What is "rock bottom" for you?

[Tigger45]

Which makes me think that "the family" is actually a microcosm of society. Rivalries. Competition. Schisms. Left versus right. Each one thinking they have "the answer" to life. Ideally families are loving accepting, non-judgemental safe havens. in reality, they aint!

I consider myself moderate within a Christian scale but my family is primarily so far left politically that i can barely make it through dinner with them anymore

 

[Colin]

A telephone call I received yesterday reminded me of a rock bottom time in my life .

I sent a Christmas card to Sister Angela , a Cross and Passion nun , who was a family friend . The telephone call was from a nun at the convent to inform me that Sister Angela had died .

For the last five years of her life my mum , who died in 2007 , suffered from dementia . It was not always easy for me caring for her , and on one occasion when I was feeling very low I wrote to Sister Angela and told her that God seemed so far away . She wrote back and in her letter was this prayer of St Ignatius of Loyola . It was a prayer which came just at the right time , and as I read it for the first time it was as if God was speaking to me through the prayer , rather than my speaking to Him .

Anyway here it is , and I hope it will help someone when he/she is going through a rock bottom time......

O Christ Jesus ,
When all is darkness
And we feel our weakness and helplessness,
Give us the sense of Your Presence,
Your Love and Your Strength.
Help us to have perfect trust
In Your protecting love
And strengthening power,
So that nothing may frighten or worry us,
For, living close to You,
We shall see Your Hand,
Your Purpose, Your Will through all things.

By St. Ignatius of Loyola

 

[Godlovesmetwo]

O Christ Jesus ,
When all is darkness
And we feel our weakness and helplessness,
Give us the sense of Your Presence,
Your Love and Your Strength.
Help us to have perfect trust
In Your protecting love
And strengthening power,
So that nothing may frighten or worry us,
For, living close to You,
We shall see Your Hand,
Your Purpose, Your Will through all things.

By St. Ignatius of Loyola

love it

 

[faroukfarouk]

I was a diehard smoker. I started at 13. I managed to keep it to half a pack for at least 10 years. Then it increased significantly. God eventually told me that I had to quit or I would kill myself.

As I wrote in another thread, I did quit, but it was actually more difficult than natural childbirth. But fasting is a church tradition. Fasting doesn't always mean going without food. That's for those folks who have a high baseline. I once asked God why He didn't call me to fast, and the Spirit answered that he did, but he was calling me to fast from my excesses. I had to do that before I could ever hope to reach what was considered Christian fasting.

I would strongly urge to to switch to nicotine gum or vaping. Not to make a switch permanently, but as a step on the road to being free from it. God knows that I'm a baby and I like the bandaid pulled off slowly, so that's how He lead me. With gum or vaping, yes, you still get nicotine, but without the carbon monoxide and other bad chemicals you get with smoking cigarettes. There will be some withdrawal, but it can be bearable. Green tea is something I found effective to cope with it.

If you choose the gum route, you can start at 4mg and work down to 2, and then cut the gum in half until you are free. If you vape, you can buy lower and lower concentrations until you either stop or have a 0% nicotine vape juice.

I pray for God's help with you wanting to quit and quitting.

Hi; so do you feel that you originally started without realizing just how much you would like to continue smoking?

Great that you did eventually manage to quit, anyway.