I've often said faith is not so unusual.  It's a basic functional human necessity.  Even atheists, despite their firm denials, have an abundance of faith.  It's what enables us to walk out our front doors each day and face the world - faith that a plane isn't going to fall from the sky and crush us.  Faith that we're going to make it home again without being mugged or raped.  Faith that the brakes will continue to work without a problem in our cars.  Without faith we would be paralyzed.

It sounds like you have a rich past full of experiences, and I don't mean that in the way it may come off.  Rather, you seem wise.

I was not introduced to religion until I was a pre-teen, which was too late.  I attempted to feign some form of belief, but it never sunk in; I always felt like I was talking to the wall.  At my closest I was Agnostic. 

Churches are breathtaking to me; I used to pretend the peace I felt within a church was the peace that Heaven might be like, but I knew it was nothing more than a fantasy, like the way I wanted to fly away from the ground, and sink into the sky.  To me, the beauty of churches represent(ed) the beauty that man is capable of in his sincerest form of dedication, and to that I am humbled.

not in recent years.

@skeptic42 - From a skeptic an admission that not everything is based on solid research and proof is nice to hear. That gains you credibility as everyone knows the list of things we do based on a degree of faith is huge

@RulerofMasons - Seems I just got as love letter

@DrummingMediocrity - I have hope for you. But I have always wondered about those who tried and found nothing. In your case I am sure you really did try

@ShimmerBodyCream -  Its nice to have doubts ease themselves

I have a lot of doubts about unanswered questions but like you, I don't doubt that God is real. I've tried to imagine that God doesn't exist and I can never get very far with those thoughts. Life would make absolutely no sense to me without God, so I could never force myself to believe that.

I must admit I became a Christian when I was 4 but there was never a time where I did not believe.  I never doubted that God existed.  I thought numerous times in my childhood that I lost my salvation.  But then I came full circle on that.

No. But at some points, I've wondered about believing.

And dude, you still around?

Christian, agnostic, atheist, Christian.  I didn't believe in God, because God and I had different purposes.  I didn't want what God wanted for me, and I didn't see how I could fit into God's call, so I kicked God to the curb.  I'm glad to hear you had fun, I may have had fun during my rebel years, but I can't remember any.  Christianity isn't exactly a party, but it sure beats what I had before, or could have without God.  I know what happens to me without God, and it ends with sucking on a gun barrel.  

Hello
My name is Vivian
I just saw your profile here
And I want to make friendship with you
To discuss a lot of things with you,
what is your opinion about this?
Please reply me directly to my email address
(vivianjobe@live.com)
And I will tell you details about me with my picture.
Thanks from Vivian.

I love that you're a life that was reclaimed by Grace. :)

I'm now at graduate school. And in one of my classes we are comparing postmodernism and modernism with Christianity.

@Celestial_Teapot - Not much, I think I have turned into a homeless person. One who lives in hotels

I never doubted that God exists. I cannot even remember any time in my life when I ever even had a notion that there was no God. 

I've detailed in my blog before the five minutes I spent as an atheist, and how argued with me there in my empty apartment about how emotional and illogical I was being. I hated Him for it at the time, but He was right.

Your faith is something I have always envied, Paige. I don't even really know what faith is, though I don't believe I am an atheist, because that is belief that there is no God (higher power, whatever). All I have ever really had faith in is that there is something more out there and I can't understand what it is. That leaves me open to everything and sure of nothing. Is that an agnostic? I don't even really know that. The only thing I am certain of is that people with a strong inner faith in something (anything really) possess a strength of character and hope that is always inches out of my reach.

I think we all have doubted our faith at one point or another, chicky!  Sometimes life will get the best of us, and knock us down. Thats when as christians need to remember that "whatever is true, think on these things" :) 

@BoulderChristina -  You are simply someone who has no religion. But you believe there is something so your not undecided on there being a god or whatever it may be called. You just do not know what it is. An agnostic is not convinced there is a god or anything else, they just do not know if there is or is not a higher power

I think that it can be difficult to believe. Not to say I don't believe it, but it's just not always easy. If I was a 2 dimensional being, I can imagine it would be hard for me to believe in a 3 dimensional one. If it was easy to believe, why ask for faith? The substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen? Some of the times I felt best, I was actually being misled by false teachers, so having feelings are great, but no guide for me. If anyone finds it difficult to believe, I would say that's ok, I do too. But I still believe it. It's ok to struggle, and don't rely too much on feelings because how you feel changes from day to day.

This was an interesting post. I'm glad you decided to share. I frequently have doubts and struggle with my faith.

I think a lot of our doubt isn't nessessarily in God but in our understanding of God.It's US we doubt,not God.Faith is a hard thing.We go by experiences because we see and know them.

Take a child for instance.Christ said to have a childlike faith not childish.A child will run fullsteam into their parents arms(a brickwall no because they know it will not catch them) knowing they will be caught and be safe and not hurt.If that parent doesn't do a good job catching the child and they get hurt,the child isn't as bold in trusting the parent.I think people have that view of God sometimes.They think God let them down so they lose faith or trust in Him.Unlike with our parents dropping the ball and hurting us,God has a reason behind it,a purpose we can't see but in the end it's best.

On doubting my faith,I sometimes wonder when I don't get worried about things like my wife does is it BECAUSE I have faith that I don't worry,or because I don't care.Sometimes I appear apathetic and I wonder if I get that way at times during tough circumstances.THATS what concerns me in reguard to faith.I know where my trust is,but does it always show.

Your post reminds me of a verse my mom told me. Romans 8:28. "All things work together for good to them that love God and are the called according to His purpose." If you can trust that verse everything else falls away. Good post.