questions for those who quit believing

[humble soul]

I watched a YouTube video last night. Of a young guy, former youth pastor, who quit believing in God. Joined the ranks of the atheists.
Rationally speaking he was good. He sounded very logical. In fact I think he could influence people to quit Christianity now.
But questions I have for him now is ...
What do you believe in now?
We all need something or someone to believe in, don't we?
Do you have a feeling of emptiness now?
Do you believe in love still?
What is the compass of your life now?
Are you truly happy?

 

[humble soul]

 

[humble soul]

He said he was a "fundamentalist" Christian.
From my perspective fundamentalists have an all or nothing approach. They don't cherry pick. That's good in one way, but does it cause pressure? Burn out? Especially when forced to defend the faith against atheists. They find they don't have convincing answers. They deep down question themselves.
So it would be interesting to survey those who quit Christianity. I know many Catholics quit believing due to sex scandals.
My hope is that if we imagine what it's like to be an atheist, that we come back gladly to believing in God again. That something doesn't feel right. God does exist, and I never want to imagine he doesn't, ever again.

 

[humble soul]

When you are going through enormous suffering alone, who do you turn to? When there is no God to turn to?

 

[Tessa]

I watched a YouTube video last night. Of a young guy, former youth pastor, who quit believing in God. Joined the ranks of the atheists.
Rationally speaking he was good. He sounded very logical. In fact I think he could influence people to quit Christianity now.
But questions I have for him now is ...
What do you believe in now?
We all need something or someone to believe in, don't we?
Do you have a feeling of emptiness now?
Do you believe in love still?
What is the compass of your life now?
Are you truly happy?

They would be very good questions for a survey. I would like to do a survey like that. A chance to lead them back to God?

 

[humble soul]

A chance to lead them back to God

That would be tricky. A slight hint of pressure would turn them off.

 

[Tessa]

I haven't listened to the video yet. His eyes are full of sadness.

 

[Tessa]

That would be tricky. A slight hint of pressure would turn them off.

Yeah, perhaps having other questions before it? But probably they would want to say why and how they feel now.

 

[humble soul]

Yeah, perhaps having other questions before it? But probably they would want to say why and how they feel now.

I think your best skill Tessa is just listening. Listening can actually change people.
Maybe just one/two questions after their long talk...
"So do you feel relief now? How do you feel after quitting Christianity?

 

[dashboardchic19]

I watched a YouTube video last night. Of a young guy, former youth pastor, who quit believing in God. Joined the ranks of the atheists.
Rationally speaking he was good. He sounded very logical. In fact I think he could influence people to quit Christianity now.
But questions I have for him now is ...
What do you believe in now?
We all need something or someone to believe in, don't we?
Do you have a feeling of emptiness now?
Do you believe in love still?
What is the compass of your life now?
Are you truly happy?

I wish I believed in God like I did as a child. As an adult who doubts everything I feel something missing in my life that I am searching for. There is an emptiness that I am trying to sort out. My moral compass is based on my Catholic upbringing, I think no matter what I believe in I will always have those core beliefs. As for love I do know I love my children with all that I am and would do anything for them. I am searching for happiness and fulfillment in my life. I am searching for God

 

[tdidymas]

I watched a YouTube video last night. Of a young guy, former youth pastor, who quit believing in God. Joined the ranks of the atheists.
Rationally speaking he was good. He sounded very logical. In fact I think he could influence people to quit Christianity now.
But questions I have for him now is ...
What do you believe in now?
We all need something or someone to believe in, don't we?
Do you have a feeling of emptiness now?
Do you believe in love still?
What is the compass of your life now?
Are you truly happy?

Sometimes the culture tries to seduce me to unbelief, so I can imagine how that guy feels. I even sometimes imagine (the horror) of what it might be like to go apostate. But what keeps me from actually doing it is my respect for God. Here are the questions I ask myself when tempted:
Was God really the first cause of this vast universe? (it didn't create itself, so yes)
Does God really love me? (The Bible says He does, so yes)
Did Jesus really rise from the dead? (500 eyewitnesses said so, so yes)
Did Christ save me from a perverted lifestyle? (I see the change, so yes)

I get the idea that many people are confused about many things, especially about faith. We see people depart from the faith because of reasons that they cite. But what it boils down to is a question of how deep their faith really went into their heart. If a person can be persuaded to defect from faith to atheism, then doesn't it prove that their faith was merely intellectual? Paul wrote "with the heart man believeth unto righteousness." So there are lots of questions begged by the departure; questions that they likely don't want to hear, and likely will never answer.

 

[humble soul]

If a person can be persuaded to defect from faith to atheism, then doesn't it prove that their faith was merely intellectual

Nice post. This part especially.

 

[humble soul]

wish I believed in God like I did as a child. As an adult who doubts everything I feel something missing in my life that I am searching for.

As tidymas said faith can't be just in your head. We think too much.
Just feel God in your heart maybe. Like a friend who will never abandon you.
Sorry if that sounds preachy. I need as much help as you sometimes.

 

[Who Me]

Watched and listened to most of this guy's video.
It was a good demonstration of the need for Christians to be educated and a resounding condemnation of the lie that so many Christian say, " All you need is Faith! "
Please please please get one fact into your head. Anyone who says " All you need is Faith or just believe!" Is not a Christian.

This was one of his last points all Christians say is " just have faith, only believe" that faith is not based on evidence.

Really if any here believes this they have No knowledge of God or of the Bible.
Again and again the Bible says that there is objective evidence for what they are saying from the memorial stones effects in the O T to the claims that many eyewitnesses are still alive.

