I Don't Believe in God

I don’t believe in god. Not one god or multiple gods. No god. I did believe in god growing up. I don’t really know when things changed- probably sometime in the last five years or so. I’ve migrated from a believer to an agnostic to an atheist, and I’m okay with that. The problem I have is that other people are not okay with that. I rarely have discussions about god with anyone other than my husband because I’m fearful of the looks, judgment, and criticism from others.

Here’s the deal, people are not all the same. Some people have beliefs different from others, and that’s okay. I believe in the love of my family. They are the most important things to me. When I search for happiness, peace, love, truth, I look into the faces of my sweet boys and my loving husband. I don’t need more than that. I don’t need to believe in anything more than my family. I don’t feel as if I have less in my life or like I’m missing something. I’m doing fine.

I don’t have issues with people who do believe in god. Most of my family and many of my friends believe and are very active in their churches. My son goes to preschool at the Methodist Church and played Joseph’s donkey in the Christmas pageant. They have chapel every week and sing songs like “Jesus Loves Me.” That doesn’t bother me. I would never think it was my place to tell these friends and family members what they believe is wrong. That’s not my job. Yet I was recently told by a family member that my beliefs don’t count because I don’t believe in god.

I’ve also been told by people that they feel sorry for my children because they will not be raised in a home where we believe in god. Please do not feel sorry for my children. We are busting our butts to raise good kids. It is paramount to us that they grow up to be loving, caring, thoughtful, and respectful human beings. For us, this has nothing to do with religion but our job as people who live on this earth. I know we’re pretty early in the parenting game, but according to most people who meet our kids, we’re doing a pretty good job so far.

We’re a pretty happy family. And my hope is that you are happy with your family and friends and your beliefs, no matter what they may be. I will not judge others for their beliefs. Please do not judge me because I do not share yours.