Hi LogCabin,
Talk of Higher Power seems like just a matter of semantics to me. Your analogy of looking through different windows is spot on.
Fact is, there is no way to know what God is or isn't, exactly. We all just bring our ego to the topic and create a story that seems to be true for each of us individually. But, not knowing exactly what God is or isn't doesn't diminish the fact that God exists.
For me, God is the Higher Power that enables me to live outside of my self-will. God is the conscious contact I use to try to stay sober and do the next right thing. I know that left to my own devices I will remain self-centered to the point of oblivion, my self-centeredness has always led me to drugs and alcohol.
In this context I'm following, or being directed if you will, by God's plan. I ask God to help me stay sober and to also help me remove the things in my life I don't like about myself (character defects). Perhaps just focusing on these things on a daily basis is in fact "talking to God".
Personally, I believe in the afterlife. I don't believe in salvation though. I think there's nothing to be saved from and God doesn't forgive us. If God created everything, which I believe to be true, why would he need to forgive, in God's eyes everything is as it should be and perfect, we humans are the ones hung up with the guilt complex, and fear driven into us from birth. As a Christian, these beliefs put me at odds with many fundamentalist but that's OK. I'm like you, I believe what I do and make no apoligies and let others believe what they believe without demanding explanations, for the most part at least. I am human and will never be perfect, in this lifetime at least.
So when my ego screams, "that person shouldn't have..." or "a drink would be nice..." or "look how great I am..." or "look how pathetic I am..." or any random thought my ego is liable to throw at me, I need to listen to the inner voice, the intuitive, that is where I find God. That inner voice helps me choose a better path, helps me find a solution...without picking up!
Peace..