What do you believe in?

So, I know most of you are probably LDS and that you believe in God..and that's cool. I think it's cool to hear what others believe and why- so if you're reading this, send your thoughts my way. You can e-mail me at jdecker2000@gmail.com or post a comment. You don't have to tell me who you are or anything, no worries.

Today someone asked me to tell them about my higher power (someone at the Horizon House where I went to rehab). I was kind of shocked. I mean, I donno why they would wanna know what I believe. I do believe. I guess it's just different to believe in a higher power than to actually sit down and define what my higher power is to me. But I did it.

I am not religious, nor do I wish to be. I believe that spirituality is what I need and that I can have a great relationship with my higher power regardless of having a religion or not. Before I went to Horizon House I hated God. I hated everything about the idea of God. To put it nicely, I had a lot of resentments toward the God I grew up believing in. I was taught that I had to be a certain person in order to be saved and to be loved. I didn't fit the mold and I was told I was going to hell. I had a lot of guilt and shame for being me.

I still don't really know exactly what to believe or what I think, but I know that I am loved and that I am a good person. I know that I don't have to fit a mold to be "saved". The God I believe in is understanding, patient, loving, kind, and accepting. I choose to call my God, HP (higher power). I  still can't let go completely of all the things I feel about the God I was raised with, so to avoid connecting the two, I have two separate names for them even though I believe it is the same God I was raised with...my perception and knowledge has just shifted.

I believe that above all, God wants me to be happy and successful. I believe that God wants that for all of us. No matter what our religious views, gender, social class, sexuality, race, ethnicity, etc. My God is love. Unconditional love. How awesome is that? I think it's pretty awesome.

So tell me...what do you believe? What's your HP?