Why do you believe in God and what made you believe in him in the first place?

I didn't... then he came to me one night.

Did he talk to you?

Or did he just imbue you with his essence?

Could you expand please?

Sure.... it was at about 2:30 in the AM... He came to me.

I woke up...saw His face and laid back down... then I thought.. Who was that? Was that a vision or was that real?

I opened my eyes again and saw Him again.

He stood there and as I looked in His eyes... I knew He was the Lord.

I felt a bit ashamed... a bit worried... mostly embarrassed ... He said "I've been here for you."

I closed my eyes... felt a warmth over my body... still a bit scared... opened my eyes again... He was still there.

I said "I'm sorry"

He said "I've always been here for you."

That's it.

I got out of bed... recorded the event on a piece of paper. Been a Christian ever since.

Now you ask... "Were you drunk?" -- No
"Had you been asking for a sign?" -- No

I was basically a Wiccan/Zen Buddhist. I never denied that Jesus was a man... I just didn't believe that he was the son of God... if there was A god.

I studied world religion in college... never felt threatened by Christians or atheist... just did my own thing.

"Do as ye will ...lest ye harm no man." --- That's from the Wicca.

I had read about Christianity...Judaism... tried to understand the Bible... never took.

Not until that night.

This wasn't something that I wanted to happen... it's also not something that I expect non-believers to ever believe. I wouldn't believe it. In fact... I never believed the stories I heard Christians tell before this happened to me.

Am I 100% sure that this actually happened and wasn't a sleepy dream?
As sure as I am sitting here right now... yes.

As sure as you non-believers are that there is no god at all... I am exactly that sure that there is and Jesus was the Messiah.

Am I 100% sure that we are interpreting the Bible the way God meant it to be interpreted? I am 100% sure that we are not.

Hallucinations are quite common at 2:30am. Sleep paralysis, for one thing.

Yeah, that and prescription drugs. Although i would most likely attribute this type of experience to a dream, a figment of the sub-conscious.

Oh my God !

That's so great! Thanks for enlightening me. I'm sure I'll totally discount this event after madnak gave this explanation!

(refer to the part where I said I doubt any non-believer would accept the story)

What does the Lord look like?

I'm a believer and i don't buy your story.

I really couldn't tell if you were trolling or not Joey... but when I finished your whole post I think you're not.

Yea... that's would I would have said too.

However... no prescription drugs... no illegal drugs... no alcohol.... no sleep deprivation.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

I would do exactly the same thing.... I would absolutely discount this story as a "dream" or a hallucination of some sort.

I really would.... before this happened.

There's nothing I can say to try and convince you to believe this story... I actually don't expect you to.
However... I was asked a question...and I answered it.

Trust me... I've had dreams and visions that I thought were real.... only to find out later they weren't.

This was different. How? I was totally awake when it happened. I wanted to shake it off as a dream. I wasn't looking to believe in any god... I had zero desire to be a Christian... or a believer. I was awake... and I recorded the event on paper immediately after it happened.

I didn't expect anyone to believe this... not talking about on this forum... but anywhere.

I know I wouldn't have.

So let me ask you this question. I would hope you answer it directly and not side-step it. If it had such a tremendous effect on you...then why did you wake up a believer the next day? Elaborate please and don't just tell me that you saw God.

Jerok... I'm not sure what the actual definition of trolling is.... truth is.. I do have a lot of fun on this forum baiting some people.

There are a few on here who know I do this.... it's fun to me.

This, however.... is not a troll or a bait. It's an actual event.

Those who wish to "poo-poo" this event with.. "JD is an idiot... he was probably drunk" are those who rarely offer anything constructive here and that's fine.

I also post crap just for reaction I might get... just for run.

This isn't one of those.

Like I said... I don't expect non-believers to accept this story at all. After all...to do so...would make them believers...yes?

I''m not sure what you are asking....

I became a believer.... because I met God.

Not side-stepping here... just not sure what you are asking.

I actually use the term "believer" because it's a more generic and accepted term.

I'm not really a believer... I'm a knower.

I don't "believe" there is a God... I know it.


Did I answer your question?

Feel free to ask away anything.

What did God look like?

You know there's some people that just like to argue the other side because they get a kick out of arguing. I'm not a doctor but i know these people exist, because i've met many of them. One of the best examples is a pretty intelligent guy that i used to work with a few years ago claimed that he did not believe in evolution. Needless to say i was shocked that someone i admired so much for their perspective and intelligence, could say something like this. I thought that only the religiously insane denied evolution. When i asked him what molded his thinking. He said the obvious, that there is no evidence for it, and that he was a believer in the theory until somebody in his life that he really admired told him about the case against the existence of evolution. When i asked him what it was about this man's "case against evolution" that changed his mind and heart so suddenly, he only replied with "i don't know, but it did". And that folks... is not a ****ing answer to me.

So when i ask you how it is that a nonbeliever became a believer such as yourself, i would hope you could elaborate.

For example, when i was in my early teens, i did not believe in the existence of a God nor devil. However through 4 years of theological study at a catholic high school, by reading the bible word for word from beginning to end, by absorbing as much matter on the subject as i could and then coming up with my own conclusions, by observing people, nature, the relationships between people, the capability of people to do both good and evil, by not taking religious teaching literally, but with a grain of salt, and extracting the truly important moral lessons, did i come to the realization over timethat i do believe in God (and the devil).

lol, buttsecs.

now THATS trolling.

That's the hard part to describe.

To say 'there weren't facial features' would be too vague. I saw his frame.. i saw his hands..with holes in them... I remember His eyes and expression.

To say... He had a beard and blue eyes... would just be making stuff up.

"So how did you know he was God?"

No idea..... other than He was God.

When I looked the second time and saw his hands... and he said "I have always been here for you..." it was just obvious to me.

Can't really describe it in terms that would make you go "Holy cow! JD really met God!"

I'm not sure what more elaboration you are looking for. I also did not believe in the existence of a god or a devil.

Elaborate further? I was raised in a house that went to church. Did we practice what we heard in church? Not even. Did I resent my parents for this? Not even.
It was the norm.

People went to church on Sunday and said AMEN and then all went fishing and drank beer and cursed.

Did this make me confused? Not even. It was the norm as I knew.

I went to college... majored in philosophy... began to study world religions.
Was I looking far an 'answer'? Not even.

In my mind... enlightenment was the goal and this goal could only be achieved by the journey.
There was no "god"... no 'being' to be worshiped.

I work in a field full of atheists, buddhism followers, agnostics... very few Christians.

How did I convert? Not sure how to answer that other than the explanation already given.

If God came to you....as He did to me... you would know.

You disappoint me now... you can do MUCH better than that.

Im sorry Joey, maybe i should of just called you a fraud, outright, and not try to explain anything to you.

That's a cop out.
Remember... I don't expect you to accept my story... i merely answered the question.

cool dream..