Changed my life in less than a year

So then I joined a church where I met the nicest most welcoming people who acted like they were all family and thats when It hit me how different I was to them, how different non Christians were to Christians, and it can't be faked, you can see it in their eyes it's real compassion and love and the likeness of Christ in there.

On July 25 2008 10:27 travis wrote:
how nice of god.

every day I strive to become a better person and I am pretty sure he doesn't help me at all.


wow i actually read the rest of your post and holy shit man. normally I am as accepting of people's beliefs as possible but have you actually read your post?

if it's just about you and god then why is every single part of this post about christians and non-christians


I bet you've never even studied the bible. I bet you can't even name more than 5 religions.










editted to be less mean.

On July 25 2008 10:30 PsycHOTemplar wrote:

If you feel contempt from "non-Christians" that's pretty much why. It sounds like you just found a new thing to be bigoted about.

On July 25 2008 10:27 ScarFace wrote:
God I cant stand people who think God someone how helped them.

You disgust me.

On July 25 2008 10:32 Cloud wrote:


What the fuck, at least he changed? would you rather have him hating muslims and black people?

Get your head out of your ass dude.

I mean by the post this guy seems to still have some bad social problems but damn it at least he seems less radical.

On July 25 2008 10:27 ScarFace wrote:
God I cant stand people who think God someone how helped them.

You disgust me.

On July 25 2008 10:36 ScarFace wrote:
So he replaced anger with delusions and preaching to us left and right? If he made his life better, HE made his life better. Kudos. Doesn't mean everything he is puking out in this thread isn't any less disgusting, though.

On July 25 2008 10:37 thedeadhaji wrote:
wtf this thread just exploded in # of replies

On July 25 2008 10:37 thedeadhaji wrote:
wtf this thread just exploded in # of replies

On July 25 2008 10:36 Barbarne wrote:


"God" I can't stand people who just can't accept that having faith can help some people with their lives.

You disugst me with your ignorance.

And BTW, I'm a 100% atheist who doesn't believe anythig at all and never have. But to not realize how some people can draw strenght and happiness from their faith is a true sign of ignorance.

On July 25 2008 10:41 PsycHOTemplar wrote:
Kwark, the problem is that he's acting like he's a completely changed man, but the flaws in his character are still the same. Nothing was fixed, he just went from pessimist to optimist. He went from looking down on non-whites, to looking down on non-Christians. That's not an improvement in the least.

On July 25 2008 10:39 ScarFace wrote:
I don't care if hes happy because he thinks someone is looking after him, I care if he thinks all Christians are just lovable human beings who exude happiness because Jesus Christ blessed them. It's a load of crap, hes delusional. His happiness is false, he replaced fanatical anger with fanatical faith, and the second his faith is shot in the most minor way, he will revert right back. You want your life to get better buddy? Get some friends, get a Girlfriend, get a job, patch your life back together. Don't come on a website with this bullshit about Christians just being great people because Jesus Christ is our lord and savior...balh blah blah.

Now I just feel right now compelled to say something, compassion for you guys, you non-Christians.

On July 25 2008 10:41 PsycHOTemplar wrote:
Kwark, the problem is that he's acting like he's a completely changed man, but the flaws in his character are still the same. Nothing was fixed, he just went from pessimist to optimist. He went from looking down on non-whites, to looking down on non-Christians. That's not an improvement in the least.

On July 25 2008 10:43 Kwark wrote:

His God may be a lie but the structures Christianity has created in his life are real. His get togethers at Church, his little band, his absolute certainties, the regular routine, that's all real. His happiness is most likely real because like it or not, Christianity provides a good foundation for a stable life. All people need to be happy is like minded individuals, routine and certainty about the future. He has all those.

Well no I wasn't bigoting against non-christians

On July 25 2008 10:44 TechniQ.UK wrote:
Well no I wasn't bigoting against non-christians, me as a new Christian and before being a Christian I was horrible scumbag who didn't deserve the life I was given. Not saying you guys are like that just saying that there is a big difference and it's not fabricated as some would say.

As for people who haven't yet approached the concept of a God and fully made that decision or at least tried to then how can you honestly hate me because I asked the questions got the answers and concluded God was real? Isn't that chillingly similar of the intolerant bullshit that comes out of westboro baptist church that you so valiantly oppose and condemn?

