How do i know God is real?

What a wonderful question!

I like that its certainty you want to get to, not to just 'believe' or 'have faith', but to 'know'. That's like the end game.

From my journey i'd say most people with an interest develop their 'thinking' through experience, like hearing testimonials, over coming challenge, having powerful feelings, being touched by words, in parables or songs or through a feeling from worship etc.

God as a creator is disputed, by me too at your age. But a creator is quite scientific in my view. Big bang or not, it still had a cause. All matter came from somewhere, like pure energy perhaps, set in motion.....

I also wondered that, whatever the cause of matter, space is made of 'nothing'. How do you scientifically create nothing - and so much of it!

I have read stuff from many religions though i call myself Christian because I'm awe struck by Christ. However, from personal experience, I'd caution about trying to understand the old testament in a purely literal sense. It can become confusing and be a distraction to a modern logical thinker in SOME instances. eg creation. There are wonderful lessons in the old testament though, like Job, telling us how life's hardships are an opportunity to be rewarded, but we won't know when our good 'karma' will come to us. Don't be tricked by time lapse between do good get good, do bad, get bad. You gain a bit more insight as years go by and experience shows you more of both sides of the coin. Transformation is an underlying theme, and the source of true Happiness is a good question to ponder. Find a church you like with good teachers. Romans is a recommended starting point in the O.T.


Yoga & Buddhism consider the nature of God. This includes "Bliss Absolute & Knowledge Absolute" from this condition creation seems like a good idea. As for how we see it, look at how you feel when you create something.

Anyway, i might say that discovering God through life is The Beautiful Game. And the best tip is Action, actions that you feel build your heart, as selfless as possible - you don't need to worry that altruism may not exist, just try to practice it.

You need never stress any of it. God is perfectly happy and nothing you can do will make Him more or less so, or make Him love you any less. Tat Tvam Asi

Mine too, I was an atheist, then later agnostic; finally pantheist when I realized Her existence was largely a semantic issue of abstraction

Mine too but only in the sense that creation is an ongoing affair Abb, the usu notion of "creating" something from nothing and entailing all sorts of contradiction and paradox. It's pretty obvious therefore that She (or It) exists forever

Not so. Something having existed forever doesn't need a cause per above observation. Eventually it will be shown that She is a natural phenom, and It is the way It is simply because It can't be any other way

In fact this is very slowly coming to light in the mind of The Scientist, who has just recently ]learned that some of the constants are interdependent. The eventual conclusion is that everything is so

…."starting" probably as an infinitesimally small, very heavy shrinking mass of uniform composition. Having reached a critical mass we have the Big Bang, then Big Show (now), Big Expansion, Big Crunch;

then of course next Big bang, Big show, …. ad infinitum

No no Abb, space isn't nothing, it's definitely something, having many characteristics such as dimension, flexibility, etc

Correct, it's almost purely metaphoric

We do not know what is God, but we do know what live is. I am a mature woman and I found that loving and curing for life in every form, is what, matters most.

Gro, here's my take on reality

http://able2know.org/topic/209050-1

I am 15 years old and i have also woundered if God is real ,Many people say that he isnt and that the big bang started the world but sometimes things happen and you i think to myself that carnt have just been a consequence,there must be something/someone behind it. When i was growing up I went to a christian school and have been brought up to believe in God and until now i havent really quuestioned anything about it ,but as i have entered secondary school i have began to think about it more and more . Many people believe or dont believe, but in a way i feel stuck in the middle and unsure what to to do. But i think i will always feel that there is someone watching over me and everyone in the world and that all he wants to do is good in the world. So my advive to you is if you feel that there is someone up there then you should believe that, you should never let people tell you whats right and whats wrong to believe everyone has different opinions of topic and just let your opinion to be heard after all everyones opinions are vital in society.

To dispatch all the paradox and contradiction: 1) Concede there's something mysterious about Her, that we don't and maybe won't ever know; 2) View Her, It, as a perfectly natural phenom that has always existed and that always will, simply because creation out of nothingness is so full of incongruity

Yes and no Lisa. The Big Bang is just a step in a continuous process: Big Bang, Big Show, Big Expansion, Big reversal, Big Crunch; then the next Big bang, Big Show,……ad infinitum. Skirts all the usual inconsistencies, works out neatly

Her goodness-badness is overemphasized. Anyhow that's all a relative matter; to the porker we are evil incarnate

Here is where the problem arises: Her "Reality" depends on where you draw the line on a scale of abstraction with, say, a sidewalk at the concrete end (to your left) and Her at the transcendental (right). I hope you like the puns

Then whether or not She is real becomes a semantic matter


Incidentally some of us might be interested, without revealing anything critical to ID, your sex (presumably f; but these days…..), nationality,
ed., family, motives, etc

I presume Fres by "he" you mean Groomer

@Groomers123,
Quote:
What should i believe ?

I've often wondered about that, which effect predominates

It's okay however if you do

but to suggest that he should a remain free agent. Since it's not in caps I presume you again mean Gro not God

So Gro did you acquire any sort of guidance from Fres' link

I am sorry for your struggle Groomers
I had a similar struggle around your age. No one can provide you with definitive answers regarding this. I do hope you realize that there are not just two alternatives. It is not just believe in God and then life has meaning, or don't believe in God and life must be meaningless.

