My soul is at War

Jh24

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I need some guidance, I feel as though the Lord is silent to me. Whenever I cry out to Him it feels like He doesn't answer, when I read the Word, I feel as if nothing speaks out to me, I feel so disconnected with the Lord. How do I draw closer to Him? How do I walk in the spirit with Him? I feel like He's silent to me. I feel like he wants me to let go of my imagination, but I feel so lost. Can anyone help me?
 

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I need some guidance, I feel as though the Lord is silent to me. Whenever I cry out to Him it feels like He doesn't answer, when I read the Word, I feel as if nothing speaks out to me, I feel so disconnected with the Lord. How do I draw closer to Him? How do I walk in the spirit with Him? I feel like He's silent to me. I feel like he wants me to let go of my imagination, but I feel so lost. Can anyone help me?
Hi brother, I just want you to know that God loves you and that He knows your heart. I would just keep praying and ask Him to help you. God bless you and Jesus is Lord.
 
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Jh24

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I've didicated 2 times in the day to Him, the morning and at night, I love reading the bible because its amazing, but I feel like he's silent to me. Have I done something wrong? is there something else he wants me to do?
 
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I've didicated 2 times in the day to Him, the morning and at night, I love reading the bible because its amazing, but I feel like he's silent to me. Have I done something wrong? is there something else he wants me to do?

The best relationship you can build with the Lord is to let The Word live in your heart and to follow Him in the Spirit of love. God isn't impressed by religious activities but loves a humble and contrite heart. He loves those who put their faith and hope in Him. God is much more than a feeling He is the voice of truthful love it is Him you are after.

Identify the living word in your heart - the voice of love which speaks the truths of scripture and you meet The Lord in real life. When we love God and neighbour He makes His dwelling place within us.

It is about knowing Him and getting to know Him. Jesus is an amazing Lord and a wonderful saviour.

Be of good courage
 
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Jh24

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The best relationship you can build with the Lord is to let The Word live in your heart and to follow Him in the Spirit of love. God isn't impressed by religious activities but loves a humble and contrite heart. He loves those who put their faith and hope in Him. God is much more than a feeling He is the voice of truthful love it is Him you are after.

Identify the living word in your heart - the voice of love which speaks the truths of scripture and you meet The Lord in real life. When we love God and neighbour He makes His dwelling place within us.

It is about knowing Him and getting to know Him. Jesus is an amazing Lord and a wonderful saviour.

Be of good courage
Yes He is amazing, he has taken away my lust, He convicted me to turn from my pride not to long ago, but I want to know what He wants me to do next, I need his guidance so much, because I can't do anything without Him, I'm nothing without his help. I just want to get closer to Him
 
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St_Worm2

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I need some guidance, I feel as though the Lord is silent to me. Whenever I cry out to Him it feels like He doesn't answer, when I read the Word, I feel as if nothing speaks out to me, I feel so disconnected with the Lord. How do I draw closer to Him? How do I walk in the spirit with Him? I feel like He's silent to me. I feel like he wants me to let go of my imagination, but I feel so lost. Can anyone help me?
Hi Jh24, is it possible that He is asking you/needs you to do something (for your sake or someone else's, not for His, of course) that you haven't done yet, and He's trying to get your attention?

Or is it possible that He is teaching you something important in the midst of the spiritual desert where you now find yourself? To help you grow in faith/trust of Him, perhaps of that which He has promised you, and/or in trust of His perfect will for your life?

This is going to be a hit or miss kind of thing, but here are some quotes (in no particular order of importance), from the Bible and from Christians (particularly from Elisabeth Elliot in this case), that may be worthwhile considering. Hopefully at least one of them will prove useful to you anyway :)

To love God is to love His will. It is to wait quietly for life to be measured by One who knows us through and through. It is to be content with His timing and His wise appointment. ~Missionary/Author Elisabeth Elliot

Faith is not an instinct. It certainly is not a feeling - feelings don't help much when you're in the lions' den or hanging on a wooden Cross. Faith is not inferred from the happy way things work. It is an act of will, a choice, based on the unbreakable Word of a God who cannot lie, and who showed us what love and obedience and sacrifice mean, in the person of Jesus Christ. ~Elisabeth Elliot

This hard place in which you perhaps find yourself is the very place in which God is giving you opportunity to look only to Him, to spend time in prayer, and to learn long-suffering, gentleness, meekness - in short, to learn the depths of the love that Christ Himself has poured out on all of us. ~Elisabeth Elliot

Instead of a river, God often gives us a brook, which may be running today and dried up tomorrow. Why? To teach us not to rest in our blessings, but in the blesser Himself. ~Pastor/Theologian A. W. Pink

I've learned to kiss the waves that throw me up against the Rock of Ages. ~Pastor/Theologian Charles H. Spurgeon

Hebrews 12
7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?
8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?
10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.
11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.
Pastor Jack Hayford wrote a book about "giving" called, The Key to Everything, and indeed it is. Elisabeth Elliot also has something to say about this (something that may be of very practical value to you, in fact :oldthumbsup:)

Do you often feel like parched ground, unable to produce anything worthwhile? I do. When I am in need of refreshment, it isn't easy to think of the needs of others. But I have found that if, instead of praying for my own comfort and satisfaction, I ask the Lord to enable me to give to others, an amazing thing often happens - I find my own needs wonderfully met. Refreshment comes in ways I would never have thought of, both for others, and then, incidentally, for myself. ~Elisabeth Elliot

Galatians 6
9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.
10 So then, awhile we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.

