At a time when over 7 million people have lost their jobs in the United States the world’s strongest economy, natural disasters like tsunamis and earthquakes are killing thousands around the world, 30,000 children are dying of malnutrition and other hunger-related ailments everyday.
This has millions if not billions of people are questioning their faith in an ultimate being, individuals who are asking, "Where is God?"
Questioning Faith
Many individuals lose their faith in God when they look at the world’s circumstances and see tragedy and injustice. One might ask, "If there is a God, why are so many people suffering?" They seek reasons to follow an all-powerful being or beings, but at times, the reasons are just not there, at least not in the physical world.
Many others however become even more religious during times of hardship as they seek solace in their pain and misery through their faith. During times of great hardship like the Middle Ages in Europe, and after September 11 in the United States, great flocks of individuals reached out to their local churches, parishes, synagogues, mosques, and congregations for some type of meaning and protection.
Nonetheless, some of these same individuals abandon their beliefs when times improved prompting this question: how conditional is ones faith? It's a question that one must ask him/herself and the answer will vary from person to person.
At any stake, faith in something greater than the self, especially in times of hardship, are especially crucial to the human spirit. Even the most hardened atheists would probably agree that for believers, religion gives one hope and becomes a defense mechanism capable of allowing one to reframe ones reality in order to feel better. In general, people with strong faith in God tend to experience less anxiety and depression during times of hardship because of their ability to reframe the situation and find some type of comfort from their beliefs.
Finding God
Finding God is always a personal experience. God is not located in the outer world. God’s spirit inhabits the individual all and it is only by searching within that one will find what he is seeking.
Introspection takes many forms including prayer, meditation, self-analysis and fasting; and if one is to analyze this properly, one would see that all major religions and beliefs have introspective aspects to them. Jesus for example introspected and became closer to God when he spent 40 days and 40 nights alone in the mountains. Siddhartha Gautauma (the Buddha) found enlightenment through meditation. Mohammad searched for God through personal introspection in a cave. And as most Biblical scholars would argue the Burning Bush in the Bible was probably part of Moses’ self-analysis and internal vision of God.
God inhabits believers; and acts through people, not independently from humans. People see God in actions and in the actions of others. One mistake that some people encounter involves to searching for God in the outer world while neglecting to look for the spirit inside of them there to guide them through life. The key to connecting with God is to allow ones self to look within finding a greater sense of purpose and being a vessel of goodwill to others.
So, where is God? God is in the collective unconscious guiding people through life in good times and in times of peril and pain. God is the force that drives one to seek redemption and grow spiritually and morally. He or She lives through thoughts and actions, giving hope and meaning to believers.
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