Why didn't Jesus enter my heart?

Question

I've told this story a couple of times, in other questions, but I'm going to do so again.

I grew up in a Southern Baptist family. I was taught that, if I didn't believe in the Christian god, there was something wrong with me. I was told that all I had to do was pray for Jesus to enter my heart, and I would believe, and be saved from hell, which I was terrified of. I was told I'd feel whole, happy, wonderful. So when I was about 7, I prayed for Jesus to enter my heart and fill me with belief. I felt nothing. I prayed and prayed, and nothing ever happened. I was so scared, I thought God was rejecting me. I thought I was doomed. For years, I didn't tell anyone how I could not feel the love of God, could not bring myself to believe.

I'm an Agnostic now, and quite happy, but I could have been a lifelong believer. Christians say that their god wants all of us to believe. So why didn't your god enter the heart of a sincere little girl who wanted nothing more than to be his?

Thanks for the vid, James-hova, but i don't really want Jesus anymore. :)

Not of This World, I've read the bible, and found it full of cruelty and evil done either in the name or your god or by your god himself.

Answer 1

If you are happy with your life, and don't want Jesus enter your heart! then what does it matter why He never entered your heart! If you don't want him into your heart. Then let it be, and live as you see fit.

Jesus said: I will knock at your door, if you open it, I will come in. He gives you the choice to let him in or not. Up to you.
The main reason I believe in Jesus is his teaching. Basically all he taught is to Love one another.
Good luck.


ADD: Please, take a moment a read it. I only mean well, and am not preaching to you. Live and let live.

I came back today to ask you something. Pardon me if you think I am attacking you. I am not.
ma'am, You sound like a person with a chip on her shoulder. You are wondering why he never entered your heart when you were seven! what happened between then and now!? have you ever wanted Him in anytime from then to now, truly wanted Him in! ever! If not! why do you still wonder why! let it go. If you don't want Him in! He will not come in.

I just recently read a short story about him going into a town to preach and the people did NOT want him there, and asked him to leave, and He did. He will not enter into a place that He was or is not truly welcomed.
Have you ever looked at his teaching through your own innocent eyes, without any preconceivec notion what you will expect! and without wondering why the teaching of Jesus Christ are not being held by some of his so called believers!
As any religion, there are good ones that are true to their faith, and their are not so good one who pretend to be believers even to themselves.

No preaching, never will. If you are happy, I am glad for you, but look through issues without any prejudment of what it is suppose to be. For if were true! the world would have been perfect, not the mess that we live in it in the yester years and the forever more.

God does not reject you, of forget you, or damn you. God is always there for you. If you wanted Him, He will be there for you. Sorry, no preaching. I am only trying to answer you the way I know how. An imperfect person.
Think about it, and Peace to one and ALL.
we can only hope.

No preaching ever. Just wanted to let you know you are loved.

Answer 2

You do realize it is not too late, you can still believe in Him. I don't understand how you can say you "felt" nothing, because you are demonstrating a tremendous amount of emotions toward Him. And have not done so in a spiteful way. It sounds to me like you are not actually writing this to "us", but is still an attempt to pray to G-d.

It is so obvious that you DO love Him; by the way you use your words. Not only can I read your emotions, but can hear, and feel them; like little prayers that are being emitted from you toward Him.

You may not be that little girl anymore, but that does not have to mean you can't believe in Him now. Even adults are being baptized, in the name of G-d (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). Faith and belief has no age limit.

Edit:
I see the Bible as a message that no matter what happens, if you believe, trust, and have faith in G-d; He is always there for you. He never breaks His promises, no matter how much time goes by between the words of that promise being made, and Him full filling them -- G-d keeps His word.

If you stop "living" in Him, because of all the cruel and evil in the Bible; does that mean you are trying to stop living in this world due to all of its cruelty and evil?

Look at it this way, G-d promises to those that believe in Him eternal life in His Presence --- no more war, tears, hate, or suffering. Do you think this world can give you that kind of peace?

Answer 3

You either heard it wrong, or you were taught wrong. And since the SBC took a radical turn about the time you were 7, it could have been either or both.

You said "I was told that all I had to do was pray for Jesus to enter my heart, and I would believe, and be saved from hell, which I was terrified of."

You don't pray and then you believe -- you believe, and then you pray. Prayers without belief are wasted air.

The spirit of God seldom enters an empty heart or a closed mind. The open heart and the open mind are where God moves.

You said, "For years, I didn't tell anyone how I could not feel the love of God, could not bring myself to believe." Churches are filled with people exactly like you. A huge percentage of any church yesterday was people who didn't believe -- that's one reason they were in church.

If you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and you BELIEVE in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved, Paul writes.

God very well may be in your heart, right now, but you don't realize it . . (Which may be why you call yourself an Agnostic, rather than an Atheist.)

The Creator moves in our lives all the time -- most people simple see coincidence, rather than the hand of God.

Faith comes by looking for, and seeing, God moving and working in our lives -- not by praying.

Your typical SBC church -- and those who believe God created the world in seven days -- limit themselves, and limit their idea of God. My God created the power of the sun. My God can create heavens and the earth, and butterflies and DNA, and isn't limited to man-made ideas like time.

So, instead of praying for faith, or praying for Jesus, or praying for belief, simply look around the world you're in, and see God working. Look for God moving and you'll see.