An early accusation was that Evil is God's fault, as he created everything so he is to blame!
Morals mentioned later talked about slavery, genocide etc.
It is always God's fault.
Ok he ignores the issue of freewill, did Adam and Eve actually have a choice about eating the fruit?
He ignores defining just what evil is, an absence of good.
Rather he goes on about horrible things in the Bible and in the world yet has no reason for why there is evil or on what he bases his idea of morals.

He says there is no philosophical reason for God, dismissing the idea of the supernatural by linking it to a belief in fairies.
Because there are denominations we apparently cannot know whether our idea of what salvation is, is true.
For some strange reason he says that Christianity worships the same God as Muslims so how do we know whether our idea or islams or the Jesus yarwah is correct, here he shows total ignorance. The order is Jewish, Christian then Islam and there is no need to question difference or similarity between Christian and Islamic believes.


Then we get the strangest claim of all.
That we cannot know the characteristics of God, that we cannot know God!

No mention of Jesus or any examination of who he is, just that the Bible does not let us know God.


If you've read this far you will be seeing why I popped off about just believe.
Any competent pastor can answer these queries, as can any competent Christian, that he in his words ' deconstructed ' what ever faith he had shows just how ignorant he is about Christianity.

 

[humble soul]

Once the mind starts questioning Christianity, it can grow to being hypercritical. There are so many holes, if one wants look for them.
And most Christians don't give convincing answers.
Just focus on the heart. The relationship with Jesus. Do you need divine help to face life?
Yes I do.

 

[Who Me]

Four reasons to think that atheism is inconsistent with scientific progress

When people ask me whether the progress of science is more compatible with theism or atheism, I offer the following four basic pieces of scientific evidence that are more compatible with theism tha…

winteryknight.com

Four scientific reasons that show atheism is not reasonable.

 

[daninthelionsden]

Watched and listened to most of this guy's video.
It was a good demonstration of the need for Christians to be educated and a resounding condemnation of the lie that so many Christian say, " All you need is Faith! "
Please please please get one fact into your head. Anyone who says " All you need is Faith or just believe!" Is not a Christian.

This was one of his last points all Christians say is " just have faith, only believe" that faith is not based on evidence.

Really if any here believes this they have No knowledge of God or of the Bible.
Again and again the Bible says that there is objective evidence for what they are saying from the memorial stones effects in the O T to the claims that many eyewitnesses are still alive.

An early accusation was that Evil is God's fault, as he created everything so he is to blame!
Morals mentioned later talked about slavery, genocide etc.
It is always God's fault.
Ok he ignores the issue of freewill, did Adam and Eve actually have a choice about eating the fruit?
He ignores defining just what evil is, an absence of good.
Rather he goes on about horrible things in the Bible and in the world yet has no reason for why there is evil or on what he bases his idea of morals.

He says there is no philosophical reason for God, dismissing the idea of the supernatural by linking it to a belief in fairies.
Because there are denominations we apparently cannot know whether our idea of what salvation is, is true.
For some strange reason he says that Christianity worships the same God as Muslims so how do we know whether our idea or islams or the Jesus yarwah is correct, here he shows total ignorance. The order is Jewish, Christian then Islam and there is no need to question difference or similarity between Christian and Islamic believes.


Then we get the strangest claim of all.
That we cannot know the characteristics of God, that we cannot know God!

No mention of Jesus or any examination of who he is, just that the Bible does not let us know God.


If you've read this far you will be seeing why I popped off about just believe.
Any competent pastor can answer these queries, as can any competent Christian, that he in his words ' deconstructed ' what ever faith he had shows just how ignorant he is about Christianity.

I don't think he ever developed a relationship with the Lord. In my deepest despair, I sometimes feel like a teeny tiny insect of a human being. Whenever I feel that tiny and alone, I can feel that itsy bitsy little light still in me speaking in a little soft voice "I am". He's there. It's sometimes barely discernable, but He's there.

 

[Randy]

My question
"How can one have the Spirit of Christ in them and NOT know Jesus lives?"
Answer
They never knew Him despite what they once stated.

No one comes to Jesus unless the Father draws them. Those who listen and learn from the Father go to Jesus.

 

[for_his_glory]

He says he was a Christian, but yet never mentioned about being Spiritually born again or indwelled with the Holy Spirit. Even though he studied Hebrew and read the Bible in Hebrew he is trying to fit the Bible to a carnal thinking that is not logical to him. He uses a lot of justification of trying to explain why he is no longer a Christian.

John 3:12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?

When he says about the Bible being fallible it seems to me within reading books on Philosophy and evolution and pinning that against scripture his problem is that he never developed a personal relationship with Christ for there he never knew Him other than the name.

This is why the salvation message needs to be taught in the church about being Spiritually born again and indwelled with the Holy Spirit for it's like those disciples in Acts 19:2 that never heard there is a Holy Spirit.

I pray for Spiritual revival in the church and the moving of the Holy Spirit.

 

[Who Me]

I don't think he ever developed a relationship with the Lord. In my deepest despair, I sometimes feel like a teeny tiny insect of a human being. Whenever I feel that tiny and alone, I can feel that itsy bitsy little light still in me speaking in a little soft voice "I am". He's there. It's sometimes barely discernable, but He's there.

We all have both mountain top and deep dark valley experiences.
The mature Christian knows about this oscilation either through teaching, experience or the arts.
Ever read the ' Footprints ' or the Screwtape letters, both show that our experience of God's presence and peace carries.