Ep3 | Is There More To Life Than Just Us? (Ft Simon S)

It's a case of either seeking religion or a relationship. The two are different. I would always say to people I'm spiritual. I have a relationship with God. I don't follow religion. What I have with the Lord is a relationship and That's something obviously with relationships you build upon You can't say oh, I know my friend if you haven't spent time with that person What's going on everybody?

I hope you are doing well Welcome to talking to my thoughts where we have open honest and raw conversations about Well our thoughts The topics will range from anxiety life goals relationship kids money work Everything that runs through our head so you know the possibilities are going to be endless.

So let's get straight into it You're here with Craig Yeah, you're here with Simon Simon number two this time because you've got another Simon so SJ And you're here with Simon Sandifed aka Simon says travel and retire So, let's get straight into this We are actually going to be talking about our relationship with God Firstly, what is good the definition on Wikipedia?

God is conceived of as the supreme being Creator deity and the principal object of faith. God is usually conceived as being omnis omni omniscent This is all-knowing omni potent, which is all-powerful and omni present, which is obviously all present So really there's no time to waste.

Let's just really get into this kind of topic I guess I'll start My relationship with God now To give a bit more context to people I am Catholic.

I don't actually practice the religion Yeah, I just don't practice the religion and I do very much believe in God all my life If anything I've believed in God more in the past year and a half than ever before I don't I can't explain why I can't explain scientifically I just believe that is something that is above human beings and man and something must have created all the stuff that we have around us and Yeah, I'm not gonna take it over too much I thought that let me just give my quick description and context about myself as to what my take on God and religion Oh Yes, so obviously we'll kind of delve into our Thoughts and our thought process for our recording, but just a quick thing from me.

I don't really consider myself to be quite religious So my Relationship with God is a little bit more complicated but I guess more so is it stems from obviously my upbringing and then How I decided to follow in in my faith and Yeah, so it's more so It's a little bit more personal, I guess and I said as I said, we'll kind of delve into a little bit more about my experience But obviously we've got Simon here as well So I want you to tell us that kind of your relationship with God on why we've obviously Brought you on to our podcast for this particular topic Yeah, sure thing.

So Similarly like Craig I grew up Catholic Did the whole nine yards baptism For the first Holy Communion confirmation Attended mass I went to a Roman Catholic secondary school with these guys and then I think it got to the age of 16 where I Realized I wasn't getting anything out of attending mass on a Sunday and it was nice because I suppose by the time I got to 11 I Built up that independence of okay I'm gonna still go to mass without my parents with my friends to I suppose reverence God But it got to a place where I didn't matter how Late I got into the service or mass.

I knew exactly what was happening. And so it became a routine It became something that I just did on a Sunday and I realized I'm not getting to know God anymore I'm not growing and I didn't really see the purpose.

So I fell away for about four or five years and Then he he called me back literally by what final year of uni and then that's when I made that decision to give my life to Christ and That was what eight years ago and since then I haven't looked back and it's just been a case of me doing life But doing it with God And as you can imagine, it's I suppose it's somewhat different to the average person in this world where They may have a relationship with God but they may not make God there be in all and they may not do things by the Book, so yeah, that's where I'm at.

I Quite like the the line Do life with God.

I was like that to me that resonated with me and I know for you literally giving up your life to God and Kind of gone to different kind of path of your religion and it's still religious to you really actually So that is actually the strong parts on me and Simon Religion and God is separate like separation to us, but religion and God is combined which is why it's key to have you here But I do believe in the fact of me taking the steps of life with God You will get in we'll get into my voice recording but honestly is the case where When you can park your ego of what you think you can do You realize how much you cannot do and you think well who's been doing it the whole time and you're like Be honest and say that must have been him, you know, but you know what?

I won't even give away too much about my own force.

I will you should just let you listen to it for yourself So as you know on this podcast, we literally are listening to our thoughts and we are playing voice recordings that we've Had personally you'll have me and Simon give hours And You will literally hear our thoughts in its rawest form speaking to ourselves and kind of played out to everybody else and Oh, you'll get into it now Evening God.

I Just wanted to say Thank you, ma'am. I swear. Thank you for my health Thank you for my health my energy Like my strength over the last few weeks months years my entire life. Thank you thank you for my parents like they're about to leave me on Sunday going back to St.

