God: Mind Created Insecurity or Truth?

Ultimately, this determination is up to you. May this hub give you some interesting tidbits to consider along the way...

For as long as humans have graced the Earth, the question has been asked. Does God really exist or is the idea of God just an idea?

Of course, it's not quite that simple is it? Differing definitions of God, a Supreme Being, or Force are also rotating around this planet in varying numbers.

Guided by some Albert Einstein quotes and a few years of life experience, I embark upon the journey of dissecting the question a bit, for at least the value of entertaining and stretching the thoughts of readers...possibly even a catalyst of assisting in the realization of your own truth, for those who are ready.

Strange is our situation here on earth. Each of us come for a short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to divine a purpose.

~ Albert Einstein

Around age 5, I stood next to my wise Grandmother who was carefully rinsing, then stacking the dishes in the dishwasher and I pondered aloud, "Grandma, how do you know Jesus loves us? How do you know Jesus was?"

"Because the Bible tells me so," was her sure, quick reply.

While my Grandmother's answer was certainly adequate for her, it did not quelch my desire for knowing with absolute certainty, what God was and how that related to me and my life. The adventure had begun and it would take me over two decades of life experience to realize any real shred of truth.

If you can't explain something simply, you don't know enough about it.

~ Albert Einstein

Fast forward through those two plus decades to a moment in my life where I was researching, for the umpteenth time, how to make a major change in my life. It wasn't particularly working the way I wanted it to.

As a social work major and philosophy minor, with dabblings in personal growth, traditional and other therapy, hospice volunteering, working with people of varying abilities, ages, and races, along with other significant life ups and downs, I had experienced many, many ways of looking at life.

At this point, I had picked up a book that I liked in the beginning, but became sickened by as I reached the halfway point. It's Christian guilt, repent for my sins, portion of the book made me close it and never want to look back. Yet, I really wanted my life to work and I wanted to figure out whether having a relationship with God was something that fit into the equation. I wasn't too sure if God even existed.

I called a close friend who I knew had grown up in a strictly religious home. I also knew she had a new relationship with God so I asked her almost the same question I'd asked my Grandma years ago.

"I know you believe in God, but how? God sounds so damned judgmental!" I proclaimed.

"Oh, I fired that God," she said light heartedly. She had also divorced her abusive parents. While I didn't feel the need to fire God, I did take the opportunity to consider that I could "start over" with God. She then recommended some books that started my journey to a broader understanding of God, even though a large part of me doubted the existence at all.

The significant problems we face can not be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.

~ Albert Einstein

My initial understanding of God was somewhat muddled. A mixture of my Presbyterian upbringing, supported by an attempt, even if short lived, to read the Bible, along with whatever insights I picked up along the way. Having a neighbor friend as a child who went to Catholic sunday school every week was definitely an interesting avenue into some of the religions perceived as more strict. Combine that with my ever-absorbing mind, and I had quite the hodge podge going of who God was, much like many people, I suspect.

I questioned that God was some separate, punishment inducing parent like figure, although it seemed as though that is what religion would like to have us believe.

At first glance, Neale Donald Walsch's book, Conversations with God, now a series, may seem like some imaginitive writing of the back and forth of the human mind. Depending on one's beliefs, it is just that, or it isn't. Either way, the valuable conclusions I drew were:

• God is All That Is
• God is All Loving, not punishing
• Hell exists in our earthly experience just as much as it may after death
• We definitely do have free will, yet we also have the power to experience life in a way that pleases us

While I drew these conclusions, it took a while for them to settle into being my reality. Try a couple more years.

For an idea that does not at first seem insane, there is no hope.

- Albert Einstein

Yet another life altering event comes crashing down. One I could not ignore any more than the first.

Again, I called my good friend, and she asked, "What are you going to do with this? You created it for some reason."

What? I created it?! I did not want to hear it and I'm pretty sure I cut the conversation short when we started going to that place. It wasn't a brand new idea, but what I was facing was not something I wanted to view as my fault. Except for the fact that accepting that we create our own reality does not mean we are at fault. At least not in the general sense we attribute to the word.

