16 years ago, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior. I was a prodigal child who knew God as a very young girl. I had been chasing the world and all its sinful fruits, and suddenly found divine love and grace.

Shortly after my conversion, I met the man who would become my husband. We started with the premarital relations and I got pregnant 3 months after meeting him. And it's not like I had a bunch of lust for him - I sincerely believed that we were meant to be together, and that my getting pregnant meant that God wanted us to be married. I actually was not attracted to him very much because he constantly belittled me for my past before Christ.

He convinced me that he would be happier in a cabin in the woods 500+ miles away from our families. I fought him on moving away, but the pressure was too great. He would be shaking from stress when he drove in the traffic-filled streets. His mom was verbally abusive to me, so I moved back in with my mom. Then, my brother was verbally abusive to me, in a very inappropriate and scary way. I felt like I had nowhere to go, and escaping to a remote cabin seemed like a safe option with all the chaos and tumult in our hometown.

That was 15 years ago.

It was the worst decision I ever made.

God even warned me in a dream. He showed me the chaos I would be walking into. I still moved here, feeling like I had no other option.

The culture shock has been extremely intense. I have been misunderstood and excluded by the people here. I used to be a colorful, articulate Christian with unbridled enthusiasm for life and my walk with God.

Now, I have been beaten up by life so severely that no one recognizes me.

I had to leave my ex-husband 6 years ago. My health was breaking down because of the abuse and isolation. Sadly, though I have been recovering the best I can, I am still unhealthy. It is not for lack of trying. I eat very well and work out regularly.

I have no friends. I have no boyfriend. My kids are my only company, and I refuse to be co-dependent with them. My mom did that to me. So I keep my big problems to myself, and suffer silently.

I tried going to church. I got attacked for not being vaccinated.

I tried dating. I got hurt multiple times and needed to call the cops.

I tried getting medical care. My doctor ignored me for a week. I ended up in urgent care diagnosed with an infection. The antibiotic gave me a bad reaction, and I needed an ambulance the next day. My support system is so non-existent that I needed to pull my oldest child out of school to watch the younger kids just so I could go the emergency room.

I tried visiting my family back home. But the courts will not allow me to move there with the kids, since my ex says that he can take over the parenting duties. However, this reality only exists in his head. He doesn't even check his mail or write back to emails. He cannot manage complex medical care for disabled children.

I have been looking for a new place to live for 4 summers in a row. I have been rejected and denied because of things beyond my control, like a bankruptcy because my ex-husband financially abused me (to the tune of $50,000 in credit card debt). An eviction incorrectly filed against me, but the court will not remove it from my record.

As such, my kids and I have been forced to live in an unhealthy home that has black mold, because we cannot find another place to live. The neighborhood is geographically isolated and socially deserted. The people here are so unfriendly that they go inside whenever we go out.

And this locale that my ex moved to is quite beautiful, and it had low Covid numbers. So now the housing has been bought up by people, and there is nowhere left to live. I am looking at dingy apartments for my kids and me that cost double what I am paying now.

I am not depressed.
I am demoralized by life.

Every day (almost) I read my Bible. I need to. I need God. I have been clinging to Him for dear life.
I don't understand what He's doing in my life.
I need Him to guide me through this storm.

Do any of you keep a Chotki to pray the Jesus prayer?

I have a black one that was blessed by a Catholic priest.

I need to use it more.

Especially with my own anxiety disorder.

God bless

Interesting quotes concerning “Christianity” from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Edward Gibbon
All emphasis in following quotes is mine.

My comments in blue.

Chapter 3

Of the Constitution of the Roman Empire, in the Age of the Antonines.

Part I

The obvious definition of a monarchy seems to be that of a state, in which a single person, by whatsoever name he may be distinguished, is intrusted with the execution of the laws, the management of the revenue, and the command of the army. But, unless public liberty is protected by intrepid and vigilant guardians, the authority of so formidable a magistrate will soon degenerate into despotism. The influence of the clergy, in an age of superstition, might be usefully employed to assert the rights of mankind; but so intimate is the connection between the throne and the altar, that the banner of the church has very seldom been seen on the side of the people. A martial nobility and stubborn commons, possessed of arms, tenacious of property, and collected into constitutional assemblies, form the only balance capable of preserving a free constitution against enterprises of an aspiring prince.(The History of the decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol. 1, Chap. 3, pg. 68 of the Everyman’s Library edition)

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Thus the eventual formation of Constitutional governments for and by the people, with a healthy separation of church and state. Formed by predominantly Protestant, liberty seeking, justice loving people. It took us long enough, and now it is slipping away.

Quote - This football analogy from Del Bigtrees interview of Geert Vanden Bossche made me understand the HOW and WHY humanity is in such grave danger from the global mass vaccination campaign. This explains the very basics of how non-specific and specific antibodies are completely different and should be at the very centre of any and all covid vaccine discussions.

https://rumble.com/v44ns69-football...interview-of-geert-vanden-bossche-the-hi.html

what this woman did was so brave and she is on fire for the Lord Jesus! - YouTube

Called by his heavenly Father and inspired and encouraged by his earthly one, Father Jeremiah Hahn expresses sincere appreciation for his calling.

