Growing up, we were sheltered by our parents, most of us being told that Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy exist, but what we weren’t necessarily taught was how to believe in God. Sure, in school or in religion class, wherever you were exposed to the idea, God was known as the creator. In Judaism, God took six days to create the world and rested on the seventh day, Saturday. We were told the story of Moses and his connection to God; how he listened to him and led the suffering Jews out of Egypt. What we weren’t given and were deprived of, was physical evidence that this “force” existed.

What we know from the past is that people wrote and drew pictures at a certain point, supposedly documenting history. People had visions of a God. The people who had visions listened to him. Their belief, for some, dictated everything that they did. From the morning prayer to the foods they ate, to the clothes they wore. For some, reading about those visions and about those scenarios was enough. For others, there was a lot of skepticism.

There are people who strongly believe in God, people who strongly disbelieve in God (atheists), some who are jaded about the topic, and some who think there is something out there but they don’t know exactly what (agnostics). The question is where do you fit in?

Sometimes proof shows itself. There have been moments in my life where things seemed to fit together so perfectly that I had to question it. I have to ask myself, is there something out there creating these situations or is it a coincidence? When bad things consistently happen, I question it again. This time, I ask the common question nonbelievers ask: If there is something out there, why is it putting me through this mess?

So is there a God?

That's really not the actual question here. It is what you are associating with the perception you have of him. Let's say something is happening that is tragic, such as a loved one passing away. Praying is what people say you should do, but the question is what do they mean by praying? If they mean just hoping and asking whatever is or isn’t out there to solve their situation, they are giving you the wrong advice. If they mean to have faith that things will get better, and be positive and that positivity sometimes attracts positivity, then that is good advice.

What shouldn’t happen ever is someone telling you how to handle situations. People grieve and handle situations differently. We must respect each other’s decision to either believe or not, but also respect that everyone has an opinion on a topic which may not be resolved.