I would also suggest as Fresco did reading Siddhathra , it is a short novel and chronicles the life of a young man starting on the journey of understanding life.
Here is a page where you can download the book for free:
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2500

You might also enjoy Mere Christianity if you want to hear a better (more optimistic) explanation of Christian faith.
Here is a free PDF of the book: http://ntslibrary.com/PDF%20Books/Mere%20Christianity%20-%20Lewis.pdf

Both books will of course be at your public library, and probably even in your school's library.

I happen to not believe in God, but there are compelling reasons for belief.
My not believing in God does not discount meaning in my life, and morality is very important to me.
It is your journey. Good luck, life gets so much easier as you get older

i grew up in a catholic family. my dads family was all catholic, i went to catholic school. but i actually never believed in an actual "God"! until.......I found Him. God IS alive and very real! my story begins when my oldest brother died. there was six of us. five boys one girl. we were and still are very close. im the second oldest. i got sent to prison and at the beginning of my time i get called to the program office in prison and was told my brother had died. i could not believe it> NO! tears did not want to stop running down my face. i wanted so bad to hurt somebody. TO KILL SOMEBODY! this feeling was terrible! i was put on suicide watch by the guards at the prison i was at. my homeboys watched me but left me alone. NOBODY and NOTHING could take this feeling away from me. that night i lay on my bunk and asked "God" to take this feeling from me. I said this-"I can not stand this hurt i want to die please if you are real show me. take this feeling from me and i will do my best to come to you and obey you. and instantly i felt peace, but just as instantly it was gone so natually i chalked it up to a trick of the mind but as soon as i done that i remembered something i heard somewhere. "Have faith". thats what i heard in my head. so in order for me not to feel this feeling i said "ok fine i CAN give you this one. i shall think in my head it was from you and try to have faith it came from you. little did i know i died that instant i heard my brother had died. i had other brothers and a sister still alive but the pain was too much. my life still was on a downward spiral. i hated everybody and everything. i wanted everybody to die. but every now and then i would remember that feeling He gave me and i would pray and talk to Him. and little by little i would see His hand in helping me or providing for me. i have lots more to say and to teach but just to let you know.....God DOES love you and He is waiting for you. "ask and you shall receive" one time just give it to Him. ask Him to reveal Himself to you and when you think He did but then think it was not Him, remember this, have faith that it was Him and He shall reveal to you the truth that He is alive. GOD IS REAL HE LOVES YOU

Reality, Abb, might be a concept so abstract as to constitute a matter of opinion. That is, whether or not She exists depends upon your def describing Her

I have to say I know for a fact God is real because I had 3 weird experiences in my life where weird things happened to me like a horror movie or something. Maybe it was a demon who knows. My eyes rolled open into the sky when I was downtown and other places, I got called a psycho in my head heard one voice, etc. God is alive. He is everywhere. He knows everything. Read the book called Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. It's a great book that I recommend to everyone. God Bless

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Well let me tell you God is real. A few things happened in my life my uncle's life and my grandma's life where I now know for a fact that God is real. When I was downtown my eyes would role open into the sky and I heard a voice that called me a psycho it sounded like it was from a demon. My Uncle saw a ghost in his mother's basement house and my grandmother was protected by two angel dogs a while back downtwon where she was. I hope this helps for everyone to believe in God more or know that he exists cuz he does. Joyce Meyer a minister on television says God is everywhere which is for sure. God Bless

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http://onelook.com/?w=gfgfh&ls=a

You'll never really know until you put your beliefs aside and think about it. If your questioning god that is reasonable, everyone has. However when you look inside yourself you'll know. Obviously If you feel like you've taken a turn for the worse by being agnostic, that is probably not the best for you. But if you want to believe in god you really have to try and connect with him. Only reading the first two chapter in the bible isn't enough. You must commit to opening your mind soul and spirit. Then hopefully you'll know what you believe. And remember you're only 15. No one is making you make these hard decitions yet. Trust me I would know because I'm only 17 and I know I believe in God but I still question it and myself.

Your response Sem is remarkably coincidental to a prop I've long maintained; that is, the entire matter of Her existence is not one of Truth or Logic but of Semantics

So the answer to Groom: It's perfectly okay to assume you're right. The entire controversy is no more nor less than differences in the various patterns represented by the paths of electrons and other charged particles in the circuitry of various machines such as the humanoid and the PC

In a Universe where All (Her) is One; that is, Her body, with all the activity therein Her thinking

Revelations is now! I am telling you...I have seen and I am dying...read revelation 7 seals,trumpets, nials online God Exists please listen. Everything in the bible is true! The seals are broken...I have seen
God Bless Everyone!Bless Us All!

There are tons of evidence against the existence of a god. But there is no valid evidence that supports of existence of a god. Sorry!

Speaking as an atheist I can tell you that any reference to "evidence" is futile. For believers their very existence is all the evidence they need.

The atheist understands that belief in a "caring divinity" is a socially transmitted and individually tailored concept which functions as a palliative at the psychological level to counter uncertainty and suffering and to give "meaning" to life. At the social level it is a useful vehicle of social convergence, cohesion and even tribalism, but the perception of that level is avoided or denied by individual believers whose self integrity would be eroded by its consideration. Hence their usage of terms like "divine truth" to account to themselves their lack of a requirement for exploration of the functions of rekigion.