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God In My Head: The true story of an ex-Christian who accidentally met God
In the bleak winter of 2009, Agnostic and dental-phobic Josh Grisetti experienced an accidental prescription drug overdose at a dentist's office, and subsequently had an unexpected encounter with the Almighty Creator of the Universe. During the supernatural encounter, God explained the meaning of life, revealed the mysterious truths behind the writings of the Bible, unveiled the secrets of the afterlife and, most importantly, dramatically altered the spiritual course of one young man's life.
This odd, irreverent spiritual memoir chronicles Josh's journey with blunt comic undertones, undercutting the lofty gravitas typically associated with the "heaven tourism" genre (including best-sellers like Heaven is for Real, To Heaven and Back and Proof of Heaven). While making no claims regarding "proof" of God, heaven or any particular theological truth, this true story is an entertaining and thought-provoking journey into the psychology of religion and the existence of God.
This odd, irreverent spiritual memoir chronicles Josh's journey with blunt comic undertones, undercutting the lofty gravitas typically associated with the "heaven tourism" genre (including best-sellers like Heaven is for Real, To Heaven and Back and Proof of Heaven). While making no claims regarding "proof" of God, heaven or any particular theological truth, this true story is an entertaining and thought-provoking journey into the psychology of religion and the existence of God.
- GenresReligion
201 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 1, 2016
109 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
September 5, 2018
Oh, hi!
I'm Josh and I totally wrote this book. Which is why I'm giving it a strong, objective, raving, 5-star review!!
And here's what's fun about GoodReads -- I can respond to your reviews without exposing what cereal and toilet paper I buy on Amazon Pantry! I love engaging with readers (fans and critics alike), so feel free to candidly share your thoughts on the book, and know that I'll almost always try to respond (even if it takes me a while to see it).
Don't worry, I've heard it all by now -- the good, the bad and the ugly. The truth is, spirituality and religion are the most polarizing topics on the planet. We all know this. My book is no different. Some love it, others despise it. One Amazon reviewer said it made sense of everything she'd ever known or thought about God. Another said that every copy of the poorly-written heresy should be burned! I couldn't have asked for a more diverse readership. My only hope is that the book makes you think or feel SOMETHING. That's how you know your spirit is alive and awake. Whatever that something is for you, I do hope you'll share it.
* PS - If you'd rather I not respond to your review, by all means, mention that! I don't HAVE to; I just LIKE to. LOL. No promises. Love and light to you all, and thanks for reading!
I'm Josh and I totally wrote this book. Which is why I'm giving it a strong, objective, raving, 5-star review!!
And here's what's fun about GoodReads -- I can respond to your reviews without exposing what cereal and toilet paper I buy on Amazon Pantry! I love engaging with readers (fans and critics alike), so feel free to candidly share your thoughts on the book, and know that I'll almost always try to respond (even if it takes me a while to see it).
Don't worry, I've heard it all by now -- the good, the bad and the ugly. The truth is, spirituality and religion are the most polarizing topics on the planet. We all know this. My book is no different. Some love it, others despise it. One Amazon reviewer said it made sense of everything she'd ever known or thought about God. Another said that every copy of the poorly-written heresy should be burned! I couldn't have asked for a more diverse readership. My only hope is that the book makes you think or feel SOMETHING. That's how you know your spirit is alive and awake. Whatever that something is for you, I do hope you'll share it.
* PS - If you'd rather I not respond to your review, by all means, mention that! I don't HAVE to; I just LIKE to. LOL. No promises. Love and light to you all, and thanks for reading!
April 16, 2016
What a fascinating book. The author is so sincere and so humble and so realistic in the way he approaches his "hallucination" that the reader cannot help but be compelled to read his story. For all of us that have struggled with God's existence, our faith, and do we really have value in this great, big universe, this book was a charming way to explore the possibilities.
