There is no god. It was invented by cavemen to explain things they couldn’t understand. Faith is just believing in something for which there is no evidence whatsoever, in any way, shale or form.. Don’t fall for the gumf about without god there is no moral compass. It’s just lies. I’m an atheist and don’t need a make believe deity to be good! Sure, I’m depressed and don’t want to be here anymore, but I have no allusions whatsoever that there is a sky daddy… I mean, Hubble telescope anybody? Science is your friend!
If you have to believe in something/someone … believe in yourself … everything else is someone else’s idea … let them keep their silly ideas … be you and rock this world with YOU-ness 😉
Are you religious? Faith doesn’t have to be in God, if you’re losing faith in Him, try to find it in yourself. Or mankind, His creation. There is a lot of good in the world, maybe not where you are, but it is out there. If you try hard enough, you will find it. Don’t give up, die trying.
Dawg is spot on. Couldn’t have said it better. I lost my faith in goodness years ago. It was tough at first but then I learned to believe in myself–the goodness that I can create all by myself–and that was more powerful than any faith that was ever taught to me. The only reason I’m not dead now is because I still have it deep down under all the suffering. Thanks Dawg for the reminder 🙂
Dawg, you have been on this site for a very long time. Every since my first account nuclearanthrax. Shocked to see someone from the past. Anyways yes, I can’t help but to believe, but it is fading fast as well. I believe in all goodness within myself though, it’s got me really far already.
Shouldn’t be too shocked … there’s actually a few from my “class” (time of arrival) that are still bouncing around here on occasion … i do kind of miss a few of the really thoughtful, intelligent members that predated me – their thoughts and insights where nothing short of brilliant. … but alas, thing change, people move on – hopefully for the better. My personal situation still remains precarious although it has stabilized and for the time being, i’ve been able to remain afloat so to speak.
But my personal situation aside … i’m more here for the purpose of passing on the things i’ve learned in my many years of trial and error and experiences to hopefully give some guidance to those who are facing things that i’ve already been through. It’s my hope that at least some can benefit for my thoughts and experiences … but like anything, they have the choice (almost everything is a choice) to listen or ignore … which they choose has no direct effect on my life.
As recent as a few years ago, i still held out that there might be a god or some type of creator – i’ve since concluded there is not … and it was like a massive weight lifted from my shoulders. I no longer have to try to live to “please” this god who if he/she/it were to exist, claims to have all this power yet opts to not use it very often and actually supposedly uses it to antagonize his/her “creations” … believers pass this off as “being tested” … i call shenanigans … it’s just life … and we’re each in control of the choices we make and we choose how to perceive the things we see think and feel.
A person can look at a tree and see it as good, bad or indifferently – that’s a choice … people get upset when it rains, why? … it’s just rain … it makes plants grow – that’s a good thing … getting wet from rain is far from a bad thing yet people choose to feel upset, irritated, inconvenienced, etc by rain. either way other people choose to interpret or perceive the rain or the tree is their choice – a choice that can effect their mood for the rest of the day … they get annoyed by the rain then frustrated that the rain slows traffic then angry that some guy cut them off in traffic and made them late for work and by the time they got to work they grumble and snap at their coworkers who say “good morning” with a smile giving the coworker the opportunity to perceive them as and angry negative person who they want to stay away from.
all because they chose to not like rain
but at any point in the above scenario, the person could have made a different choice … I like rain … sure traffic is slow, but it gives me opportunity to look around and see the trees and people or architecture that we’re usually too busy or moving too fast to appreciate … the guy that cuts me off – meh, i’m sure he just couldn’t see me because of the rain – it happens, or maybe he just got a call that his kid got sick or injured in school and he’s in a hurry – i can forgive that besides, now he’s gone and off the highway and i don’t have to worry about him now … sure, i’m late to work boss – sorry, got caught in the rain storm and traffic got stupid … i’ll stay a few minutes late to make up for it … and the person who smiles and says “good morning”? for all the challenges the people and rain have caused, i choose to smile back and say “yes, yes it IS a fine morning, we needed the rain! Have a nice day”
Why do i choose that? because it cost me absolutely nothing to be nice and somewhere along the line that person will be more willing to extend a hand to help me when i need it – because when i had no reason to be nice to them, i was anyway … and they might just remember that i was … it’s better to hope that they remember you were nice than to remember you were irritable and negative … it’s a choice … choose wisely … they add up.
And yes, i know that many of the things are trivial and sometimes even pointless in importance to our major issues … but why add a bunch of little irritants on top of our bigger concerns?
That your expectation of Good no longer meets up with your experiences can be very painful.
Mine was. Was something wrong with me, my experience didn’t match my expectations so I failed, I was wrong
I spend decades trying to rework and fit my experience into “my†expectations I was taught I was supposed to have.
Not surprisingly I found myself depressed.
Over the last few years I realised that I hadn’t spent much time checking into the legitimacy of my expectations of how I thought life “should†was “supposed†to be, what I was taught even what I meant when I used words such as belief, good, bad, faith, God….
I think it’s also important to define what you mean by Faith, and what that Faith is specific to.
Faith does not always equate to God.
Love, friendship and so forth all require a leap and every leap is act of faith.
Faith acknowledges the boundaries of uncertainty and our limitations… A healthy faith allows a person to act on what they believe without knowing the outcome, while remaining open to learning, a continuing adjustment of the experience with expectation.
Faith allows us to act with certainty while acknowledging the reality that our ability to know is uncertain.
I must act on what I believe, I would be a fool to act on what I didn’t believe, yet while I act I must be open to being wrong so that I can learn something and correct if needed, or I would be a fool.
The advice given is that you must find faith in yourself, to believe in yourself and I would agree. But even here you will find inconstancies, our actions don’t always match up to what we say, so be kind to yourself. Open the door and find rest in a faith that you will always do better when you know better.
Good stuff Left22 … we often let our ideology skew our expectation and then we get depressed when reality doesn’t meet those modified expectations … it’s important to always step back and REALISTICALLY assess objectively what is around us and what we should expect from the world.
It’s also important to not bestow more trust and faith to people who haven’t demonstratedthat they have earned it or can handle it responsibly … baby steps … it’s painfull to find out someone is untrustworthy when you loan them $100 … that is “getting screwed big time”… it’s not so bad when it’s only $1 or even $10 … that can be written off as a “lesson learned”
I spent a lot of time stuck in ideological expectations that in hindsight were not even necessary to the moment.
The labelling of good and bad has proved to be not very helpful. Every day I witness moments of grace and moments of despair how it will all be judged in the end I cannot know.
So I choose to keep the faith that in the end all will come together for The Good. I see no helpful reason to choose otherwise and wonder if this is not our only act of real freedom.
But I do not cling to this faith for meaning, purpose or even hope… that has created too much pain… no just a gentile faith of a possibility that I attempt, during my day, and fail and succeed, to act on.
As to what I believe with regards to God, I can only answer in what I am not.
I am not a Theist or Atheist or an Agnostic….
Perhaps I am an Absurdist…
But Labels obscure as much or more then they reveal.
I think it’s the perceptions that others hang on the labels that are more the problem than the labels/words themselves.
Often times when a person says they are an “atheist”, the image conjured for some, is that of a baby eating, devil worshiping monstrosity … to be kind and to say the least, that is an unrealistic description but may folks who hear that word, actually BELIEVE that skewed image
I use words based on their excepted academic definition … how other choose to view, use and interpret them is their issue to wrestle with – it and they, do not concern me.
as to what things and stuff – moments of grace and despair, as it were – it’s of no value to me how they are “judged in the end” … my only concern is how they affect me at that moment – they are either helpful and/or influential at that time – once that time has past they are but a memory to reflect on – of they bring me sadness then i put them in the recycle bin of my brain – i don’t need to clutter my mind with random despair and sadness that i have no control over and cannot effect change or wield influence upon.
I was attempting to articulate the â€faith†in which I act and agree that how it is judge or labeled in the moment other then helpful or not holds little value.
Intentional without attachment to judgment, mine or others.
As the Dog whisperer might say being Calm Assertive, or Calm Intentional
What are you losing faith in? What do you believe in? For me to understand your question the assumption I can’t make that assumption of God because faith and belief mean different things to different people.
I have enjoyed the conversations on this page, feel somewhat special. Because these are good conversations, words to be said. I see it as, if I never posted this story, then none of these words would be here. Anyways. I’m on a phone, so I’m but saying as much as I would ever like to and I’m sure a lot of the spelling is incorrect due to autocorrect . Wow though. Great conversations. To the last question asked, losing faith in my own belief, and losing faith that everything is just going to be ok. Losing faith in my family, because I have a silly assumption that they were going to act with more kindness, like they said, but truth is they have lied, time and time again. So I should have expected, our known better I guess. I try and see they good, when it isn’t even there. Losing faith in me, and my strength to stay clean. Just all around, I’m losing faith in everything, just about.
14 comments
There is no god. It was invented by cavemen to explain things they couldn’t understand. Faith is just believing in something for which there is no evidence whatsoever, in any way, shale or form.. Don’t fall for the gumf about without god there is no moral compass. It’s just lies. I’m an atheist and don’t need a make believe deity to be good! Sure, I’m depressed and don’t want to be here anymore, but I have no allusions whatsoever that there is a sky daddy… I mean, Hubble telescope anybody? Science is your friend!
I used to believe, but it’s fading fast.
If you have to believe in something/someone … believe in yourself … everything else is someone else’s idea … let them keep their silly ideas … be you and rock this world with YOU-ness 😉
Unique dawg
Are you religious? Faith doesn’t have to be in God, if you’re losing faith in Him, try to find it in yourself. Or mankind, His creation. There is a lot of good in the world, maybe not where you are, but it is out there. If you try hard enough, you will find it. Don’t give up, die trying.
Dawg is spot on. Couldn’t have said it better. I lost my faith in goodness years ago. It was tough at first but then I learned to believe in myself–the goodness that I can create all by myself–and that was more powerful than any faith that was ever taught to me. The only reason I’m not dead now is because I still have it deep down under all the suffering. Thanks Dawg for the reminder 🙂
Dawg, you have been on this site for a very long time. Every since my first account nuclearanthrax. Shocked to see someone from the past. Anyways yes, I can’t help but to believe, but it is fading fast as well. I believe in all goodness within myself though, it’s got me really far already.
Shouldn’t be too shocked … there’s actually a few from my “class” (time of arrival) that are still bouncing around here on occasion … i do kind of miss a few of the really thoughtful, intelligent members that predated me – their thoughts and insights where nothing short of brilliant. … but alas, thing change, people move on – hopefully for the better. My personal situation still remains precarious although it has stabilized and for the time being, i’ve been able to remain afloat so to speak.
But my personal situation aside … i’m more here for the purpose of passing on the things i’ve learned in my many years of trial and error and experiences to hopefully give some guidance to those who are facing things that i’ve already been through. It’s my hope that at least some can benefit for my thoughts and experiences … but like anything, they have the choice (almost everything is a choice) to listen or ignore … which they choose has no direct effect on my life.
As recent as a few years ago, i still held out that there might be a god or some type of creator – i’ve since concluded there is not … and it was like a massive weight lifted from my shoulders. I no longer have to try to live to “please” this god who if he/she/it were to exist, claims to have all this power yet opts to not use it very often and actually supposedly uses it to antagonize his/her “creations” … believers pass this off as “being tested” … i call shenanigans … it’s just life … and we’re each in control of the choices we make and we choose how to perceive the things we see think and feel.
A person can look at a tree and see it as good, bad or indifferently – that’s a choice … people get upset when it rains, why? … it’s just rain … it makes plants grow – that’s a good thing … getting wet from rain is far from a bad thing yet people choose to feel upset, irritated, inconvenienced, etc by rain. either way other people choose to interpret or perceive the rain or the tree is their choice – a choice that can effect their mood for the rest of the day … they get annoyed by the rain then frustrated that the rain slows traffic then angry that some guy cut them off in traffic and made them late for work and by the time they got to work they grumble and snap at their coworkers who say “good morning” with a smile giving the coworker the opportunity to perceive them as and angry negative person who they want to stay away from.
all because they chose to not like rain
but at any point in the above scenario, the person could have made a different choice … I like rain … sure traffic is slow, but it gives me opportunity to look around and see the trees and people or architecture that we’re usually too busy or moving too fast to appreciate … the guy that cuts me off – meh, i’m sure he just couldn’t see me because of the rain – it happens, or maybe he just got a call that his kid got sick or injured in school and he’s in a hurry – i can forgive that besides, now he’s gone and off the highway and i don’t have to worry about him now … sure, i’m late to work boss – sorry, got caught in the rain storm and traffic got stupid … i’ll stay a few minutes late to make up for it … and the person who smiles and says “good morning”? for all the challenges the people and rain have caused, i choose to smile back and say “yes, yes it IS a fine morning, we needed the rain! Have a nice day”
Why do i choose that? because it cost me absolutely nothing to be nice and somewhere along the line that person will be more willing to extend a hand to help me when i need it – because when i had no reason to be nice to them, i was anyway … and they might just remember that i was … it’s better to hope that they remember you were nice than to remember you were irritable and negative … it’s a choice … choose wisely … they add up.
And yes, i know that many of the things are trivial and sometimes even pointless in importance to our major issues … but why add a bunch of little irritants on top of our bigger concerns?
choosy dawg
That your expectation of Good no longer meets up with your experiences can be very painful.
