When you prayed did it ever work?

[festive1]

I feel sad for people who dont experience the happiness of prayer/meditiation/soul searching/transcendence.....communion with God.

I do meditate and search my inner self... I just don't delude myself that there's a divine entity inside me, or outside myself either. It's one's sense of self, identity, consciousness that one is touching on in these moments, not a god or other being.

[pocaracas]

That is such a typical answer!
Even cinjin expected it, answered in advanced and you still went with it.

As far as I can tell from reading this thread, prayer is when you ask god to just be with you. To provide you with the answers you seek, Some guidance, some comfort.

All these are just psychological states. You can achieve them without prayer, but I have to admit that some people (if not most) find it very easy to achieve them with prayer, thus feeding the delusion that god did something to them.
If you don't assume god exists, prayer looks as just wishful thinking or talking to yourself or (you know it happens too often) asking for impossible things.
When you ask for something impossible, you understand that that something is beyond your reach, or control... and possibly beyond anyone's reach. Hence you ask. Sometimes, you get lucky.... most of the times, you don't. Things would most likely turn out the same, had you not asked for it. But it feels good to think you're actually doing something helpful.
It's the same with engaging in wishful thinking. Sometimes, you get what you wished for. Sometimes, you don't. Depends on the probability of occurrence of whatever you asked for.
When you talk to yourself, you put some thoughts in order, which helps in seeing some details which might otherwise have missed your mind. If happens, regardless of god's existence, but you feel better to think that god helped you. In this case meditation would be a good substitute and possibly yield better results.

On average, prayer should work as well as the absence of prayer.
Unfortunately, people who believe cannot accept this external viewpoint. To them, god actually exists and it is god that actually does all those things in their minds, because they couldn't possibly have done it themselves.

Low self-esteem, low self-regard, low self-image.... it must be a bit sad to be a believer in god and relying so much in his help to set your minds at ease.
Here, have a bit of funny for free:

[Cyberman]

I'd still like to know what "He's talking to YOU!" means. Who "He" is, for a start; since the topic at that point was about "communion" with a figment of indoctrination, the word "He" comes off as ambiguous. I hate unnecessary ambiguity, especially for the sake of excessively and pretentiously saccharinous faux-mysticism. Then there's "YOU!" ME personally? Or ME plural, ie the unbrainwashed?

[Cinjin]

I can assure you, I was legit. I walked down the aisle many times, got my heart right with god many times,

How do you know you had your heart right if you never had any confirmation of that? God was never part of it? I call bull.

How very uncreative of you to give the exact response that I told you would give.
What a fucking joke. In case anybody is missing this, Frodo is essentially saying there is officially no way to surely find his god. You just hope that god gets up off his fat ass and lets you into heaven.

How do I know my heart was right? Because you hypocritical pretentious fuck, your god said that if I asked forgiveness in christs name I would be forgiven and back in the good graces.

God damn filthy apologist. If your David can get away with murder and adultery, I'm reasonably sure I can get back in god's good graces by repenting for pinching my brother's leg during sunday school.

#2 Argument: You weren't Seeking hard enough.
Drich and GC are always shooting off their mouths with this one. "You have to SEEK god, you have to seek god. Seek Seek Seek. God won't speak to you unless you seek and seek and seek." A filthy apologists pathetic copout. 20 Fucking years I wanted to know god and "feel" him speak to me. I mean I REALLY wanted to know and understand.

Right.

So you were seeking, but never found it. So you were never a Christian? Because being a Christian to me means finding. You clearly state that this was never you.

Being a christian TO YOU? Who gives a shit what you think??
I accepted Christ as my personal savior with tears streaming down my face. That means I was in regardless of your Apologists lies and propaganda. Why don't you change your story again

...and again and again and again. Also, do explain your jesus' lies... cause I was definitely seeking and not finding.

[IATIA]

Okay, okay, I got this.

If my heart is right with god my prayer is answered, else if my prayer was not answered, then my heart was not right with god. And let us not forget sometimes the answer is no.

Great catch all.

[Minimalist]

They've always got some excuse for why their god is a fuck-up.

[fr0d0]

I'd still like to know what "He's talking to YOU!" means. Who "He" is, for a start; since the topic at that point was about "communion" with a figment of indoctrination, the word "He" comes off as ambiguous. I hate unnecessary ambiguity, especially for the sake of excessively and pretentiously saccharinous faux-mysticism. Then there's "YOU!" ME personally? Or ME plural, ie the unbrainwashed?

Well I liked the ambiguity. Take it how you like. 'He' was you, and 'YOU' is the dear reader.

---

How do I know my heart was right? Because you hypocritical pretentious fuck, your god said that if I asked forgiveness in christs name I would be forgiven and back in the good graces.

Methinks coal burneth thou head brother

You don't think sincerity was part of that deal? If you didn't receive, if it was me, I would conclude that I wasn't doing it right.

Why tears? Were you convicted of something that struck as such a basic truth to you?

---

Being a christian TO YOU?

No my friend. In your own judgement.

---

I accepted Christ as my personal savior with tears streaming down my face. That means I was in regardless of your Apologists lies and propaganda. Why don't you change your story again

...and again and again and again. Also, do explain your jesus' lies... cause I was definitely seeking and not finding.

Your story is confused. You were in, but you were never in. You never heard God, but was moved to tears such was your conviction of him.

Please explain.

[Lion IRC]

I feel sad for people who dont experience the happiness of prayer/meditiation/soul searching/transcendence.....communion with God.

I do meditate and search my inner self... I just don't delude myself that there's a divine entity inside me, or outside myself either. It's one's sense of self, identity, consciousness that one is touching on in these moments, not a god or other being.

Well I would question whether it is delusionary to think you are only talking to yourself. (Especially when answers to questions come from out of nowhere.)
Do rocks meditate?
Can molecules look into a mirror also made of molecules and perceive "SELF" (ego, entity, consciousness, volition, self-perception..)



http://diariesofanexistentialist.wordpre...deo-games/

[Cato]

Do rocks meditate? Did you just go Drich on us?

I'll tell you what rocks don't do. Rocks don't invent rock gods to excuse them for being total cunts towards other rocks that aren't exactly the same.

Molecules looking in a mirror. Holy fuck!?!

[Annik]

Well I would question whether it is delusionary to think you are only talking to yourself. (Especially when answers to questions come from out of nowhere.)
Do rocks meditate?
Can molecules look into a mirror also made of molecules and perceive "SELF" (ego, entity, consciousness, volition, self-perception..)



http://diariesofanexistentialist.wordpre...deo-games/

I'm confused... This is an article about how video games can help a person become a better writer....