What image of God do you hold in your mind and heart in our spiritual journeys, we often form assumptions about the nature of God, based on our upbringing, religious teachings, and personal experiences. What if some of these bleeds are faults or incomplete?
Many of us hold misconceptions about God, based on our upbringing, cultural influences, and personal experiences. These fall through include images of God can impact our lives.
Some of the common misconceptions about God I have had in my life include:
- God punishes: many people with that God punishes us for our mistakes or sins. This punitive view of God was harmful and hindered my spiritual growth.
- God was distant: some people perceive God as being far away and uninvolved in our lives. This can lead to feelings and loneliness and abandonment.
- God was a rigid rule maker: Other see God as a stripped enforcer of rules and regulations. This legalistic view God can relate to fear and a sense of unworthiness.
When reflecting on our child who upbringing and how it influence, our spiritual perceptions, it is important to consider the images of God that we may have been exposed to. these images, with accurate or not can shape our believes and understandings.
Some have been taught to see God as a harsh judge, ready to punish any wrongdoing. This can lead to feelings of fear and unworthiness.
Others have been raised to God as detached from human affairs, creating a sense of abandonment and loneliness in our relationship with God.
Believing that God‘s love and acceptance are contingent upon our behaviors or beliefs than can lead to a performance based spirituality. Where we must constantly strive for approval.
When we recognize and challenge these false images, we have of God we can begin to cultivate a more authentic understanding of who God is.
Is process of deconstruction and reconstruction our spiritual, we can lead to a deeper connection and true nature of God, as loving, compassionate, and ever present in our lives.
From Pity to Praise 