I've had trouble converting, I went back to my old faith, but back here, and....

Have you prayed for answers and truth?

Have you ever come across the book, I Dared To Call Him Father? You might find it helpful reading.

researchguy said:

I was scared to, and I just need some encouragement. Literally the only non Muslims I know are my therapist, my doctors, and my brother in law and his family.

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Have you ever listened to Nabeel Qureshi's testimony?

researchguy said:

I was afraid of the social isolation. All my friends are in the gulen movement, since ever since I was a kid I had trouble socializing and relied on family friends to make friends, and people at the mosque. I had trouble fitting in at school, especially university. And this semester, I may not be attending an in person class. I am starting a job though. My first real job, with good pay. I am afraid of what's out there. My best friend is an elder brother in the gulenist movement, teaching students and arranging activities. I am afraid of estranging him or being estranged. I also don't want to upset my father when he already abandons me on a regular basis. (he has been absent a good bit of my youth). i also don't want my relatives mad at me, and everyone i know in my community mad at me. they're practically all i have. except some of my family, and Christian in laws......but apart of me keeps getting drawn back to Christianity. apart of me keeps admiring Christianity and its spirituality, and cant ignore some questions about Islam.

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Nice to meet you. I am a Christian but have looked over the religion of Islam many times. So from a faith perspective, I can see how, you could struggle in the area of abandonment, or fear of segregation. But let me assure you, knowing Christ Jesus, and being sure of salvation can not be matched or traded. But you may not be wanting the theological argument, rather a safe place to express yourself.

By no means is this complete, there is still so much more I have not even discovered yet! I encourage you to read the Bible as often as you wish! God loves a cheerful giver, even with time! It is relationship, not religion!

I would personally recommend New King James Version (NKJV) and New International Version (NIV).
Then again, any Bible version you're comfortable with is also good, providing they are the canonical gospels.

Here are some tools to help:
Bible Book Abbreviations
BibleGateway.com: A searchable online Bible in over 150 versions and 50 languages.
https://www.dictionary.com/
https://www.thesaurus.com/

Like I said, I still have much, much more studying to do. I am just into the meat eating stage of my faith and this is what I can muster at the moment. If someone like me can do it, then I am absolutely confident you will too! All it takes is faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob/Israel!

In fact, your username, researchguy, is very confidence inspiring!

Give God ALL the glory! I am nothing without God. I never was anything without God. If God did not exist, then I would be even less.

...And this is the only thing I will say with pride!

Take care, stay safe, and God bless!

Have you seen Acts17 Apologetics? He does a very powerful job dismantling Islam.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Acts17Apologetics&sp=CAM%3D

Scroll down to the highest-views sort order.

It might increase your anxiety about Islam, at least in the short term. The real solution is to press into Truth, which is found only in Christ. There you will find peace and the strength to make the right choices.

Most of Christian living involves keeping the Lord’s commandments which are easy to know but might be the hardest challenge in life ( depending on our circumstances).

The Lord calls us to love God & neighbor; our basic commitment to this is to be charitable & pray for ourselves & others ( see Matthew 6:1-15). Other basic commandments are given also; see Matthew 19:16-19). The Lord says if we love Him then keep His commandments ( John 14:15-18, note that this scripture also is of the Trinity). This is what the Lord calls us to realize if we want to call upon Him as our savior ( see Romans 10:9-13).

Can non Christians be saved? Yes, but we have to leave most of this to God that is why he calls us to pray & be charitable etc. Many non Christians do good works but we must trust in God’s mercy. There is much to hope for potentially anyone who is virtuous ( see Matthew 5:1-12) and how God will judge ( see Romans 2).

We all need a little theology but there are good, basic creeds like:

Apostles’ Creed | Loyola Press

Turkey coup: What is Gulen movement and what does it want? - BBC News

This represents what the Gülen movement is. According to this BBC report, it seems to be an easier going Muslim thing, but indeed about Muslim faith and morality, but which younger Muslims reject. And they are said to use education to get religious influence in various aspects of culture and government.

research guy - you said:

My best friend is an elder brother in the gulenist movement, teaching students and arranging activities.

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What I consider is your friend is maybe about Islam for effecting culture. But Christianity is first for how Jesus effects our character so then we can personally submit to God and share with Him and do what He has us doing. We are not first about saving our country . . . wherever we live . . . or reforming what other people do.

But Jesus does say we will be rejected. But we will not be rejected by God. And Jesus is God's very own Son so pleasing to Him, and He is sharing His Son Jesus with us. And Jesus accepting us is so better than how any humans can do us good > not to mention how humans can become our dictators, in the process of supposedly helping us > Galatians 4:17!!

Notice how there is fear demanding that you seek the acceptance of not Christian people.

Jesus does not have us doing things because of fear, but He has us loving one another . . . even loving enemies, always ready for unbelievers to become adopted with us. Jesus does not have us threatening anyone in order to pressure them to do what we dictate. But we do warn people of what can become of them if they continue to disobey God. If we do not obey how our Father cares for us in His peace > Colossians 3:15, 1 Peter 5:7 > we get in trouble in what is not our Father caring guidance in His own peace.

God is our Father who will never leave us nor forsake us. So, we are wise not to give in to dictatorial people who do not know how to love us!!

Dear Researchguy, let me say that the christian concept of God and of divine love is the highest possible concept. The idea itself that God loves us so much that He chose to assume the human nature and accepted to suffer crucifission in order to save us, expresses such a high concept of God and of divine love that it can comes only from God and it is certainly a truth. This concept is fully convincing for me, it proves itself by itself and makes superfluous any other arguments . I believe that Chirst suffered His Passion to help us to have faith in Him and trust Him, to make us understand that God loves us infinitely, that God is good and mercifull and that God is near to us so that we may totally trust Him and open our heart to Him, be in communion with Him and be saved.

Also Islam may teach that God is love, but the problem is to define what the word “love” means, because by itself it could be only a vague and generic concept.
The christian faith is unique because it gives a very concrete and unique meaning to the concept of divine love: in fact God’s love actualizes in the acceptance of a terrible physical suffering; the God of the christian faith loves us so much that He is willing to suffer a painful death in order to save us. In the christian faith, love is not only a theoretical and vague concept; Christ’s Passion is a clear and concrete realization of the concept of divine love which teaches us what is the true meaning of love.