All About GOD - Growing Relationships with Jesus and Others
Needing encouragement.
Hello all. My name is Chrissie. I'm 29 years old and I'm in need of some encouragement and prayer.
First, let me tell you a story.
When I was very young I was devout in my beliefs. I knew God existed and I never questioned it. I loved attending church and my Bible school lessons. I stood up for what I believed in. I even remember being punched in the stomach one time for sticking to my beliefs against a young man who told me that God was no different than Santa Claus, and just as fake. Though my stomach hurt, I knew I had done the right thing.
As I got older things started to change. Children at school started to pick on me because we didn't have a lot of money, and I was a bit eccentric. My mom found a boyfriend (my mom was single as I was growing up) and it seemed she found more pleasure in this new man than with me. I was pawned off on relatives regularly who never treated me quite as well as their own children. I fell into drug abuse, alcoholism, and the occult.
I've lied and cheated on a husband who has divorced me. A hole filled my heart.
More recently I've rededicated my life to God. I've been reading my Bible and have been teaching my nearly two year old son to pray. I talk to God daily. I feel that I have been tested, and while I failed that test, God has brought me back to him and I plan on staying.
I'm having a hard time dealing with my past sin. It's hard for me to believe I was that person. That I had turned from God for any amount of time. That I had used drugs, alcohol, and sex as solace for a grief that only God could fill. Instead of turning to him, I turned away from him.
I need some encouragement if you have it to give. Something to keep me going. I have very little people to talk to at this point in my life as we moved away from where I grew up a few years ago and I've had a hard time making new friends.
Thank you and God Bless,
Chrissie
First, let me tell you a story.
When I was very young I was devout in my beliefs. I knew God existed and I never questioned it. I loved attending church and my Bible school lessons. I stood up for what I believed in. I even remember being punched in the stomach one time for sticking to my beliefs against a young man who told me that God was no different than Santa Claus, and just as fake. Though my stomach hurt, I knew I had done the right thing.
As I got older things started to change. Children at school started to pick on me because we didn't have a lot of money, and I was a bit eccentric. My mom found a boyfriend (my mom was single as I was growing up) and it seemed she found more pleasure in this new man than with me. I was pawned off on relatives regularly who never treated me quite as well as their own children. I fell into drug abuse, alcoholism, and the occult.
I've lied and cheated on a husband who has divorced me. A hole filled my heart.
More recently I've rededicated my life to God. I've been reading my Bible and have been teaching my nearly two year old son to pray. I talk to God daily. I feel that I have been tested, and while I failed that test, God has brought me back to him and I plan on staying.
I'm having a hard time dealing with my past sin. It's hard for me to believe I was that person. That I had turned from God for any amount of time. That I had used drugs, alcohol, and sex as solace for a grief that only God could fill. Instead of turning to him, I turned away from him.
I need some encouragement if you have it to give. Something to keep me going. I have very little people to talk to at this point in my life as we moved away from where I grew up a few years ago and I've had a hard time making new friends.
Thank you and God Bless,
Chrissie
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Leonard T on
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Chrissie,
Here are some verses that I hope will be of help:
1JN 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
ISA 1:18 "Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
PS 103:11-12 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
PHP 1:6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
GAL 6:9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
JN 10:27-29 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand.
You will find many here on AAG who will care about you and for you, while also praying for you. Do you attend a local church? One of the best illustrations given to us is that we are sheep and sheep need each other for various reasons.
My wife and I will be praying for you.
Lord Bless,
LT
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Permalink Reply by Alan on
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LT has given you some great reading material and if you go over these daily it will help you. There may be something you are missing in your quest to know Jesus; there are many things so close to us that we miss them. I will give you an example when our boys were small we would see people that had not seen for a while, they would comment on how big the boys were and how much they had changed. I would look at the guys and they looked as they always looked to me but to that person who had not seen them for a while there was a difference. I bring this up for the point that you may not see a growth in yourself but those who have not seen you for a while will see the progress in Jesus that you have made by being diligent in the things that you know that you need to do. The other point is that we confuse forgiveness with removal of consequences. There are physical consequences for the actions that you have taken and some of those will require time for you to build on the foundation of healing that Jesus has given you. Even a child will be known by their actions and that is what you must do as those around you see the actions of Jesus flowing out of you they will begin to see you as the child of God not the person who goofed up. We cannot change yesterday and have no control over the future but we do have this moment to live, let us live it for Jesus as if it were the only moment we would ever possess.
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Permalink Reply by ChrissieStarr on
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Thank you both, LT and Alan. Alan, the reading material you provided me has given me some encouragement and I'm planning on putting those verses on index cards so that I can read them daily and learn them. I don't currently belong to a church. I had been going to one for awhile, and it just didn't feel right to me there, so I have a few more I'd like to attend before setteling in.
LT, yes, I am aware of the physical consequences of my actions. The hurt I've caused to people, while forgiven still has it's consequences, and I hope that in some way I can atone for at least some of them. I know I have a purpose, I feel it is to help others in some way. Hopefully God shows me what that way is.
Thank you again, both of you, so much. Thank you for your responses and your prayers.
God Bless,
Chrissie
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Alan's point is right on. We often see the highest mountain top wondering why we have not reached it and rarely take time to look down (back) to observe how far up the mountain we have come. Be encouraged. Life in Jesus is a journey we enter into at salvation that is daily and life long. Sometimes we encounter mud and slip back and get dirty. It takes tome to get the mud off, but Jesus is always there to lift us up and cleanse us off if we are calling out to Him and seeking His face.
