Our mental views of God shape our attitudes toward God. Misbeliefs about God hinder engaging with God to pursue spirituality. If you think there may be a God, I am convinced you will not regret pursuing more of a connection with your Creator than regretting having a closer relationship with your partner, children, or friends. In this series of Posts the Bible is referenced because that is from where views of God are often formed. What if you discovered a relationship with an invisible God isn’t as complicated as thought?
- God’s direct communication doesn’t always produce the results we may think. God dropped manna from the sky and separated the Red Sea to escape one’s enemy, but the Israelites still did not believe or at least put their total trust in God. God even came in person but Jesus’ miracles did not obtain the results some may suggest if God would stop hiding.
- God may communicate more clearly than we realize. We only need to look inwardly as to how to be in family, work, or other relationships. How do you wish your friends would treat you? God is considered a sexual killjoy but come to find out God only advises what we sense about commitment, lust, adultery, etc.
- God gives us a sense of morality for our own good, but then sets us free to follow our desires. The future isn’t already determined, making freedom an illusion. God’s plan is not a detailed blueprint but a general one to set us free to love. Controlling love is an oxymoron. We are free to choose paths at this time in life based on past experiences, current circumstances, and future aspirations. There are many ways to do all the good we can, to all the people we can.
- God’s overpowering presence in our lives may only lead to consuming guilt or brief obligations to obey. God’s lack of interference may allow us to make heart-felt, lasting choices. Convictions aren’t taught but caught over time in one’s own time. God’s interference and presence might prevent a superior world from emerging as a result of limiting the moral development and improvement of free creatures to make independent choices. Relationships can’t be declared, they must evolve. The journey of learning, reflecting, and accepting convictions that last over time can be for our own good.
- What we do with the communication we have than lack of communication is the bigger challenge. God’s communication through the Bible has led to divisiveness through tens of thousands of denominations. Imagine if religions discovered what they shared in common and allowed differences to be between that person and God. Certainty rather than accepting differences only leads to demanding “supposed truths” from others. What if churches combined their resources thus wasting less physical and emotional resources?
- God is always listening. God has endless mercy and forgiveness so we don’t give up no matter how demoralized we may feel. God is always available in times of loneliness. Friends can’t always be available in the middle of the night, or we may feel that we are overburdening our friends by constantly going to them. God speaks to us mostly through self-reflection as God only wants us to feel free to make decisions based on our gifts and aspirations. God only has moral biases – the same ones we have deep down – for our best interests. God is speaking when we hear: I love you; I forgive you; I won’t abandon you; I want what you want deep down; I am not really like who some people say I am.
Divine hiddenness or lack of clear or direct communication on God’s part has been a reason many question if there is a God or if God truly loves. Parents don’t hide from a child who is seeking their love and comfort! God’s invisibility and current communicative ways may be out of uncontrolling love than hiddenness. God didn’t predetermine the future so God could dictate to us our choices. Don’t we know enough from God about our relationships and what is better for the world? We may need less communication and more dependence on God to carry out our convictions.
What God May Really Be Like - Misbeliefs About God 