Hint in finding a wife. Stop looking and then she will show up ...at least that is what happened to me.--of course not all experiences are the same.
Lust is a subject that many males (and fewer females) are being entrapped by. Internet pornography has lead the way in much of it in today's world, along just with common T.V. sitcoms. Brother I know you know the truth about this issue, so please know we will continue to be in prayer for you. May God bless.
Thanks for the advise and prayers. I tend to agree with you, but others in my church have been sort of "pressuring" me to go find one. All I am been basically doing is just preparing myself sort of speak by knowing the duties of a husband & father. I had been reading John Bunyan's work "The Christian Family".
I will also be praying for you in your struggle with control. I will be praying for the others who have mentioned their struggles.
brother in Christ, Carlos
"Let all that mind...the peace and comfort of their own souls, wholly apply themselves to the study of Jesus Christ, and him crucified"(Flavel)
Well. Where to begin? I struggle all the time with a number of sins: lust, apathy, hatred, a violent heart. There are other things, but those are the biggest.
Lust, well, I'm a teenaged male surrounded by (can I say it?) whores. You do the math.
Apathy. Now that's a problem. I just don't care about things. And that's a real general way of putting it, but I can't think of a better way to put it generally. This has really affected my walk with God, because I don't care whether or not I have one. I know I should, but I don't.
Hatred is, while not the strongest, definitely a strong force in my life. Some people, when I get around them, I just can't stand to see them. I can't stand to be around them. I can't stand to look at them, think of them, sit near them, talk to them. I just...hate them. And for ne reason! I just looked at them the first day, and decided I didn't like them. Odd, isn't it?
And a violent heart. Remember those people I was talking about earlier (of course you do, none of you are that old)? This is why that's a bad thing. When you hate someone, and violently, that's a bad combination. Period. I have come very close to taking out my anger on several people, just today.
Yeah, I know, I am one messed up dude. I suppose God'll take care of things in His own time, and in His own way.
In the midst of your sadness and woe, when you are tormented and afflicted, have comfort! God's will is done.
Joe, thanks for starting this thread, and also thanks for sharing.
The main sin I have to deal with in my life is impatience. Now, I can be patient with other people, but the main trouble I have is with waiting on the Lord without complaint. God has brought me much closer to Himself this past year, and He has taught me a whole lot about being patient and content in all circumstances. I still have a ways to go, but I've come a long way.
True godliness is a sincere feeling which loves God as Father as much as it fears and reverences Him as Lord, embraces His righteousness, and dreads offending Him worse than death~ Calvin
Patience is a very hard part of love to grasp in Word and deed at times. I once heard it said in reference to patience with God, 'It is wise to be patient with God as He can wait for the Atlantic Ocean to drain dry one drip a hour and not even begin to be weary in waiting.' (paraphrased)
The wonderful thing about this thread is everyone seems to be sharing some real problems. We have each revealed we are not perfect. Of course we each already knew this about one another, but now IMHO we are beginning to know one another a little better. You may say we are a Highway Family (whatever that means <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/shrug.gif" alt="" />). Indeed, you have shared your problems as well which is a good step in Christian maturity. A teenager today has allot more IMHO coming against him than in my day. I had a good Christian mother to assist me and even some Christian friends--though I was not a Christian, God preserved and protected what was His. jf2 (sorry this will always be your name to me...I kind of like it) you are maturing. I pray that God will take you and allow you to even more so repent and become even closer to Him. You are dealing with an abundance of problems and could be used mightily by God to help others with similar ones--some of your posts here attest to that. May God bless you and keep you and bring you even more fully to Himself.
Yeah, I know, I am one messed up dude. I suppose God'll take care of things in His own time, and in His own way.
Actually you are in very good company, Nathan. The very fact you are posting here shows you do care in some measure. You know what you ought to be and you are stuck in a rut and are disgusted with your sin. We all go through those times when the Lord seems far off. Don't stop crying out to Him. Don't stop praying. Forget about how you feel. You have every reason to hope in God who has cleansed you from your sins. Start taking every thought captive. Confess your sins and ask the Lord to take away your hate and give you compassion for those people around you who are lost sinners with no hope. The book Spiritual Depression by Martyn Lloyd Jones might help you. It helped me when I had the blues like you do now.
Thank you for starting this thread, it is a reminder of how similar in many ways (such as sexually) we as Christians are. Your post to Bookmark is also very helpful, for when I am most successful in overcoming sin, is when I am doing something similar to what you said. In the case of lust, I have found that I am most susceptible to it, when I don't start my day out the right way. There are times that for one reason or another I don't spend time in prayer and Bible reading. This leads into me not praying continually.