On July 25 2008 10:44 TechniQ.UK wrote:
Well no I wasn't bigoting against non-christians, me as a new Christian and before being a Christian I was horrible scumbag who didn't deserve the life I was given. Not saying you guys are like that just saying that there is a big difference and it's not fabricated as some would say.

As for people who haven't yet approached the concept of a God and fully made that decision or at least tried to then how can you honestly hate me because I asked the questions got the answers and concluded God was real? Isn't that chillingly similar of the intolerant bullshit that comes out of westboro baptist church that you so valiantly oppose and condemn?

On July 25 2008 10:39 ScarFace wrote:
I don't care if hes happy because he thinks someone is looking after him, I care if he thinks all Christians are just lovable human beings who exude happiness because Jesus Christ blessed them. It's a load of crap, hes delusional. His happiness is false, he replaced fanatical anger with fanatical faith, and the second his faith is shot in the most minor way, he will revert right back. You want your life to get better buddy? Get some friends, get a Girlfriend, get a job, patch your life back together. Don't come on a website with this bullshit about Christians just being great people because Jesus Christ is our lord and savior...balh blah blah.

On July 25 2008 10:43 Kwark wrote:

His God may be a lie but the structures Christianity has created in his life are real. His get togethers at Church, his little band, his absolute certainties, the regular routine, that's all real. His happiness is most likely real because like it or not, Christianity provides a good foundation for a stable life. All people need to be happy is like minded individuals, routine and certainty about the future. He has all those.

On July 25 2008 10:44 TechniQ.UK wrote:
Well no I wasn't bigoting against non-christians, me as a new Christian and before being a Christian I was horrible scumbag who didn't deserve the life I was given. Not saying you guys are like that just saying that there is a big difference and it's not fabricated as some would say.

As for people who haven't yet approached the concept of a God and fully made that decision or at least tried to then how can you honestly hate me because I asked the questions got the answers and concluded God was real? Isn't that chillingly similar of the intolerant bullshit that comes out of westboro baptist church that you so valiantly oppose and condemn?

On July 25 2008 10:49 travis wrote:



but sadly this is a very bad thing


it's the same as when a congressman attach bad shit to good bills so that they will pass through ez




what I hate about the whole thing is that the guy is acting like he's learned things and is now a teacher, when it's clear he is no professor of christianity.

On July 25 2008 10:54 DamageControL wrote:
true but that does not mean christians are the only route to a stable happy life, which he implies

On July 25 2008 10:56 Kwark wrote:

When you get extremist Christians it's a bad thing. But in the placebo happy pills scenario I see no reason not to just be glad for them. I do see your point about how he's acting like he's learned things but that wasn't the core of his post imo.

I was fortunate enough to have a fantastic philosophy teacher who was an Anglican minister but took his job as a teacher in a secular system incredibly seriously. He was a pretty laid back, liberal kind of guy and we didn't realise he believed in anything until word of mouth spread from somebody at his church.

On July 25 2008 10:37 thedeadhaji wrote:
wtf this thread just exploded in # of replies

On July 25 2008 11:02 Slithe wrote:


It's a religion thread, what did you expect.

Some of you guys are hating on the OP too much. Sure the content of the post was preachy but you didn't have to read it. It's not like he was shoving it directly in your face.

So then I joined a church where I met the nicest most welcoming people who acted like they were all family and thats when It hit me how different I was to them, how different non Christians were to Christians, and it can't be faked, you can see it in their eyes it's real compassion and love and the likeness of Christ in there.

Now I just feel right now compelled to say something, compassion for you guys, you non-Christians. Your fleeting happiness, your problems, your sadness your loneliness.

On July 25 2008 11:07 Salv wrote:
Please don't quote it DamageControl, I can't stand reading it twice.

On July 25 2008 11:10 ahrara_ wrote:
Why get so worked up about it if the guy has good intentions? I'm offended but not to the point I'm going to get all POed

On July 25 2008 11:16 demo1 wrote:
lol how has god affect your starcraft performance?

On July 25 2008 10:44 TechniQ.UK wrote:
As for people who haven't yet approached the concept of a God and fully made that decision or at least tried to then how can you honestly hate me because I asked the questions got the answers and concluded God was real?

