I have been a Christian since 1994 and believed in God forever. I suffered a break up from a girl who said she could not date me due to a prior marriage(my wife left me and didn't care what the Bible said). I then lusted(sinned) and believed the Holy Spirit left me. I suffered headaches, poor vision and insomnia. Truly felt damned. Searched out medical depression help and counseling.No real help. I want to be as I was but now I doubt everything and have become a cynic about most everything. I don't want to go to Hell and I want my joy back.
2006-09-03 12:31:24 · 11 answers · asked by boochie 1 in Social Science ➔ Psychology
First off, lusting itself may seem a sin, but its only "acting" on it that IS a sin. God tells us not to dwell on certain thoughts simply because they "lead us to the "fruits of the flesh" which is lust, etc. By lusting in your heart you did NOT SIN, the Bible says this in the O.T., however, Christ fulfilled the O.T. Law and became the New Covenant, he himself said to put on the armor of faith and the Fruits of the Spirit not of the Flesh. So, you sir are nothing more than a victim of depression and guilt. Get over it, it has already cost you enough time with your God, do you seriously think he CARES that you lusted in your HEART? Its your ACTIONS he's watching and judging!
The Holy Spirit only leaves those who WILLINGLY sin against it. That is by denying its existance or lying to IT. See ACTS Ch. 5, the story of Annanias & Sapphira. God has not judged you weak, you have done that, mostly likely because of a guilty conscience or a demonic prescense enjoying the pain you're going through. Simply ignore any "overwhelming" feeling of guilt and start reading your favorite verses or get a notebook and look up items in the Bible from the index, say like "forgiveness" and take notes. You'll find yourself busy and will have forgotten about the depression.
Don't let someone else tell you that you've done wrong, that's God and Christ's job. You're wife left you, so you are Blameless there. ENJOY WHAT YOU CAN OF LIFE, that's why God gave us music, humor, sight, touch and smell - we're not here just to praise him but to find new reasons to do so!
Seriously, Christ Jesus said that until your ex-wife marries for you to stay single, so if she remarries your free!
2006-09-03 12:44:29 · answer #1 · answered by AdamKadmon 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
After all that you've been through, you cannot be who you used to be. You have to adjust to your current circumstances. What happen to you is normal.
You must start to accept who you are right now and pick yourself up. God is a forgiving Father, He has not left you. Actually, you have left him. Its normal to put blame for what you've been through. You are still in a grieving period. But you can't grieve forever.
If you want your joy back, start by acting joyfully. Live your life in a new way, because now you are a new person. Rise up from your down circumstances. You can't be always depress and hope someone else will give joy to you. It doesn't work that way. Joy and good must come from within.
You should pray and do some labor works. Offer the fruit of your labor to God and let Him help you mend your broken heart. God cannot do this alone, you must start yourself.
A broken heart is always tough to heal. But don't lose faith. Each day the hurt will become less and less. In fact, its a possibility that 10 years from now, you will look back and said, thank God for all of that, because you have learn good things from it.
2006-09-03 12:55:47 · answer #2 · answered by camellia_ 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I can't speak about your relationship with god, but it sure sounds like you've screwed up your relationship with yourself. You have obviousely done some things you regret and are wishing you'd never done. That might not be strong enough language for how you are feeling but I think it will get my point across.
No matter what your beliefs are, individuals must choose their own paths. We each know or learn to know what things we can live with and what things we can't. Not every decision a person makes is going to be the right one and sometimes we are sorry afterwards. That's life. We can't controll things that just go wrong.
What we can controll is our intent. When a person goes through their lives with good intent they can sleep at night. They don't have to lie awake at night wrestling with a bad concience. Understand that when I say intent, I mean with the intention of doing what they believe is the right thing at the time.
When we make decisions we know are the wrong ones for us, ones we know are going to make us feel guilty later, we start to destroy our relationships with ourselves. We don't like the people we've become, and our whole world suffers. How can you hope to have a healthy relationship with someone else, when you don't have one with yourself?
Straying though, does not mean you can't turn back. If, as you seem to be saying, the damage done is all to yourself, then you have to forgive yourself. If you have now chosen to live the "right" life, then you deserve to be forgiven, and all your future actions will be the proof for that.
If you have damaged others you still have to forgive yourself because how can you ask forgivness of someone else when you can't even forgive yourself. If they then forgive you, great, but if not that is unfortunate for them and you still have to go on doing what you believe is right. Any other action will keep you awake at night.
If you can do this then sooner or later your joy will come back. I don't believe in hell and I don't have much faith in most counceling, but I completely believe this.
Wheather you believe in god or not, wheather you are a christian or not, if you can't live with yourself, then you are damned.
