cuomo, to Bill Maher Is this quote for real, anyway?

http://www.hbo.com/billmaher/episode/index.html

	15-04-2005 21:04									#45
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quote: Originally posted by trev I have never heard God's voice as such, but there are times when my thoughts seem to be sourced from God, usually in times of quiet contemplation while I am preparing a sermon, these thoughts guiding my sermon so that it meshes in with other teaching in the service (our church can have up to 6 people contributing messages in a single service with 1 person being the main speaker delivering the service, the others for periods up to 5 mins each) and provides specific teaching that members of the congregation needed at that point in time. The coincidence of people who have not consulted with each other prior to the service given coordinated teaching that meets the needs of the people on the day (this happening very frequently) is proof to me that sometimes my thoughts do come from God through his Holy Spirit.

Are you a priest?

	15-04-2005 22:05									#46
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quote: Originally posted by Ben Kenobi There's different gifts UR.

Um, yes, gifts.

I remember that, on several occasions, a murder asserted that God had told him to kill.

	15-04-2005 22:18									#47
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God told me that this thread needs MORE COWBELL.

	15-04-2005 22:18									#48
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Assuming for a moment that the Bible is a divine work and expresses the will of God, how can you expect a perfect translation of His will into action by humans of varying degrees of imprefection? I think this explains how two armies in battle against each other can believe God is on their own side..

People have an amazing ability to frame reality in a way that is pleasing and/or comfortable to them. IMO, this is the case for those people in this thread who attribute serendipitous events and strange coincidences as divine in origin.

That is just my opinion and I tend to form opinions based on facts and reason as much as possible. I'm trying to make the leap of faith, but it doesnt feel right. I wish I could. Everything would be much easier.

	15-04-2005 22:32									#49
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Anyone who think God speaks to him/her needs to get mental help ASAP.

	15-04-2005 22:59									#50
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quote: Originally posted by Odin Anyone who think God speaks to him/her needs to get mental help ASAP.

said the norse god, no wonder the christians pushed out the old ways so easily

	15-04-2005 23:04									#51
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quote: Originally posted by child of Thor said the norse god, no wonder the christians pushed out the old ways so easily

	15-04-2005 23:21									#52
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@Odin -

quote: Originally posted by Frankychan I wouldn't necessarily say that I've actually heard God, but there have been times where I'm doing something that is beyond reckles and life threatening and there's that voice that don't necessarily hear, but it's telling you to either stop, or don't give up. And it's not a feeling like your conscience...it's different. Had it happen to me a few times. Once driving on the roads wasted off my mind..."something" told me to get my a** straightened up and pull off the road and fall asleep. Another time I was drowning and basically gave up when that same thing said to just do one more kick and you'll make it to the surface. God? I dunno. It's something tho.

Yes the few times i've been close to snuffing it, i've had a simular thing. Something that could be your own voice maybe, but doesn't really make much sense when your that close to the void as your not really concious of anything, other than a 'voice'(more like a feeling?) telling you its not your time and to keep fighting.

Afterwards as you sit in contemplation of the fact you nearly died, you do feel somehow something divine touched you and interviened.

I call it Thor - but people give it many names equaly as good

	16-04-2005 07:19									#53
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quote: Originally posted by child of Thor said the norse god, no wonder the christians pushed out the old ways so easily

Are you two related?

	16-04-2005 09:31									#54
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Ok, SPEC (yes I'm talking to you). You have to change your avatar...

NOW. I hate the Grudge and I hate the Ring. The Grudge screwed me up for months.

	16-04-2005 11:03									#55
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quote: Are you a priest?

No, just a lay preacher, who does a sermon about once a month, as do half a dozen others in the congregation.

	16-04-2005 11:06									#56
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When I was a Christian, I thought God sent me a message a couple of times. The human capacity for self-deception is quite amazing.

Since God told me to do two contradictory things (become an Episcopalian priest and also convert to the Jewish faith), either God is insane or I was fooling myself.

	16-04-2005 12:07									#57
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quote: Originally posted by chegitz guevara When I was a Christian, I thought God sent me a message a couple of times. The human capacity for self-deception is quite amazing. Since God told me to do two contradictory things (become an Episcopalian priest and also convert to the Jewish faith), either God is insane or I was fooling myself.

how do you know you aren't being self decepted into being an athiest? or a communist?

	16-04-2005 14:01									#58
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quote: Originally posted by chegitz guevara either God is insane or I was fooling myself.

There is no either.

Mad G-d told me so, Rebbe Guevara.

	16-04-2005 19:38									#59
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quote: Originally posted by Dissident how do you know you aren't being self decepted into being an athiest? or a communist?

Marx isn't talking to me in my head.

	16-04-2005 21:29									#60
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God doesn't return my phone calls.