Questioning Your Religion Might Get You Closer to God - Episode 6

In this episode of The Spiritual Realest, I take you into a deeply personal and honest conversation about what it really means to question your faith and why that doesn’t make you less connected to God, but possibly closer.

I begin by grounding us in intention and energy, creating space for clarity, truth, and alignment. From there, I open up about my journey as a pastor’s kid, raised in the church, deeply rooted in Christianity, and fully committed to knowing God. But everything shifted when I was introduced to the idea that there may be more than one way to connect with Him.

That moment did not shake my belief in God. It challenged the system I was taught.

This episode explores what happens when the foundation you have always known starts to expand. What do you do when your spirit is curious, but your upbringing tells you to stay still. What do you do when the math is not making sense and your questions will not go away. I walk through that tension, the confusion, the fear, and the curiosity, and how it ultimately led me into a more personal and intimate relationship with God.

We talk about the difference between questioning God and questioning the system you learned Him through. We explore why spiritual curiosity is not rebellion but growth. I share how important it is to test and try the spirit in every space, not just within religion. We also discuss letting go of fear and allowing it to push you toward deeper understanding, and the truth that God is not confined to one path, one practice, or one system.

If you have ever felt guilty for asking questions, if you have ever wondered if there is more, or if you have ever felt your spirit pulling you in a direction you did not fully understand, this episode is for you.

This week, I challenge you to approach God differently. Ask. Seek. Be open. Trust that the same God you have always known is big enough to meet you wherever you are and guide you to exactly where you are meant to be.

Asking questions does not mean you are losing your faith. It might mean you are deepening it.

The Spiritual Realist is edited and produced by Organized Movements

Recorded at Privicast Studio

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Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

This is the Spiritual Realist, and I'm Scarlett Drown. This is a space for honest conversation about spirituality, individuality, and growth. Welcome to opening your mind without pressure, performance, or pretending. From views to heavenly minded, but earthly good.

SPEAKER_00 0:20

From church fans to creed. But the church still knew the truth.

