Religious or spiritual?

Those closest to me accuse me of being a radical and dissociated "religious" zealot. The things I say don't line up with what they've been told, or have told themselves, so without a second thought, they decide I'm the one deluded. I'm here to explain to you how inaccurate that is. (Literally. This is why I'm here.)

Religion- the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods.

Zealot- a person who is fanatical and uncompromising in pursuit of their religious, political, or other ideals.

[Definitions courtesy of a Google search]

To begin, I don't worship anything/anyone. And I certainly don't believe in any controlling power. I don't really believe in anything. Either I know it, or I don't. To believe is to accept as true. I don't do that. I can't do that. That is the very thing religion requires. "Close your eyes, don't ask questions, just believe us... And give us your money!" Yeah... No thank you.

A zealot is "uncompromising in their pursuit of..." I couldn't disagree more on my behalf. In my pursuit of understanding, of awakening, I've been nothing but compromising. I've second guessed myself so many times, I'd never be able to recoup the time I've lost backtracking.

What I am is dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge, and grateful for everything. I'm open, I'm eager, I'm willing and passionate to love and inspire. I'm awake and serving my soul mission with clarity and confidence. I'm a writer. I'm here to literarily articulate that which cannot easily be explained to those who don't yet know. Take what resonates with you, and leave the rest.

I am, in no way, religious. I'm entirely spiritual. Spiritually reborn, in fact. We're all light spiritual beings in dense human bodies. We're all parts of the same one thing. That thing is called "God" by religious people. Religion is a painfully limiting box that requires your worship and devotion. Spirituality is an ever growing understanding/knowing of "God" and the way things are.

I like to say, "God is life, God is love, God is everything, including us." I feel it sums up the reality quite nicely. And it doesn't require us to relinquish our hard earned money on belief, or look to an external source for peace and happiness. It just inspires us to be who we are, unapologetically.