I then wonder why it is that I am falling prey to temptations that come my way. It is really silly, but I find my self blinded to that fact sometimes, I even try to overcome temptation on my own, with only limited success. This of course is sin itself.
When I do humble myself, repent and do what I should. I wonder how I could have been so stupid; life is so much easier handling life walking in the spirit.
This of course doesn't mean that I don't get tempted while I am walking in the spirit, but when my focus is on the Lord, I almost always walk in victory. Yes I fall even then sometimes, but when my focus is where it should be, it is a lot easier to get up. This just shows that victory over sin doesn't come without consciously keeping the Lord on the thrown of my life.
Sometimes I can’t help but feel awed at just how patient the Lord must be with us, I am not sure how patient I could be with a child such as myself. <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/ugh.gif" alt="" />
Good post. It is easy to meander in discussion groups and attempt to keep our spiritual growth at status quo. As we all know there is no such thing as status quo. We are either moving ahead or somewhat drowning. These types of application questions are much needed.
My struggles I will keep simple but they need much prayer
1 - My thought life is dragging me down I'm afraid.
2 - I think I'm angry at a supervisor that I mask well, but he makes me so mad (as well as almost everyone in the work group). I'm the type to keep it within me, but I notice it creeping out. In fact, there might be a few others on the list
3 - As I mentioned above, I spend way too much time with Christian forums, and although they can be very profitable, I need to buckle down in my time with the Lord.
4 - Probably loneliness, but again I can hide it well.
5 - Lack of faith. I see our society rejecting biblical Christianity at every turn, and it's difficult to keep on keepin' on. I wish it wouldn't bother me so much. Maybe I want some validation for myself, and I'm really not worried about our society. That's it pride.
These are just some of the major ones.
Last edited by John_C; Tue Jan 20, 20048:40 PM.
John Chaney
"having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith . . ."Colossians 2:7
Ok, my worst are bitterness and lack of contentment.
I should think eternally; I should realize God is in control; I should realize how He has truly blessed me. And I do...but...for some reason I find myself often bitter and discontent with my lot in life. Never mind everything that makes me bitter is there because of my own failings. <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/ugh.gif" alt="" />
God be with you as He further directs you in your walk of holiness. The good thing is that you recognize areas of needed growth. God is working, keep looking up and not at the circumstances. Stay in the Word and Prayer--but you know this.
I don't know if I should post this here or not, but if I shouldn't I'll just delete it.
OK, a minister, a rabbi, and a bishop are out in a boat fishing. The minister says, "You know, I know everything about you two because we've been fishing together for twenty years. But I still don't know what sins you guys struggle with. Why don't you guys tell me?"
The bishop looks thoughtful for a minute and says, "Alright, why not? I must confess, I've struggled with theft for many years. It seems hardly a Sunday goes by, I don't take twenty or thirty dollars from the collection plate. What about you, rabbi?"
The rabbi thinks for a minute and says, "Well, I've struggled with lust for a long time. What about you preacher?"
By this time the minister has a huge grin on his face. He sits there smiling for a minute and then says, "Well guys, I hate to tell you this, but I'm a horrible gossip and I can't wait to get back to town!"
In the midst of your sadness and woe, when you are tormented and afflicted, have comfort! God's will is done.
I am grateful for a post like this because it gives me a reality check. Sometimes I have the mentality that everyone has it together but me and I know this isn't true. As some of these other guys have said, I too sruggle with lust. I also struggle with laziness and when I start to do things my pride is ready to congratulate myself. It is encouragement not to know that others sin, but that God has given us knowledge and conviction to the sinfulness of our hearts and faith in Christ has been our reaction.
I'm not sure how applicable this quote is but at least it's honest so I'm going to stick it in here.
Quote
Sunday feels odd without church in the morning. It's the time in the week when we take our bearings, and if we miss it, we're just following our noses. Of course, there's a lot about church that can be aggravating---empty sermons and smarmy people and a certain comfy, complacent feeling. And then you have that organist in your face, destroying quietness wherever he can and the cranking up during hymns and assulting you with the trumpet stops so you can't hear yourself sing. But believing Christians are the people that I want to be among. And every word of the Creed is true. And the organist shuts up during the prayers at least. And you think about your considerable sins. And you go forward to partake of the Savior's death and resurrection, and that's the whole thing. Isn't it?
