Any hope for a teenage christian hypocrite?

Question

i'm almost 15 and the family rebel. i'm supposedly Christian at home and church but at school and with my friends is a different story. i hate being 2 different people depending on who i'm with. is all hope lost. i hate getting in trouble and i want my parents to trust me, and my sibs to like me instead of avoiding me. i'm a hypocrite, i know, but how can i become a better Christian, daughter, friend, and sister. i need older christian advice. and please no atheists saying "why don't you give atheism a try". if your not a christian who can actually help me please don't answer. thank you!!!!

what part of "if your not gonna help me don't answer" don't you guys understand?

st. peter, because like minded people will be more likely to help me, not make fun of me or criticize me *cough*you and that guy under you*cough*

Answer 1

That is a very difficult thing to overcome. One of the ways in which to overcome this issue is to become consistent in your life.

Hypocrisy is in essence inconsistency. What you believe is inconsistent with your actions. So becoming consistent on one side or the other is a very important thing. You accomplish this by deciding what you truly believe, and living by that standard. In Revelation the Lord talks about those who are lukewarm being "spit out of my mouth". What he is talking about here are those people who are on the fence. They want their cake and eat it too as the old saying goes. You have to choose, live for Christ, or live for the world.

Part of this choice is you choice in friends. Are your friends lifting you up, or are they bringing you down? If you believe it is wrong to do drugs, but hang out with friends who do drugs and entice you to do the same, then you may want to find some new friends. We are called to be a light to the world, and that means that we need to stand up for what is right. Sometimes that means we will lose friends, Lord knows that I have lost enough myself because I refused to partake in what they were doing.

The next step is to find a Christian mentor. Someone who can teach you and guide you, someone NOT in your family, someone whom you trust, and someone who is Godly. This could be a married woman in the Church, maybe a college girl from your Church. Then be open to sharing your struggles and problems with her, and allow her to help you make decisions that would be the right thing to do based upon what Scripture says, not what the current trend is. Sure the current trends say that sex is cool, and that drinking is great, but God's eternal word says not to engage in drunkenness and to keep the marriage bed pure. Find the truth in Scripture, and imprint it upon your heart, not the organ heart - the emotional heart, and live your life for Christ.

You know what is right in your heart, otherwise you would not be bothered by living a double life. Now use this time to get your life right, you won't be sorry.

Answer 2

You have a legitimate problem here and I am sorry so many people have not taken your question seiously.

I went through the same thing when I was 15 and I really wish someone could have set me straight then... it would have saved me worlds of grief.

First of all, the very fact that you do not like living a life of duplicity tells me that you are in fact a Christian. Christians are not perfect people. There is no uniform, no secret handshake and no one way a Christian is supposed to act other than lovingly. People want to put so much extra stuff on Christianity. "You can't be a Christian of you listen to this kind of music, or watch this kind of movie, or use this kind of language." It's important to remember that EVERYONE sins... EVERYONE falls short of God's glory. That's why Jesus died for us... so that we didn't have to perish for our sins. Because we are naturally sinful people. We are humans, and we make BIG mistakes.

Right now, you're at the age where you have to report to your parents. And I am not one to suggest that anyone disrespects their parent's wishes, providing they are within reason. But you still see your self-worth as being an extension of their blessings. No matter how upset your parents may be with you, God never loves you any less.

You are your own unique, individual person. No one else is like you. God made sure of that when He created you. He loves you and is pleased with you just because you cared enough to ask. But no one person on Yahoo! can truly grant you peace. You need to seek Him.

Talk to God honestly and without a filter. If you're mad, tell Him. If you're sad, tell Him. Talk to him with an open heart... you're not going to knock Him off the throne. The fact that you struggle only prooves you're human. You don't need to get it perfect and you never will. You just have to try your best.

Remember that God does love you and He rejoices in you. He does not hate you nor is He the source of any of the guilt you feel. Guilt is not from God. He only loves. And I think you're doing a lot better than you give yourself credit for.

Answer 3

You are 14. That's what it's like when you are that age. I was a mess at that age and had no idea what I was doing. Half the time I was smoking pot and getting drunk with my 17 year old boyfriend and the other times I was trying to act like a sweet girl when I hung out with my grandparents. I had a lot of guilty feelings back then because I knew 'right' from 'wrong' but peer pressure was impossible for me to ignore. I don't want to say something stupid like, "It's just a stage", but it is. I had a few Christian friends when I was younger who chose to go to a private Christian academy so that they could constantly be reminded that they were Christian all day long. I know that sounds weird, but it really helped them having that Christian influence while in school. You're not going to get that in a public school.

I know you said you didn't want any advice from a non-Christian but it doesn't really matter. Everyone goes through a really rough time when they are 14 or 15 no matter what their belief is. You will calm down in a few years and not feel like such a hypocrite anymore. Remember you are surrounded by a bunch of other teenagers who are also going through a rough time in their life and it's easy to get sucked into the whole thing. You sound a lot more self-aware than a lot of other kids that age and I think you will be fine as long as you remember that 'this to shall pass' (cheesy, but true) and you'll come out of it with a better sense of who you really are. Try to stay away from the kids you know may be a 'bad' influence on you and you'll get through this. Give yourself a break, you're 14!!

