Religion. One of the subjects that you don't talk about in polite company because people tend to get too heated.
This post has been on my mind for awhile, right at the top of my post idea list. I even wrote it once and then deleted it because it didn't quite say what I wanted it to.
On this blog, you won't see very many religious posts and I don't praise the Lord all the time. It's pretty much a non-subject.
I do this on purpose.
My views on religion are very personal to me and I feel that they should be personal to everyone. I understand that many religions (if not all) teach to go out and try to find more people that will believe the way you do. I've never been able to do that.
If that makes me a bad religious person, then so be it.
I will never work my butt off for something and give all the glory to God. While I may believe that He helped me get there, I also know that He gave me free will and with that, determination. Without that, I wouldn't be able to achieve everything.
If that makes me a bad religious person, then so be it.
I will never sit in church every Sunday, across the aisle from people I know sin every other day of the week and praise God next to them.
If that makes me a bad religious person, then so be it.
I will never sit and read my bible, because I don't get much out of it. I believe that people wrote the bible and I believe that much of it is a metaphor and that the world has changed so much. I believe that you can learn just as much from the people around you.
If that makes me a bad religious person, then so be it.
I will never try to convince my children one way or another on a religion. Instead, I will introduce them to my religion and allow them to explore the other religions as they wish to and then allow them to make the decision.
If that makes me a bad religious person, then so be it.
I will never shove my beliefs down your throats because I hate when I go to a blog and it's shoved down mine.
Instead, I will write about my marriage, what inspires me, what my fave outfits are or my fave beauty products. I'll tell you about nursing school and the amazing things I see and leave the religious talk for other blogs. They do it so much better than me.
If that makes me a bad religious person, then so be it.
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13 comments:
I don't think that makes you a bad religious person. I think it just makes you true to yourself, and that can only be a good thing.
You are not a bad person for having these views. Religion should be a personal thing. I admire you for not being one of those people who tries to push their religious views onto everyone else.
Have a wonderful day, Paige!
You're a "bad religious person". Religion is very personal. I grew up with a great-grandmother who went to church DAILY but my great-grandfather (her husband) never went (he read his bible at home).
I believe in God most days... yeah you read that right. Most days. Others I'm not sure. I've lived a very hard life and very little of it came from my choices. I was just dealt a crappy hand so to speak. Everyone always tells me "he never gives you more then you can handle..." and that phrase makes me want to punch them in the face. I'm a good person and I've lived a good life - I don't believe that any loving God would cause a "good" person so much trauma.
I'm a "to each their own" when it comes to religion. Not my place to judge.
I love this post, Paige. I have to agree with you. Just because someone believes in whatever religion, I think it's wrong to try to shove that religion down someone else's throat. I hate when I find a blog I think I will like and then all the extremely religious posts start happening. It's a big turn off for me.
As for sitting across the aisle from people who sin "every other day," wouldn't they be sitting next to someone who sins, too, if you were there? Meaning: EVERYONE sins, not only "every other day," but EVERY day. I am a dedicated Christian, but I definitely sin every day. Is the problem that those people sin on purpose? Well, don't we all? We're told not to lust after men, or tell little white lies, or, heck, to even WORRY, which I do every day. Every single person in every single church is a daily sinner, especially the Christians (or whatever religion it may be). I've just come to some new perspectives on that topic, which I guess is why it stands out to me. Of course there are people in every church who are probably not true Christians in their heart. But does that mean you support their sinfulness because you attend the same church? Of course not! Attending church is meant for you to praise and learn about God and strengthen your own walk. And sometimes it is hard to find a church that feels right or seems like most of the people are trying to do the right thing, but it is great when you finally find one you can settle into.
With that being said, I am actually not making the case that you have to go to church every Sunday. I just wanted to point out a few of my thoughts about that which perhaps could be thought-provoking! :)
I do believe you can learn a lot from your experiences, but in those experiences you are learning a lot about worldly things, perhaps, but not spiritual, heavenly things. I mean, that's not always the case, but for me it seems to be. I think there are a lot of things to learn from other people, but every other person is just as flawed as I am and I trust people who make mistakes much less than I trust a God who knows literally everything. God says right in the Bible that it is basically our instructions for life. The Bible is, I believe, a take-it-or-leave-it type of thing. As in, you can't pick out the things that are "true" or "real" or whatever. You believe in God but can't learn anything from the Bible?! It is hard to understand sometimes, but maybe try different styles (like NKJ or NIV as opposed to KJ version), or maybe devotionals or something.
Again, I just wanted to provide something that might be thought-provoking. No judgment and no tension. I just like to discuss these sorts of topics!
I love this post. I am very spiritual, but not very religious.
I loved your post and appreciated your honesty in it. I'm more of a religious person and the church I attend is very much about going out and spreading the word. But I have to agree with you 100% when you say that it is a very personal thing. I appreciated this post greatly, so thank you for sharing this!
Sara
http://sbengschayearoftransformation.blogspot.com/
Kudos for posting this. I love the honesty. And I so agree with you that religion is and should be personal. I believe what I believe, and I really don't care if it's different than what the person next to me believes. As long as neither of us is hurting anyone, it's just fine.
I totally agree! I think religion is a very personal thing. I never grew up in church or really learning about God and religion, besides stuff here and there (and the classes that I had to take in college-it was private college). I've now learned more and more because of a friend. I mean A LOT. I still agree that it is rather personal.
I love this post so much, because it is really reflective of exactly how I think and feel right now :)
Kudos to you! I have a post written about misconceptions about me (as an atheist) but I lack the courage to post it.
Paige! I just sat here reading this post, shaking my head YES! YES! YES!
I totally agree with everything that you said, and I applaud you for having the confidence to come out and say it to the world! I know you said you aren't going out looking for people who feel the way you do, but I really think you are going to find a lot of people who feel the way you do! You can count me as one of them!!
Great post!
Sending you sunshine,
Rachael
http://thegrowingtreeblog.blogspot.com
Great post, Paige! I have very similar views towards religion as you do. I believe in God on my own terms. I don't do what I should to be a "religious person" - and I definitely don't appreciate when others shove it down peoples' throats.
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