I hope I helped and at least didn't hurt.
2006-09-03 13:54:51 · answer #3 · answered by icetender 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ask God to forgive you and you have to forgive yourself. The holy spirit never left you and not being damned for life. Find yourself a good doctor who is going to help with your headaches and insomnia. I think you need to see a eye doctor for your poor vision.Things will never be the same it can only get better. You need to work on forgiving yourself and finding people who help you with your faith. You joy will come back it takes time and healing within yourself.
2006-09-03 12:43:33 · answer #4 · answered by JANITA T 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You aren't going to hell! Think of your heavenly Father as a good Dad who loves his children. He would be so glad to have him back in the fold, that is all he would care about! You are still God's child, and He is waiting for you to call on Him and ask forgiveness for anything you did wrong, and you will feel that peace again, and the joy of knowing that you are still loved, no matter what. Religious folk will tell you the condemning things, but God is not religious, and He is waiting for you with His arms outstretched. I am praying for you now. God bless you, brother.
2006-09-03 12:41:58 · answer #5 · answered by Garnet 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You will not go to hell - it does not exist. You did not 'sin' because you lusted - that is a normal and healthy function for an adult. From the way you are describing your situation you appear to be suffering from depression which is not being helped by your 'faith' - in fact your belief seems to be at the root of your problems. Go back to your doctor, ask for further help and explain how you feel. Stay away from church and clergymen at least for a while - they will try to guide you back into believing your problems are caused by moving away from their faith which is nonsense.
Best of luck.
2006-09-03 12:41:11 · answer #6 · answered by warden14 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Are you in church? Go back to church, a good church. Read your Bible, pray. You know if you've repented God forgives you. YOU have to forgive yourself. You are walking in self condemnation. You need to be in a church where there are people to love you and remind you that God loves you and that you are accepted in the beloved. God and Jesus are still right where they always were. You just have to seek Him again. He's there and He wants you to return to Him. I was where you are one time. Believe me, you can get back where you were and be even stronger in your faith, your walk, in joy. Lean on Jesus and forgive yourself. He did and no one else who is truly a Christian is going to point any fingers. We all have sinned. We've all been forgiven. Don't forget God loves you.
2006-09-03 12:43:43 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Don't be so hard on yourself! Every one of us falls down sometimes but we get up. If you don't get up, then you'll stay down. NOW GET UP!!!! You're just down in the dumps right now, every person goes through it and pretty soon, you'll be back to normal. God didn't leave you, but your lack of faith is causing you to leave him......and everyone sins! No man can go throughout life without sinning and he knows that....so are you gonna get up and shake it off or what? And it's a daymn shame that you gotta hear this from a non-believer!
2006-09-03 12:43:47 · answer #8 · answered by KryBaby 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I know how you feel. I was an addict/alcoholic. God did for me what I couldn't do for myself. So one would think everything was peachy right? After 5 years of sobriety I met this woman in recovery, fell in love and married her. For awhile everything was fine. Then she threatened to leave me if I didn't stop using my crutch. See I was still smoking pot. She left me and that's the closest I ever come to relapsing on alcohol and other stuff. I stopped "dancing with Ms. Mary Jane" renewed my promise with He who had saved me before and asked Him to let me have my wife back. I prayed and prayed and prayed but she wouldn't come back. Just when I was about to give up and decide that it wasn't Gods will for me she called me!!! As I write, two days from now we will have our first born son!!! I don't need any chemical to make me feel good I have Him in whom all things are possible. Don't give up on Him. Remember He said,"I will never leave you or forsake you." When times try you say to yourself, "Thy will be done"; and remember "this to shall pass"!!!
2006-09-03 12:58:30 · answer #9 · answered by Deslok of Gammalon 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You are not going to hell.
Answer me two questions?
Why would God give us freedom of choice and then consign us to hell for using that freedom of choice in a manner with which he disagreed?
How could a loving father send his children to burn?
What you have to realise is that the origins of Christianity are based upon paganism and are nothing to do with the real teachings of Jesus!
The Roman God Dionysis was worshipped as a saviour having been hung from a tree and then resurrected after 3 days! (and this was pre-Christ.)
The Lord's prayer as Christians know it, emanated from the worship of Osiris, as did the 23rd psalm.
Do some independent research on the real teachings of Jesus. For instance, the 'Q' gospels and the gospel of St Thomas are particularly revealing.
Stop beating yourself up; - you are not going to hell! you are here to learn who you really are. All you have to do is to try to act according to your highest thought of yourself.
The Christians created hell as a machanism of social control. If you don't do what we want you to do, or think how we want you to think, then you will go to hell! - I don't think so: - Do you?
2006-09-03 12:41:53 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