Like many Catholic boys, Jeremiah Hahn considered becoming a priest. At an early age, the devoted altar server “first sensed an inkling” toward priesthood, even attending a meeting to learn more and affirm his future vocation.

This inclination was at least in part influenced by his father, well-known Catholic theologian and scholar Scott Hahn, a former Presbyterian minister who converted to Catholicism and entered the Church at the Easter vigil in 1986.

Scott, 68, holds the Father Michael Scanlan, T.O.R., Chair of Biblical Theology and the New Evangelization at Franciscan University of Steubenville in Ohio, where he has taught since 1990.

A well-known program host on EWTN, he also is the founder and president of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology. Scott speaks often nationally and internationally — both in person and on radio and television — on various topics regarding Scripture and the Catholic faith.

Continued below.

I wasn't sure where to post this but does anyone else here wear Christian t-shirts? here are a couple that I wear I sometimes get compliments about the Lord's Gym shirt

Hi,

My dad got injured and now his arm is swollen. He is older, and I want him to recover well. Please pray for him

Prison time is necessary.

Seems our music is still relevant for the times we are living in now!

Let's share our songs together

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I don’t have this magazine but this is an article in this months‘ Popular Mechanics. Science tells us what we already knew.​

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<<<<<Scientists Found a Link Between Spirituality and Your Brain—Are You Hardwired to Believe in God?​

Scientists are mapping specific brain regions to understand how the brain conceives of the divine.>>>>>

I am sadly not surprised.

Christians often talk about the leading of the Holy Spirit and we read about the promise of the Holy Spirit - that it will guide into all the truth

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

But I don't think this means the Holy Spirit replaces our personality and thoughts - like in some SF stories. We still have our own thoughts. So how do we discern the leading of the Holy Spirit - not contradicting Scripture only goes so far.

e,g, someone might say the Spirit led them to apply for courses in accountancy rather than the legal profession. How would you discern this as the leading of the Holy Spirit? You may be equally qualified for both and other Christians could recommend both. And is that the Spirit's leading - asking other people? What about your own inner witness - is that your thoughts or God's thoughts?

It is getting camp meeting time here in these Virginia mountains. It is nice to get out as some of the settings are gorgeous. The only thing is that last year it seemed like the ministers would sit around and watch the news all day, and then repeat the issues of the times behind the pulpit. I would ask them... Please don't repeat the news! I get enough of it in my daily life. Even with electronic devices, empty windows seem attempts to fill them with daily news. And like a bunch of alley dogs and alley cats we have a bunch of reporters gathering all the garbage of the times for online display. I am hoping for a little more encouragement this year.

Please pray that God will let me hear my son talk to friends and that he can be happy. Tonight if He will let me and as long as God will allow me to hear his laughter. Please pray for Jakeb's healing if it is God's will. I ask in the name of Jesus. Thank you and may God bless you.

Funny how this anti-King thing has suddenly sprung up in US and abroad

I have this problem in my life that I've always had since becoming a christian years ago now. It's perfectionism/legalism. Just recently though I have been dealing with an issue at work thats led me to make this post because i just more than anything want some advice and input from people on how to fix this issue. I keep committing what I perceive to be willful sin not even because I want to but because it seems as though it's the only way to get through my job. It all has to do with training thats required for the job. I try to actually do the training properly but this issue is in order to do it properly it places what I perceive to be a huge burden on me. It's actually over something probably most people would perceive to be silly but my mind grapples onto it and it gives me anxiety and guilt from feeling like I'm committing sin. It all has to do with acknowledgements for terms and conditions and stuff. Again i know it's silly but it's just gets to me. I've asked God for help on it but it's just tough for me to deal with because my mind makes me feel like I have to read though and understand one of those things along with find mental loopholes just to get through it. I cant really talk about this issue to people around me cause they'll probably just think I'm crazy. It shines light though on the bigger issue as a whole that there is no escaping sin in this world no matter how hard a person tries to. Jesus himself states that stumbling blocks are inevitable in Matthew 18:7, and Luke 17:1. So if thats the case then how do i deal with this issue. I know our works don't save us and the only way to heaven is through faith in what Jesus Christ did on the cross but I also don't want to sin. I don't want to willfully sin either and I don't want to abuse grace. I can't run away from the issue either because like Jesus said it is inevitable and this is an imperfect world. I try to find ways around issues like this like using the verse talking about food sacrificed to idols and not questioning it for the sake of conscience and doing something similar with this issue which has helped me but is it ok to use idk 100%. To wrap it up how do i live with this issue of not being able to escape future stumbling blocks and battling perfectionism while at the same time not abusing grace? Thanks.

Israel must make sure to completely eliminate Iran's nuclear weapons capability.

There's no actual civil unrest, but there might be soon.

