Hi there sister, wow I hear where you are coming from, and I see what's in your heart here, the enduring compassion and commitment to doing good even though the world around you keeps draining you. So I'd like to pray first up while it's in my heart to respond that way, and then I'll work through your points below to give you some ideas that can help
Thanks for joining us here too!
Dear Heavenly Father, again I'd like to bring a matter before you that we both seek to involve you in. We thank you for being the good God that you are, that you are able to be approached this way, and that no matter whether we are people with large responsibilities or people who seem to be nothing in the context of a hierarchical society, yet you invite us all to humbly bring our concerns to you and to ask for you to help us find a relief. Lord God, despite that we admire these qualities in you and we aspire to be that way in the world, sometimes we do get worn down by the world grinding away at us. We apologise that sometimes we do give sin a place in us when in hindsight we come to regret it, and we ask for you to help us become more perfect so that even in those times of temptation we will not act in a way that is regrettable. We thank you Lord, that you have formed in us a nature that does bounce back from those failures, and we seek your help in this case with our sister, whose faith is lacking completeness. You have seen the true confession of her heart that she wants to really know you as a personal companion, and I know that through that she will come to receive such intimate understandings of the stories in Genesis that will help her unbelief. But right now, Lord, she is struggling against ideas that are deterring her from believing that you are in her and in the people around her. I just ask Lord God, that you will begin to speak to her in such a way that she becomes aware of a problem when she decides to doubt your voice. Let it be that she comes to know that the things that all the distrust she has developed - through a world with ulterior motives teaches us to be cautious: "if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is!". Lord God, we just ask that you'll bring our sister to realise that you really are there with her and that you do want to have that close, intimate relationship, and just encourage her to trust in your goodness so that this seed can flourish and come to life in her, revealing the face of Jesus to her so that her life is redeemed to the fullness of salvation that you purposed for us in Him. We do thank you Lord, that you care about all of us, and we extend this prayer of our heart toward others who would read it and seek the same! In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.
I'm SOOOOO sorry if this is in the wrong category. I just didn't know where to put this. But this is an urgent, super serious need of help!
For years I've been terrified of going to hell.
I believe 110% with ALL my heart that God exists. I accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I have a Bible that I love dearly and take THE BEST CARE of it as I can. It has NO rips or any harm to it WHATSOEVER and I've had it for years!
I don't pray often, which I know i should. Should I start lpraying every morning and night?
St. Paul writes that we should pray without ceasing. I remember as a child, there was this voice going on inside me, and I used to go around playing with my toys and doing kid stuff and I'd be talking to myself, and this is what it means to be in prayer constantly. There comes a time as we grow, that things like pride (self-consciousness), anxiety etc creep in, and they actually kill that freedom of internal spirit. This is why Jesus said that we must be born again, and unless we turn and become again as a little child, we shall never enter into the kingdom of God. So someone who has a good relationship with God will be thanking Him as they're eating their meal. They'll be thanking Him as they sit on the porch and watch the birds in the trees. They'll be thanking Him as they pat their cat. They'll be singing to Him in the shower, etc. The problem is that these are characteristics of someone who is operating in full capacity of Holy Spirit, and that brings out the worst in the world around us, because it is jealous and it is groaning under it's burden of sin. You know how they say "misery loves company"? Well, it is that the world doesn't know that your joy can be theirs, but they know that their misery can be yours. That is why they do it. (Consider Romans 12:21).
.. So, yes, pray! Pray even now! Pray when you get up, and then carry that prayer as you go forward to have shower, breakfast and drive to work
If you've never heard His voice before (or you might have only forgotten that you once did, or believed an idea that made you think it was delusional), then ask Him for it! You know, if ever I find my mind wandering, I say "Lord, where are you?" and He says "I'm right here". You get to know His voice by learning what love is, and that is something that you already have a deep knowledge of: (
I do absolutely NO wrong. I've never hurt anyone in my WHOLE life with words or anything; my hands have never touched a person harmfully. I always help homeless people when I see them. I respect everybody. I never express hatred.)
