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Shameless
Guest
How does one “find” God? I feel so far away from him.
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W
water
Guest
Personnaly, I would do that - with faith - through Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, praying, studying bible, my own life, and serving others.
A
Archus
Guest
Let us start, with a general answer, and, although I ramble, I’ll see if I can become more and more specific as time goes on.
God is many things. In fact, he pretty much is everything. Well actually, he just IS.
This concept can be hard to understand, but one thing is that He is truth.
In our every day lives, we acknowledge and experience that which is true. For a scientist or mathematician, it is a solution to an equation or experiment. For theologians, it is the truth of logic and common sense. But whatever we do, truth is truth is truth, and truth is God. So wherever we find truth, we can also encounter truth because God is NOT true, He is truth itself.
God is love. This is from 1 John 4:16. In 1 Corinthians 13, we find a defintion of love. It is patient, kind, it is never jealous, is never boastful or conceited, it is never rude or selfish, it does not take offence, and is not resentful…snip… Love does not come to an end.
If I could move mountains, make prophecy, and change the world that would be great. But if I have not love, then it is all for nothing, if I do not have love, then I am nothing. Instead of a sweet choir of angels, all I am is a clashing gong, an unfinished cadence in the sweet tune of the world.
God is love, and so He is patient, kind, all those things. To experience love is to experience God. Find love, and you will find God. Find friendship, you will find God. Be in love, and you are in God.
Another thing that is present is that He is all that is good in the world. People often counter this with asking why is there evil in the world. I am compelled to say that God is not the only one at work here. They say the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was making people believe he doesn’t exist. How right they are, for they blame the evil of the world on Him not on Satan, who deceives us all into his momentary pleasures, his mortal eternity.
God is also a person, Jesus Christ. In this we find that Christ gave us one thing; God. He died for us, and suffered for us. As a result, wherever we see suffering, we see the trinity. For in the moment of the crucifixion the Godhead of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit were united in the accomplishment of Christ, the Son. The Father willed it, the Son did it, and the Spirit gave him the strength to do so. In the street where we walk and we see the homeless, when we hear on the news of a death, or come to know that people in our town are wife beaters and people are living their lives in fear, they are not alone, because Christ is with them.
There was a man, I forget the whole story, but basically he was standing at a gallows and he saw his friends being hung for religious persecution. A man came up to him and said.
‘So, where is your God now?’ To which the man replied.
‘He is there, being hanged with them’.
The whole point of our faith is that it is one that is universal, Catholic, and it means that while yes we have to change ourselves to Him, such as getting up on a Sunday morning, keeping the commandments, but we are able to experience and find God in our everyday lives. It isn’t in some far off place like Mecca or under a special condition that we experience Him. He is the living God, and that means He lives in the world today as much as He did at the time of Christ. He lives in us as much as we live in the world He created for us. Through that finding of truth, that finding of love, of striving against sin and trying to be good people we find our God. We find our friend, our love, our very breath.
It is hard to visualise and in some ways to accept this. At the end of the day, you can believe whatever you want to believe, but truth is still the truth.
If you want to find God, look in the mirror. Take a deep breath, clear your mind, and say two words:
Thank you
To see Him, we must see Christ. The Church has wonderful methods which are the ones described above, the Mass, Adoration, going out into the street, Scripture. But it is above all a personal thing. If you feel uncomfortable with prostrating yourself in front of the Blessed Sacrament, then try something else. I’m not saying avoid it but I think in time you’ll do it of your own accord. For now, I would say to do the things you know are right morally, and which also give you pleasure, such as reading a book, or solving that equation. You’ll get there. But the important thing is to keep going, and to keep yourself open to Him. He is not silent, only waiting for you, my brother.
God is many things. In fact, he pretty much is everything. Well actually, he just IS.
This concept can be hard to understand, but one thing is that He is truth.
In our every day lives, we acknowledge and experience that which is true. For a scientist or mathematician, it is a solution to an equation or experiment. For theologians, it is the truth of logic and common sense. But whatever we do, truth is truth is truth, and truth is God. So wherever we find truth, we can also encounter truth because God is NOT true, He is truth itself.
God is love. This is from 1 John 4:16. In 1 Corinthians 13, we find a defintion of love. It is patient, kind, it is never jealous, is never boastful or conceited, it is never rude or selfish, it does not take offence, and is not resentful…snip… Love does not come to an end.
If I could move mountains, make prophecy, and change the world that would be great. But if I have not love, then it is all for nothing, if I do not have love, then I am nothing. Instead of a sweet choir of angels, all I am is a clashing gong, an unfinished cadence in the sweet tune of the world.
