Interesting thread. I'll try to keep to the remit.
I once thought of God as some vast unknowable force that was maybe out there somewhere. If he was there was no way of knowing him.
I remember going to a funeral as a child and feeling I was in an alien environment full of some meaning I couldn't grasp. The impressive building and
the ornamentation were actually a bit intimidating, and the vestments of the clergy (Anglican) looked pretty bizarre.
As I grew up God didn't feature in my thinking. The issue just didn't seem relevant to everyday life.
I do remember lying through my teeth to my mother on more than one occasion, swearing I was telling the truth. I couldn't understand why it caused
terrible internal turmoil, but it sometimes got me out of trouble, so I did it anyway.
It was only when I started reading the Gospels that I began to wonder whether God was real. I didn't like it - I was dishonest, violent and used a
constant stream of filthy language (when my parents weren't around). But the more I read, the more I felt pushed into a corner.
It took about three years of studying the Scriptures before I was so convinced I decided to follow Christ for the rest of my life, come what may.
Trusting God's promise of forgiveness through the Cross brought me peace in my conscience like I never knew was possible.
I'd like to say something about reliance on reason. It can only take you so far. People who saw Christ heal paralysis, blindness from birth,
deafness, etc. with a word could never have figured out what they had just seen in terms of reason. It happened; they were totally dumbfounded. Even
his enemies couldn't deny it. His most wicked enemies even tried to ascribe his power to evil forces.
An affront to reason? Maybe. But deep down I have come to this conviction: just because I can't understand something doesn't mean it isn't true.
And anyway, if there is a Being who designed and made our universe, miracles are peanuts. If he chose at some points in history to speak to certain
people and even to come in person as a Man, the content of his messages and the deeds he performed would likely be mind-blowing. Hey, he'd probably
even be able to concquer death...
It's reasonable after all!