On July 25 2008 11:48 Kwark wrote:
Sexual guilt is my biggest problem with religion. It's a legacy across the Western world and it's fucking stupid.

I'll happily watch porn of girls doing absolutely depraved things but I don't view them any differently for it. And it doesn't in any way change the way I view girls or the way I interact with them. As far as I'm concerned lust and passion are two sides of the same coin. You can't have one without the other. If you deny your urges and feel guilty for lust you'll end up horribly repressed having missionary sex once a year and apologising to God about it afterwards. Humans are born with the ability to make choices and understand the consequences of those choices. If my best friends girlfriend came onto me and she was extremely hot I'd still be forced to decline. Not because I didn't lust after her but because I'm not an asshole. Just because you want to have sex with girls doesn't mean you have to treat them any differently.

Lust is the physical driving force behind relationships. When combined with good decision making it's a good thing, resulting in passionate sex and physical intimacy. When combined with bad decision making it's a bad thing, resulting in cheating, rape etc. But you could say that about most things. Take love, imo the emotional driving force behind relationships. In a good context it's the foundation of a long, stable and loving relationship. In a bad context it's the motivation for the crazies who obsess over celebrities and abduct people and keep them in their cellar for decades.

You are a human, you are gifted with free will. Rather than deny your humanity and feel ashamed of your birthright utilise your gift to make your life what you want of it.

On July 25 2008 11:57 Kwark wrote:
Lust is really wanting to fuck a girl. Passion is what happens when the girl in question takes her clothes off.

On July 25 2008 11:58 DamageControL wrote:

So lust leads to passion?

On July 25 2008 12:02 Kwark wrote:
I'm using passion in the positive sense btw. Just in a great sex way. I'm sure rapists are pretty passionate about what they do but until someone creates a word that applies to specifically mutual good sex I'm at a loss for a better word. So just to clarify,

On July 25 2008 12:13 travis wrote:
I believe lust is a sin. But it's hard to pin down in a real discussion; semantics.


I believe lust is a sin because it begets more lust. Lust is not something that you can find an answer for, you can chase it indefinitely but you will never get what you want. It's the same for all sins.

There is no happiness down a path of sin. But everyone makes mistakes.

On July 25 2008 12:18 DamageControL wrote:

define lust please travis

On July 25 2008 12:19 ZoDD wrote:
"god" is a powerful motivator, real or not.
they should really market this stuff... oh wait.

I think its pretty funny that god was the reason you got out of your slum and helped that kid getting bullied, cuz no one helps anyone unless they think they go to heaven or something.

On July 25 2008 12:12 DamageControL wrote:
kwark btw what are your personal religious views?

On July 25 2008 12:13 travis wrote:
I believe lust is a sin. But it's hard to pin down in a real discussion; semantics.


I believe lust is a sin because it begets more lust. Lust is not something that you can find an answer for, you can chase it indefinitely but you will never get what you want. It's the same for all sins.

There is no happiness down a path of sin. But everyone makes mistakes.

On July 25 2008 12:21 travis wrote:


sexual desire, physical attraction

On July 25 2008 12:30 Kwark wrote:

I've yet to see any evidence of anything supernatural in my life, including God. As such I find myself unable to believe. But God, if he exists, knows that and if he's interested in my worship he knows where to find me. So I'm an athiest I guess.

On July 25 2008 12:37 DamageControL wrote:

I see. And if God is beyond our understanding?

On July 25 2008 12:37 DamageControL wrote:

I see. And if God is beyond our understanding?

On July 25 2008 10:36 Barbarne wrote:
To not realize how some people can draw strenght and happiness from their faith is a true sign of ignorance.

On July 25 2008 12:33 Kwark wrote:

I'll be lusty today, I'll end up jacking off. I'll probably be lusty tomorrow. I'll probably end up jacking off tomorrow. Where's the sin?

the sin is in the time and energy and thought you wasted jacking off.
You could say that about almost anything you enjoy doing.
I believe starcraft is a sin because it begets more starcraft. etc etc. You can play it and you'll be satisfied with a win or you'll be frustrated if you couldn't perform well or whatever. But tomorrow when the urges start you'll play again unless you find something better to do.

