all my life i was believed in god. no doubt. no question in my mind. But now that ive moved out and im on my own, i feel kind of lost. and i find myself actually doubting him and that really scares me! I have a great life (just stressed over school) so i dont know why im feeling this way!! It like i just look around and wonder did god really create all this? why are we here? im so confused and the feeling of not knowing is really scary! ive never had to deal with this before. What can i do to fix this?I've tried praying and im still feeling this way. its been like this for months now.
2007-08-27 05:43:19 · 14 answers · asked by LOST_fanatic:)! 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
always not was sorry
2007-08-27 05:43:46 · update #1
I do not know what your beliefs are. You say that you believe in God. That is good, but as the Bible says...James 2:19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
That is not enough for us to have faith in to be saved and assured of Heaven. You must trust Jesus Christ as your PERSONAL Saviour. Believe that He died for you personally to take the punishment for your sins and then arose the third day in victory. It is like this, you see a beautiful gift on a table and then you find out that gift is for you. As long as it sits on that table it still isn't yours. It isn't yours until you reach out and receive it.
Jesus Christ died on the cross, shedding His blood to wash away our sin and purchase the gift of salvation for us. A lot of people believe that Jesus lived and died and arose again. Some even believe He died to save the world. For them the gift is still on the table. You have to take it farther and realize He did it for YOU personally. When you believe what God has told you in His Word and come to Jesus to receive the free gift of salvation He offers, you enter into a family relationship with Him. God becomes your Father.
You stay in fellowship with the Lord, through Bible reading, church attendance and prayer. We talk to God through prayer, He talks to us through HIS WORD. Regardless of what many will try to tell you, the Bible is truly THE WORD OF GOD. It is important to go to a church that follows the Word of God to learn the Bible and more about God and for fellowship with other believers. When you do this your faith grows and flourishes.
Believe me God did create everything, no other explaination comes close to making sense. Check out Answers in Genesis for some cool stuff on creation http://www.answersingenesis.org/
As far as our purpose in life - the Bible has the answer for that too - Revelation 4:11 tells us we were created to please God
Rev 4:11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.
and from Hebrews 11:6 we know it is impossible to please God without faith. Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Thankfully when we ask He helps our faith.
Stay in His Word and under His word to build faith. The Bible again tells us, Rom 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Read the Bible (start in the New Testament in John). Get in a good church and even listen online to good preaching and testimonies. Here are some good sites :
http://www.unshackled.org/listen_home.html
http://www.thruthebible.org/site/c.hvKSLdMYIsG/b.474605/k.D209/Archived_Broadcasts.htm
2007-08-27 07:05:42 · answer #1 · answered by Kerri 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I know what you're speaking on.
It seems as if every seven to ten years I have something happen in my life that used to have me doubting God's exsistence.
I say "used to" because through those "refinement periods" my understanding actually grew!
I'll give you a sumation of what I was taught.
1:don't be afraid to be alone.
2:You're never alone.
I had to be alone for a while to find out that I wasn't alone.
My faith substained me throught those times because I had a good basic understanding.
It's like looking at a Modle T and a new Porshe.Both are basically an engine with a steering wheel,four tires and pedles.One is the beginning while the other is the refinement.The fact that you are concerned shows that you have a good foundation.
If I may,I would like to suggest you talk to some Jehovah's Witnesses.
If you don't agree with what they are saying tell them to take a hike.(But do be Christian about it!)
It's possible you need some thing more than an elementary understanding of God.
For instance I found out there is no eternal firey place that bad people go called hell.
Once things were explained to me it was like "Of course!"
All through the Bible the choices are life or death,not life of pain and suffering FOREVER.
I mean,does that sound like a loving God or does that sound like something Satan would do?
I won't try to reveal everything here.
This is your path to discovery.Get to steppin'!
Sincerely.
2007-08-27 06:18:32 · answer #2 · answered by Robert J W 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Been there. Why would a god create a world with so much suffering? You could be one the road to atheism, but you shouldn't fear this. It can be tough questioning something that is the foundation of your life, and a godless universe might seem a scary proposition. But for me it was a liberating experience, knowing there's no sky-Patriarch who determines the rules for my living (rules I might not agree with). Life becomes what YOU make of it.
Good luck and keep questioning.
2007-08-27 05:59:59 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Questioning is good. Don't let it freak you out.
For now, I would suggest that you remember who God is.
He's God, right? And if He's God, then He can stand up to any questions you can throw at Him. Go ahead and doubt. But at the same time, remember to ask Him to guide you in your doubting.
Then, if God is real, He will guide you, and withstand your doubts and questions. If God isn't real, your doubts and questions will reveal that to you too.
Personal experience: I doubted long and hard and none of my questions or doubts proved to me that God didn't exist and love me intensly. The contrary: I came away with a lot of answers to some tough questions about God and my relationship to Him.
Remember the centurian's prayer in the gospel: Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief.
Somebody once said that this was the most basic prayer of every Christian, since the beginning of real belief is questioning old beliefs.
Via con dios.
2007-08-27 05:50:47 · answer #4 · answered by Acorn 7 · 4⤊ 1⤋
These kinds of thoughts and doubts tend to creep in when we believers are isolated. There's nothing wrong with questioning it's what you do with the questioning that really counts. I would encourage you to find a support structure, Church. and Gather friends to talk about these feelings.
It's always easiest to sort these feelings out with physical friends and adequate time.
2007-08-27 08:45:04 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Doubts are a part of the path. What you need to focus on is why you are doubting? It may be scientific or philosophical reasons that are causing you to doubt. If so, you need to honestly and intellectually engage these question as there are many christians out there who step up to the challenge of answering these things with good reason.
"ten thousand difficulties do not make one doubt" - Newman
2007-08-27 06:19:43 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
You should not be trying to force yourself to believe one thing or another.
You can only truly believe what your mind concludes to be the most likely explanation of things.
Whatever you think is making you doubt God, research into and understand it. Then research properly into the areas of religion that are being contradicted.
You have to make an fair, informed judgement by yourself, for yourself.
2007-08-27 05:50:48 · answer #7 · answered by Adam L 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
There is nothing more liberating than coming to your senses and abandoning the ridiculously outmoded nonsense of religion with all of its arbitrary doctrines and primitive superstitions.
You will get through this transition and be better for it.
2007-08-27 05:58:34 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The solution to confusion is knowledge. Read as much as you need to to convince yourself one way or another. But be open minded about it. Read things that challenge your preconceptions.
As a start, I suggest Carl Sagan's masterpiece "The Demon Haunted World".
2007-08-27 05:51:41 · answer #9 · answered by wondermus 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
This is normal, because there many distractions, and many natural and intellectual attacks on your faith. This is a stage in growing into intellectual maturity, Pray, join some faith related organization in your faith tradition. Don't be a loser.
2007-08-27 06:00:30 · answer #10 · answered by Bibs 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