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Sometimes we are expecting to actually "see" the band, and try to walk by our sight, when we should rather open our ears and follow the faint sound... but it is not our nature to walk with our eyes closed and our ears open!
... and that is "faith"!
After I left yesterday, I thought that really, what is faith more than closing your eyes and opening your ears!
I have heard on this board numerous times the thought (tho maybe not in so many words) that walking by faith is like closing your eyes and running around in circles.. BUT.. tho it may include "closing your eyes", yet the "ears" are open.. and the music that is heard is just as much, or more, of a reality than what we see with our eyes... because our vision is so limited, and our ears (everyone's ears!) are perfectly tuned to catch the music...
So it is understandable that some people who have their fingers in their ears say "I have never seen any music, therefore the band does not exist." How can you see music? (I guess the only way would be to see the results of the music in the people around them.) I'm not talking about you, June...
(NIV) - Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.
(KJV) - So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
(NASB) - So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
I think you get the point Why do I believe? Because I have faith. Why do I have faith? Because faith comes through the word of God/Christ. Why do I believe the word? Because I believe God's word is truth and has proven itself as truth. Because I believe God's word never returns void - Isaiah 55:11 (KJV) - So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
I think June is looking for more of a personal feeling of belief, not a scriptural source. If you had never heard of the Gospels or Old Testament or any other written Holy Book....why would you believe. God is powerful enough to reveal Himself to you with out any knowledge of Him or written works about Him. So WHY do you believe? What does it feel like to believe? What experiences have you had that confirm your beliefs? None of this has to do with what you believe, I think you can take the Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Islamic, Wicca, Pagan, etc...notions out and still have a faith or belief in a higher power, irregardless of how you name it...and that common ability or feeling to believe or have faith is what June is looking for, IMO. Can anyone actually explain it in those terms?
(June I hope I'm right here, correct me I'm not. )
June, are you speaking of something like why do we believe that there is a God or why do we as Christians orof any faith believe what we believe? Thanks and God bless.
Last edited by ShanaBrown; 11-07-2007 at 07:17 PM..
Well, it seems I have mis-read yet another post . Let's see if I can answer in a more general sense, yes?
Why do I believe? It comes from within. There's an innate part of us IMO that desires to believe in something higher or bigger or something more than ourselves. We seek with our hearts and minds to fill in what that 'something' is. Some fill in that something with Budda or Hinduism. Some fill in that something with science or self. I personally believe in Christ because that is what fills me. IMO, the others leave one empty and still yearning for something more. They lead in a never-ending quest for more, higher this or higher that or more science to answer more questions raised by prior answers or more things to make one's self whole or justified.
But I beleive in Christ because He fills me. He completes me. He is my all in all. There is no more seeking, except to be closer to Him. There is no more yearning to fill a void or to fill something that was missing. That's why I believe. It's very personal and hard to explain, but I hope I did better this time.
God is powerful enough to reveal Himself to you with out any knowledge of Him. So WHY do you believe? What does it feel like to believe?
AND:
"the view that the existence or nonexistence of God is currently unknown but is not necessarily unknowable, therefore one will withhold judgment until/if more evidence is available...saying 'I don't know, but maybe you do.'
First off, thank you everyone who has been kind enough to post on this thread. I realize that what I am asking is somewhat obscure, but by the very nature of the issue, I am not sure how it can be otherwise. Perhaps that is a part of the querie.
I specifically posted the OP here on the subforum, as it essentially originated here, within my mind...I have no problem with anyone quoting scripture; in fact, I was somewhat tempted to do so myself, initially. Essentially I guess I am asking this:
How do you know what you know? --Because there isn't a shadow of a doubt in my mind that you do. What is so intriguing about "agnosticism" is that it's definition is "lack of knowledge." What is it that you know, and how do you know it? Specifically: How do you know that it is God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, etc. There is a reason that I chose not to post this in the main forum. I suspect I know what the answers/posts would reflect there...I apologize for my lack of articulation; however, I suspect that that lack, as well, is an inherent part of the overall question...
Take gentle care,
-June
Last edited by june 7th; 11-07-2007 at 08:09 PM..
Reason: Grrrrrrrrrr! :)
AND: How do you know what you know? --Because there isn't a shadow of a doubt in my mind that you do. What is so intriguing about "agnosticism" is that it's definition is "lack of knowledge." What is it that you know, and how do you know it? I apologize for my lack of articulation; however, I suspect that that lack, as well, is an inherent part of the overall question...
Take gentle care,
-June
I know there is something more intelligent than any amount of scientific intelligence can ever disprove that everything in the universe or this world is so perfect as to work exactly on time, in time, and outside time..There is no way that anything this grand and glorious just happened..There is intelligence behind it that can never be duplicated, never..Many would call this concept of mine foolish because I believe something I can't prove..I believe it because there is something within me that no ct scan or mri will ever show..It is there, because I "feel it" with each miraculous beat of my heart and with the strongest emotion I have which is love..
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Romans 10:17
Why do I believe? Because I have faith. Why do I have faith? Because faith comes through the word of God/Christ. Why do I believe the word? Because I believe God's word is truth and has proven itself as truth. Because I believe God's word never returns void - Isaiah 55:11 (KJV) - So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
)
. Let's see if I can answer in a more general sense, yes? 
Believing in a deity is religion.