On July 25 2008 12:35 Kwark wrote:

Try having sexual intimacy without physical attraction.

On July 25 2008 12:57 travis wrote:


I am not sure what you mean.

On July 25 2008 12:56 travis wrote:


Lust is a sin of excess. Excess is relative to the individual.

Obviously we are innocent of that which occurs outside of our control. It's sinful when you pursue it.

I have to guess your followup question will by "why is it sinful when you pursue it" and my basis for that might take a while to explain but I don't mind doing so.




when you are totally focused in a game of starcraft you are completely selfless(meaning you have no thoughts towards desires or urges). the nature of sin is the opposite.

On July 25 2008 13:02 Kwark wrote:

A healthy sexual relationship requires sexual desire. You said lust, defined as sexual desire, is a sin.

On July 25 2008 12:37 DamageControL wrote:
I see. And if God is beyond our understanding?

On July 25 2008 13:18 travis wrote:
kwark im gonna bump this tommorrow so we can continue this discussion if you want to, because I want to but my adderal is wearing out and im pretty tired and am having trouble thinking

On July 25 2008 12:42 Kwark wrote:

Then he's asking more than I can give. He'll know this and he'll be understanding about it. He'll recognise that for me to do what he's asking of me without hypocrisy would require me to genuinely believe in everything for which there is no proof which would in turn lead to a catclysmic systems failure for my mind. I'm sure he won't hold that against me though, we're just in a bit of a bind until he decides to prove himself logically to me. The Bible is full of stories of personal revelation so I'm sure if God really wanted my belief he'd reveal himself. But I expect that as long as I'm happy doing my own thing he's happy letting me. God's cool like that.

On July 25 2008 23:15 Chill wrote:
Wow, in a year you certainly learned to rattle off the Christian simplespeak rather quickly.

On July 25 2008 21:12 TechniQ.UK wrote:
Humans are incapable of self mastery it's that simple.

Now I just feel right now compelled to say something, compassion for you guys, you non-alcoholicss. Your fleeting happiness, your problems, your sadness your loneliness. You are loved so greatly you could not comprehend how loved you really are and you don't feel it and you think beer isn't real because theres all this hardship and beer's never helped you before and the denominational and alcoholic things have bad reputations and all these different reasons.

On July 26 2008 01:08 thedeadhaji wrote:
9 months ago...

oh shit that exactly matches when I started drinking again!
Chill did you make that post in my stead?

On July 26 2008 00:57 suresh0t wrote:

but if you do start thinking logically and looking at the notes on sermons from sunday morning, and then breaking them down, you'll probably see how much bullshit is actually there. Basically you'll be taught not to question God, or the Bible, live by faith not by intelligence, give your money to the church without question, and other various forms of manipulation that will keep you in line.

On July 26 2008 01:27 Chromyne wrote:


I'm sorry that you've had such bad experiences with Christianity. Either that you're speaking from ignorance.

Everyone I know allows me [or people in general] to question God and the Bible. Actually it's encouraged. I think it's healthy to question and discuss matters as important as this.

Tithing is completely obligatory in the church. If you are a member of the church, I'm sure you would want to support the church (this is how they pay the people who work there). The only other reason I've been given for giving money is to support some cause such as the earthquake in China. If giving money is mandatory, you're going to a different place.

Living by faith and not by intelligence is in itself contradictory, they are not complete separate entities. Today's definition (again with the definitions, I know) is a blind leap in a dark room. I think many would agree with this definition, especially if it furthers their agenda. However, I think that faith involves much more than that. It is a trust in something based on reason. Or else there is no point in having faith.

On July 26 2008 01:27 Chromyne wrote:


I'm sorry that you've had such bad experiences with Christianity. Either that you're speaking from ignorance.

Everyone I know allows me [or people in general] to question God and the Bible. Actually it's encouraged. I think it's healthy to question and discuss matters as important as this.

Tithing is completely obligatory in the church. If you are a member of the church, I'm sure you would want to support the church (this is how they pay the people who work there). The only other reason I've been given for giving money is to support some cause such as the earthquake in China. If giving money is mandatory, you're going to a different place.

