What is a relationship with Jesus like?
it's basically like having an idea of someone else who helps to guide you in your actions and thoughts. it's somewhat between having your head invaded by aliens and having your best friend part of your mind. it doesn't change who you are, or necessarily what you do, but it leads me to hope even though i want to give up.
How does one know this relationship is real?
a sane person doesn't. you just live with it. i question it every day.
Is knowing Jesus anything more than a feeling - how so?
i have no idea. i've "known jesus" almost my whole life and longer than i can remember. there are no neon signs, if you're wondering.
I've never known Jesus. I'd like to know how to recognize the feelings that clearly demonstrate to you Jesus is real.
there aren't any. i simply believe and try not to fall off the deep end. i don't believe even because i want to. i believe because i have to. i am drawn to him. there's nothing i can do about it. i fight it, a lot. it's probably the most confusing and difficult part of my life.
Is it the opinion of the faithful I block out these feelings, fail to acknowledge them or am unable to possess them?
*shrugs* maybe you don't have them. maybe you haven't been called. maybe you just haven't heard. maybe you've simply blocked them out. also, maybe you follow them and don't know it. it's not my call.
for me, being in the company of my god means caring for the world. it doesn't mean joining a convent or even not cussing. it means loving, giving, and sharing.
Why can you know Jesus and not me?
i don't know. i was raised to believe in predestined salvation, but now i don't even believe in hell. i believe that i serve an omnipotent god. he has a plan and we all have a part to play. if we are predestined to a certain role in life, why would serving that purpose doom us? i can't justify that.
Why has Jesus allowed you to have a relationship with him and not me? If Jesus has accepted me and entered into a relationship with me I have not seen it. I have not felt it. I have not heard it. I have no evidence it exists. Am I doing something wrong? I do not think I am bad.
see above.
My daughter is 8 - she does not know Jesus. Jesus has never reached out to her - why not? My son is 12; he does not live with me. His mother took him 1,500 miles away from me. She is religious. My son he knows Jesus. Why does Jesus talk to my son not my daughter?
maybe she does but doesn't know him by name.
In order to know Jesus I must know what to look for. I must know where to look and how to find him. The only time I had a friend I could not see was when I was 6. I feel kind of foolish entering into another relationship like this - is this feeling justified?
probably not. i have no idea. i'm sure i'm just crazy. but it doesn't matter.
How do you know you know Jesus? How do you know your children know they know Jesus? Can you help me know Jesus knows me? Is it ok to know something I can not heae, see, smell, touch or taste? Is it ok to say I know I know something even if I know in this lifetime I will never have evidence to demonstrate the claims I claim to know are true - other than me stating I know it is true.
can i say for certain that the external world exists beyond my perception of it? can i be sure that i am not mistaken? no. it is one of the most difficult philosophical questions. but. i trust that the people i am in contact with exist (sometimes. i have trust issues.) likewise, i trust the drawing power within my soul.
What I really want to know is how do you know you know Jesus? How do you form a relationship for something that is 'not there'(I use that loosely). How do you know Jesus loves you - what does this feel like?
i know that i am taken care of. great ill does not befall me. that which does i am able to champion. i generally get what i want. of course it almost always ends up not being what i want but the process makes me better and wiser. i know the power that i feel pulling me toward hope in spite of my desire for despair.
i'd like to say that i feel a pull to compassion (or whatever else christians are supposed to feel) that comes from outside myself, but i am naturally a giving and compassionate person. it's not anything i did, i just came out that way.
*How do you know Jesus loves you? When compared to love we know what does the love of Jesus feel like. I am missing it and want to recognize it.
i don't. but i feel hope and comfort and i am always aware that everything is forgiven. i have no guilt. this is the love of my god to me.
*How do we know this is real - this feeling, emotion; this “THING” that makes us (you) know you know Jesus.
i don't. i could just be a sociopath. i mean. i know i am a sociopath because i'm a very detached individual, but i mean a real whacko.
there's nothing i can do about it. that's what makes me feel like it is external to me. i can push it away and deny it and it comes back and enforces itself.
Edited by AdminPD, : Fix quote box
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