Let me start by saying I have never been a religious person. I am 21 years old and I had never had a doubt in my mind that "God" didn't exist. I am a person of reason and proof. In my mind God was a person made up so that people would feel secure about all the unexplained happenings in this thing called life. A person who could be the answer to every problem or question like, "How did we get here?" An fictional character like the "boogeyman" and "easter bunny". Lately, however I have been entertaining this idea that there is honestly something bigger than ourselves in life. Some force or energy. I really can't put it into words. I hate labels but religion seems to be all about grouping and that label pins you to be this certain "group". I'm not sure what I believe in but I am at a point in my life where it would almost be a comfort to believe in something. Yet comfort isn't worth conforming to something I am not. I just feel lost. I would appreciate any advice you can offer me as well as some insight on different religions and they're beliefs.

I think you've already found your 'religion' as it were :)
Trust me, when the Pope goes to sleep at night he is as full of doubt as anyone else.

This may not help, but here's a couple of things worth pondering:

#The existence of the Universe is impossible.
#Nothing's Impossible.
#The point at which something or someone becomes 'alive' or 'dead' cannot be defined.
#Nothing exists without consciousness.
#Your own existence is impossible.


What I'm driving at is even though the 'greyness' and mundanity of the world seems invincible, there is every reason to believe that there is something more.
If you were to ask me what that 'something more' is, I'd say that everything that ever happens is by your own design and that everything you want will come to you.


A lot of people don't think about this stuff at all - a response I often read is "you die and that's it".. Which sounds simple and logical, but apart from the fact that they are totally ignorant of the implications of that statement, there is absolutely no evidence that it is true.

As bluerose, on this site, would say (sorry if I misquote you blue): God is a power you can find inside of you.
Stevie,
You are not at all alone in your feelings. Here is what I think:
You don't have to "conform" or go to a man-made building to find this power we all call "God". The truest God is the one you are feeling right now. If you can feel that "greater power" you can also feel that He or It is GOOD. That is important to know. God is good. God is not just something to explain the unexplainable, but also a source of strength, support, comfort, love, belonging and acceptance. You don't have to feel lost. Look within (yes, cheesy but true). You will find Him. The more you get to know this greater power, the more you start seeing Him(or it) all around you and in others.
You don't have to "conform" or belong to a specific religion because God is God everywhere and in everything... the same power that all those who believe feel together.

I wish you all the best in this very important journey that you are on.

You are not alone by any means, you are a seeker. You just have not found your "home" but you will if you keep seeking.

I agree with everything everyone has said but I also wanted to add that at your age it is perfectly normal to be looking with-in and with-out yourself to find answers to many of life questions. At your age I called myself an Atheist (didn't believe in God or higher power), a few years later I was an Agnostic (thought SOMETHING was there but not sure if I would call it God or Earth Force). More years later I felt like something was missing in my life and didn't know what it was so I experimented with hanging out with different groups of people, Christians, Muslims, Buddists, Wiccan and like you I didn't like the titles, but more than that I didn't like that they all seemed to have these ritualist ceremonies that in my mind could be chalked up to superstition. Finally, after years of being a "seeker" like someone else mentioned in an answer, I finally found for myself what I felt is my personal true path (I won't say what my faith is here because that's irrelevant to YOUR journey other than that it wasn't any of the major groups I hung out with). You have to investigate for yourself what is "truth", whether it makes sense in the scheme of things in the world to you. Just know this... you will meet wonderful people who believe wonderful things and terrible people who believe terrible things. But you can't put your faith in the BELIEVERS because we will always fall short. Find out why something or someone is believed to be a higher power and put your faith in He or She or It. Good trees NEVER produce bad fruit, so beware of cults that say someone is "The Way" but has committed crimes or adultery or other things DURING their ministry or worse yet tells you that to kill yourself or others will lead you to salvation. Finally, don't JUST listen to your heart (it means well but has been known to fail us.. my heart had me get married to 2 people who abused me in one way or another)... listen to your GUT, it seldom lies!

Good luck on your journey and Have fun on the way!