Living by faith and not by intelligence is in itself contradictory, they are not complete separate entities. Today's definition (again with the definitions, I know) is a blind leap in a dark room. I think many would agree with this definition, especially if it furthers their agenda. However, I think that faith involves much more than that. It is a trust in something based on reason. Or else there is no point in having faith.

This is exactly like a friend saying "hey I found a really good restaurant the other night. I could take you there if you're interested?" Or like someone here saying "I found this pretty useful strat, do you want to know about it?"

On July 26 2008 02:00 suresh0t wrote:
mmm no you are wrong about the being ignorant or going to the wrong church. though you are from canada so they do everything a little bit more liberal than the US...and that isn't a bash, because I love Canada.

First off, tithing is in the bible, and in the bible it says give your first 10% to God. Pretty much a non negotiable deal with the church. I mean obviously they give you the option but not before preaching on how important it is. And yeah fine and good support the church make sure they can pay the staff and do stuff like help the homeless etc. However when you see the pastors that are rolling around in private planes etc, it makes you wonder how much is going to everything else. I'm not saying that is every church on the planet. However, you can't debate that one of the main rules of Christianity is tithing. If you disagree then you don't follow the rules set in your bible. it's as fucking simple as that.

...

My biggest problem with Christianity is what this guy is being a shining example of, and that is the need to recruit new people. No other religion outside of the off shoots of Christianity go out and try to convert people. Listen if someone wants what you got they will come to you, if not...leave us the fuck alone. It is as simple as that. And yes I know I've wrote my share of religion blogs, and talked about being an Atheist and such. Well really only 3 anti religion posts in which 1 was a response to another post similar to this, and the other 2 were the same thing except one was a more complete version of an article i was writing for a local papers religion section that I was asked to write. I cleaned it up and they published it and I got all the hate christians love to dish out when they think that someone is out of line or bashing them, when at the same time they can say what they want about people going to hell and how everyone else lives in sin.

So yeah I don't feel bad about telling people to fuck off when they pity me.

I think the reason the OP made this BLOG (keyword = blog not thread) is because he thinks he has something special and wants to share it.

On July 26 2008 03:08 PsycHOTemplar wrote:

Really? Because I'm pretty sure he made it to talk down to people, since he even admits that he has a history of enjoying doing that.

If he wanted to share his experience, he would have kept the topic to "I let religion into my life, now it's better," rather than what he did which was "all you non-Christians will never know love and happiness as I do now." That's elitism, not compassion (which was the same reason he used to be a racist).

In short: He made a post that was insulting to the community, and the community responded. Don't think you're some man of reason teaching us to shed our hateful words.

I think the reason the OP made this BLOG (keyword = blog not thread) is because he thinks he has something special and wants to share it. A few people have already said, if you had/know something you think is cool, wouldn't you want to tell people about it? All this stuff about how he said it and everything, though important and detracted from his post, is something else and digresses from the point. It's just him sharing something he has experienced.

On July 25 2008 10:14 TechniQ.UK wrote:
So about 9 months ago my *new* life began. Before *I chose to become a* Christian *I felt as though I was playing Starcraft to distract myself from the fact that* I was pretty depressed about relationships, I hated school, and my best friends lived in the next town so I didn't get to see them very often. I was also a crazed racist as in lets get the BNP (British national party) in power and start killing the Muslims and blacks in Britain if they don't all leave. I also had a short fuse.

*I feel as though* God changed my character even before I started reading a bible, when I had accepted Jesus that very same day I changed, my mind, my soul my heart. *My* lust after porn and women, *my* short temper, *my* anger, *my* depression and *my* racism. *I believe* God freed me*, even* before I had read a single full page of the bible. If I *had* read the bible *before feeling God in my life*, I could see the argument that I was just following a rule book, but it wasn't *like that*, it was me *trying to be more like Christ*. *Obviously not everything has* changed overnight. * I believe it takes a life time of striving to be more like Christ, even though I know I'll never be perfect.*

So that was all fine and great so after a while I had to deal with school and normal day life even though my character changed life went on. One day I saw this guy in my class who always gets picked on and ridiculed, he was getting picked on by 2-3 neds (unemployed, uneducated folk who wear tracksuits and cause trouble usually) but I was moved by this compassion I'd never felt before to go and help him. I was the one who usually picked on this guy on a daily basis because his dad was a pastor and he was an easy target. Thats how much I've changed in a few months.