I felt that one of the best analogies that Josh presented was on page 71 that compares our place in the universe and God's vastness as a symphony. I will be able to hold onto this imagery and try to improve on my depth of compassion and tolerance for others especially when it comes to the world's religions in all their vast differences. Yet as different as all the world's religions are, they all hold fast to the one great guiding force that love is the one great intangible absolute "truth". If we all are really honest with ourselves, we know this deep down inside of us. Now that is really one very powerful tie for all of humanity to have.
Thank you Josh for sharing your story~
I felt that one of the best analogies that Josh presented was on page 71 that compares our place in the universe and God's vastness as a symphony. I will be able to hold onto this imagery and try to improve on my depth of compassion and tolerance for others especially when it comes to the world's religions in all their vast differences. Yet as different as all the world's religions are, they all hold fast to the one great guiding force that love is the one great intangible absolute "truth". If we all are really honest with ourselves, we know this deep down inside of us. Now that is really one very powerful tie for all of humanity to have.
Thank you Josh for sharing your story~
September 5, 2018
What a great read, the author describes in detail about his experience where he had a conversation with God. The irony is, he was a self-proclaimed Atheist. Being a Christian myself, I could relate to a lot of the things the author discovered during his conversation.
November 5, 2016
First of all, I love Josh Grisetti. He's funny and adorable and just ahhhh, amazing. Anyway, when I heard he wrote a book I was ecstatic to read it, then I found out it was a book about God...
That tidbit of information didn't really change my desire to read the book, but it changed my expectations for the book, you know what I mean? Being that it was written by Josh Grisetti, I knew it was gonna be funny but since it was about his return to his faith in God, I also had the notion that it was going to turn into a sappy, preachy testimony of God's irrefutable existence. As I started reading it, though, his sarcasm and nauseated feelings towards books stating "God is real" as undeniable truth immediately dispelled any preconceived notions I had. Instead, Josh let me know that he felt just as irritated as I at people who claimed that their experience- and their experience alone- was proof that God exists. It allowed me to read through his divine hallucination without feeling like he was trying to convert me to a religion: I could read the book through my own skeptic, agnostic lense and not feel like I was missing something, because he was looking at his experience through his own skeptic, agnostic lense. Overall, his story feels genuine and innately human. An, honestly, a wee bit wacky, but I can appreciate a little wackiness.
In the end, he offers no easy answers to the many questions I had, as "God" (I prefer to refer to God as a divine cosmic energy) is not an easy he/she/it to uncover. But that's okay. This book may not have given me the answers I wanted (it's pretty clear that each person's experience with the divine cosmic energy is unique to that person alone and can't wholly pertain to anyone else), but it gave me a good jumping off point in my own, admittedly stagnant, spiritual journey.
That tidbit of information didn't really change my desire to read the book, but it changed my expectations for the book, you know what I mean? Being that it was written by Josh Grisetti, I knew it was gonna be funny but since it was about his return to his faith in God, I also had the notion that it was going to turn into a sappy, preachy testimony of God's irrefutable existence. As I started reading it, though, his sarcasm and nauseated feelings towards books stating "God is real" as undeniable truth immediately dispelled any preconceived notions I had. Instead, Josh let me know that he felt just as irritated as I at people who claimed that their experience- and their experience alone- was proof that God exists. It allowed me to read through his divine hallucination without feeling like he was trying to convert me to a religion: I could read the book through my own skeptic, agnostic lense and not feel like I was missing something, because he was looking at his experience through his own skeptic, agnostic lense. Overall, his story feels genuine and innately human. An, honestly, a wee bit wacky, but I can appreciate a little wackiness.
In the end, he offers no easy answers to the many questions I had, as "God" (I prefer to refer to God as a divine cosmic energy) is not an easy he/she/it to uncover. But that's okay. This book may not have given me the answers I wanted (it's pretty clear that each person's experience with the divine cosmic energy is unique to that person alone and can't wholly pertain to anyone else), but it gave me a good jumping off point in my own, admittedly stagnant, spiritual journey.