Answer 4

First of all, you are not 2 different people. You're just one person who is at war within herself. This is a reality of life, especially for a Christian whose spirit battles the flesh every day.

If you feel like your family is avoiding you and you also feel like a hypocrite maybe you could really sit down one day and examine your conscience to find out where you are falling short. For the Christian, it is almost always SIN that makes us feel distant from God and other people. It sets up a wall.

To examine your actions you can google online for "Examination of Conscience." It goes through the 10 commandments to help you find out where you are sinning and how you can start to do better.

Remember there is more to being a true Christian than saying a prayer and "asking Jesus to come into your heart." It's a day to day struggle for purity and holiness and Jesus is always there to help you, if you will accept His help. Because people are weak they will also need support and encouragement in a Church. And because God is good and deserving of our love, we should worship Him on the day He appointed each week.

Take it one day at at time and NEVER cease to ask for God's help and grace. We all need it desperately.

Answer 5

I will help you if I can. Even Paul asked this same question- why do I do the things I do not want to do, and do not do the things that I should. Just asking this question is proof that you love the Lord and want to live for Him. I have a 15 yr. old daughter who struggles as well, and my dear, I am 48 and I struggle as well. No one is immune to this in their Christian walk.
One suggestion I do have is this- ask Jesus daily to walk with you as you go to school. Ask the Holy Spirit to mold you into the person He has created you to be. It is really hard when you are spending time with unbelievers at school and want to fit in. God is the one you want to serve, it is obvious- look to Him daily. Concentrate more on who He is, then who we are. because when we focus on us, we tend to do what we would chose to instead of Jesus. Remember the story of Peter in the storm and Jesus asked him to walk out on the water and meet him- when did he fall down and start to drown? Only after He took his eyes off of Christ. Hang in there. I do not know if you email me or not, but if you can I would love to talk more.

Answer 6

He did the correct factor and resigned. Something Democrats will have to appear into Furthermore, who continues three yr historic IM messages? Head scratcher I'm happy to peer all of the gay bashing from the "celebration of recognition and tolerance" I additionally keep in mind that once Clinton had his scandal "oh jeez intercourse is individual" The web page used to be sixteen. Age of consent in DC, sixteen. Doesn't subject, that is one-of-a-kind. And of path Clinton's absolutely one-of-a-kind, due to the fact Monica used to be 19, and we unnoticed Studds altogether. What is there to disagree with approximately? Notice that they don't take on the factor that made that the Democrats don't uncover this conduct repugnant. That used to be the factor that I'm making. They do not uncover what Foley did repugnant, and he simply admitted, what Clinton did, no gigantic deal, Clinton and Monica, that is the whole thing stated right here is right. The Democrats circle the wagons, hi there, it is individual subject, hi there, it is only approximately intercourse, hi there, it did not impact the best way he did his activity.

Answer 7

There is hope for you! The fact that you're looking for advice from older Christians shows that there's hope for you and you truly want to change! I'm a Christian teenager (17) too, and I TOTALLY know how you feel. I've struggled so much with feeling like two people. I really admire you for asking this question. I read your profile and I'm amazed! I have three little brothers, and I thought that was crazy! Please email me if you'd like to talk more! I'd love to try to give you advice. I'll pray for you too. God bless you.

Answer 8

The Scripture says, "No man can serve two masters, for he would love one and hate the other." In your case it means that you can never be truly whole until you make a conscious choice to serve God and be the Christian He expects you to be and separate yourself from the elements that make you stray. The Scripture also says, "Come ye out from among the world and be a separate people," meaning that we are to be different by our example and the love in our hearts, not merely because Mom and Dad say so! Until you come to grips with the fullness of the terms of salvation laid out in the Word, you will continue to struggle. Study and pray and remember, you have a HOPE of eternal life!

Answer 9

Christianity is fundamentally how you treat others. If your family is very orthodox then perhaps you are more comfortable with your own thoughts than strict teachings. Being a 'bad' christian suggests that you mistreat people and are uncomfortable with your religion. With your friends religion shouldn't play a huge part to the relationship. As long as you don't preach to each other or compromise morals then you should concentrate more on general interests, like boys or the cinema or somethng.

Answer 10

Just read a lot of books on religion and science and try to find your own way. You are your own authority. Just don't harm anyone or their property. It took me 23 years before all my questions were answered. good luck. Don't let religion stop you from educating yourself. Don't wait for Jesus to come back and delay your education. Get educated while you are young. I waited too long for Jesus to come back. I am now approaching 40 and with fairly good qualification but could have done better if I hadn't listen to a pastor who told us Jesus was coming back soon in 1985-1991. Don't make that mistake. Become a PhD in something (NOT RELIGION!)