Yours and His,
David
 
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St_Worm2

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Hi again @Jh24, here are a couple more thoughts that came to mind along the same lines............

You are the light of the world, Jh, the city on a hill (that's what the Lord said about you anyway :)), so go be the blessing and the light that God intends you to be, to His glory :)

You could ask your pastor for some ideas. Perhaps you could join an established ministry at church (or a parachurch ministry of some kind), or just a small group Bible study, or prayer group, or discipleship group?

Do you talk/pray to Him as you read the Bible, asking Him to give you insight and understanding about what you are reading from His POV, and how to apply what you are reading to your life and the lives of others, for His glory?

Finally, it always helps me to try to remain "spiritually" sensitive or aware of what's going on around me, to practice the presence of God (as Brother Lawrence said & taught), and to always delight myself in Him .. Psalm 37:4.

I think you can tell when you are because God ends up being part of everything that you do, and you end up thanking Him so often and for so much, even for the very smallest of things in life, and that whether they seem good or bad in the moment, always knowing that the One we serve chose to die for us, rather than live out eternity w/o us (so we know that He always wants the very best for us .. Romans 8:28, 32; Philippians 1:6, 2:13). Plus, He demonstrated how much He loves us, didn't He .. Romans 5:8-10

--David
p.s. - I think this may be my favorite Spurgeon quote of all, so I thought I'd include it here for you to read too.

Spurgeon - sinners leap unwarned.jpg

 
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Jh24

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Hi Jh24, is it possible that He is asking you/needs you to do something (for your sake or someone else's, not for His, of course) that you haven't done yet, and He's trying to get your attention?

Or is it possible that He is teaching you something important in the midst of the spiritual desert where you now find yourself? To help you grow in faith/trust of Him, perhaps of that which He has promised you, and/or in trust of His perfect will for your life?

This is going to be a hit or miss kind of thing, but here are some quotes (in no particular order of importance), from the Bible and from Christians (particularly from Elisabeth Elliot in this case), that may be worthwhile considering. Hopefully at least one of them will prove useful to you anyway :)

To love God is to love His will. It is to wait quietly for life to be measured by One who knows us through and through. It is to be content with His timing and His wise appointment. ~Missionary/Author Elisabeth Elliot

Faith is not an instinct. It certainly is not a feeling - feelings don't help much when you're in the lions' den or hanging on a wooden Cross. Faith is not inferred from the happy way things work. It is an act of will, a choice, based on the unbreakable Word of a God who cannot lie, and who showed us what love and obedience and sacrifice mean, in the person of Jesus Christ. ~Elisabeth Elliot

This hard place in which you perhaps find yourself is the very place in which God is giving you opportunity to look only to Him, to spend time in prayer, and to learn long-suffering, gentleness, meekness - in short, to learn the depths of the love that Christ Himself has poured out on all of us. ~Elisabeth Elliot

Instead of a river, God often gives us a brook, which may be running today and dried up tomorrow. Why? To teach us not to rest in our blessings, but in the blesser Himself. ~Pastor/Theologian A. W. Pink

I've learned to kiss the waves that throw me up against the Rock of Ages. ~Pastor/Theologian Charles H. Spurgeon

Hebrews 12
7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?
8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?
10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.
11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.
Pastor Jack Hayford wrote a book about "giving" called, The Key to Everything, and indeed it is. Elisabeth Elliot also has something to say about this (something that may be of very practical value to you, in fact :oldthumbsup:)

Do you often feel like parched ground, unable to produce anything worthwhile? I do. When I am in need of refreshment, it isn't easy to think of the needs of others. But I have found that if, instead of praying for my own comfort and satisfaction, I ask the Lord to enable me to give to others, an amazing thing often happens - I find my own needs wonderfully met. Refreshment comes in ways I would never have thought of, both for others, and then, incidentally, for myself. ~Elisabeth Elliot

Galatians 6
9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.
10 So then, awhile we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.

Yours and His,
David
Thank you, these have really helped me, all I want is to serve Him because I love Him so much, He's so good to me, He's never let me down when i've needed Him, I want to meet Him one day and thank Him for saving me
 
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Jh24

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Hi again @Jh24, here are a couple more thoughts that came to mind along the same lines............