Lucia, but Like for their health the good spirits Like I'm really grateful for what you've done If I was gonna reflect on like this year and what you've done for me this year I guess all I asked of you this year was please provide me with more opportunities to love and care for people and Yes, been a crazy year It really has of ups and downs but you Never faltered on giving me those opportunities to love and care for people more Because I felt I just didn't have that connection of people from being a groomsman Helping to live a great marriage for my boy Having a great carnival Having a great year in general and Then being able to save some of my friends Being able to support some of my friends Coming a godfather twice It's really been a powerful year Really happy that I got to I guess, you know backseat my ego because you know That ego has always been up in the way thinking I know everything and yeah, it's been a great life before that But I think I was always limiting myself as to what I could possibly achieve or become Because I felt I had to be in control When I let you take control That's when things really started to happen when I Stopped believing them in my own power, but believed in you as my source of the power It was limitless When I want to do things I'm always thinking like right How am I gonna do this with this much time and this much energy and then I'm gonna fit it in and Where's I just have a lack of resources when I'm thinking about myself But when I'm thinking from you Like what is it that you can't do?

Honestly, so I'm just gonna tell you. Thank you Every single day. Thank you. I love you for the stuff that you've done I love that you've been able to help me find love with other people for my friends and my family.

I've been able to grow proper connections with them Things I didn't imagine I could possibly have I didn't ever really had it before but I guess never prayed for it So I really thank you for being able to support me of that this year Thank you for all the people that you brought into my life.

These are people that I could honestly say I would trust with my life And I always said, oh, yeah, I believe in God And I think I always think about God. I've always think always you and it's me That's what I really think about but God you are literally everywhere You have been trying to pour blessings and pour into me through other people through other scenarios for other environments And that's why I miss mistook.

It's not just me and you It's actually me and everybody With you inside of every one of those things people Everywhere so I really thank you for being there for me. I'm gonna start all the way through. It's been a great life It's been a good life. I should say But now that you've been able to make me Discover and see people better.

It's gonna be a great life because life is just worth sharing I'm just gonna tell you thank you man Thank you for being there for me all the way through. I've got so much more to do Blessings So what your thoughts man Wow, I Loved it. It was just so real authentic everything this show stands for and I suppose in your Dialogue to God It's nice.

It's funny and nice because I could literally hear his words through God's words though when I say that food Craig's I suppose, you know delivery of his thoughts so many scriptures were just Coming out from the surface and just flashing before my eyes as he was talking I was like, yeah, I can see in this. Yeah, this is exactly where Craig's like.

Yeah, I can see why Lord Craig's in a position is or why this has happened. And yes, this is truly a testament of your the good news so yeah, I think it's amazing and I feel like This is the type of dialogue that we need to be having with him and first and foremost. He came with humility There's a scripture.

Well, God's Word basically says that he gives grace to the humble and he resists the proud So the moment you beat your ego and leave at the door and your Lord take me as I am. I'm not perfect I don't know. I'm not the smartest. I'm not buffers. I'm not the wealthiest. I'm just literally here as You've created me.

Thank you for everything you've done for me I'm not Superman and the moment you can put your ego at the doorstep and you say Lord here I am that's when he embraces us and he literally just showers his blessings and his love and More or less he's created us to worship him He's created us to be in a position just to thank him It literally says continue to give thanks to him and that could be a form of prayer So you just saying thank you for waking me up.

Thank you for my parents. Thank you for having my boys around me Thank you for allowing me to be a strength in a pillar to my my loved ones. Thank you for this job Thank you for the you know, the crepes. I've got my feet.

Thank you for being able to put food on the table Thank you for allowing me to catch a bus the littlest thing Thank you for allowing me to find my phone Like it doesn't matter what you're thanking him for the fact is you realize it wasn't by your own efforts or by your own strength Or by your own doing that anything happened and it was because of God the moment you pass that back to him He wants to open up the whole we know verse for him.

It's he's a loving father in the day The moment your child does something for you something that's good and pleasing in your eyes of course you want to give them the word of course you want to give them that reward because They've as opposed to humble themselves, they've acknowledged that you are, you know their provider you're their superhero and So for me, that's what I saw and I saw his humility. I saw he's great.

I chew his thankfulness and I saw that In his thoughts. He's more or less mapped out what's happened.

What's Currently happened and what's going to happen and that's kind of how God is God is obviously Constant he's one thing that doesn't change he's the same yesterday today and tomorrow So if you're going to be in a place five years from now and you have everything you want If you can still have that same heart that Craig has from this moment forth from that force and say thank you God for here I am now.

Thank you for this girlfriend. Thank you for this wife or thank you for this new house Thank you for this new contract. Thank you for allowing me to fly out to this place with my family. He'd be like wow like youth For you recognize that I'm doing all of this the Craig five years ago.

Yeah recognize because he wasn't ready He was he was at the lower ends of the slope Now you're at the summit you're looking at everything that I've created and you're like, oh, wow. Thank you God I I know this wasn't me. Yeah, I'm obviously, you know a role model or figure or icon in so many people's eyes and Hearts, but you realize that it's actually by my doing that any of this happens for me.

That's obviously a Key example of having a good relationship with God Having I suppose that Partnership. It's a partnership.

It's a case of knowing that he's created you he will provide for you He will never leave forsake you but you just have to do your part And one of those parts is being thankful and grateful and giving your burdens your anxiety your stress your worries your fears Your prayer requests your needs and desires to him and he'll go out to work for you He's always working behind the scene.

There's a the same that are if the idle hands give work for the devil Same with God God's in a situation where he's always working as much as Satan's working God is working even more.

You know, I mean, he's like ten steps ahead of Satan So if you're gonna constantly go to God cause like don't I've got this from like even before I formed you and your mother's room You know, there was like I know every hair on your head.

So, of course, I've got discovered for you for 2020 21 Yeah, 20 20 30 like he's he's he's so strategic like that and organized it's amazing But as long as you do your part and that's coming to him constantly Isn't just oh, yeah once life is good or oh, yeah when something's really bad happened or someone's you know in a critical situation Or you're broken you need money. How am I gonna get them to work?

You need to be that Consistent like in all areas of your life. So for me that was touching like I loved it It reminds me of how my conversations are with him in the sense of yes, I'm grateful. I'm thankful I may not have everything I want right now, but I know you're doing more.

So yeah I'm gonna ask a question actually before we jump into mine Obviously The topic we're talking about is relationship with God and obviously I guess we all or everyone will have their own different relationship with him Yeah, obviously your relationship will be different to my relationship But how important is it to have a relationship with him in the first place because not everybody does For me as I As you go for stuff like being anxious Finding ways that you can do things in the world and kind of interject in the world and how do you help people etc?

again We are lacking resources like we our time is not infinite our energy is not infinite our Ability is not infinite. There's a lot of things we don't know and when we were kids, we were fine with that We were fine with just what we want more time to play But actually we were fine with not knowing we were happy to just keep learning keep doing more Do you do more as you get older you a lot of pressures under you?

On top of you even and being like I can't do this and I can't do this and I can't do this So the choice is do you just believe you don't have the power and not have hope or do you believe actually?

If I look back further enough, there's a lot of things I never knew how to do there's a lot of things I didn't I thought I was impossible So right now I'm telling myself that it's impossible because I don't have the power to but it was impossible back then So who was doing it for me then so to me? That's when I reconnect back to God and be like actually there is something more than me.

There's something beyond me There's some things that just align know when you think it's a coincidence or I got that job because I was lucky You know when stuff like that actually how lucky are you what work was put behind behind that luck?

What work was put behind that that that situation you ended up in what work was put behind that door that open for you yeah, and honestly, I I don't know how some people kind of who don't believe in God or an energy or something beyond themselves go through life because It must be hard to just think that it's only you and it's only you that are doing everything because that's a lot of pressure Like how could you they say that you can change the world once you can change your mind But actually is it you changing the world or is it just you just believe in something is gonna happen beyond me And I'm just gonna tell somebody out there or tell them put energy out there I want this and it's gonna come to me so I think to me the relationship with God is really important for me to move on in my life because If I kept thinking it was only me Maybe I wouldn't even think about going on any further because it's just gonna be a bit too difficult It's too much.

