Give Me Your Best Christian Advice

Pavel Mosko · Jul 10, 2020

I thought I would have a thread based on the best Christian advice you have heard, read, personally received etc. Ideally speaking it would be something universal or could help anyone, or any Christian. But if not, if it is specific maybe some advice in an area that you tend to give out a lot etc.

On the internet, I try to give out "original content" as far as my own thoughts, writings etc. But I have struggled with some issues, and got helped by these 2 sermons especially and William Lane Craig essay/ speech on Failure is especially good; because, that is an issue that really is not talked about and their can be lots of anguish etc. over that.

1) "Finding the Strength to Go ON"

2) "You Forgive You Must Forget"

3) William Lane Craig, Failure
Failure | Reasonable Faith

4) Phillip Yancey's book "Disappointment with God" another good one for folks with depression, questions and frustrations with theodicy.
https://www.amazon.com/Disappointment-God-Three-Questions-Aloud/dp/031021436X

Well there are some other good ones, I've read on other topics like doing ministry, finding God's will for your life etc., but maybe I save that for another thread.....

Anyway feel free to chime in with your best advice, YouTube advice sermons, books links and what have you..... May the Lord Bless you and Keep You!

Jord Simcha · Jul 10, 2020

My best Christian advice:
ask God for the Holy Spirit (if you have never done so)

Dansiph · Jul 10, 2020

Pavel Mosko said:
I thought I would have a thread based on the best Christian advice you have heard, read, personally received etc. Ideally speaking it would be something universal or could help anyone, or any Christian. But if not, if it is specific maybe some advice in an area that you tend to give out a lot etc.

On the internet, I try to give out "original content" as far as my own thoughts, writings etc. But I have struggled with some issues, and got helped by these 2 sermons especially and William Lane Craig essay/ speech on Failure is especially good; because, that is an issue that really is not talked about and their can be lots of anguish etc. over that.

1) "Finding the Strength to Go ON"

2) "You Forgive You Must Forget"

3) William Lane Craig, Failure
Failure | Reasonable Faith

4) Phillip Yancey's book "Disappointment with God" another good one for folks with depression, questions and frustrations with theodicy.
https://www.amazon.com/Disappointment-God-Three-Questions-Aloud/dp/031021436X

Well there are some other good ones, I've read on other topics like doing ministry, finding God's will for your life etc., but maybe I save that for another thread.....

Anyway feel free to chime in with your best advice, YouTube advice sermons, books links and what have you..... May the Lord Bless you and Keep You!

Probably the advice I most remind myself of is the Bible verse Psalms 118:8

It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.

I have a poster from TBS of it on my wall.

Joyous Song · Jul 10, 2020

Pavel Mosko said:
I thought I would have a thread based on the best Christian advice you have heard, read, personally received etc. Ideally speaking it would be something universal or could help anyone, or any Christian. But if not, if it is specific maybe some advice in an area that you tend to give out a lot etc.....

Anyway feel free to chime in with your best advice, YouTube advice sermons, books links and what have you..... May the Lord Bless you and Keep You!

Your struggle sounds like The Dark Night of the Soul. I have these episodes and always finding reading John of the Cross a relief because he also dwelt in this place and in this darkness he found Light and Hope. Here is one such poem: Poet Seers » I Live yet do not Live in Me

Hope this helps

com7fy8 · Jul 10, 2020

I did a YouTube offering about obeying God in His peace > this advises that we submit to how our Heavenly Father personally rules each of us in His own peace, and we have comments about this >

com7fy8 · Jul 10, 2020

Pavel Mosko - with one of your posted videos in your Post #1 of this thread - its title said:
2) "You Forgive You Must Forget"

My first advice with this is > I do not forget, but I do test if and how I trust someone whom I forgive. I need to pray and see if and how our Father has me trust a certain person.

Now I am listening to the video on YouTube that goes with this. So, here is a little bit of what I get him to be saying >

He says we can not forget; it is not humanly possible; but we can put away all the negative and nasty stuff of unforgiveness >

"Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." (Ephesians 4:31-32)

He asks, What does this mean, to forgive the way God forgave us?

But doesn't God get angry? So, is Paul telling God to not get angry??

It sounds like God does get angry. And God does bring consequences. Did Jesus get angry? Yes, He made a whip and drove out the money changers in the temple, and the animals being sold. And that was in the Temple which is "the most holy place", he says.

One can get angry about a threat to his children. And our Father, he says, gets angry when people mess with His children.

"So, what's the difference between God's anger and my anger?"