July 29, 2018
Ok
I’m giving this a 2 star because the author is a good writer and can draw a reader into his story.
I read 75% of this book and just could not bare to read anymore.
I’m giving this a 2 star because the author is a good writer and can draw a reader into his story.
I read 75% of this book and just could not bare to read anymore.
March 21, 2018
How very convenient
In this memoir Joshua Grisetti claims he met God during a dentist's visit that went terribly wrong. He then goes onto describe meeting God himself.Who, according to Mr. Grisetti decided to tell this average mortal the secrets to all of humanity. Really? Not only tell him the secret of life...But also of death. I have to admit I am a Christian yes. But I was more amused than offended at the idea that God would choose someone as insignificant as this drug addicted second rate writer to tell the meaning of life to. This book was clearly written to appease the new modern Christian movement that wants the church to see God as a cool old man that totally supports gay marriage and abortion, and only wants the human race to like chill out and be cool. I would not suggest this book to anyone, believer or atheist. In a desperate attempt to appease both groups, he fails miserably.
In this memoir Joshua Grisetti claims he met God during a dentist's visit that went terribly wrong. He then goes onto describe meeting God himself.Who, according to Mr. Grisetti decided to tell this average mortal the secrets to all of humanity. Really? Not only tell him the secret of life...But also of death. I have to admit I am a Christian yes. But I was more amused than offended at the idea that God would choose someone as insignificant as this drug addicted second rate writer to tell the meaning of life to. This book was clearly written to appease the new modern Christian movement that wants the church to see God as a cool old man that totally supports gay marriage and abortion, and only wants the human race to like chill out and be cool. I would not suggest this book to anyone, believer or atheist. In a desperate attempt to appease both groups, he fails miserably.
March 30, 2016
Good Book
This book certainly has the POWER to rethink the scriptures as we know them. The fact that the author refers to his experience as an hallucination is a bit disconcerting though. He doesn't seem to want his experiences in the realm of the supernatural to be written in stone as he says time and again let each of us consider our own journey to God. Are our Truths not universal?
This book certainly has the POWER to rethink the scriptures as we know them. The fact that the author refers to his experience as an hallucination is a bit disconcerting though. He doesn't seem to want his experiences in the realm of the supernatural to be written in stone as he says time and again let each of us consider our own journey to God. Are our Truths not universal?
April 10, 2017
Fascinating with a twist of humor!
If you are a person like me that quit going to church after many years because a lot of the stuff they preach about just doesn't make sense and you start asking questions and the preachers only tip toe around your questions and can never give you an answer then this is definitely a book to read. This book answered many of the questions the preachers from the several different churchs I attended could not.
If you are a person like me that quit going to church after many years because a lot of the stuff they preach about just doesn't make sense and you start asking questions and the preachers only tip toe around your questions and can never give you an answer then this is definitely a book to read. This book answered many of the questions the preachers from the several different churchs I attended could not.
January 23, 2018
A Fantastic and simple spiritual journey that is enlightening
I was both amused and perplexed at what was going on in Joshua's experience. I read a lot of religious books and consider myself something a biblical scholar and after reading this book must admit I was enlightened beyond all expectations! Keep an open mind and consider the things God showed Joshua. I think you will find new higher meanings to what you now believe about God and our place in the cosmos.
I was both amused and perplexed at what was going on in Joshua's experience. I read a lot of religious books and consider myself something a biblical scholar and after reading this book must admit I was enlightened beyond all expectations! Keep an open mind and consider the things God showed Joshua. I think you will find new higher meanings to what you now believe about God and our place in the cosmos.
March 6, 2016
The only reason it took me 2 days to read is because my iPad was dying and had to be charged, otherwise I would have finished it in one sitting because it's such an amazing read! Congrats Josh, it was great!
May 29, 2017
Definitely makes you think
Worth reading. I kid you not...the author is going to tell u who the anti Christ is. And it's some one you know!
