I need faith guidance

You can ask me anything. I have had some that have asked me to mentor them, and I have. I am not a denomination or religion. Religion is man-made philosophy and has nothing to do with salvation. I am a follower of Christ and have a personal relationship with him. I will not try to sway you to a certain denomination. It's not about that. It is about a personal relationship with Jesus and he has never left you. It is always us that moves away from him, while all the time he is always waiting for us to come back to him. It only takes a prayer and talking with Jesus, our friend. Religion doesn't save us and it did not die on the cross for our sins. Jesus did. He did not die for any certain religion or denomination. He died to save us from the condemnation sin placed on us. His offer of Salvation is free for all, not just some. John 3:16 and 17. It sounds like you love Jesus and if you do, then your relationship with him has not been severed. Only your fellowship has been interrupted for a while.

He doesn't hold grudges and he misses us when we're troubled and have gone our own way, but he is always waiting for us to come back, with open arms. There's no mystery to it. All you have to say is, "Jesus, I'm back." He knows us better than anyone and when we repent, he is eager to forgive us and welcome us back into His family. Nothing can ever separate us from the love of God. Talk to him as you would any good and trusted friend. Ask him for guidance and he will give it to you. He will give you the answers you seek but the best place to find answers if you have no one to talk to and even if you do for that matter, is always in God's Word. He and His Word, never lead us astray.

You don’t mention what denomination you were/are, which got me a little curious. It’s not relevant to your question, but yeah it got me a little curious.

I’m Greek Orthodox and our denomination is very closely aligned with Judaism in many ways. I feel that all Christian denominations are aligned with Judaism (Christ was a Jew after all) but many distance themselves because of ideas such as “The Jewish religion rejected Jesus as the promised Messiah. So thinking of going down that pit would be just another blunder into darkness.”

A pit? A blunder into darkness? Seriously? Without Judaism there would be no Christianity in the first place. In fact, it’s unlikely that there would be any monotheistic faiths.

But I digress.

When I was in my mid-teens, I had a similar conflict with the religion that I grew up in. I found some of the attitudes to be racist and began to distance myself from it more and more. Later, I found that it wasn’t the Church itself that was racist (the various clergymen didn’t preach anything that was even remotely racist), it was more the community.

I tackled this topic with my mother. Her response:

“You have to understand that all of us came here (we had migrated to the UK) from small towns and villages where we never met, never even saw, a black person. On top of that, as children we were warned that if we did something naughty, the black man would get us. Now we’re here and it’s a shock, it’s unfamiliar, it’s scary. But we learn, we move forward, we get better.”

I think that’s the thing, put yourself in a position where you can learn, move forward and be better. Read about whatever religions pique your interest. Explore further those that hold that interest and put to the side those don’t. If possible, visit their respective places of worship and talk to both the congregation and the clergy.

You may find that the sense of community that you seem to be looking for will come from somewhere new or, as in my case, you end up right where you started………..but with a fuller understanding and perspective.

As for a relationship with God that, to me, is purely personal. As is faith in general. I strongly believe that faith, a relationship with God, MUST come from within. Anybody can be persuaded to follow a certain religion and anybody can persuade others to follow any given religion BUT, true faith comes from within. And that’s where a relationship with God must come from.

I wish you well.

[quote]We have independent financial advisors, independent contract negotiators, but where do I go for independent faith advice?

So, to explain my problem, a little bit of background.....

I am an inactive Christian. I have not prayed since my father died. When I told my ex bishop that my father had passed, I got a 5 word text..

Sorry to hear that Prof

And then nothing else. [c=4C0073][u]So I expressed my displeasure with my saviour by withholding my prayers. And so the separation began[/u][/c].[/quote]

Thats mind boggling to me.. That someone who believed in the LORD Jesus would allow dissapointment caused by an interaction with another human being to lead them to shun their relationship with The LORD...

Question did you believe in Jesus or did you believe in the proffesional religous human establishment in this case the human ""Bishop"" ??

[quote]But I do miss my relationship with God, but I am not sure if the denomination I chose was correct. [/quote]

READ the Bible.. READ the Gospel and the letters of the Apostles and if you believe the LORD and trust in His Atonement that He secured on the cross you will have ZERO need to even be a member of a denomination.. loet along bare the burden of finding one that is Correct..

[quote]
I identify as a Christian, but I do believe my (ex) church has a lot in common with Judaism, should I find a Rabbi to speak with?[/quote]

The Jewish religion rejected Jesus as the promised Messiah.. So thinking of going down that pit would be just another blunder into darkness.. Again READ The WORD of God and you will be standing on solid ground not going from one leaven laced religon to another..

