Atheists, what about our testimony?

Your personal testimony is real to you, I am sure. But unless you can demonstrate it to others, how can you know whether it is real or simply a delusion? How can you tell the difference?

Everything inside your own brain can be the result of imagination and delusion. YOU CANNOT TELL THE DIFFERENCE. There are people who will quite honestly tell you that they are Napoleon. WE on the outside think they are crazy, but inside their own heads, what they think is completely 100% TRUE.

Now, you may not (probably don't) CARE whether what you testify is true or not, but that tells the rest of us nothing. I DO care whether things I believe are true or not, and true means demonstrable in some way.

Sorry, I know you are sincere, but it means nothing.

Yes, it can fairly be rejected, primarily because what you testified to, verbatim, is what has been preached for decades by American evangelists, and the ideas for centuries before that. You must have learned that wording at some point. Whether it was before, during, or after your acceptance of the Jesus, you still were taught that that is what happened.

Also, I dont hate Xians... I hate some of their beliefs.

Most of the mockery that atheists throw at theists generally comes as a response to mockery and insult from theists toward atheists. You tell someone that they're going to a place of eternal torment, the worst a fevered mind can devise, and they're not going to react politely toward you.

In your question, you indirectly compared atheists to a group that consists of people who ' lie, steal, covet, hate, gossip etc' … which is not only wrong about atheists as a whole, but don't think that it won't be recognized as an insult, and you will likely be insulted as a result.

Other religions have testimonies.

If you were isolated from all knowledge of Christianity in any way and had this experience, started reciting Bible verses, that would be something.

It's probable that God works as a motivation for you to not do things that the Bible says he forbids, in exchange for comfort and religious feelings.

If it is such a transforming experience why do so many Christians also, after a brief period, have issues with backsliding? They have a hard time being as fervent for Jesus as they were a few months before. It couldn't be that the wholehearted release of feelings of guilt, blame of sin, the fear of eternal torment have been lifted off of your shoulders and the shear relief causes elation? Kind of like being pulled over for going 20 mph over the speed limit only to get a warning? I would imagine your driving would be better for a time and the feelings of relief over not owing your right arm in fines would be about the same feeling.

While I think you believe what you say happened. I do reject your "testimony" as being something that actually happened. The mind is powerful and can fool a person into seeing or feeling what they want to intensely it may seem very real.

Try to think for yourself, don't continue to let someone do it for you.

You had an experience. Al that means is that you had that experience - it doesn't mean that your religion is real, just that you had an experience.

Since you do not lie, steal, covet, hate, gossip, then you are the very, very , very rare Christian - maybe 1 out of a million.

I think the amount of people that suffer horribly on a daily basis despite praying every day to their god to be saved, yet remain routinely unanswered makes you look like abit of an egotistical nutjob. Would you agree?

Have you heard of the placebo effect? Let's be realistic here.... or is that too much to ask of the R&S section?

-That which is asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.- Christopher Hitchens

Dreams are not evidence.

Wishful thinking is not evidence.

Logical fallacies are not evidence.

Personal revelation is not evidence.

Illogical conclusions are not evidence.

Disproved statements are not evidence.

Unsubstantiated claims are not evidence.

Hallucinations/delusions are not evidence.

Information that is ambiguous is not evidence.

The Universe doesn't care what you believe in.

Data that requires a certain belief is not evidence.

Information that cannot be verified is not evidence.

Information that cannot be falsified is not evidence.

Experiments with inconclusive results are not evidence.

Information that is only knowable by a privileged few is not evidence.

Experiments that are not and cannot be duplicated by others are not evidence.

-Everybody lies.- Dr. Gregory House

“Do you really mean to tell me the only reason you try to be good is to gain God's approval and reward, or to avoid his disapproval and punishment? That's not morality, that's just sucking up, apple-polishing, looking over your shoulder at the great surveillance camera in the sky, or the still small wiretap inside your head, monitoring your every move, even your every base though.” ― Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion

And what about the testimony of all the folks whose lives Allah changed -- why should your testimony count and theirs not?

The simple fact is, there is nothing special or unique about such stories, and have been claimed by millions of people worshiping thousands of different gods -- which just goes to show how completely useless they are as an argument for the veracity of your religious claims.