Outside anger can be good, when you are expressing that you have a problem with something which really is wrong; but inside anger which just stays there is not good.

Elsewhere, God's word does say >

"'Be angry, and do not sin': do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil." (Ephesians 4:26-27)

"There's different kinds of anger."

We need to express anger, but not in an abusive way.

We need to know which anger is right and which isn't. Jesus warns how if we are angry with our brother we can be committing murder in our hearts, he seems to mean by how he understands Jesus in Matthew 5:21-22. Even if you do not touch someone you hate, you can be guilty of murder.

Christ is not speaking about anger of the flesh, but of the heart, he says.

In the early scriptures, God expresses His anger; but then He sends His own Son.

There is more on the thread; but I am going to stop here and offer advice which has helped me find out how to love with God >

Another thing I think of is how our Creator's wrath clears away what is wrong . . . making place for all the good He will do. So, in me the good advice can be, use anger which gets rid of wrong things in me so then I am loving. For example, instead of how I can give in to self-righteously having a fit against someone, get angry at that self-righteous anger, and then love and care for the person, and be ready for love . . . at least being a good example to help the other person find out how to love, even if the person is not ready for sharing in love with me.

CaspianSails · Jul 11, 2020

Best advice, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths. Followed by Be still and know that I am God. That is at this moment, to be clear my best advice tomorrow could be slightly different. But in the end it is simply know whose you are and act like it.

Blood Bought 1953 · Jul 11, 2020

Say this from your heart sometime before you die—- guaranteed to get results!
“ Lord Jesus, have Mercy on me , a Sinner”
If that is too “ wordy”, try this —“ Jesus, save me . “

ChristianGirl_96 · Jul 13, 2020

Be honest with Him always.

thecolorsblend · Jul 14, 2020

Back in my evangelical days, the small group teacher once said something like "God gives you opportunities".

So when you pray for Him to make you more loving, He provides opportunities for you to be loving. Or if you pray to be stronger in the faith, He provides opportunities to be stronger.

The joke that went along with that is be careful about asking God to give you more patience. Because He'll give you LOTS of opportunities to show patience!

But the big idea behind it is that God nurtures qualities in you more often than He instantly grants them. We are called to conversion and part of that entails being a better person than we were before. So when you ask God to essentially make you a better person, He may provide you with opportunities to develop those qualities rather than instantly grant them to you.

Sisan · Jul 29, 2020

Stay focus, and finish the race well and strong.

ChristServant · Aug 30, 2020

Pavel Mosko said:
I thought I would have a thread based on the best Christian advice you have heard, read, personally received etc. Ideally speaking it would be something universal or could help anyone, or any Christian. But if not, if it is specific maybe some advice in an area that you tend to give out a lot etc.

Help people that are lost in darkness and on there way to hell by bringing them to Christ.

Pavel Mosko · Aug 30, 2020

thecolorsblend said:
But the big idea behind it is that God nurtures qualities in you more often than He instantly grants them. We are called to conversion and part of that entails being a better person than we were before. So when you ask God to essentially make you a better person, He may provide you with opportunities to develop those qualities rather than instantly grant them to you.

I've always been interested in the notion of what you Catholics call Spiritual direction, Vocation etc. I was raised Lutheran, with some of the basic Catholic tradition, but without any aspect of that whatsoever.
I sort of had to find that sort of thing later on in life, joining the Charismatic movement. It was kind of galling later on hear my folks, talk about a pastor being "called". Because it was used pretty much entirely, as a euphemism for getting a job offer from a particular congregation, and never in the sense that the person really believed that God intended them to be in ministry etc. or any kind of thing that would be like the Bible where the person has some personal experience of God.

I'm not sure how much of that came from that branch of Lutheranism embracing Cessionism (the belief that miracles and the Supernatural signs etc. "died out with the original apostles") etc. A belief that came about from John Calvin debating a Catholic monk Apologist and using the lack of miracles as a sign against the Reformers, Calvin countered by denying later miracles.

