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For those of you that believe there is a God (or God's), who is God to you personally and why? How has this perception affected your life?

I'm even asking you to be a little gutsy here and throw a few pearls before the swine.

I don't know that I'd speak of God as a who. For me, God is a sort of greater consciousness encompassing all of humankind and its knowledge, wisdom, and experience. To commune with God, therefore, is to experience a greater connectedness with the universe and with humanity. I don't know if this is strictly psychological or if there is a genuinely supernatural component. But I do know that it is a personally fulfilling way to look at things and that it has non-arbitrary ethical consequences in the way we treat our fellow people.

Depends on your definition of "god." Does it have to be supernatural? If we're simply talking about things we hold in high regard, that changes for me regularly. Sometimes, it's Bose speakers. For a while, it was Pixar movies. Sometimes, it's shows on science/nature/the universe. The love my cat gives me even after she pisses me off and I give her crap, medical science, Pink Floyd's music, the acting of Anthony Hopkins and Al Pacino, NFL football, and health food snack bars that actually taste really good have all held a place in my high regard. Lately, it's my new BMW, and the company that made it. I could go on.

All of these things have provided me with a very real sense of awe. What's even more impressive is that they are all real. I challenge any supernatural or invisible god to match that trick.

Inconceivable wrote:For those of you that believe there is a God (or God's), who is God to you personally and why? How has this perception affected your life?

I'm even asking you to be a little gutsy here and throw a few pearls before the swine.

I'm going to be serious for a moment this morning. Too much fun this weekend makes me bubbly...

So, when I was a child was the only time I actually believed in a supernatural God. He didn't really do anything.... Yet, I felt him. He was more like a companion of sorts, I suppose. When I was in need or trouble I talked to him -- felt a presence. I knew He was listening to me and watching me as assured as I am right now that someone will read these words. I was having numinous experiences as I stumbled about the magnificent beauty of the Japanese hills and oceans. I lost my belief in Japan, as well.

Later, as an adult, I searched for God to attempt to understand why on and off my entire life I could have a sensation (if I allow myself to get into that state) of being enveloped or elevated in some odd sense -- calm, peaceful, on a higher plane almost. I was looking to understand how I could feel this way and yet not actually believe in God. It was rather maddening, for me. I felt quite conflicted and would attempt to quell the emotions or states that I can go to because I was, at times, afraid God truly did exist and I denied him.

So, this last year I found myself seeking comfort on my knees -- I hadn't done that since I was about 10 years old. The only assurance and comfort I received was from my fellow man. God, to me, is humanity and how we kill arbitrarily, how we prey upon each other, how we deny rights to others -- and sometimes, every so often when we recall that it's just us and we are here to uplift each other.

Inconceivable wrote:For those of you that believe there is a God (or God's), who is God to you personally and why? How has this perception affected your life?

I'm even asking you to be a little gutsy here and throw a few pearls before the swine.

There are no swine here, only my friends.

To me, God is my constant companion since as long as I can remember. He knows me better than I know him. He stands beside me, even in my worst moments. When I'm scared, he's with me. When I'm joyful, he's with me. When I'm stupid (which is often), he's with me. When he prompts me to avoid something and I do it anyway, he's still with me. When I came close to losing my child, he was with me. When my son had cancer, he was with me. I have no fear of losing contact with him or having him withdraw from me, as that has never been my experience. I place my experience with him ahead of anything any man has ever taught, canonized or not. I trust him; he's never let me down. I don't trust men; they let me down all the time.

The way God is portrayed in the church, in the Bible, in the Koran, etc... that is completely foreign to me. That is in opposition to my own experience, so I do not own it. I've had too many experiences that defy explanation for me to discount his existence or to place undeserved actions or words on him. So I simply own him for what he is in my life and don't try to get anyone else to agree. Agreement with me is neither necessary nor sufficient. God is personal to me, and need not be publically disseminated.

Google is God 2.0 to me.

1) It answers almost all of my questions. God 1.0 never answered anything.

2) It is very clear in its answers. God 1.0's answers had to be discovered by wading through anachronistic scriptures.

3) It is very fast. God 1.0 was slooooooow, if it ever actually bothered to respond.

4) It is detailed with maps, pictures, definitions, and even a street view! God 1.0 was "mysterious" and its answers had to interpreted through feelings by an invisible Ghost Man.

5) It is free. God 1.0 required a 10% tax in order to receive its upgraded service.

I'm very satisifed with God 2.0's service. I think I'll keep it around for a while.

antishock8 wrote:Google is God 2.0 to me.

1) It answers almost all of my questions. God 1.0 never answered anything.

VERY good point, antishock8! I hadn't thought of that; Google indeed answers questions with far more accuracy and reliability than God ever has. But for me, however, I choose Wikipedia.org when seeking answers or information.

But back to the subject:

In my opinion, assuming God exists in the first place, I see the most logical assumption to be that He/She/It/They is/are merely a hyperadvanced species or individual within a hyperadvanced species. CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:

We all know that the earth has the unfortunate problem of being bombarded by asteroidal material every 120,000,000 years or so, each instance of which causing mass extinctions to the tune of up to 97% of all life on earth.

Now, think of a similar planet anywhere in the visible universe wherein life began evolving at roughly the same time as ours, but that didn't have our problem of periodic mass extinctions. By now, without all the "resets," wouldn't the sentient life of that planet, for all intents and purposes, be gods?

I like to think that on some other planet there are robots. Lots and lots of robots. And they have laserguns for hands, and they fight a lot and do kung fu.

*pew pew pew* Hiya! *pew pew*

And then there is a Big Boss Robot that survived all the Robot Wars that ever happened, and it knows everything. And it sends out plans to make robots via sub-hypersonic telepathic waves that only sensient beings can pick up. And then they make robots that eventually take over 'cause that's how they do things.

Hillary Clinton is a robot.

God to me is the potential for goodness and beauty that runs through all creation. "Evil" is the denial of this.