You are the light of the world, Jh, the city on a hill (that's what the Lord said about you anyway :)), so go be the blessing and the light that God intended you to be, to His glory :) Ask your pastor for some ideas. Perhaps you could join a ministry at church (or a parachurch ministry of some kind), or a small group Bible study, or prayer group, or discipleship group?

Do you talk/pray to Him as you read the Bible, asking Him to give you insight and understanding about what you are reading from His POV, and how to apply what you are reading to your life and the lives of others, for His glory?

Finally, it always helps me to try to remain "spiritually" sensitive or aware of what's going on around me, to practice the presence of God, as Brother Lawrence said (I think you can tell when you are because God ends up being part of everything that you do, and you end up thanking Him so often and for so much, even for the very smallest of things in life, and that whether they seem good or bad in the moment, always knowing that the One we serve chose to die for us, rather than live out eternity w/o us (so we know that He always wants the very best for us .. Romans 8:28, 32; Philippians 1:6, 2:13). Plus, He demonstrated how much He loves us, didn't He .. Romans 5:8-10

--David
p.s. - I think this may be my favorite Spurgeon quote of all, so I thought I'd include it here for you to read too.

Thank you again, I feel so much hope now, I haven't found a church to go through yet. All the ones near me are lukewarm. I want to find a group or a place where I can truly worship and hear about Jesus. Any suggestions for me?
 
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St_Worm2

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Hi Jh, church is a place for worshiping God, for learning and growing and praying, and for being a part of the body of Christ, to the benefit of others, and at times, to be the recipient of the care and blessing of others when you are the one in need .. cf 1 Corinthians 12. It's also a place to step out of the world and remember who you are and Who you serve, and how very much He loves you!

I'd go ahead and pick a local church and try it out if I was you (have you been part of a particular church or denomination, and if so, are you looking to return to it?). Also, try to look for not only what you can get out of it, but what you can give to it. Perhaps the Lord intends for you to be a fire that warms one of these lukewarm churches up a bit :)

Try to listen to some sermon tapes to get a feel for the teaching at a church, and for what is being taught (hopefully it's the Bible ;)) and see what other kinds of things are available to you as well. And definitely email or call the pastor and go in during the week and talk to him about the church (pastors love that kind of thing normally, and will answer all of your questions). You may also want to see what the makeup of the church is, and hopefully find one that has at least a few men/women who are close to your age.

You can always leave, of course, especially if you sense the Lord leading you to, so I wouldn't hesitate to at least visit one or more close by you (and if you'd like to, let me know which church/churches you are leaning towards and I'll let you know as much as I can about them .. in a general sense, of course). I don't like church-shopping, but sometimes it's inevitable.

Oh, and you definitely want to be sure to not join a cult. These are churches that normally teach heresy, try to control various aspects of your life, tend to make you feel condemned if you don't stay in lockstep with them, and if one of them ever asks to see your tax return ............... RUN :eek: No worries though, if they're a cult, you'll be able to find that out in no time on the Internet.

I have missionary friends who have lived in Australia for years that may be helpful, but they live/work near Perth, so they may not be much help since it looks like you live on the other side of the country. Let me know if you'd like me to ask them for suggestions though (if you are comfortable telling me where you live, that is .. if you are, perhaps you should do so via a PM (I think they call it a "Conversation" now .. just click on my avatar and chose "Start a Conversation"), rather than out here on this board where the whole world can read it.

I'm praying for you brother (but I know the Lord will lead you to where you need to be). If you were near my hometown in the States I could give you a lot of help, but the commute might be a little overwhelming ^_^

God bless you! (Numbers 6:24-26)

--David
p.s. - you might also like listening to or watching one or more of these guys for additional encouragement and inspiration in the word of God each day :)

Renewing Your Mind .. Dr. R. C. Sproul (and other teaching fellows)

Grace to You .. Dr. John MacArthur

Insight for Living .. Dr. Chuck Swindoll​

Finally, if you don't mind me asking, have you been a Christian for awhile now, or are you still pretty new to the faith? Thanks!
 
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St_Worm2

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One final thing @Jh24, you can minister to people right here at CF, beginning today if you haven't already. Look for people you can either encourage in some way (perhaps with a verse or passage from the Bible), and/or pray for (we have a very active Prayer Wall here, for instance). There are always quite a few people here who are hurting or who are in need of advice or guidance, etc., both Christians and non-Christians, so this is a great place for someone like yourself to be :)

--David
p.s. - come to think of it, I'd appreciate your prayers for my 20 yr old son, Jonathan. He has Lyme Disease and is in a lot of trouble because of it (he should be back home from jail this Monday). The Lyme Disease destroyed his wonderful life about 5 years ago and he turned to drugs because of the intense pain and the loss he felt.

We believe we have a cure for his Lyme Disease, but he needs to be able to withstand the treatment. More than anything else, he needs to know Jesus and finally become a Christian. If you have the time, thank you for praying for him!
 
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