God is love, and so He is patient, kind, all those things. To experience love is to experience God. Find love, and you will find God. Find friendship, you will find God. Be in love, and you are in God.
Another thing that is present is that He is all that is good in the world. People often counter this with asking why is there evil in the world. I am compelled to say that God is not the only one at work here. They say the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was making people believe he doesn’t exist. How right they are, for they blame the evil of the world on Him not on Satan, who deceives us all into his momentary pleasures, his mortal eternity.
God is also a person, Jesus Christ. In this we find that Christ gave us one thing; God. He died for us, and suffered for us. As a result, wherever we see suffering, we see the trinity. For in the moment of the crucifixion the Godhead of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit were united in the accomplishment of Christ, the Son. The Father willed it, the Son did it, and the Spirit gave him the strength to do so. In the street where we walk and we see the homeless, when we hear on the news of a death, or come to know that people in our town are wife beaters and people are living their lives in fear, they are not alone, because Christ is with them.
There was a man, I forget the whole story, but basically he was standing at a gallows and he saw his friends being hung for religious persecution. A man came up to him and said.
‘So, where is your God now?’ To which the man replied.
‘He is there, being hanged with them’.
The whole point of our faith is that it is one that is universal, Catholic, and it means that while yes we have to change ourselves to Him, such as getting up on a Sunday morning, keeping the commandments, but we are able to experience and find God in our everyday lives. It isn’t in some far off place like Mecca or under a special condition that we experience Him. He is the living God, and that means He lives in the world today as much as He did at the time of Christ. He lives in us as much as we live in the world He created for us. Through that finding of truth, that finding of love, of striving against sin and trying to be good people we find our God. We find our friend, our love, our very breath.
It is hard to visualise and in some ways to accept this. At the end of the day, you can believe whatever you want to believe, but truth is still the truth.
If you want to find God, look in the mirror. Take a deep breath, clear your mind, and say two words:
Thank you
To see Him, we must see Christ. The Church has wonderful methods which are the ones described above, the Mass, Adoration, going out into the street, Scripture. But it is above all a personal thing. If you feel uncomfortable with prostrating yourself in front of the Blessed Sacrament, then try something else. I’m not saying avoid it but I think in time you’ll do it of your own accord. For now, I would say to do the things you know are right morally, and which also give you pleasure, such as reading a book, or solving that equation. You’ll get there. But the important thing is to keep going, and to keep yourself open to Him. He is not silent, only waiting for you, my brother.
Z
zab
Guest
God is not lost. Always be aware that He is near regardless if you feel His Presence or not. Just know that he IS near and keep reminding yourself of that fact. Read spirtual books and the Bible and listen.
B
BarbaraTherese
Guest
Hi Shameless!
…A spiritual director or a talk with a priest may be very helpful to you. We only seek God because He first seeks us.I’ll try to keep this as simple and concise as such as I can achieve…God is Totally Other and cannot be known in any way by our human senses, our feelings…sometimes God grants consolation and we can feel His Loving Presence as close to us. This is a great gift to be much thankful for. Because God is Totally Other and cannot be known by our feelings, when He seems most far and absent from us, then we are experiencing the Truth of Him and He is most close to us. Hence to feel God as absent is a new experience of the Reality of God, albeit this can be very painful and confusing as it is not at all the normal way we humans experience ‘presence’.
Keep yourself spiritually close to Him through your Faith through the various methods mentioned in this thread. Our Catholic Faith tells us all we need to know about God and how to stay in the state of Grace and true to Jesus and His Gospel…all else is incidental, or not strictly speaking necessary. Rest in Dark Faith (Faith that does not have the support of your feelings). Often a time of spiritual dryness (as lack of consolation has been called) is a good time to ground ourselves in knowledge of the Truths of our Faith and theology.
God bless you and may He grant you the consolation of His Loving Presence…Barb
D
dizzy_dave
Guest
Thanks. I have been trying to find a spiritual director for years now. I called my diocese and they weren’t much help. No one seems to have time, or want money if they do (I can’t afford it).Hi Shameless!
B
BarbaraTherese
Guest
Hi DD…Have you tried phoning a community of Order priests? - sometimes they have priests who will give spiritual direction, short and/or long term.
The other alternative is to ring and make an appointment with your parish priest and discuss your problem with him.
God’s blessings…Barb
S
SawGodThere
Guest
Well, as you notice my nickname is SawGodThere. God is in everything. We just need to take time to notice. Also, the best way to connect with God is to pray. Not just saying the Our Father, Hail Mary, etc., but by listening to God. The first thing to do is to open your Bible to a random page and read. Next, comtemplate that in silence. Pray to God and ask him to open your heart. DON’T LOSE FAITH. I have been blessed to have felt God’s presence in my life, but it takes very steady praying. We must listen, and we must try to concentrate on God, and we will get to know him.