Worth reading. I kid you not...the author is going to tell u who the anti Christ is. And it's some one you know!
March 26, 2025
Joshua is a wonderful writer; I was drawn into his story and I empathized with his horrifying dentist's experiences and I loved his humor.
Now as far as his (possible NDE/drug-induced hallucination?), there are aspects of it (as the author would be the first to point out) that make it seem questionable whether he truly met and conversed with God. It is such a mixture of elements from Judeo-Christian heritage (divine council, Adam and Eve, the incarnation of Jesus) with more progressive and new-agey stuff.
Now, some of the crazier stuff said, did bring to mind how the main reason why the things I believed while growing up from the bible didn’t seem nuts, was familiarity.
As I have grown older, the pieces I have, the evidence (that seems legitimate to me) that lies on the table, are so hard to put together in any coherent or seemingly reasonable whole. To use an analogy, I have gone from the sensible Newtonian world to that of the quantum world. All in all, as someone who does not think materialists are correct in asserting there is nothing but matter and finding myself convinced that a spiritual realm may exist (in part due to stories like this one), and believing that, if there is a God, this being must largely be hands-off while occasionally interacting in ways, and thinking that maybe God is far more bizarre, wild and morally ambiguous then I’d like, and that all holy books are largely humanities flawed attempts to figure it all out, for better and worse, then who knows, maybe the Grisetti did met God and ultimately reality is like this. Our bizarro world may have a bizarro explanation—like somehow, after the incarnation, God turned himself into a particle that is in us all and helps to direct us after we die.
The book made me wonder what questions I’d ask God If he would actually directly answer me. It would be frightful being put on the spot. There are lot of curiosities, especially since the “bible says so” isn’t enough to settle otherwise unknowable doctrines, like it was early in life. For one, it often isn’t clear and even coherent to say the Bible says so, as it is a chorus of differing voices and often lost context and word choice makes interpretation ambiguous, and even if it did clearly say something, that doesn’t automatically mean they are right, or eliminate the fact that another author disagrees with them. Anyhow, it does not work as a “stop the argument" authority on what is true. Anyhow, in light of this, I guess I would be curious, is there any truth to the components of the gospel, if so, how the hell does an innocent man’s murder result in atonement? To what extent, if any, did God inspire the texts that became scripture? Then I’d want to know what happens after death, and if I am right about universalism. I’d be curious to learn what God’s interaction (if any) is with the world, whether God is morally good, how it all came to be, and how to explain the evidence of humanity and animals' origins.
It is sad that, if there is a God, he has no way to convince a skeptic of existence, for no matter how real something is in our experience, we can assume it is merely a hallucination.
A few side notes, I liked the last chapter as the author wrestles with what to make of his experience, and considers ways his subconscious may have generated parts, but how other aspects are harder to explain away. I like how he recognized the differences between his experience and a lot of drug trips, and how many aspects of the journey mirror what some people experience in near-death experiences. Due to themes common to people the world over who almost die, it really does seem legit to allow their common experiences to shape my theology.
As far as Paul being the anti-Christ railed against by John in Revelation, that seems unlikely, as it seems Nero is being referred to, that said, some scholars do think the author of Revelation HATED Paul and he may be negatively referenced in the letters to the churches. Knowing Paul’s vicious hatred of the Judaizers and just how much they hated Paul and how revelation would then continue to be used to demonize “heretics”, I would not put it past John to call Paul the anti-Christ—Paul would no doubt return the favor.
Now as far as his (possible NDE/drug-induced hallucination?), there are aspects of it (as the author would be the first to point out) that make it seem questionable whether he truly met and conversed with God. It is such a mixture of elements from Judeo-Christian heritage (divine council, Adam and Eve, the incarnation of Jesus) with more progressive and new-agey stuff.
Now, some of the crazier stuff said, did bring to mind how the main reason why the things I believed while growing up from the bible didn’t seem nuts, was familiarity.