I joined a church where I met *many nice and welcoming people* who acted like they were all family.
(the rest of this paragraph was talking down to everyone who wasn't Christian)

I've pretty much now become a part of that family, I play guitar for the youth band, I go out with them all the time, I even asked out a girl there (been my girlfriend for a month tomorrow) and I've started going out a lot more with friends from the next town who I never get to see. My life has literally turned from *bad* (come on christian boy SHIT is a bad word!) to good through what I can see are mostly random events which come together to have a great outcome like it was planned by God.

On July 26 2008 05:24 suresh0t wrote:
ha oh snap you are the same kid who wrote the bs that made me so pissed I wrote my own blog...

http://www.teamliquid.net/blogs/viewblog.php?topic_id=65832

so yeah have fun convincing people you aren't on a self righteous path...

Your fleeting happiness, your problems, your sadness your loneliness.

I'm not trying to force anything down anyones throats or undermine anything but please I feel a great love for the lost of the world right now.

how different non Christians were to Christians, and it can't be faked, you can see it in their eyes it's real compassion and love and the likeness of Christ in there.

On July 26 2008 13:18 msadc wrote:
Not looking to argue, but I was hoping someone who actually understands Christianity could answer a simple question for me. PM me if you prefer since this is not really related to the OP.

If God is all powerful and all good, why can't he squish the devil like an ant, end all of the suffering on Earth, and go ahead and send us to eternal salvation in Heaven. Why is he playing this game with us?

I've never heard a real explanation.

On July 26 2008 13:39 msadc wrote:
So God wants some people to suffer eternal damnation? I don't get it.

On July 26 2008 13:46 msadc wrote:
But teachers would get in trouble if they gave out A's to all of their students. God takes orders from no one. Why does God need to play this game with us?

On July 26 2008 13:32 DoctorHelvetica wrote:


The idea is that if he did that we would lose free will, and meaning.

Life is a test to see who is worthy.

On July 26 2008 13:46 msadc wrote:
But teachers would get in trouble if they gave out A's to all of their students. God takes orders from no one. Why does God need to play this game with us?

On July 26 2008 17:28 suresh0t wrote:

so basically god was burned once by humans and he is bitchy about it so now we have to jump through loops.

(and if someone tells me how I am wrong on little parts, they deserve a slap...i was summarizing / dumbing it down)

On July 26 2008 13:50 DoctorHelvetica wrote:


Because he cares about moral worthiness, and as creator of the universe he understands what is important, and life is just the final exam.

*I agree with you, I'm just being devils advocate.

On July 26 2008 17:28 suresh0t wrote:
debating why a fictional god gave us free will shows why you are all fucking idiots, especially if you can't even fucking get the story straight.

god had angels, one angel turned on him and started a revolution blah blah blah, god won sent lucifer to a place without god aka hell.

On July 26 2008 22:23 Chromyne wrote:
I don't see why they would. Summarizing or "dumbing it down" as you put it doesn't excuse error. The new covenant (what Jesus did on the cross) made salvation infinitely easier than before. If there was any "loop" jumping, it was before the covenant where perfection was required (which meant sacrifices for atonement). Because of what Jesus did, we have been brought closer to God so that it isn't necessary anymore. It's literally just asking for it (sincerely of course), and you get it.

On July 25 2008 13:10 naventus wrote:


If God is beyond our understanding, then who are we to say what He deems to be good and bad? Oh wait, without your repressions and dichotomies, then there's no point to Christianity.

I think Kwark's posts were excellent in this thread. The problem with Christianity is that you take all these sorts of different feelings and problems and you try to understand them through this one lens that supposedly solves them.

Have you considered that rather than repressing and masking your fears and anxieties, you might have to deal with them _ALL_ your life? And maybe control your own flaws, instead of turning to some system that tells you that human behavior is WRONG. Maybe human behavior isn's wrong - it's simply that there will always be real pain and suffering - and the way to deal with it is through self mastery and introspection and not some fantasy.

A good example is the point about lust. Who cares about lust? Why feel guilty and repress your feelings? They are there because that's how it is - but just because it's there doesn't mean you should act on it - because it's probably not for your own good (lose a friend, go to jail etc). I don't see any need to justify it morally as well.