But anyway that topic of Spiritual direction, Calling / Vocation has been kind of favorite of mine. I've read and watched some good Catholic advice on it, from Ascension presents on You-tube and a few authors that have articles posted on line. And a year ago, I ran across a Coptic priest who is younger than I am that has had some videos on You-tube, podcasts on it. I apparently am not alone, it apparently is one of the hot topics that people tend to down load and watch since it hits them at home so to speak.

thecolorsblend · Aug 30, 2020

Pavel Mosko said:
I've always been interested in the notion of what you Catholics call Spiritual direction, Vocation etc. I was raised Lutheran, with some of the basic Catholic tradition, but without any aspect of that whatsoever.
I sort of had to find that sort of thing later on in life, joining the Charismatic movement. It was kind of galling later on hear my folks, talk about a pastor being "called". Because it was used pretty much entirely, as a euphemism for getting a job offer from a particular congregation, and never in the sense that the person really believed that God intended them to be in ministry etc. or any kind of thing that would be like the Bible where the person has some personal experience of God.

I'm not sure how much of that came from that branch of Lutheranism embracing Cessionism (the belief that miracles and the Supernatural signs etc. "died out with the original apostles") etc. A belief that came about from John Calvin debating a Catholic monk Apologist and using the lack of miracles as a sign against the Reformers, Calvin countered by denying later miracles.

But anyway that topic of Spiritual direction, Calling / Vocation has been kind of favorite of mine. I've read and watched some good Catholic advice on it, from Ascension presents on You-tube and a few authors that have articles posted on line. And a year ago, I ran across a Coptic priest who is younger than I am that has had some videos on You-tube, podcasts on it. I apparently am not alone, it apparently is one of the hot topics that people tend to down load and watch since it hits them at home so to speak.

My objection to that is a little similar. Again back in my evangelical days, I was struck (and profoundly annoyed) by how often people would do X, Y or Z, saying "the Lord laid it on my heart". By total coincidence, I'm sure, their "calling" was exactly what they wanted. Mostly without exception.

Now, I can't speak for everybody. But the times I see God's fingerprints most clearly in my life or personal experiences, it's when I'm doing something that I don't want to do. I honestly can't think of a time when I was "called" to do the exact thing I wanted to do. But doing what I don't want to do, that happens relatively often.

bèlla · Aug 30, 2020

Pavel,

The best thing I’ve learned is the importance of seeking God’s perspective on my life and challenges. That means going to Him in prayer before I consult others. Oftentimes that’s enough.

Early in my walk I befriended a mature believer who was gifted in intercession. Whenever I broached a topic of concern she prayed before speaking and asked the Lord for wisdom. It made a strong impression on me.

She shared her process for bible study too. She read the text 20 times before studying. Each iteration brought different insight. It was rumored Warren Wiersbe did the same (50 readings).

I applied the same ideal in my quiet time. The bible was my prayer manual and I prayed it back every day. Through the Liturgy of Hours I covered a lot of text. I often performed morning, evening and compline offices. I retained a lot of scripture through that approach.

Yours in His Service,

~Bella

Pavel Mosko · Aug 30, 2020

thecolorsblend said:
My objection to that is a little similar. Again back in my evangelical days, I was struck (and profoundly annoyed) by how often people would do X, Y or Z, saying "the Lord laid it on my heart". By total coincidence, I'm sure, their "calling" was exactly what they wanted. Mostly without exception.

I guess I'm pretty tolerant of that. I do recognize that people on occasion might abuse it, where it can be used to set up some kind of defacto magisterial type authority "if you argue with this, or me you are really arguing against God". But most of the time, I think it is pretty harmless and basically wording a kind of intuition or flash of insight into Christianese since the people in the pews like that sort of thing.

Pavel Mosko · Aug 30, 2020

LaBèlla said:
Pavel,

The best thing I’ve learned is the importance of seeking God’s perspective on my life and challenges. That means going to Him in prayer before I consult others. Oftentimes that’s enough.

Early in my walk I befriended a mature believer who was gifted in intercession. Whenever I broached a topic of concern she prayed before speaking and asked the Lord for wisdom. It made a strong impression on me.

She shared her process for bible study too. She read the text 20 times before studying. Each iteration brought different insight. It was rumored Warren Wiersbe did the same (50 readings).

I applied the same ideal in my quiet time. The bible was my prayer manual and I prayed it back every day. Through the Liturgy of Hours I covered a lot of text. I often performed morning, evening and compline offices. I retained a lot of scripture through that approach.

Yours in His Service,

~Bella

Yes that does reflect a lot of what I do. As far as seeking God etc. Sitting in silence or having a quiet time is another biggie. The Copts are big into that going back to Saint Anthony.

In recent years I have taken an extra interest in things like God's Providence. If you look back on your life you can sometimes see the hand of God at work, setting up things you will need before you need them, or just as you need them.

This also is a good thing to do if you are prone to worry, have anxiety etc.