Lord Bless,
LT
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By the way, I apologize guys for getting your names mixed up in my responses :/Oops! LOL
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I just want to encourage you again that there is no need to atone for anything that is what Jesus has done. The reversal of your lifestyle and that only comes out of your time with Jesus, is what will win over those who doubt the reality of your new life. Every day will have success and failure; put the condemnation of the failure out of your mind. Ask for forgiveness and except it do not allow self condemnation to come in. The mind is the battlefield; it is where the attempt to wear down your faith will occur. That is why Paul tells us to keep focused on the good things and the things that are pure keeping them in front of our thoughts at all times.
You can do nothing better than to immerse yourself in the Word of God. If you have a cd player get the Bible on cd and play it when you sleep. Sing the pslams with your child, every chance you get spend time with Jesus or learning more of His word. This is the thing will change you.
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I'm going on a trip tonight, it takes about 2 hours. I've uploaded the book of Romans on my MP3 player.
Thanks again Alan. I'm immersing myself more and more in His Word. My life has changed a lot already. I've been clean for about 2 years. The temptation toward all of that is now gone. My relationship is a good one in which God is very present.
I'll continue reading and searching with the knowledge that God will lead me to the rest.
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Permalink Reply by Deborah Sue Schenfeld on
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Chrissy dear,
You are sooooo LOVED by God! You are accepted in the Beloved & are part of the family of God. He will never leave you or forsake you. He has taken away all your sins by the precious blood sacrifice of Jesus, who gave His life to make you brand new! He is changing you from the inside out.
I know it's hard to believe sometimes that God has blotted out our sins and doesn't count them against us ever again. It's too wonderful! You look around and the reminders of past wrong choices are everywhere, arn't they?!
I will pray that you find a church or home group that will embrace you as Christ does, as YOU ARE! We are not suppose to be going this journey alone. Fellowship and praying for one another helps us grow & encourages us to lay down the old ways & pick up our cross to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. There is safety in numbers. The Body of Christ is meant to work together.
Look at it this way; If I had wounds, that needed healing and I never let my hand help uncover them & clean the sores & pour on the medicine, what would happen?
The wounds would fester & not get healed, right? The Lord will take care of your 'getting along with people skills', as you grow in Christ. Don't isolate yourself. You need people, other disciples of Christ! Thank you for reaching out, it's a good thing to do. I understand feelings of worthlessness & depression & doubts. I struggled with them for years. Come to my page for a chat anytime. I hope you make a lot of good friends here Bless you Chrissy!
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Permalink Reply by lynne on
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hi chrissie, may God bless you for your honesty. ive been a christian for 6 years now, when He first saved me from a life of alcoholism i was on fire, i told everyone what jesus had done for me and no-one could stop me!! but after 5 months i became complacent and to be honest i got bored and started to backslide, the next thing i knew id decided that alcohol was more exciting and began to drink again, God had given me evrything back and i slowly started to lose it all again, infact i ended up much worse than when i first cried out to Him. on march the 31st this year i didnt want to live anymore, i decided that my husband and children would be better off without me and thought about suicide, thats when i heard the still,small voice of my Lord again telling me to turn around and come back to him, and even though my guilt and shame was huge, i was just so thankful He was still there for me before it was too late. its now august and because of Gods faithfullness my life is amazing, and i live it unto Him, because i no how quick it is to backslide i darent take my eyes off Him, this time my life truly belongs to Him! Like you i had to fight against the guilt of what id done and even the judgements from other people, but the only thing that matters is His word and His love for me. I hope that you,like me see how blessed we are to be given this second chance,and never forget that there is no condemnation in Him. Love and blessings,
lynne.
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Permalink Reply by Videoguy on
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Chrissie,
It's been a while since anyone posted. How are you doing? I want to reinforce what others said, but perhaps put it a little differently:
GOD IS SO IN LOVE WITH YOU HE CAN'T TAKE HIS EYES OFF YOU!
Hope that helps...;?)
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P.S. Embrace Gal. 5:1
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
Stand firm, girl, against all those negative thoughts that keep trying drag you back to your old life. You are a new creation! You are no longer a slave to sin but a slave to righteousness! Hallelujah!
;>)
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Permalink Reply by Carla on
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Hi Chrissie,
You have really gotten some great encouragement here from fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
The enemy of our souls will take every opportunity to show us where we fall short...and sadly we are so often accustomed to listen to those lies rather than the truth of God's Word.....Listen to the voice of truth.
1Th 5:1 I really don't need to write to you about how and when all this will happen, dear brothers and sisters.[fn1]
1Th 5:2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night.
1Th 5:3 When people are saying, "All is well; everything is peaceful and secure," then disaster will fall upon them as suddenly as a woman's birth pains begin when her child is about to be born. And there will be no escape.
1Th 5:4 But you aren't in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won't be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief.
1Th 5:5 For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don't belong to darkness and night.
1Th 5:6 So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be sober.
1Th 5:7 Night is the time for sleep and the time when people get drunk.
1Th 5:8 But let us who live in the light think clearly, protected by the body armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.
1Th 5:9 For God decided to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us.
1Th 5:10 He died for us so that we can live with him forever, whether we are dead or alive at the time of his return.
Eph 6:10 A final word: Be strong with the Lord's mighty power.
Eph 6:11 Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil.
Eph 6:12 For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms.
Eph 6:13 Use every piece of God's armor to resist the enemy in the time of evil, so that after the battle you will still be standing firm.
Eph 6:14 Stand your ground, putting on the sturdy belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness.
Eph 6:15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully prepared.[fn2]
Eph 6:16 In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan.[fn3]
Eph 6:17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Eph 6:18 Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere.
Chrissie, I always think it best to answer questions with scripture. I hope this is ok. We must all be aware of the Spiritual Warfare that is in this world and in our lives. Stay in Christ!
Anytime you hear a voice that says "It's ok, you deserve it' or 'surely, one little bit would be ok'....that is not God
God's Word says "Mat 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any [man] will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me."
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