Critical thought is hard

[robvalue]

Some people often mix up hope and wishful thinking. It would be great if there really was a great God who has everything in hand, and heaven will be wonderful, blah blah blah. If it actually was as good as the game they talk, it would be good. But just wanting to believe in it doesn't make it true. And as you're no doubt aware, this view clashes rather drastically with reality. The universe is a much better fit for no God, or a god no longer interested, than an interacting loving God. That last is absolutely absurd in fact.

It sounds like you're getting there You're being very brave tackling it head on, and I predict it will only get easier. We're always here to back you up. Theist arguments are bogus, full stop. There is always dishonesty in there somewhere, it's just about spotting it. Their most powerful tool is emotional manipulation, which they often resort to pretty quickly when you rebut their wafer thin fallacy ridden arguments.

Again, it's worthless, appealing to emotion. How you feel about reality has no impact on reality. Accepting things as they are is one of the most important aspects of life.