For myself, I am extremely fortunate. I live on a farm in rural Tennessee about 30 miles south of Nashville. My family breeds horses. Seeing God for me is simply seeing the gift of life in a newborn foal, or seeing them buck and play in the fields. It is also seeing that sunny sky, or seeing the green grass and the blue water. For you, it may be different. But if you pray hard and keep listening and watching, you will find God, but be patient. You’ll find him. I promise.
For myself, I am extremely fortunate. I live on a farm in rural Tennessee about 30 miles south of Nashville. My family breeds horses. Seeing God for me is simply seeing the gift of life in a newborn foal, or seeing them buck and play in the fields. It is also seeing that sunny sky, or seeing the green grass and the blue water. For you, it may be different. But if you pray hard and keep listening and watching, you will find God, but be patient. You’ll find him. I promise.
P
pray4peace
Guest
Mother Teresa found God in the most unlikely place, in the poorest of the poor, in the streets of Calcutta.
“Whoever the poorest of the poor are, they are Christ for us-Christ under the guise of human suffering.” Mother Teresa
When we let go of our self interests, and look to the needs of others we find God. I found God while visiting the lonely at the nursing home. Where can you find God? He is everywhere.
Blessings
“Whoever the poorest of the poor are, they are Christ for us-Christ under the guise of human suffering.” Mother Teresa
When we let go of our self interests, and look to the needs of others we find God. I found God while visiting the lonely at the nursing home. Where can you find God? He is everywhere.
Blessings
F
fhansen
Guest
It simply comes by recognizing, as you do, that 1)you haven’t found Him yet, then 2)earnestly wanting to find Him, and then 3)seeking Him. He will not deny the sincere search for truth which He, Himself, has planted the desire for in our hearts. Ask, seek, and knock.
J
JimR-OCDS
Guest
Do as Archbishop Fultin Sheen said when asked this same quesion;
“Get on your knees and pray to Him.”
Jim
N
Nickkname
Guest
That depends on your state of life. If you’re Catholic, and find yourself in a dry spell or in a spiritual darkness or you feel abandonded by God, than contemplating the mysteries of Christ - especially the Rosary - is the key. If you’re non-Catholic, than you can find the existence of God using the philosophical arguments - here: newadvent.org/cathen/06608b.htm - and you can discover God in the Catholic Mass - and in the Catholic Church.
R
RichT
Guest
Just a few thoughts. Some simply look too hard to find God, when all they need to do, is let God find them. In other words, don’t get so frustrated when it seems you can’t find Him. Just be open to Him and you may find that you will experience His presence like never before.
Spend time with Him through adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
When you do experience His presence, don’t be surprised if you feel long periods of time between those experiences. Just always be open and ready to welcome Him when He comes.
Spend time with Him through adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
When you do experience His presence, don’t be surprised if you feel long periods of time between those experiences. Just always be open and ready to welcome Him when He comes.
S
soma
Guest
RichT, great advice.
I would just like to add that in contrast to the external world outside of ourselves, it is within ourselves where we find Reality. Reality is where integration is realized in the unity of our being with everything surrounding it, and it happens when we cease from identifying with our physical image. We can delight in our physical reflection, but should not think of it as ourselves. The emotions, thoughts, impulses and acts that flow into our bodies and minds only reveal our impermanence because our physical and mental streams are consistently changing and flowing with the chemical elements surrounding us as our bodies compose and decompose. Our bodies are not stationary because the atoms in it and the universe are constantly changing speed and existence, not allowing anything to appear as stable; yet, we see things as permanent. This is the cause of all our problems, the things we see are temporary, and the pure consciousness of God we cannot see is permanent.
I would just like to add that in contrast to the external world outside of ourselves, it is within ourselves where we find Reality. Reality is where integration is realized in the unity of our being with everything surrounding it, and it happens when we cease from identifying with our physical image. We can delight in our physical reflection, but should not think of it as ourselves. The emotions, thoughts, impulses and acts that flow into our bodies and minds only reveal our impermanence because our physical and mental streams are consistently changing and flowing with the chemical elements surrounding us as our bodies compose and decompose. Our bodies are not stationary because the atoms in it and the universe are constantly changing speed and existence, not allowing anything to appear as stable; yet, we see things as permanent. This is the cause of all our problems, the things we see are temporary, and the pure consciousness of God we cannot see is permanent.
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