Fault, guilt, shame, and blame take on a whole new meaning when one explores the reality of our existence and how we make life happen. Responsibility and forgiveness also display an entirely refreshing light.

The intuitive mind is a sacred gift; the rational mind is faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.

~ Albert Einstein

So - did you catch that? The gift of entertaining that there is more to the picture than just what we commonly perceive is actually freeing ourselves to be that who we really are.

We create our own reality. Collectively, we co-create our reality as a whole, and as individual creators we create our own experience of reality.

Literally, thought becomes thought form and then manifestation. In the words of Esther Hicks, everything that exists was at first a thought.

It goes much deeper than that, even. As we are our bodies and much, much more. We are vibrational beings and everything around us also has a vibrational frequency.

We create through feeling associated with thought. And guess what? For most of us, getting to our true feelings can be a bit of a struggle.

It is better to believe than to disbelieve; in so doing you bring everything to the realm of possibility.

~Albert Einstein

Common buzz term for many, the Universal Law of Attraction is the "how" part of the we create our own reality equation. Like attracts like. Vibrationally.

Just like a radio, we emit a frequency, it matches the type of experience we have. We wake up, bump our toe out of bed, our clothes have cat hair on them, the tooth paste then glumps out of the tube, then our days gets worse and worse.

Unless we can change our tune, literally, and revise our vibe. The thing is, many are not used to changing their thoughts, because they have developed a pattern.

We end up thinking life just happens to us.

There is hope, though, for change can happen.

As a matter of fact, whether you believe it or not, you have attracted this hub into your experience. It is my aim to give you an introduction to some tools which can dramatically change your experience into one which blends accceptance and joy, appreciation and enthusiasm. This is your birth right as a human being. It is up to you to claim it.

Be present as the watcher of your mind - of your thoughts and emotions as well as your reactions in various situations. Be at least as interested in your reactions as in the situation or person that causes you to react.

~ Eckhart Tolle

We are constantly thinking, unless we consciously choose to do otherwise. If one does make this choice, he or she will find a place of stillness within. This presence, this absence of thought, endless rambling, is who we really are.

Does this sound too simple? It may be for some. And it may seem impossible for others. It is the truth. We are Energy and that Energy is what has been termed as God.

Atheist, Agnostic, Religious Right or Unitarian Universalist... coming to quiet the mind chatter and feel the peace that we are has value for anyone. Eckhart Tolle demonstrates the value of presence in his books, The Power of Now and A New Earth.

Many of us spend most of our time either in the past, with lingering guilt, shame, regret, and unfulfilled responsibility and dreams or in the future, with worry, anxiety, or fear. Even while we are doing something in the moment, our mind is often elsewhere, reliving some event, day dreaming, or doing it as swiftly as possible so we can get it done and move on to the next thing.

Bringing our awareness to our selves, our energetic or inner body, the space and presence Eckhart talks of, allows us to be with the only thing we really have: the present moment.

The past is gone, the future is not promised, but we have the moment we are in, no matter what our belief system. Arguably, this is one fact we can all appreciate.

We are divine extensions of God. Nothing separate. We are peaceful, loving, and joyful at our core. We are magnificent creators with the power to make our lives what we want. The way we begin is by changing our thoughts.

While monitoring one's thoughts can make you crazy, according to Abraham-Hicks in their book The Astonishing Power of Emotions, an easier idea is to consistently reach for a thought that brings relief. A practice of such will eventually bring you into alignment with your self, which is one of the first steps to realizing who you really are.

Louise Hay, in her book and movie, You Can Heal Your Life, focuses on the value of affirmations. Positive thoughts one says to him or herself. An absolutely wonderful starting point as well. From there, the possibilities are endless.

The journey may not be easy, and you can be sure that any beliefs standing in your way will certainly try and hold their ground, but anyone who is willing can recognize the Truth within. It is there and each person who seeks will find it.

Peace isn't a luxury, it's a necessity.

Amy Phoenix (aka Rainbow Recognizer) is a gentle, yet direct parenting guide and healing facilitator, creator of Presence Parenting, and mother of four dedicated to sharing insights and practices to transform frustration and anger, heal the past, nurture conscious relationships, and experience the peace of the present. Visit her at www.amyphoenix.com.