Does Walz care that there are over a million Muslims in Chinese reeducation camps? I don't understand how the American left brushes aside the evil of Communist regimes.

Democratic state politician Melissa Hortman and her husband have been killed in what appears to be a ""politically motivated assassination," Minnesota Governor Tim Walz says

Democratic state lawmaker John Hoffman and his wife were also shot, and Walz says he is "cautiously optimistic" of their recovery

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In response, the planned protests against Trump have been cancelled as the governor asked for it due to th circumstances.

Jesus will be here soon. It says so in the Bible. Jesus himself says so in Revelation 22:7. But as it says in Matthew 24:36, “But concerning that day and hour [that Jesus will be here,] no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” The best thing to do is to be at your best when he shows up. He may show up tomorrow, next week, next month, next year, next decade, century or millennium, nobody knows.

There’s no taking for granted he will appear when a particular person is alive. That person may be settled in his grave or in God’s Kingdom before Jesus appears. But as it says in Matthew 24:40-41, “...two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left” when Jesus appears. The one who is taken is one who would have passed away before Jesus arrives, and the other one is someone who is around when Jesus appears. Two men who worked in the field, and two women grinding at the mill before one of each is taken.

That suggests that the ones who are left would be going about their business when, Surprise! Jesus appears. But the reality is there are billions of such people, some will have been “taken” and some who will be “left.” Not all may be in the same place as where he arrives, but word would get around in any event. But to simplify things, keeping it to two of each, what type of man in the field, so to speak, will Jesus come across? Will he come across a man who’s been living a moral life, and who asks for forgiveness when he invariably sins, or will he come across a man who just the other day spent his time off attending a hate rally against a hated group of his choice on a wholesale basis? And what of the woman who is grinding in the mill? Will she likewise be living a moral life and asking for forgiveness when she sins, or will he come across a woman who just the other day, as an elected official, would be more than happy to refer to all migrants to her country as “monsters?” Makes no difference to her, if she can get their vote. She may refer to herself as a Christian, but recall in Matthew 2:14-15 that when Jesus was under threat of being slain by King Herod, Joseph took him and Mary to Egypt and stayed there until many years later when it was safe to return to their country upon Herod’s death. Did anyone in Egypt refer to that family as ‘monsters’?

Or go further back to when Joseph found himself in Egypt and was brought to the attention of the Pharoah in Egypt at the time, did the Pharoah say ‘Get this “monster” out of here’? Alright, so the Pharoah after him wasn’t so kind to the Hebrews, and perhaps if he had his way, a big, beautiful wall would have been built around Egypt, preventing outsiders from coming in. But given that the Bible was written based of faith, it is difficult to read into the happenings in the Bible as one would any historical event that is found in secular history books. So let’s go closer to the present…the U.S. could have said ‘keep those monsters out,’ referring to the waves of immigrants in the 19th and 20th centuries who were being processed at Ellis Island. But it didn’t, did it? Perhaps at the time, there were enough people who were level-headed enough to know that not everyone, IF anyone, who landed on America’s shores, were ‘monsters’.

So what if Jesus appears and he sees a ‘monster’-hater working in the field, or grinding in a mill? Would he take them up? Seems unlikely if they fail Jesus’ test set forth in Matthew 25:31-46. What would they say if Jesus says, ‘Take these to the Lake of Fire’? would they say ‘Had we known you were coming, we would have changed for your benefit’? Seems unlikely they would get a second chance, particularly when you consider the Parable of the Rich Fool, when God says to the Rich Fool who was planning his future, ‘Fool, your time has come NOW for judgement!’

As it implies in Matthew 24:44, you must be ready come day or night, for you won’t know when Jesus will appear. How many people now, who when faced with hordes of needy people and who are hell-bent to turning them away, will end up being turned away themselves by Jesus if he should hear what they say about the needy, and see how they treat the needy? Who is the real ‘monster’ here?

Joh 18:38 Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all.

Pilate's rather blasé inquiry showed a sort f world weary disregard for philosophical musings. What he failed to perceive was that the rhetorical question was asked of he who is truth.

The bible calls four things truth, God the Father,God the Son,, God the Holy Spirit, and the word of God. One might see truth as that which is absolute, unchangeable and defines reality. There can be a difference between something that is true and truth.itself.

I once made a comment is a social setting that all psychology was wrong. When challenged to support my assertion, I said that no psychological theory of human behavior included the concept of sin. Thus not remedy drawn from such an inadequate understanding of human behavior could be anything but random in its efficacy. While my statement could see as true, to consider truth, one has to go to the bible.

. Rom_3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

More than one denomination falls short of truth. However, beyond doctrinal inaccuracies, perhaps are greater failings;

1. Failing to help each member become more like Jesus.
2. Administered as an organizational system whose mechanical nature impedes relationships.
3. Failing to show how to disentangle from the world and the flesh.
4. Presenting Christianity as a Sunday morning activity.

Someone recently intimated a dissatisfaction with the error of a particular denomination. Since we all contribute our own errors, we might have some compassion for a weaker brother, particularly if we are the weaker brother.