.. So, I believe that you've just fallen away from your relationship with Him, and what is that pesky thing that is preventing you from getting it back?
I don't believe in the stories of Adam and Eve and Noah and such, but I do try my VERY HARDEST to believe in it. I just can't seem too. I respect EVERY story in the BIble fully, but I can't force myself to believe it. I mean, I believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, but the other stories... I just can't.
Does God understand that I'm trying my hardest to believe everything?
Yes, He does! As you are saying this, there is no hint of deceit in your words. You are genuinely lost in confusion! So hang tight, trust in His goodness
He has heard your heart's cry, we have asked for His help through prayer, and you are taking steps to find out what you can do to restore your relationship.. it's all on track!
I do absolutely NO wrong. I've never hurt anyone in my WHOLE life with words or anything; my hands have never touched a person harmfully. I always help homeless people when I see them. I respect everybody. I never express hatred.
I just want God to know that I love Him more than anything. I have never once put anyone BEFORE Him.
I know. Remember His goodness! Do you remember how much you trusted in His goodness before that pesky fear of hell got put in you? Ask Him for wisdom so that you would no longer believe the lies of the devil (Ephesians 4:14, Ephesians 6:14). God is here to save us, not to condemn us (John 3:17, Matthew 7:24, Proverbs 11:31).
I suffer from severe depression, severe anxiety and suicidal thoughts on a daily basis. Practically every second. The only reason why I haven't killed myself is that's going against God and I would never do that! I respect God and I would never throw away what He blessed me with. Even if I struggle everyday.
But I'm still SO terrified of going to hell. Can someone help me with knowing for sure that I'll go to Heaven? Because I want to be with God. I want to be with my family that has passed.
This is the core of your problem: you have received a doctrine that originated not with Christ but with the antichrist (1 John 4:1). The false teachers arose amidst the early disciples while they were establishing the churches. They got a wiff of the gospel and found that through sharing it, they had a charisma that made them successful. But they hadn't fully submitted to God, and becoming just like those we are warned not to be come (Matthew 23:8-12), they came to covet the role of The Holy Spirit, instead using the popularity of religion as an opportunity for fame, money and influence (Jude 1:4, Jude 1:16).
I'd like to make sure that you've covered the basics of the gospel (no offense! - just it is really easy to miss a core aspect of the gospel, and we can become badly unstuck because of it). This is a booklet that I have put together for that reason, and I share a printed version of it with people everywhere I go:
Adonai Reigns : The Gospel : God did not send his son to condemn the world!
Please don't tell me to go to church. I REALLY REALLY would LOVE to, but with my severe anxiety, I don't want to have anxiety attacks there and ruin the whole thing. That would be disrespectful to God. (I've trie deverything to cure my anxiety FOR YEARS AND YEARS. Please don't give me any ideas on curing it, as I've tried everything and I've given up.)
Thank you.
Ok Sister, I won't tell you to go to church just yet! I would like to encourage you to pray to Him though, and just to make an adjustment in your life: that everything that you do, even as you get up from your seat now to go and make a coffee, start thinking "wow God, I really just want to thank you for all of this! You know, if I'd not gone there today I wouldn't have been reminded of how good you truly are! .. and thanks for this coffee too!"
Lastly, I say to check the balance of good and bad influences in your life. I find that TV these days is full of all sorts of bad influences. There is a lot of temptation to think hateful thoughts because of it, lustful thoughts (hate and lust being the motive for murder and adultery - demonic behaviour). There is people's behaviour in reality shows that gives us a bad impression of others. Then the problem is, that through our daily life, we are looking in our cellphones as we go down the street, the only view that we ever get to have of people is what we get to see on TV. But people aren't really like that in real life .. just everyone has cut themselves off from people in real life, because either they are anxious and don't have time for others, or they are afraid of what others are like because of what they see on TV.
.. and fill yourself up with good music! Here's one that I really love, and it fits you perfectly for where you are right now:
