Deepak Chopra has an interesting book "How to Know God" where he explains his theory that the way people perceive God is dependent on their own level of spiritual development. He outlines seven levels - but the basic idea goes like this.
At the low end, you perceive God as a separate entity from yourself, and God is random and revengeful and apt to punish you if you dare breach his rules & commands, which don't always make sense.
Somewhere in the middle, you start perceiving God as a loving, good, wonderful entity separate from yourself, but the problem is that you don't find God very accessible. Sometimes you can hear him, and sometimes you can't, and you never know when exactly you will hear him again.
At the high end, you ARE God. You perceive him and you as inextricably bound and intertwined and present every moment in the same reality. Your life is bliss.
Etc etc.
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