It's too many variables to figure out. We're trying to be healthy trying to be social which I'm be Reading our books knowledgeable get on top of work get on top of money have kids relationship This the list goes on. Mm-hmm. No way you can align all those things at once It's you you only have 25 hours in the day.

Yeah, there must be something beyond you guys aligning these things for you as well So that's how I get on with my life and that's my belief and that's how I keep my hope and faith But I just believe if I can't if I can't see it, it doesn't mean it's not impossible It's not possible So something is gonna happen and it's gonna make it possible to make my life because we was never brought into this world To live miserably So if my mind is telling me that you're supposed to live miserably It's already lying to me because I know things are not that's not how we was brought into this world We never was never meant for that.

That's how I asked my thoughts at least. Okay.

All right, let's jump into mine and then we can Follow up with a discussion It's weird because when you stop when you don't talk about certain things trying to get it out In a way that makes sense is difficult and So for me I very rarely if in any circumstance talk about My faith, I guess or my relationship with God if you can call it that because for me I I grew up in a household where We was raised to go to church.

I went to a Catholic school And my upbringing was around that faith And I guess like many other people Once you get to a certain age where you're able to question certain things That's when you become a little bit skeptical about certain things and Your relationship and your faith kind of shifts in a in a different kind of way So More so from my point of view.

I wouldn't say I'm an overly Religious person if a religious person at all to be fair.

I wouldn't say I believe in religion but I Do have a faith and I tried to be Spiritual and positive and Believe in in certain things like Obviously an energy or again the powers that be or There's there's more I believe there's more to the world than what we currently are experiencing and seeing and feeling and there's more to it than that and As I said, I'm not a religious person. I don't go to church anymore.

I I Pray now and again But it's not something that consumes consumes my life.

I just try and live my life as best as I can and Yeah, try and try and stay as faithful as possible But I have to be honest my relationship with God isn't strong or as strong as I guess it would be and that's something maybe to question just because of a lot of things that I've I've taken the time to look into myself and There's just certain things for me that Don't always add up.

So it's like I can't really give my all to something which I question And that's just how I feel. That's interesting.

I think Simon Was your was your aka again I was your alias Simon says travel and retire Simon says or SD which everyone is the so basically Simon would probably remember I had a conversation with him I think Denzel's as well when we had conversations about That God and why should we believe in God or the whole faith and religion stuff that and Simon probably knows I I often challenged kind of the same way that you may challenge and I can honestly say in that time when I'm challenging him or challenging the religion because there's some things that Simon honestly Couldn't couldn't actually he didn't push faith in my in my in my he didn't push religion in my face He didn't push his religion on me, but he answered as much as possible But at the end of the day when there were certain questions, I just he couldn't answer he wouldn't crumble He would just be like she's got faith.

I knew a lot of white and I'm like I'm laughing I'm trying to get some answers Trying to get some answers I am you can see I'm desperate but But honestly that part where you just let go and The reason why I say let go and I use that word and the reason why it was so important for me to talk About ego at the beginning is because it is your ego that makes you believe you need to know everything It's not in it's in could I tell it could anybody in this world say that they know everything and it's impossible But yet still we try to all the time every single day.

So if it's impossible to know everything But you're still trying to figure out everything or somebody that you believe is beyond even us in human form or understanding Will you ever gain all the answers you ever once now? Yes, there's so much media and information out there, but actually there's a part of you to actually just realize You know what? It doesn't matter about what the media is saying. How do I feel?

Do I believe there is a God and do I believe there's something beyond me if I do? Yes, put yourself into it And it doesn't have to be in a religious form.

It doesn't have to be like I'm not religious I use the Bible as ways to kind of gain pieces of stories But a lot of my time with God is actually spent in writing Speaking to myself if I believe that God is inside of me I speak into myself and pray in Obstant praying for things that I am thankful for want or want to pray for other people because I believe that when Somebody's halfway across the world and something's really bad happening to them.

What else do I have but prayer? It's not playing ticket and what my presence I'm limited and that's what I'm saying So that belief that you when you when we if you have that belief that you when you pray you're praying to somebody Hang on to that and just keep that don't let the world Or your ego convince you into thinking.

