We all have our secrets. The sins that we share with no one. The plots we have carried out or the lusts for others and worldly posessions. We lock them in the darkness of our hearts and share them with no one. We fear that the mere sight of them and are terrified that others might see them and reveal who we really are. We might not be the person everyone thinks we are. We know that some of the things we have done were wrong but rather than confessing our sins to Jesus we continue to shelter them in the darkest reaches of our hearts and mind. We fear that we will be judged by others and don't want to be knocked off the pedistal we worked so hard to build.
So what can we do? Is it right to keep these secrets in an effort to protect the ones we love from harm? Are we really protecting them or ourselves? I'm not going to lie, I don't know the answer to this question for all of you.
I too struggle with these things. I have done things in my life that I am not proud of. I have learned to live with some of them. I can say that they haunt me like shadows in the darkness and sometimes attack me when I least expect it.
I believe that God knows this and uses these bad experiences/decisions in our lives to help us to grow. To remind us to not repeat them again. For god knows all things and has a plan for each of us. The time will come when we must stand wittness to all things done in our lives. We will be judged. But let the judging be done by God and not man. For we are to fear no man but only the one true God.
I believe that god will show compassion for any atonements we have made for he knows our hearts. I believe that we will suffer in one fashion or another for our sins. That suffering will come in many forms and it will be Gods decision as to how and when that will occur. I have no control over that. I can only seek Gods will and trust not in my own understanding of it all. I must lean on the word of the Lord and him direct my path.
I can tell you first hand that this is probably one of the most difficult things I have done in my life. Letting go and giving the control to God. Wondering if I just made the right decision or if it was indeed the will of God.
Yes, I have prayed about decisions I made before and I still wonder if the choices I made was the direction God wanted me to take. I often become scared or anxious about the outcome of such decisions but realize that only time will tell. It is a scary place to be at times. Even through further prayer I still find myself worrying.
Does this mean that I don't truly trust in the Lord? "Oh yeah, of little faith" comes to mind. What do we do? How should we move forward? Do we just chalk it up to, "I prayed about it so I'm good?" I often think that there is more to it. Perhaps this is why we all struggle with letting go. But the Bible says that we are to pray at all times. To pray without ceasing. CR.
So I have basically just copied an entry I made in my journal yesterday. I think I can answer the last question a little better. Actually, I already did. We are to pray continuously. I know that may seem difficult but I am finding that it really isn't. Sure we must carry on with our lives. We must go to work or school, play sports, (ride a bike!!!), or sit in a meeting. But we can meditate on Gods word. We can pray to ourselves or simply give thanks to God.
I have found that while I am currently going through a dark time in my life at the moment, I find peace when I am praying to God. Sure I may be praying about my problem at hand but I don't feel crushed by it while I am telling the Lord about it. I have found that this prayer time has become a bit of a sanctuary for me. I can clothes my eyes and begin to speak to the Lord and feel no stress. I can't explain it any other way. I can only say that it is the Holy Spirit surrounding me and keeping out the tourmenting thoughts while I commune with God! It is the greatest feeling I have ever experienced.
I have found that over the past week, I have begun to grow closer to the Lord. I am reading his word more and enjoying it. I am reading over pages that I have read so many times before but just never saw anything more than a story. This time however, I have been able to pick out points that apply to exactly what is going on in my life right now! He has opened my eyes to His word and my mind to understanding it. He is helping me to apply it in my life! How awesome is that?
Do I still have stress? You bet! But I know I can trust in him to get me through it. I know he will not give me more than I can handle. I need only to trust in Him.
So what can we do? Is it right to keep these secrets in an effort to protect the ones we love from harm? Are we really protecting them or ourselves? I'm not going to lie, I don't know the answer to this question for all of you.
I too struggle with these things. I have done things in my life that I am not proud of. I have learned to live with some of them. I can say that they haunt me like shadows in the darkness and sometimes attack me when I least expect it.
I believe that God knows this and uses these bad experiences/decisions in our lives to help us to grow. To remind us to not repeat them again. For god knows all things and has a plan for each of us. The time will come when we must stand wittness to all things done in our lives. We will be judged. But let the judging be done by God and not man. For we are to fear no man but only the one true God.
I believe that god will show compassion for any atonements we have made for he knows our hearts. I believe that we will suffer in one fashion or another for our sins. That suffering will come in many forms and it will be Gods decision as to how and when that will occur. I have no control over that. I can only seek Gods will and trust not in my own understanding of it all. I must lean on the word of the Lord and him direct my path.
I can tell you first hand that this is probably one of the most difficult things I have done in my life. Letting go and giving the control to God. Wondering if I just made the right decision or if it was indeed the will of God.
Yes, I have prayed about decisions I made before and I still wonder if the choices I made was the direction God wanted me to take. I often become scared or anxious about the outcome of such decisions but realize that only time will tell. It is a scary place to be at times. Even through further prayer I still find myself worrying.
Does this mean that I don't truly trust in the Lord? "Oh yeah, of little faith" comes to mind. What do we do? How should we move forward? Do we just chalk it up to, "I prayed about it so I'm good?" I often think that there is more to it. Perhaps this is why we all struggle with letting go. But the Bible says that we are to pray at all times. To pray without ceasing. CR.
So I have basically just copied an entry I made in my journal yesterday. I think I can answer the last question a little better. Actually, I already did. We are to pray continuously. I know that may seem difficult but I am finding that it really isn't. Sure we must carry on with our lives. We must go to work or school, play sports, (ride a bike!!!), or sit in a meeting. But we can meditate on Gods word. We can pray to ourselves or simply give thanks to God.
I have found that while I am currently going through a dark time in my life at the moment, I find peace when I am praying to God. Sure I may be praying about my problem at hand but I don't feel crushed by it while I am telling the Lord about it. I have found that this prayer time has become a bit of a sanctuary for me. I can clothes my eyes and begin to speak to the Lord and feel no stress. I can't explain it any other way. I can only say that it is the Holy Spirit surrounding me and keeping out the tourmenting thoughts while I commune with God! It is the greatest feeling I have ever experienced.
I have found that over the past week, I have begun to grow closer to the Lord. I am reading his word more and enjoying it. I am reading over pages that I have read so many times before but just never saw anything more than a story. This time however, I have been able to pick out points that apply to exactly what is going on in my life right now! He has opened my eyes to His word and my mind to understanding it. He is helping me to apply it in my life! How awesome is that?
Do I still have stress? You bet! But I know I can trust in him to get me through it. I know he will not give me more than I can handle. I need only to trust in Him.