So Homer ...”What goalposts are there to move about me?” and then etc, etc etc till “...”If Sheldon needs to define a Christian via any of that I'm going to show him he's absolutely full of poo.”

OK - so now we’re off to the races on the inner workings of Homer’s thought process: No 1-

“When I'm done with what the huge amount that follows, please don't make this about "objective evidence" and that I'm using something from within vs. from a creator. “

A “low standard for evidence” is now set from Homer.

“...realizing God is there, and that isn't going to change.”

Because of said “low standard for evidence”.

“...that will assuredly be ripped apart by others. I don't really care as I've ripped it apart myself a thousand times and it keeps on getting closer and closer to the same end, and I plan on doing this until I just can't do it anymore. Homer's a work constantly in progress, "Nobody's perfect"

No, no one is perfect. No one. Let’s see how well “you yourself have ripped it apart”. Please NOTE...I may at times refer to my own experiences in deprogramming myself.

“I have rejected the notion of a creator God before.”

First off, can’t say I rejected the “creator God” off hand ... I started with questioning my own religious upbringing and doctrine. Then moved on to peeking at other religious thought. Then curious as to where this all came from. Then wondered “really? What made these books “inspired or from god”... THAT process led me to the conclusion that all man-made ideas of god are “make believe”. In this process I didn’t reject or abandon an idea of “god” -

“I searched for the answer to why anything can exist, I guess just an instinctual need, a hunger, and I got all the way to the universe being something from nothing, and accepted that through quantum flux.”

Me too.

“I was amazed that the something from nothing produced a something from nothing that included sentient beings.”

Me too! Then I started to really think about my chances for even existing (sperm/egg meeting going back through “time”) FUCK I WON the LOTTERY!!!!! The best one out there!!!!!

“I read about the Anthropic Principle, and Leslie's Firing squad. I walked away from that point, knowing that anything the mind of man can come up with will fail to satisfy that hunger for a truly objective answer longer than I'm going to continue to breathe. Lots of gaps beyond that firing squad, I know! Is an intelligence in there? infinite multiverses? Nobody knows at this point, many will claim, but nobody knows, and I'm still not satisfied with a "Just lucky I guess" answer.”

I read stuff too. I can’t remember what, and I go and google search or pull a book off the shelf - but I know what you mean. I still “play” in the area of the same questions. However, “to get to what is as close to what is true” (as currently possible), regardless of my own “discomfort” I accepted
that “nobody knows”. Even me. So how did , I come to accept discomfort in not knowing? My cat (at the time). I was looking at her, licking herself clean on a chair (years ago) and it hit me...she doesn’t give a fuck! She doesn’t even comprehend that sex (egg/sperm) is how she got here. She just enjoys being here! I’m the one causing my own “distress” through “higher brain function” (which is great - science stuff, medicine, food production, technology, etc) BUT the imaginative ability can be tricky if there is no “grounding”.

“I started to believe that maybe, just maybe, this universe isn't an accident, that it was created to produce beings that were aware of existence.”

Uh oh, started to believe your imagination or thought process.

“ That "Cogito, ergo sum" might be the purpose. That this incredibly complex universe might have indeed been made from some far less complex stuff that harbored sentience, for the purpose of incubating more sentience.”

Imaginative possibility.

“It's either that, or it's not, and if it's not then it doesn't freakin matter what it is anyway!”

Well actually, there are more imaginative possibilities, you just limited yourself to two.

“So from there I look at if it has been created for that purpose, then what evidence is there? And there isn't one way or another in any "objective" way to tell.”

To tell what? To tell if there is an intelligent creator? (Only one of your imaginative possibilities?) NO objective evidence has been produced therefore, I withhold belief.

“So I humbled myself to whatever it is, and I was thankful for whatever made this all, and for just existing, and I found myself gaining joy, patience, love and more. The more I gave that "whatever it was" my attention, the more I received. That when I "abided in the vine, I received and bore fruit". I saw that Jesus was trying to teach us something good there.”

Now, you twisted yourself into jumping from one “thought” conclusion to another “thought” conclusion without evidence. You even “named” your imaginary “thought being” and gave it credit for your own “human qualities”... WOW - and in the process “created your own thought god/requirement/reward system”

“I realized I was heading back towards square one, but there was a whole lot of things that religious doctrine had put in there that I could not accept. So I don't accept it.”

Exactly as said above. You decided through your own “imaginative thought” process.

“So I'm sitting here with a secular humanist kinda life, “

The “human” moral viewpoint.

“...yet believing there's a Creator and Jesus was a guy, maybe even somehow inspired or sent directly by that Creator,... etc etc etc ...How am I, or anyone to really know?”

Uh, by “checking imaginary thought processes” to a higher standard of evidence. Accepting what “is”. Accepting “not knowing”...

“Still I find myself believing in enough of those teachings that led me to the joy and love, to call myself Christian. “

I put disinfect and a bandaid in my kid...(you figure it out)

“I realize calling myself a Christian from this will bring the wrath of those who see the label of Christian to mean so many more things that they have issues with, but I believe I'm getting better and better equipped to handle prejudice and judgement.”

It’s not “prejudice and judgement” (unless you accept the bible teaching of being persecuted for his name sake) - it’s the fucking argument ALL CHRISTIANS have with one another over the fuckin book that defined “Christian”

“I'm still going to disagree with elements of "Christianity" as defined by so many and if I find myself in contention with what is actually giving me the peace and joy in doing so, I guess I'll have to suffer whatever consequences it brings if that time comes.”

Yes, yes...you’re a “Christian” blah blah blah ...