Experiencing God -- Or Not

In the previous post I listed some things I have learned from (or about) atheists, agnostics and freethinkers.

Now I want to share why it will be impossible for me to ever honestly become an atheist or agnostic.  (I still do consider myself a freethinker.)

In my encounters with all kinds of thinkers I have noticed a common thread regarding how it is that people get to their various intellectual positions, and this is it:

Our beliefs seem to be a direct result of our experiences.

Most of the atheists and agnostics I have met have made a statement something like this: "God has never revealed himself to me."

-- From this statement atheists conclude that there exists no supreme being.  Along with it they are obliged to believe evolution.  Most are quite willing to do so, seeing nothing miraculous about the existence of the universe and everything in it.

-- From this same statement agnostics go to the possibility of a supreme being whose existence can be neither proven nor disproven.  They are at liberty to accept creation or evolution or a combination of the two; they may see the divine design in the universe but, since they have never personally experienced God, they will say he has withdrawn from any kind of interaction in human affairs.

Whether or not an individual has experienced the supernatural seems to be the operative function for becoming a nonbeliever (most atheists and agnostics I've met are former believers).  Here's what they have not experienced:

• Miracles or supernatural happenings
• Healings
• Answers to prayer
• Paranormal activity
• The miracles of nature

Really, there's probably no need to categorize this stuff; it all boils down to one thing:  The supernatural -- whether we experience it or not.

Excuse me a minute; I'm getting a message from God!

And this is why I will never be able to deny the existence of God or of His activity in the world.  Because I have personally experienced the supernatural -- thousands of times over.

• I have seen thousands of answers to prayer in my lifetime -- at times almost daily.
• I have personally experienced miracles -- occurrences that defy any other explanation. (I will describe one of these miracles in detail in my next post.)
• I have been physically healed many times and have seen the healing of others.
• I have had "visions" in which truth was revealed to me, truth that was always eventually proven, sometimes before the day was out, sometimes within months.
• I have not experienced the paranormal, but I believe the accounts of those who have.  My dad, a lifelong minister in the church, was the go-to guy for exorcisms, and he told me about a few of his first-hand experiences.  His exorcisms were always conducted in the name of Jesus and produced consistent results --"deliverances".  He was also called upon to "cleanse" houses from manifestations like doors that opened and closed on their own, lights going on and off, levitations of furniture, icy-cold zones in the house, etc.  He referred to these as poltergeist (playful ghost) activity, which always ceased when he invoked the name of Jesus -- and never returned.

Is an unseen power trying to communicate with us?  Is it just our imaginations?

I have lately puzzled over the reason for God's apparent selectivity about who gets to experience him and who does not.  I have had friends tell me that they searched diligently for some sort of revelation -- and never got any kind of sign that God was communicating with them in any way.

Do some people just lack the connectivity that it takes to hear from God?

Am I one of the lucky ones who is blessed with a sense of the supernatural?

Does God love some of us more than others?

When I talk with other believers about this, most of them assert that God will always be found by those who seek him with all their hearts.  I'm not so sure.  I know people who have prayed and prayed, and waited and waited, and got nothing.

I don't know.  Maybe some people are just supposed to trust the testimony of others.  If that's the case, I am here telling you now, that there is a God and he sometimes interacts with human beings.  In fact, in my life He is right in the middle of everything.

And that's why I could never not believe in God.  I would have to deny my own senses and my own experiences to dis-believe in Jesus.

It's been said that experience is the greatest teacher.  For my non-believing friends, it seems that the lack of experience is pretty powerful too.  It's how they get to a state of non-belief.

Believe me.

What I Am Learning from Atheists

I have made good on a pledge I made to myself the day I realized that I would not likely ever return to church.  I said that, having spent the first 60 years of my life enjoying the company and serving the needs of believers and religious insiders, I would spend the rest of my life hanging out with non-believers and outsiders.

So Kaye and I started attending meet-ups for freethinkers, agnostics, and atheists (actually, we were doing that before we left the church).  We have made some great friends, and we have met a few real jerks  -- It's just like at church.

Here are some things that believing and non-believing thinkers have in common:

• We are real people who live real lives.  We love, we hate, we are proud, we are humble, we laugh, we cry, and we all make mistakes -- and a few of us admit it.

• There are all personality types in both camps.  It's no different than any other cross-section or grouping of people.  Some people are fun to be with, others are not.

• There are closed-minded, dogmatic people in both camps.  You would think that folks who label themselves as freethinkers would be a bit more willing to entertain another's point of view, but it's not always so.  Atheists can have made-up minds that ignore the facts just as well as religious folks can.

• Both are people of faith.  That may sound like a contradiction in terms, but many of the non-believers I have met are full of faith.  One big unproven thing in which they have a lot of faith is evolution (though they are quite confident about it).  I mean, think about it, they must embrace the idea that we evolved from one-celled slime molds to the intelligent, high-functioning human race that we are today -- by pure chance.  Or rather, by an against-all-odds string of random chances that is nothing short of miraculous.  That is highly counterintuitive and takes more faith than most of us can muster.         On the other hand, many believers take literally every story in the Bible, including an account of a flood that covered the whole earth to wipe out all but eight people and the animals.  There are big logistical problems with that one, but hey, believers are big on miracles.  So both groups are obliged to embrace some really fantastic stuff.

• We make un-deserved and demeaning statements about each other.  Atheists belittle believers as lacking intelligence.  Yet atheists number less than 10% of the US population.  Are they all in the 90th percentile or above in IQ?   No.  So a basic glance at statistics indicates there are are far fewer intelligent people who are atheists than those who are believers.  Both camps are populated by great minds, and both camps are populated by imbeciles.        On the other hand, believers label atheists as evil, angry, unhappy folks who are just mad at God for some reason.  Well, not the ones I know.   My atheist friends are mostly nice, normal people who are out to make the world a better place.  It's probably just the odds, but I have known more angry Christians than angry atheists.

• Both groups come up with some really dumb ideas.  I've heard some really bazaar statements made in both groups.  I once heard an atheist say he couldn't believe in God because a few centuries ago the church castrated the young choir boys to keep their voices high as long as possible.  It must have been a sensitive spot for him.  Still, I think TV and camp meeting evangelists get the prize for the most outlandish zingers made  -- don't even get me started.        On the other hand, both groups are capable of coming up with some really good stuff.   I guess that kinda comes with all personality types being present.

• We look alike.  Believers and non-believers come from the same cross-sections of society (although there are more atheists in academic communities) and really aren't that much different than each other.  You can't tell by looking or listening, and many atheists don't willingly share their minority beliefs in casual settings for fear of unpleasant reprisals.  For believers, it's much like witnessing, but believers have a far greater chance of acceptance simply because they are in the majority.

I have really enjoyed my encounters with free-thinkers, atheists and agnostics, and I'm planning to continue.  Kaye and I have made some friends at these meetings who we hope will be life-long friends.  As an independent thinker, I have found the discussions much more fascinating than those at the church Bible study.  Maybe it's just that at church I've heard it all so many times, re-hashed and re-articulated, but always within the same parameters.  I like thinking outside the box, and have been fortunate to bump into some wonderful outsiders who are like me in that.

Would you like to try something different?  Maybe start with a visit to Meetup.com and do a search for Freethinker, Atheist, Agnostic and see what comes up in your neighborhood.

Disclaimer:  You should really think about whether you are ready for this before visiting such a group.  Are you willing to listen to beliefs and points of view that are radically different than your own?   Truth is a wonderful thing, but it can also be very disturbing if you're not ready for it, and of course, not everything you hear at one of these meetings will be the truth (again, very much like church).  You need to be able to sort things out for yourself -- or with like-minded friends.  What's your motivation for going?  I was looking for some interesting and refreshing conversation with people who didn't always fill in the blanks with religious cliches and pat answers.

Have a good time!   And if you don't have a good time, then try something else.  Maybe just let other people tell you what to believe all your life.  It's a lot easier.