I also am surprised at how perception plays a role in what we considered miracles, divine intervention etc. So for instance as I mentioned my church experience played down any real hope of any kind of miracles etc. But the fact I'm alive is a miracle. Apparently when my mom was pregnant with me back in the late sixties the chicken pox was running rampant, and pregnant mothers were loosing their babies from it. But when I was born I was healthy, and had not sign of it, or any damage from having had it. I also was born with a kind of resistance to Chicken pox and Shingles where I can get it but it doesn't really affect me. Unlike Pentecostals, Charismatics with their "praise reports", and "testimonies" my parents never thought of this as a miracle, even though my case was unheard of at the time and written up in at least one medical journal of the Day. Only in recent times, have I heard of this and took the time to point it out to them however.....

Besides that there is a similar story of my folks getting their car stolen in 1965. They were shopping for a new dining room table in San Jose, and pregnant woman who was shop lifting conned the parking lot attendant to give her the keys to their car. The day after the Buick was stolen, California implemented putting car registration on a mainframe computer so policemen can call in when they have a license plate to check if it is stolen. By coincidence some patrolmen were on a major street in San Francisco and decided to test the brand new system and the very first car they tested was my parents car and noticed that the license plate (which was changed by then) did not match the vehicle it was registered to. So they got their stolen car back in record time. But did not make the divine intervention connection, till I pointed things out with them, when I heard the story for the first time this last April...

FutureAndAHope · Aug 31, 2020

Pavel Mosko said:
I thought I would have a thread based on the best Christian advice you have heard, read, personally received etc. Ideally speaking it would be something universal or could help anyone, or any Christian. But if not, if it is specific maybe some advice in an area that you tend to give out a lot etc.

On the internet, I try to give out "original content" as far as my own thoughts, writings etc. But I have struggled with some issues, and got helped by these 2 sermons especially and William Lane Craig essay/ speech on Failure is especially good; because, that is an issue that really is not talked about and their can be lots of anguish etc. over that.

1) "Finding the Strength to Go ON"

2) "You Forgive You Must Forget"

3) William Lane Craig, Failure
Failure | Reasonable Faith

4) Phillip Yancey's book "Disappointment with God" another good one for folks with depression, questions and frustrations with theodicy.
https://www.amazon.com/Disappointment-God-Three-Questions-Aloud/dp/031021436X

Well there are some other good ones, I've read on other topics like doing ministry, finding God's will for your life etc., but maybe I save that for another thread.....

Anyway feel free to chime in with your best advice, YouTube advice sermons, books links and what have you..... May the Lord Bless you and Keep You!

Enjoy Life
------------

Ecc 2:24-25 There is nothing better for a man than taking meat and drink, and having delight in his work. This again I saw was from the hand of God. Who may take food or have pleasure without him?

While Obeying God
----------------------

Ecc 12:13-14 This is the last word. All has been said. Have fear of God and keep his laws; because this is right for every man. God will be judge of every work, with every secret thing, good or evil.

It is so important to obey Jesus, not just listen to the bible. But fortunately God has good in store for every believer. For many of us that good is even in our earthly lives, for some, God's goodness is stored up as reward in heaven. Yet for all of us that reward is what we need to seek, the reward of eternal life.

Jok · Aug 31, 2020

thecolorsblend said:
Back in my evangelical days, the small group teacher once said something like "God gives you opportunities".

Hello. I like your posts, I was wondering why exactly did you switch from evangelical to catholic?

thecolorsblend · Aug 31, 2020

Jok said:
Hello. I like your posts, I was wondering why exactly did you switch from evangelical to catholic?

I'll try to be as brief as possible.

Raised Protestant. In my twenties, I sort of fell in with the Southern Baptists. In some ways, it was never a good fit. But I stuck around anyway because I'd made friends and they had some volunteer opportunities.

Might've stayed in the evangelical world too. But after being there a few years, found myself in a conflict with some other members. The equivalent of office politics. I hung in there for a while, but ultimately I lost the battle. One of their "pastors" never even tried giving me a chance. Sparing you the details tho.

Quit the evangelical world entirely and crashed with the Anglicans for about a year at a small ACNA parish nearby. It was a much better environment in every possible way. The ACNA parish was very welcoming and I fell in love with their liturgy and theology. But while studying, I came to the same conclusion that a lot of soon-to-be-ex-Protestants come to: the Early Church seems pretty Catholic.

So I joined the Catholic Church, Easter 2015. Rome sweet home...

Not as brief as I originally wanted, sorry.

Give Me Your Best Christian Advice

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