Christians?Do you try to live up to your faith? How do you keep from being discouraged?

Question

Every time I pick up the bible, whatever I read just shows me up for the wretch I really am. I sin with practically every breath I take even when I'm trying to be good.
I know I am saved by believing but faith without actions is dead. (James 2:17) But no matter how hard I try I am a sinner and always will be.
How do you deal with being such a disappointment to God?
And if you think you do live up to His expectations then how?

Wow. Some of these answers just blow mw away. You guys are lovely. Thank you so much.

Answer 1

I know what you mean, but we (believers) all allow ourselves from time to time to make the mistake of thinking that God loves us because we are lovable or because we are doing things right. The more righteous (in our own eyes) that we become, it seems the more likely we are to feel that God is disappointed with us when we mess up.

We can not afford to allow ourselves to think that God's salvation or indeed his love is somehow conditional upon us not sinning. We will all sin from time to time, because we are all sinners. We "all fall short of the glory of God". But we must not allow this to become a weapon in the hands of our enemy, the Acuser, Satan because he intends that it should destroy us and self-condemnation is one of his most leathal weapons.

Our joy as Christians can only be complete when we have a true revelation of the fact that our salvation by God's grace comes from our faith in the completed work of Jesus on the cross and that alone. It is his spilt blood that covers our sins, not our good works.

You have perhaps underestimated by a very very very wide margin the value that God places upon our beliving in, and putting our faith in Jesus. Conversely you (and I) may often be guilty of overestimating by an equally huge margin, the earned value that God places our ability to "work off" our own sin. It quite simply can not be done. We can not earn our salvation.

So then what of our "works". We ought to be living a life that demontrates our faith and effectively witnesses to Gods grace in our lives. The passage that you quote testifies to this:

James 2:14-19
What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.

You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. (NIV)


Walking the Christian walk and living the Christian life is not only difficult, it's impossible! But God has made the very best help available to us, His Holy Spirit.

Answer 2

Hey, you need to learn to forgive yourself when you mess up and love yourself. You will never be able to face life confidently is you think or believe that you are not good enough. The pressures of life are already beating up on you, please dont beat yourself up. The Bible is not meant to make you feel worthless, its meant to be a light by which we are able to see if we are going the right way or the wrong way. We are all human and we all make mistakes. The difference between the strong and the weak is how fast you rise when you fall. Do you stay at the bottom pitying yourself and crying or do you wake up shake yourself and face tomorow knowing that you now have knowledge not to make that mistake again. God loves you and that is why he gave you the Bible not to condemn you but to show you that even when you mess up there is forgiveness when you ask for it and not only that through the Bible he provides wisdom so we know how to act the next time we face the same problem.
Hang in there, trust in the Lord with all your heart, ask him for help in times of trouble and he will surely rescue you.
God bless you

Answer 3

If you love God and hold fast to your faith, God is not disappointed in you. Everyone is a sinner; keep close to God through prayer and reading His Word. You will be made perfect when you stand in the presence of God. Until then, it's a journey through life, trusting in the presence of the Holy Spirit to guide, instruct, and lead you. The greatest blessing a believer can have is when they reach out to another person and give them what they need. Shovel someone's snow; pray for a sick friend; run an errand for an elderly widow; give a word of encouragement to someone who is sad; visit a person in the hospital; be there for someone's who's lost a loved one. The possibilities are endless. That's what a Christian is called to do IN JESUS' NAME.
Blessings!

Answer 4

The fact is that sinning is habitual. The first step with breaking any habit is admitting that it exsists. Stop and look at when and why you do sin. Eliminate the causing factors. I have been where you are and prayer is my centre. I have come to terms with my sin through prayer and building that relationship with God. I will pray for you in the hopes you find the guidance you seek and should you want to email me with any specific prayer requests I would love to hear from you!

Answer 5

Try to understand the meaning of "covenant". Through baptism, you are an adopted child of God, and He loves you like a daughter. Do you hate your kids when they do bad? Of course not. You may correct them, even punish them, but NEVER hate them. You Father in heaven loves you, and your mother in heaven, Mary, loves you too. Sometimes one must take a breather from the black and white pages of the scripture, and just feel the family love that is The Family of God, The Church

Answer 6

Jesus loves you, and his love is unconditional- it doesn't matter what you do. If you are truly sorry, God will forgive you. Pray to God, and ask for His help as you try to live more like Jesus showed us. Nobody gets it right all the time!

Answer 7

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Answer 8

Prayer is the foundation of faith that works through charity. Prayer gives us strength, guidance, encouragement and power

Answer 9

Change your focus... You know you sin, as do we all, and God has forgiven you. God has a job for you--- have you found it what? Ask Him and He will guide you to it. You need to find some way to serve God and fulfill His plan. You are part of a plan, not worthless.

Answer 10

when i'm keeping my Faith in the Lord, i always trust in him and know he is always there to help me grow closer to him more and more. i try to stop thinking about negitive thoughts and to always be thinking good pure thoughts. i trust in the Lord to let me know when i'm doing wrong, to correct me so he can help me grow to that level where he wants me to be. when i'm feeling down its good for me to read the bible and everyday so i can have more understanding and knowledge of his Word. the more and more i read it over and over agian, the more i start to understand the bible. i love to keep communation with The Lord everyday by prayer. when you ask in prayer and believe it will happen and have Faith and not doubt, then he'll answer you. You just have to wait and be patient in knowing he'll answer you in his good timing. when your a follower of Christ ( a christian ) then it's the Lord's way and his will and not ours. i want to do the Lords will and to obey him always. if i stumble, i come to him and he'll lift me up. he comforts me and encourages me in my walk with him. Each time we sin , its like your piercing him agian and agian at the cross. it hurts the Lord so much when sin, he still loves us so much that he will forgive us of doing wrong ( sin ). He is merciful and kind.
Philippians 4:13 I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STENGTHENS ME.

Colossians 3:1-2 IF THEN WERE RAISED WITH CHRIST,SEEK THOSE THINGS WHICH ARE ABOVE , WHERE CHRIST IS, SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD. SET YOUR MIND ON THINGS ABOVE , NOT ON THE THINGS ON THE EARTH.
Titus 2:11-15 FOR THE GRACE OF GOD THAT BRINGS SALVATION HAS APPEARED TO ALL MEN, TEACHING US THAT, DENYING UNGODLINESS AND WORLDLY LUSTS, WE SHOULD LIVE SOBERLY, RIGHTEOUSLY, AND GODLY IN THE PRESENT AGE, LOOKING FOR THE BLESSED HOPE AND GLORIOUS APPEARING OF OUR GREAT GOD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST, WHO GAVE HIMSELF FOR US, THAT HE MIGHT REDEEM US FROM EVERY LAWLESS DEED AND PURIFY FOR HIMSELF HIS OWN SPECIAL PEOPLE, ZEALOUS FOR GOOD WORKS.
SPEAK THESE THINGS, EXHORT AND REBUKE WITH ALL AUTHORITY. LET NO ONE DESPISE YOU.
Timothy 4:18 AND THE LORD WILL DELIVER ME FROM EVERY EVIL WORK AND PERSERVE ME FOR HIS HEAVENLY KINGDOM. TO HIM BE GLORY FOREVER AND EVER. AMEN!
READ TITUS CHAPTER 3 AND THE BOOK OF EPHESIANS IS GOOD TO READ TO HELP LIFT YOUR SPIRIT.
I hope you find encouragement in the Lord and i'll be praying that the Lord will help you in your need.