[quote]
Where can I go to have a completely open discussion about faith, without the bias of a particular denomination? [/quote]

It's called Reading the WORD of God and Praying to the LORD for guidance / wisdom.. Discuss your lack of understanding with God directly.. He is well able to make you wise.. Well able to give you dreams.. Well able to give you visions if nessecary.. Well able to place a true adopted Child of Christ in your Way to share with you a pearl of understanding from time to time..

I guess what I am looking for is more the relationship with God. The congregation is secondary, but would be nice.

The church where I was, felt almost right, because the prayers were to God. And I had a friend there who was also my mentor. Unfortunately I moved area, during COVID, and then my father passed away. So I could not go to the new church and the old one seemed to forget me when I moved area.

As a result, (out of spite or anger) I did not contact my friend, and now a couple of years have passed, it is hard for me to pick the phone up and speak to him. At the same time, although I agree with many of the church principles, I have a problem with some quite fundamental principles, and that would make the conversation very difficult indeed. The reason for me joining the church was because the elders who first made contact with me could explain almost everything I asked, if they did not know, they did find out the answers. But I had to accept some things that I had, and still have difficulty accepting. But the people who are supposed to help me are so young, without the experience of either the world or life that I have, and typically have been brought up in church families.... So the idea of a frank and open discussion becomes harder.....

As I said at the beginning, we have independent financial advisors to give advice on money, but nowhere is there an independent spiritual mentor....

Most religion does not accept animals have a soul, but I owe my life to the actions of my dogs... So therefore should I look at Buddhism, because no being could behave like they did without a soul?.... Or because of the personal relationship with God, should I look a Judaism? But because my parents were Methodist even though I went a different path, and I have enough personal proof to the existence of a historical Jesus, do I accept his divinity and reconnect with a Christian faith?

I just wish I could find even a personal signpost...

You can live stream church. My church does that, as I'm out of the country, I can still "attend" the church service and get the teachings. Read the scriptures for yourself.... Prayer is about talking to God, He is your "Abba", your Father. He didn't move, you did. He's waiting for you, like the father in the prodigal son.

The church is where we find fellowship with other believer's, there to encourage our walk, come along side, but your relationship with God is still up to you. Spend time with Him, sit quietly, let Him speak to your heart.... He's waiting to hear from you.

Sounds like you don't have a problem with God or Jesus but his followers. Just make your own denomination. Do your spirituality by yourself but only go to churches for the socialization. It's dumbfounding that when you are part of one of the over 45,000 denominations you are supposed to swallow it all hook, line and sinker. That's not how real life works.
But if your belief is close to Judaism go for talking to a Rabbi. Judaism seems like it has a more interesting and holistic approach to spirituality imo. Also study. Study other religions, other denominations, Study anything you can. It can only help you. But in the end religion is NOT a one size fits all. Every person has their own religion that is tailor made to them. That imo is much more Godlike than trying to force everyone to believe the same way and shoehorning them to fit or burn.

Your FAITH is all about your PERSONAL relationship with God. God is your loving Father. He will always forgive you, and He will be [i]thrilled [/i] if you begin daily conversations with Him. Start with that, and then PRAY about which church or temple to attend. God will answer you...even if it's just with a warm feeling. Roadblocks will appear in your path if you make the wrong decision.

A few years ago I left my church due to disagreements regarding denominational beliefs. While I still struggle with my faith (which I believe is human nature for believers), I have come to realize that denominations are man-made, not God-made. A Christian is just a Christian. When a person starts identifying themselves by their denomination, they are taking Christ out of the equation.

Personally, I recognize the Old Testament as the old covenant and prophecy of Christ. The most important parts of the New Testament are the red letters. And everything after Christs resurrection are just fallible men writing encouragement about the times they live in.

That's a tough one, especially if you expect to find any denomination or congregation in which you can wholeheartedly accept every single belief. That is hard for a thinking person to do. I love my denomination and my congregation, but there are some quite orthodox beliefs that I still question. That's okay, because Jesus almost never (if ever) talked about what we are supposed to believe. He said, "Follow me," and that's what is most important. I realize I am a bit of a heretic. You might look for a non-evangelical denomination that permits individual thought and not blind allegiance.

"Therefore, if there are fish that would swim or birds that would fly only after investigating the entire ocean or sky, they would find neither path nor place. When we make this very place our own, our practice becomes the actualization of reality" (Dogen, lines from "Genjokoan")

It is our "life koan" to find our own authentic path, time and place. The journey is home.

May true Dharma continue. No blame. Be kind. Love everything.

Keep seeking a personal relationship with God...knock and the door will open.

Matthew 7:7-8

If you need to talk you can always text me.