SPEAKER_02 0:48

Let's begin. We're gonna start with our sound bowl so that we can ground together and that we can silence the noise of any negative energy. Alright, now let's get into it. Today we're going to talk about sandalwood. That is one of my second favorite incense or smells to burn. And if you don't actually have an incense or you can't burn it, we have our handy dandy alabaster box. Yes, like Mary Magdalene. And we can use essential oils in a diffuser. And so I'm going to start by just setting the atmosphere and inviting the properties of sandalwood in this conversation today. So sandalwood really is good for grounding, meditation, things like that to help you kind of get yourself grounded and rooted in what it is you're getting ready to pray for or ask for. It's a great clearing of energy to make sure that you're in sync and in line with your own spirit, man. Today I want to talk about how and why I started moving towards different aspects of spirituality. And it actually started in a crazy way. So I again told you guys I was a pastor's kid. I am a pastor's kid and been going to church my whole life. I have seven godmothers, two godfathers. But yeah, I grew up in the church. I can probably tell you the Bible back to front, front to back. But I went to a Christian university in Cleveland, Tennessee, and I had to have a minor in Bible. Everyone that goes there, you have to have a minor in Bible. We had to mandatorily take Old Testament and New Testament. And then the other Bible courses, you could take whatever you wanted, whatever classes were offered in Bible that you could take to equal the 18 credit hours. Like I stated before, I had different mindsets or different avenues that I knew God could be reached in, but I wasn't able to explore them per se in my actual home at the time. And so this sparked my interest in saying, well, wait a minute. I'm at this Christian school. I was raised in this Christian religion and Jesus, God and Holy Spirit, and that was it. But when he stated that, we all kind of was like in the class, like, wait a minute, you ain't not been to this school and we done learned all this stuff this whole time. And now you're telling me it's something different? No way. So, you know, that opened up my mindset to say, if this professor who clearly has a doctorate in at this point in seminary and to teach us, you know, he thought that there were different ways and different avenues to reach God. Then why can't I seek those things out and try something different or look for something different, right? So that is kind of how my attitude opened up to try and look at different avenues on what religion is, right? Am I stuck in this religion? Um, is religion for me? Is religion not for me? Are there things that I can get in touch with or in tune with that would lead me to the same outcome, which is God, which would lead me to the same relationship, which my ultimate goal is to be in a relationship with God and to know who I am in God. And that is how I actually got open to different spiritualities, even though it was years later that I actually started diving into these things. The experiences that I had throughout my Christian walk in life helped me ground myself in doing different practices and doing different things. That helped me get to where I am and helped me test and try the spirit, right? Because if you don't think that you have to test and try spirits even in different avenues, then please think again, because spirits can be throughout this life. There's spirits of chaos, there's spirits of harmony, there's spirits of discord. So you have to test and try your own spirit and what connects with you in this kind of work. I mean, imagine, right? Your whole life you were taught this is the way, this is the truth, this is the light. And then you get to this Christian school with these people who are ordained to teach these classes. And then they go, you know, there's more ways to reach God than just through Jesus. Wait, what? I mean, think about it. Your whole life you're taught A is A and B is B, and then you get to a school and they say, well, C is A and A is D and D is F. Wait, what? How did that make me feel? I felt uneasy, right? I felt, wait a minute, was I deceived my whole life? Or the questions that I actually had, were they relevant questions? I mean, explain this to me. Like, make it make sense. The math wasn't mathing, but what can I do with it at this point? How do I unlearn something that I've learned at this point for 18 years that was rooted and grounded in me, that was so deeply tied to who I was and how I identified until I couldn't even imagine not believing this. I couldn't even imagine it. Like, what was I supposed to do with this information that, huh? It might be another way to see God. It might be another way to get in touch. It might be another way for you to walk a different path. I mean, I love astrology. I was curious about tarot cards. I had a gift of prophecy, right? I had all these Christian gifts, and now you're telling me that they possibly could be used in a way that didn't include this religion? Yeah. I was baffled. But what do we do as humans? We just keep on trucking along. I have a friend who says all the time, crumbs to the low. Crumbs to the low. That means God will drop a crumb. That crumb will lead you to the low. Fast forward, years later, I mean years later, I'm right now in a relationship with God outside of the box that I learned to be in, or that I grew up in, or that I was told is the only way. And just to be clear, so that there's no mistaking it, never in my entire life have I ever questioned God. God is God. He is the supreme, he is the ultimate, he is the creator. What I did question was the system on how I learned to connect to God. Was that the right system for me? Was that created for me? Will that be the system that I needed to keep my faith and to keep my strength and to move forward in this earthly manner, in this earthly life? Because again, we are all spiritual beings having an earthly experience. And was that religion the religion for me to have my earthly experience with? Because my whole life, no matter what, from since I was little, if you ever got to talk to anyone who knows me, they would always tell you, she's always prayed to do God's will. She's always prayed to live in her purpose and to be the person that she's meant to be in this life. I know who I am as a person. I know my calling on my life. I've known my entire life. But was the system that I was born into and that I was taught, was that the system that I should have been using? Was that the system that would have brought me to my highest self for my highest good, for the legacy that I will leave behind in this world? So I implore you, if you're having questions about your spiritual system and your religion that you have been born into, or you were taught, maybe you were taught spiritualism and you want to introduce yourself to Christianity. Maybe you were taught to be a Catholic and you think that you'll be a better herbalist. Whatever that is, and whatever questions that you have, know that God is in everything. Let me repeat, God is in everything. So you do not have to fear what you don't know. You can ask God. You can say, hey, show me the breadcrumbs that will lead me to my ultimate religion or lead me to my ultimate system or lead me to my ultimate purpose in life because that is how we grow. We are humans and we are all connected in more ways than you would ever imagine. And so with this, God connects us all in a multitude of ways. So this week, what I would like you to do is approach God in a different way. See if what you've been born into, or what you will learn, or what you didn't learn, because there are plenty of people that don't have a religion, that haven't been to churches, or they haven't been brought up in spirituality, but they're seeking because they know it's something bigger than them out there in this world. So get in touch with your inner man, get in touch with your inner strength so that you can let your spirit and your person and your guides guide you to something different or the same. I know plenty of people that started in spirituality and they ended up back in Christianity because that is the lane that they were supposed to be in, which there is nothing wrong with that, because again, God is in everything and God is the supreme. So this week, reflect on what it is that you think or you desire to do. And there is going to be a nervousness because fear is not supposed to stop you. Fear should motivate you to try and do something different. I have a fear of heights. I hate it. It terrifies me. But am I willing to jump out of a plane? Yes. Do I go on the highest roller coasters? Absolutely. I ride the biggest rides, the hardest rides, the fastest rides, because fear should not conquer us. We should conquer it. And if you do not try, you will never succeed. So get you some Florida water. Get a crystal. Open your Bible if you've never opened the Bible before. Say, God, lead me down the path of your righteousness for your namesake, not for mine, but for you. With that heart and with that kind of drive, God will open doors and show you Himself. Asking questions doesn't mean doubt. It actually allows you to dive deeper into your own relationship with God. It doesn't mean that you love less or you're not loving. It just means that you are questioning your connection. And with that questioning, intimacy can truly happen. You can actually dive deeper within when you have questions and you want to find a different angle. With that being said, remember to be kind to yourself. Love yourself. Take care of your spirit because your spirit is what connects you to God. I'm Scarlet Drought, and I'm earthly good, and I'm also heavenly minded. Don't forget that questions don't mean that you are not in love with God. Questions can open doors to be more intimate with God, that you can be more intimate with your relationship with Him. And these tools and other tools that you may have questions about can help you along the way. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeeming. From church fans decree. If something about this episode stays with you, then you're exactly who this space is for. Share with a friend you think should be here too. You can watch on YouTube, listen on all the podcast platforms, and continue the conversation at The Spiritual Realist. I'm Scarlett Drought, heavenly minded but earthly good. Until next time. The Spiritual Realist is produced by Organized Movement.

SPEAKER_01 13:54

The hush, hush, the look itchy ground, still dancing on the edge of my mind. I went from head to the river, from folded heads to touch of dirt. I let the spirit guide me to the hurts of the earth, garlic through. I remember every story that they spoke in the words. I'm empowered by the spirit strength by these.