There are some prayer requests that come in that really get to me. There are some from people who are searching for God with all of their hearts yet have been Spiritually betrayed. Perhaps they looked in the wrong place, perhaps they were just very wronged, and perhaps they were knowingly deceived.
It hurts because the person who was seeking has been denied. Jesus had a lot of hard words to say to the Pharisees who kept people from entering in. "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the Kingdom of Heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in." Matthew 23:13
Jesus was speaking about the religious here, whose souls were in danger of HELLFIRE. To the eyes of men, they looked as if they were believers, but they had no love or integrity or ethics. They said they believed but used lies to prop up their positions.
There is an arrogance that Christians are subject to get, once they have "a little knowledge." Suddenly, they are "in the know" and now have power over others and will spiritually manipulate other people, sometimes causing disastrous results.
I believe we need to do a Spiritual check every now and then. Not everyone will believe but there are some, like the letter below (which has been edited for confidentiality), who are really trying. May we be sensitive to the real will of the Lord who is LOVE and pray for these individuals.
Subject: Losing Faith
Ten years ago, If one would ask me if I was a Christian, I would have responded with "I'm looking into it," Five years ago, I would have responded with "I am." Today, I would not know how to answer this question. If it's the actions of a person that determines one's faith, then I have learned that the enemies of my faith is "Christians." This does not make any sense.
I lost my marriage, friends, also saw what damage renegade Christianity can do (in the name of love of course), (was stripped of my position as the head of my Spritual household by the leaders of my church and had my Spiritual needs totally discarded). I was judged and executed without a trial or appeal. I have also lost my job from a very religious Christian who ran the church through lies and slander.
I have also learned that Christians cannot recognize the difference between actions of love from hatred. Their ignorance of this only flourishes hatred. I am having a hard time with praying to my God. If everybody prayed together at the same time, that would not change the will of God.
Yes, I guess you can say I have lost faith. I am totally fascinated with the Bible. Why? I do not know. I'm beginning to believe that it is only a fantasy to keep people going.
I have also learned that there is a time when a man does not pray to his God because of the anger in his heart and out of respect for his God. (What comes out of your mouth is what lies in your heart - I believe that's what I read).
I find it difficult to attend any church services. One should try to strengthen their own foundation before attempting to administer to others. They do not understand what the Bible tells them to do. Choose your own laws to obey but remember to praise the Lord daily.....
This is the first time that I responded to any web site, I do not know why I am doing so. Yes, again I'll mention that I have not only lost my faith, but I have a hard time believing the power of prayer. It is written that "If two or more persons call out the name of the Lord, The Lord would grant whatever you request."
I guess I'm asking for your prayers and not for answers. I prayed to my God to learn about Christianity, I guess he answered my prayers. This does not make any sense that he would answer my prayer so that I would lose my faith.
Thank you for writing. I hope I don't come off preachy but I want to say what I think and believe.
First of all, you have been VERY hurt by people in the name of Christianity. You were probably what is called: emotionally abused. It happens. It has happened to me. But there is a way out of it.
I have been "thrown out" of churches so to speak for having my "opinions" of what the Bible had to say. It's jokingly called "the left foot of fellowship." I have had lies on me so the "elders" (people in charge) could be right. It was wrong!!! But it happens and for some reason, God does allow it, but we can get into that part later.
Just knowing someone understood the truth helped me a lot and that is what I want to do for you.
If you believe the God of the Bible, then you must believe that He ordained the Ten Commandments and still wants us to live by them. When people challenge me on that, then I know their faith is not genuine.
But knowing we could not be perfect obeying them because of the sin spirit we inherited in the Garden, the sin nature it is called, that is in all of us, God needed to send a Savior to do what we could not do on our own, as we were limited and flawed before Him.
So He sent Jesus whose life carried the message He wanted us to get. Are you with me still? I am not going to get super theological. Hopefully, just simple.
Then after Jesus did the atoning work on the Cross, He sent the Holy Spirit to help us understand and He also left us a Book, the Bible. If you really seek, you will find, it says and it is true, when you seek for Him with all of you heart! If you or anyone else, REALLY wants to know truth, they can find it, even if they have to go through a storm to get it. And that honors God.
God, as I know Him, means life and resurrection from the dead through Jesus. Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. I have most definitely found it to be so. What I heard and was taught was right, even though I did my own search to really find it out after hearing.
Once convinced that His way worked, then it was not hard for me to trust the Bible and I worked to learn how to live by it and do to that to the best of my abilities. I am still getting perfected in my understandings of it. It's a daily thing.
God allows us to go through things so we will be motivated to help others. Some of my sufferings have been so I could write you this letter. God is using me to reach you. I am not the only one.
He is not limited, but then in some ways He limits Himself so that we can develop into what He desires, which is not to torment us but as Jeremiah 29:11 says, to do us good and not evil, to give us a future and a hope and have a good relationship with Him!
There is an enemy to God, a spirit being that once was "perfect in his ways" but then turned against God. Lucifer (light bringer) became Satan (the fallen archangel) who is now judged.
Mankind is in the process of being tested. If we choose God, we get to be with Him. If we choose against God, we get Satan's fate, the lake of fire. WE choose! It is not a do it yourself belief thing.
I do not compromise on any of this. I hope I have helped in some way.
All His Best,
Pam Clark
[And now your question I hope is helping other people who are feeling just like you.]