You're already facing life with courage and conviction.

I'd like to share what happened to me. I was raised in a dogmatic religion by equally dogmatic parents. I wasn't allowed to even ask questions about other religions out of curiosity. My creed became:it's my way or the hellbound freeway.

After I left my abusive husband I went into therapy but warned my counselor to never come against my religious beliefs, which he agreed to and told me to tell him if I thought he was.

Through the course of therapy, I learned how to think for myself instead of simply repeating what I had been taught. I started studying what other people believed and why. While I may not have agreed with them, I came to understand why they believed what they did and how it worked for them.

While I might declare being a born again Christian was the only way and worked for me, the Buddhist could say the very same thing. And, when I began my work with battered women, I could never allow religion to play a part in it and tell a woman what I thought she should believe. So many of them had been abused by the church that it could put them over the edge. I tried to help them along their spiritual journey by encouraging them.

My belief is we're all at the spiritual level or place we should be at this given time. It might change, as mine did, but regardless, our Higher Power--God--whatever you choose to call Him/Her is in control, no matter what path we've chosen.