I've got no it all so when you said about Like I like there's so many questions and stuff like that I would in my opinion of what I would say to you as you said Maybe you should keep questioning and then maybe you come to a point where you actually realize raw Everything is just telling me. Hey, bro. Hey, and you're like, all right.

I think for me I'm quite Obviously, I totally get and that kind of opens up my eyes a little bit to saying look You're never gonna understand everything that happens in the world. You're never gonna know everything and That's why it is called faith.

You have to just get to a point where it's like, okay I'm not gonna know the answer, but I just believe in this and For me, it's like even though okay, I may not know the answer I'm just still seeking something that makes sense So it may not be an answer that I'm necessarily looking for but at least if there's something in there which again Resonates or just is just like okay cool, and I don't think I've got to that point where I'm just open to be like, okay cool I don't know the answer.

I'm never gonna know answer. So just screw it faith in it Yeah, I haven't got to that point. Yeah So for me, I'm still in that questioning stage and more so as I said when I was talking about it, is this not I'm still quite spiritual, but I'm not religious because I feel that religion is quite a different thing. I Agree. I was just gonna say that for me. I Would challenge everyone listening to this?

It's a case of Either seeking religion or a relationship the two are different I would always say to people I'm Spiritual I have a relationship with God. I don't follow religion Christianity.

Yeah people form it as or demon as a religion What I have with the Lord is a relationship and that's something obviously with relationships you build upon You can't say oh, I know my friend if you haven't spent time with that person How's that person your friend if you haven't spent any like for example I could be literally have someone behind the store Denzel could be behind the store talking I don't have to look or even check this know It's Denzel behind the door because I have a relationship with him.

I've spent enough time to know his voice That's the same with God if we spend enough time, you know, he's character, you know, when a situation has God written all over it Whereas people in religion, it's just systematic. It's routine. It's like yes. Amen.

Hey, amen And you can't you don't not saying people can't grow from it but you don't get anything you don't get to know who God really is and One thing I realize is in relationship or in religion.

You don't discover who you are I believe obviously the Lord is a creator of heaven and earth, but more importantly is the creator of us He's made us and if we want to know who we are and why we've been put here We need to have a relationship with him. It's like yo Lord Depending on how you want to talk to him. God.

What did you make me for make me for and I'm gonna say that's an overnight thing You're not gonna wake up one morning Eureka. I've got it that could take four years.

Like we have Evidence in the Bible to see Moses Moses was 40 when he left Egypt to go and do his own thing with the Midians He was another it spent another four years raising his family living his best life to God called him God called him a most people are done by 65, but they're giving us for a time in at 65 And you got what 10 15 years suspended he was 80 to the point God called him said yo This is why I've called you now.

You're gonna go be the leader of these people and he's thinking what? He had to wait eight years for some people had to wait 20 some people had to wait 40 years some people had to wait two years Some people could discover who God is today and just explode and write and realize this is why I've been called to do With what Simon said love it because that's literally is it's a journey He's not at that place way.

He has that relationship or he knows or believes in God and God Accepts that God is as I said, he's constant. He's the same today. Yes in Tomorrow, but he's everlasting. He knows that okay. Yeah, you've got 76 years on earth He knows I'll be getting from ends. He could say on the 75th 75th year.

This is when Simon is gonna come to Christ He's fine with that for the whole world thinking wow, especially maybe people that are already saved in his family thinking Oh Simon, when would you give your life to God?

Church He's doing his thing but as long as he discovers God and has a ration it with it doesn't matter when or When it happens, but it will happen and I think the case of just doing your investigation Ask questions look pray do what you need to do to find out Is this good road is is there more to life than just us like did we wake up and create everything? Is there a higher is our higher being is there? What is it?

Just the universe what's out there? And he will respond because he says that he's not in a position allowing anyone to perish like he wants Everyone to know he wants everyone to be up in in heaven partying with him So he's patient and that's the thing. That's the one thing I say about my relationship It is a transitional is a journey, but he's a patient and there's love in there.

So he's like, yes I mean it took you 21 years to actually truly know me or 20 years one of that was that summer But you're here now hooray, you know heavens are addressing. Let's get to work Let's build this relationship.