Mine was. Was something wrong with me, my experience didn’t match my expectations so I failed, I was wrong
I spend decades trying to rework and fit my experience into “my†expectations I was taught I was supposed to have.
Not surprisingly I found myself depressed.
Over the last few years I realised that I hadn’t spent much time checking into the legitimacy of my expectations of how I thought life “should†was “supposed†to be, what I was taught even what I meant when I used words such as belief, good, bad, faith, God….
I think it’s also important to define what you mean by Faith, and what that Faith is specific to.
Faith does not always equate to God.
Love, friendship and so forth all require a leap and every leap is act of faith.
Faith acknowledges the boundaries of uncertainty and our limitations… A healthy faith allows a person to act on what they believe without knowing the outcome, while remaining open to learning, a continuing adjustment of the experience with expectation.
Faith allows us to act with certainty while acknowledging the reality that our ability to know is uncertain.
I must act on what I believe, I would be a fool to act on what I didn’t believe, yet while I act I must be open to being wrong so that I can learn something and correct if needed, or I would be a fool.
The advice given is that you must find faith in yourself, to believe in yourself and I would agree. But even here you will find inconstancies, our actions don’t always match up to what we say, so be kind to yourself. Open the door and find rest in a faith that you will always do better when you know better.
Good stuff Left22 … we often let our ideology skew our expectation and then we get depressed when reality doesn’t meet those modified expectations … it’s important to always step back and REALISTICALLY assess objectively what is around us and what we should expect from the world.
It’s also important to not bestow more trust and faith to people who haven’t demonstratedthat they have earned it or can handle it responsibly … baby steps … it’s painfull to find out someone is untrustworthy when you loan them $100 … that is “getting screwed big time”… it’s not so bad when it’s only $1 or even $10 … that can be written off as a “lesson learned”
dawg
@Dawg
I spent a lot of time stuck in ideological expectations that in hindsight were not even necessary to the moment.
The labelling of good and bad has proved to be not very helpful. Every day I witness moments of grace and moments of despair how it will all be judged in the end I cannot know.
So I choose to keep the faith that in the end all will come together for The Good. I see no helpful reason to choose otherwise and wonder if this is not our only act of real freedom.
But I do not cling to this faith for meaning, purpose or even hope… that has created too much pain… no just a gentile faith of a possibility that I attempt, during my day, and fail and succeed, to act on.
As to what I believe with regards to God, I can only answer in what I am not.
I am not a Theist or Atheist or an Agnostic….
Perhaps I am an Absurdist…
But Labels obscure as much or more then they reveal.
I think it’s the perceptions that others hang on the labels that are more the problem than the labels/words themselves.
Often times when a person says they are an “atheist”, the image conjured for some, is that of a baby eating, devil worshiping monstrosity … to be kind and to say the least, that is an unrealistic description but may folks who hear that word, actually BELIEVE that skewed image
I use words based on their excepted academic definition … how other choose to view, use and interpret them is their issue to wrestle with – it and they, do not concern me.
as to what things and stuff – moments of grace and despair, as it were – it’s of no value to me how they are “judged in the end” … my only concern is how they affect me at that moment – they are either helpful and/or influential at that time – once that time has past they are but a memory to reflect on – of they bring me sadness then i put them in the recycle bin of my brain – i don’t need to clutter my mind with random despair and sadness that i have no control over and cannot effect change or wield influence upon.
efficiency dawg
I was attempting to articulate the â€faith†in which I act and agree that how it is judge or labeled in the moment other then helpful or not holds little value.
Intentional without attachment to judgment, mine or others.
As the Dog whisperer might say being Calm Assertive, or Calm Intentional
What are you losing faith in? What do you believe in? For me to understand your question the assumption I can’t make that assumption of God because faith and belief mean different things to different people.
I have enjoyed the conversations on this page, feel somewhat special. Because these are good conversations, words to be said. I see it as, if I never posted this story, then none of these words would be here. Anyways. I’m on a phone, so I’m but saying as much as I would ever like to and I’m sure a lot of the spelling is incorrect due to autocorrect . Wow though. Great conversations. To the last question asked, losing faith in my own belief, and losing faith that everything is just going to be ok. Losing faith in my family, because I have a silly assumption that they were going to act with more kindness, like they said, but truth is they have lied, time and time again. So I should have expected, our known better I guess. I try and see they good, when it isn’t even there. Losing faith in me, and my strength to stay clean. Just all around, I’m losing faith in everything, just about.