I don’t know if God spoke, but if he did, here’s what I think he would say to the believer:
Stop praying. What I want you to do is go out into the world and enjoy your life. I want you to sing, have fun, and enjoy everything I’ve made for you. Stop going into those dark, cold temples that you built yourself and saying they are my house. My house is in the mountains, in the woods, rivers, lakes, and beaches. That’s where I live and there I express my love for you. Stop blaming me for your miserable life; I never told you there was anything wrong with you that you were a sinner, or that your sexuality was a bad thing. Sex is a gift I have given you and with which you can express your love, your ecstasy, your joy. So please don’t blame me for everything they made you believe. Stop reading alleged sacred scriptures that have nothing to do with me. If you can’t read me in a sunrise, in a landscape, in the look of your friends, in your son’s eyes… you will find me in no book! Stop asking me “Will you tell me how to do my job?” Stop being so scared of me. I do not judge you or criticize you, nor get angry, or bothered. I am pure love. Stop asking for forgiveness, there’s nothing to forgive. If I made you… I filled you with passions, limitations, pleasures, feelings, needs, inconsistencies… free will. How can I blame you if you respond to something I put in you? How can I punish you for being the way you are, if I’m the one who made you? Do you think I could create a place to burn all my children who behave badly for the rest of eternity? What kind of god would do that?
Respect your peers and don’t do what you don’t want for yourself. All I ask is that you pay attention in your life, that alertness is your guide.
This life is not a test, not a step on the way, not a rehearsal, nor a prelude to paradise. This life is the only thing here and now and it is all you need. I have set you free, no prizes or punishments, no sins or virtues, no one carries a marker, no one keeps a record. You are free to create in your life. Heaven or hell. I can’t tell you if there’s anything after this life but I can give you a tip. Live as if there is not. As if this is your only chance to enjoy, to love, to exist. So, if there’s nothing after, then you will have enjoyed the opportunity I gave you. And if there is, rest assured that I won’t ask if you behaved right or wrong, I’ll ask. Did you like it? Did you have fun? What did you enjoy the most? What did you learn? Stop believing in me; believing is assuming, guessing, imagining. I don’t want you to believe in me, I want you to believe in you. I want you to feel me in you when you kiss your beloved, when you tuck in your little girl when you caress your dog, when you bathe in the sea. Stop praising me, what kind of egomaniac God do you think I am?
I’m bored of being praised. I’m tired of being thanked. Feeling grateful? Prove it by taking care of yourself, your health, your relationships, and the world. Express your joy! That’s the way to praise me. Stop complicating things and repeating as a parakeet what you’ve been taught about me.
Don’t look for me outside, you won’t find me. Find me inside… there I’m beating in you. Spinoza’s God.
What do you think?
Replies
Great insight!
Wow! Wow! Such wisdom! You are right for most of what you said. However, there are those among us who would take some of what you said, with no filter (if you will). There has to be a point where one becomes aware that enough is too much of anything. Yes, we should enjoy all that this incredible world has to give. How we use and enjoy them is what we need to be mindful of. If we are blessed enough to have the means to travel, to get those degrees, to have that house with the beautiful gardens/library/pool, etc., and be able to give the millions of dollars needed to help the rest of the world...this world would be just as you describe...enjoying all and everything. God has given us free will to make decisions that can better our lives. He (She) has given us the intelligence to make these choices and decisions to help us better enjoy all that we have been given. Unfortunately, things don't always pan out the way we would like. But, you have presented a very, very thought-provoking concept. We DO need to enjoy all you presented yes. But always with the knowledge that not everyone will be able to achieve/enjoy. Belief in oneself is sometimes missing. Maybe asking God to help us believe in ourselves will give us the courage to sample all that this world has to give. If God left you in charge, I know this world and all who are in it, would be so much happier! This is from one who knows you quite well. CVL