With all the turmoil that is going in our country right now, a lot of the issues people have with one another have to do with religion. Many people think that religious people are all the same and vice versa. We all have the same views, political and otherwise, which is far from the truth. I believe that all people have a conscience and the ability to choose right and wrong, so no matter if you are religious or not, or maybe not religious at all, as long as you are making good choices to the betterment of yourself, I believe you are becoming the best person you can possibly be. Now, do I wish that you were part of my church? Heck yes because it brings me a ton of happiness, but I know that everybody finds happiness in different ways.

A lot of time, what I hear from people is that church and religion are entirely too constricting and how you must be crazy to want to live and die there. In my experience, I have never felt greater joy than when I am in a house of worship. All the rules may seem overwhelming if you try to apply them all at once, but the thing is that you get better at them through trial and experience. If we were all born perfect and never had to go through trials and decide whether we really wanted to follow the rules, what would be the point of coming down to earth? If we were not put on Earth with a purpose, something to really work for, then why are we living on the Earth now?

Which brings me to my next point about the positivity of religion. I cannot imagine the world where you work your hardest every single day, and then once you've accomplished all these great and marvelous things you just die and there's nothing left of you, but your memories. Without the hope of a life after death, I honestly would find it impossible to get out of bed in the morning. This hope can also be double sided; if you know that you are making bad decisions the thought of an afterlife may freak you out, but it doesn't have to. We always have the option to work and progress towards our goals because of agency and accountability.

So, I'm not telling you that you have to go and join the nearest church you can find and become a hardcore Christian, but I do believe that religion can be a great comfort in this world. If you are lost and are seeking comfort, I urge you to question where your happiness comes from and to find something that gives you true happiness because happiness is one of the greatest gifts to human beings besides the ability to create life.