It's like you haven't Grown up without a father loads of black men can relate to that because loads of our fathers weren't present but it's like 21 or 34 years down the line your biological father decides to Scrip, you know creep back into your life and maybe you have the heart to you know Just say, you know, why not? Let me give him a shot.

Most people's defenses will be up thinking what you weren't here for last Four years. I'm a man now.

I had to figure it all this out by myself screw you But if you decide to lower your defenses and actually open up your heart and build a ratio I mean you may teach you things that you never would have even known or even comprehend and that's literally with God The moment you lower your your your guards and you open up your heart.

He opens a whole new world You see things in a whole different perspective and there's peace. That's one thing I can take away from this I have peace of mind in everything and you don't get to a place where you're like, I'm anxious or I don't know how this Is gonna happen.

I need to figure this out and like what you were saying at the beginning which I love is you get to a position where You realize there's so much that you want to do that's bigger than you but now you have the resources you have the manpower because I'm a spiritual person.

I realize everything here is spiritual Like if I want to command things on this earth, I need to go spiritual I speak to my dad which is the God God is a spirit speak to him He's gonna sort things out in a spiritual realm and they'll manifest in the physical and then before you know You've got these amazing people like Craig and Simon and Denzel coming into your life You've got this person on this organization wants to work with you To build this collaboration and you've got money coming in here and you're like, whoa, like where did this was company?

How does this happen because you want to sort? Council his word says in a multitude of council their safety if you're gonna do something or Jack Jones He said you will fool you fell like and it obviously we know the same plan to fall It's like that. It's preparation.

You're just planning for your future and your purpose There's actually I couldn't even there's actually so much in there and it's funny because I've never actually heard somebody that does follow Christianity or any Kind of religion and said it in that way where yeah religions one thing, but actually there's a relation with God and I think there is the The power you just said like if Denzel the other side of the door and he was like he was speaking you're gonna know It's Denzel.

God is the same thing I think obviously just that was a nice key takeaway from the side So Craig obviously just thinking about what first said and obviously what we've taken from today What's your kind of what kind of resonated with you? What's your your food for?

For me again, I would say it's only the last year and a half to actually pray more than I ever have so in my sense as with anything Whatever you want to get closer to put your energy towards it like if it's a job or a person or anything like that put your energy towards it move towards it and Start to park your ego and parking your ego means That people are don't have ego ego is not necessarily about being arrogant or anything But actually the ego is believing that you know everything so tell yourself this which I told myself What if I don't know everything There is to know in the world and the second part is what if I don't even know myself And when you can understand that you may not even know yourself You can drop all the gods that you've put together and learnt and start to realize maybe there is more to myself Than what I've had what I know about myself today Nice, okay.

I guess I'll finish it up So it's it's actually interesting I took a lot of points from what size that actually And I think it's my food for thought is is one thing that is It's okay to not be at that place where everyone else is that and don't feel the pressure of okay because of Your surroundings or the people that you're with Whether they're in a particular place or relationship with God doesn't necessarily mean that you have to be at that place and it's something that as you said it's something that a relationship is about learning and building and You don't just have a relationship straight away.

You're not just born into suddenly having a great relationship with someone It doesn't happen. It takes work.

Yeah, and a Good thing that you're talking about when you said are the person behind the door you recognize who the person is straight away You don't need to see them You just know that that's who they are and I think for me my food for thought essentially is that I I Know I'm not at that place where I can always recognize him at that time And that's just something I guess needs to be worked on.

Yeah, that's real and That's that's my food for thought. That's that's how I kind of wrap it up way to me But there's a lot there's a lot in there.

This is yeah I hope you saw really learned something or picked up something or like Yeah, even for me that's listening listening back to my own thing and listen to you guys it's been powerful I think from there we could actually probably wrap it up and Again, as we always say we've been speaking to you for however long it's been We're willing to listen to you as well It's not just about us you consuming by actually being a producer of your own story So tell us your stories and be anonymous or you could be known whichever one it is Tell us what is your relationship with God was God done for you in your life that you knew was beyond your own power Or where or even tell us if you just do not believe there is a God and why like we will be willing to listen So thank you for listening Make sure you just drop an email or DM us and we are there to listen.

So thank you for having us blessings Blessings, please help