It's often difficult to see God working in the world, and in our lives, that's why church is helpful, even for non-believers. You can see God easier, when you hear others pointing out how they see God working.

And then stay away from SBC churches -- go to a CBF Baptist church, or the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), or the United Church of Christ.

Godspeed.

Answer 4

Wow, I'm so sorry you didn't feel the love of God growing up, but you must understand that salvation is an act of faith. "For by grace are ye saved, that not of yourselves, lest any man should boast." I'll cut right to the chase, because I know that you've heard enough sermons to last you a life time if you grew up in a Christian home. After you accepted Jesus Christ by giving the sinners prayer, you should ACT out on those words and show that you mean it by getting baptized in water (preferably learn to speak in tongues to get the full power, which baptist don't teach but is still important for a close walk with God to become a reality). Read your Bible or get one if you don't have one, find a kind, loving, honest, non-denominational church to help you understand the Word of God, stay away from religious, dogmatic people who can't use specific scriptures verses and references to those verse to back up what they say and I will be praying for you, God bless you and take care.

Answer 5

My dear,

Jesus did enter your heart. There is never a time when a person who sincerely asks for Jesus to live within them is rejected. BUT...

Our relationship with Christ should not be based on feeling. Many people don't necessarily FEEL any different after accepting Christ than they did before. Human feelings can be very tricky and deceiving. The Bible says that their is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end leads to death. To rely on our feelings is a dangerous thing, because they can change in an instant. But God never changes, He is constant. So put your faith in God, not in your feelings. Keep your eyes on Jesus, and you cannot go wrong. A changed life is evidence of Christ living in the heart, not a feeling. Satan can and does manipulate our feelings, and he plants seeds of doubt into people's hearts concerning their salvation. One of the biggest lies is that once you have accpeted Jesus, you will feel different. Satan pounces on this misconception, and has led many astray because of this.

I noticed you mentioned that you were terrified of hell. There are so many misconceptions of hell, people don't know what the Bible has to say about hell anymore. If you are interested, here is a website that explains what the Bible really teachs about hell, and shows the misconceptions that have been planted in the hearts of men over the ages concerning this topic.

http://www.helltruth.com/
God bless you!

Answer 6

Too many people rely on the "feeling" of God entering your life. My denomination does not hold to that position. Ours is a more logic based denomination.

When you accept Christ as Lord and Savior, there is a fact that you are saved. Whether you "feel saved" or not is irrelevant. What you should experience is a desire to do right, guilt when you do wrong, and a desire to know God more.

I have often felt as you do, a little cold and empty inside. I have always been an emotional person, so I expected some kind of feeling when I accepted God into my life. However, I felt no "fullness of the Spirit", no "setting the heart on fire", and I felt unsure as to the surety of my salvation. That changed when I came to the realization that God does not give us feelings of salvation, he gives us the fact of salvation.

Answer 7

That's one of the greatest struggles of being born in Christian family. I felt exactly the same when i was younger.

You cannot make your feelings the basis of your salvation. Being saved is like a principle, like the "law of gravity" or something.

If you accepted Jesus as your Lord and savior, then you're saved. It does not mean you can't sin anymore, given that we're still humans.

Emotions and feelings are tricky. You cannot base your salvation in emotions. Christianity is based on solid principles.

You just have to believe. Religion or good works cannot save your soul. Only Jesus can. Read your bible and go back to the basics.

Answer 8

I wish I had an answer for you, but I really don't.
I'm really sorry it turned out that way for you. That must have really hurt. It probably still hurts. It hurts me just reading it, yet I'm at a total loss to explain it. When I asked Jesus into my heart I DID feel something. Something huge. It was [and is] real and very wonderful. But, I am not "better" [or anything else that can be substituted there] than you are. I really don't know why that happened [or didn't happen] to you. I'm glad you are happy now, though.

Answer 9

I am doing the same kind of looking as I want to feel it too.
You say you are happy now but by writing this you can tell you are not happy and still looking for more like me. I wish I knew why I feel alone too but I not going to stop looking for God just because I don't feel him now. I know I was trying to work out and get result I was at the same spot I was years ago and until I started getting serous and work out with passion, I then lost 30 pounds in 3 months I am on my 4 month and hope to finally get were I want to go, but it took a lot of work and Scarface. I do envy those that can get results faster and easier then me but it is not to be so. I figure am going to have to take on God the same way, I just wondering if its the fear of finding him that is holding me back as I have to face myself as well.

Answer 10

I have no doubt God did enter your heart.

The problem was that you were misled by people who equated God's movement with warm 'n' fuzzy feelings of wholeness, happiness, wonderfulness.

When God's Holy Spirit moves in a person chances are that person doesn't "feel" a thing. If he/she does feel something, it's probably adrenlin and not the Holy Spirit.

Receiving the Holy Spirit is not about "feeling." It's about KNOWING. If you ask God to come into your heart, then as a matter of faith, you have to walk away from that experience knowing that He has entered your heart, even if you don't feel diddly squat.

People who go around trying to convince people that they're on some kind of constant high because God is in their hearts are a lot fuller of baloney than of God.

It's nice to feel warm fuzzies when you pray, but it's not necessary for the prayer to be successful.