As I have grown older, the pieces I have, the evidence (that seems legitimate to me) that lies on the table, are so hard to put together in any coherent or seemingly reasonable whole. To use an analogy, I have gone from the sensible Newtonian world to that of the quantum world. All in all, as someone who does not think materialists are correct in asserting there is nothing but matter and finding myself convinced that a spiritual realm may exist (in part due to stories like this one), and believing that, if there is a God, this being must largely be hands-off while occasionally interacting in ways, and thinking that maybe God is far more bizarre, wild and morally ambiguous then I’d like, and that all holy books are largely humanities flawed attempts to figure it all out, for better and worse, then who knows, maybe the Grisetti did met God and ultimately reality is like this. Our bizarro world may have a bizarro explanation—like somehow, after the incarnation, God turned himself into a particle that is in us all and helps to direct us after we die.
The book made me wonder what questions I’d ask God If he would actually directly answer me. It would be frightful being put on the spot. There are lot of curiosities, especially since the “bible says so” isn’t enough to settle otherwise unknowable doctrines, like it was early in life. For one, it often isn’t clear and even coherent to say the Bible says so, as it is a chorus of differing voices and often lost context and word choice makes interpretation ambiguous, and even if it did clearly say something, that doesn’t automatically mean they are right, or eliminate the fact that another author disagrees with them. Anyhow, it does not work as a “stop the argument" authority on what is true. Anyhow, in light of this, I guess I would be curious, is there any truth to the components of the gospel, if so, how the hell does an innocent man’s murder result in atonement? To what extent, if any, did God inspire the texts that became scripture? Then I’d want to know what happens after death, and if I am right about universalism. I’d be curious to learn what God’s interaction (if any) is with the world, whether God is morally good, how it all came to be, and how to explain the evidence of humanity and animals' origins.
It is sad that, if there is a God, he has no way to convince a skeptic of existence, for no matter how real something is in our experience, we can assume it is merely a hallucination.
A few side notes, I liked the last chapter as the author wrestles with what to make of his experience, and considers ways his subconscious may have generated parts, but how other aspects are harder to explain away. I like how he recognized the differences between his experience and a lot of drug trips, and how many aspects of the journey mirror what some people experience in near-death experiences. Due to themes common to people the world over who almost die, it really does seem legit to allow their common experiences to shape my theology.
As far as Paul being the anti-Christ railed against by John in Revelation, that seems unlikely, as it seems Nero is being referred to, that said, some scholars do think the author of Revelation HATED Paul and he may be negatively referenced in the letters to the churches. Knowing Paul’s vicious hatred of the Judaizers and just how much they hated Paul and how revelation would then continue to be used to demonize “heretics”, I would not put it past John to call Paul the anti-Christ—Paul would no doubt return the favor.
January 15, 2021
2 stars, it was OK. Hard for me to read stories about dental work nightmares (I had a similar experience getting a filling without being numb when I was young... things have not gotten better). But I powered through that part... it is even harder to read something that goes against your own beliefs. I believe that the author believes this all happened to him, that's about as far as I could go. So for me it was 2 stars, for someone else it might 4... it just wasn't my cup of tea (and that's OK).
January 26, 2019
Simply written, witty and intriguing
Thought provoking, without all the seriousness that sometimes comes with religious content. I found it refreshingly interesting and witty :)
Thought provoking, without all the seriousness that sometimes comes with religious content. I found it refreshingly interesting and witty :)
August 30, 2019
Interesting view point fueled by drug induced hallucinations. Sometimes funny, sometimes thought-provoking, and sometimes it pissed me off.
September 7, 2019
What a person to meet
December 13, 2016
The only reason I finished this book was because my book club was reading it. The book is self published, which is the only reason it was published at all. The author writes about a drug induced hallucination that was important to him, but I really didn't feel as though it matters to anyone who doesn't know him. I am grateful that his author's bio says he doesn't plan to write any other books.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews