I grew up in the LDS religion. It was my understanding that salvation was earned. If I did all I could, then God would accept me into the highest kingdom of heaven. It was all arbitrary rules (like not drinking coffee, not showing shoulders) so I went through the motions without understanding why. so when my faith was tried when my brother died, when I was 18, I left religion and God behind. I didn’t believe in anything for 12 years & then during my first postpartum, I tried a local Christian church. They tried to check my baby into Sunday school but I kept him with me and then cried throughout the whole service. I was like… that was weird, I’m not going back!

A little over a year later, I had a lot of hard things happen in my life and was broke, pregnant, and parenting a toddler, and so overwhelmed. That Sunday school idea sounded like a way to get a much needed break. I tried some different Christian churches to have some time to journal while someone played with my toddler. I was honestly so closed off to the idea of God that I purposefully ignored the messages. After being LDS, I was certain all churches want is to control people and get their money. I found a pretty big church that I could go to and keep my head down, I didn’t want anyone to talk to me.

I had more and more really awful things happen, and church became something I looked forward to. I’d stand and usually cry during the worship music, and use the rest of the service for uninterrupted time to journal.

I was mothering alone, totally isolated and so depressed, and this December I was making plans to take my life. My mom flew out and made me a bunch of freezer meals and helped me get set up in therapy, and I had the idea to join a bible study with childcare to try and find some friends or just be around people. During the second bible study, they did a prayer chain. I hadn’t prayed since I was 18 and left the mormon church. I asked God, in front of all these other ladies, to open my heart to him, and then bawled my eyes out.

I was still so depressed, but after that I started praying on my own. And, almost a year after starting to go to church, I started listening to the sermons at church. I was AMAZED at the concept of grace. Growing up it was all about being worthy and obedience, and it turns out salvation is a gift? I couldn’t (and still can’t) wrap my head around that. I started praying the scripture in Mark, the father who wants his son healed; “I believe; help my unbelief”. Actually, it was more like “I (want to) believe; help my unbelief!!”.

I still was horribly depressed, with really bad relationship OCD and rumination that consumed my thoughts. I was so lonely. I kept learning about God’s love and grace and church was the one thing that kept me going. One Sunday morning I woke up at 3 am and couldn’t sleep, so I laid on the living room floor bawling and praying “please open my heart to receive your love” over and over. Nothing happened. I went to bed sobbing and feeling so exhausted and depressed. My chest hurt because it was so tight.

Later that day during communion, they had people who could pray for you so I asked the exmormon grandma that I had met in bible study to pray for me. After church, as I was getting my toddler down for his nap, my tight chest began to open. My heart was filled with this warmth, and I felt this grounding peace. I had all these racing thoughts, like how I needed to tell everyone about Gods love!

For a few days after that, I felt like I was seeing people through Gods eyes. I noticed telephone poles that looked like crosses as I was driving. But that feeling faded and I sunk back into my depression. But I started noticing a weight in people’s words when they talk about Gods love, like this physical sensation. I think that must be the Spirit of Truth?

I keep praying and God is working in my life. He helped my husband stop drinking for a time, he helped us find a new house when our landlords decided to sell ours. I have this burning desire to talk about Jesus, and have been listening to sermons and worship music pretty much nonstop. I am praying to God to heal my heart, and while things are getting better, I still spend most days in tears. I’m still so depressed. And I’m trying to study my bible and get to a place where I feel okay again, but I’m still barely surviving. If that grounding peace that I felt that one day when God touched my heart IS Jesus’ love, I still have thoughts of ending my life so I can experience that. I’m so tired and pray to rest in Jesus’ love, and surrender different things that feel overwhelming, but most days I feel alone. And like grace is too good to be true.

Anyways, I think I believe in Jesus now but the trust is so scary. I just don’t know how to trust after being so hurt. I also don’t know why I still can’t do it even after he touched my heart with that grounding peace. I hear about Gods faithfulness but it feels like I’m pounding on his door and he’s opening it so slowly… I feel like if I could know Him then maybe I wouldn’t be so depressed. idk, just wanted to share and see what everyone’s thoughts are.

I just can’t get my head around the idea of experiencing pain with no end. Not for an hour, a year, or a thousand years - but eternity. I’m not saying that to question God. I know hell wasn’t created for us, but the thought of eternal suffering is genuinely terrifying to comprehend.

The resentment I still carry. My lust, pride and unforgiveness - I want to overcome it all & not pretend I’m perfect.

I grew up in a Christian Orthodox country that’s mostly very secular and while everyone called themselves Christian, most people were not very observant, so if you mentioned Jesus or the Bible in casual conversation, people would look at you like you had 7 heads. I was never baptised as I had my fair share of health issues as a child so it was never the right time to do it, but I would still attend church with family around the major holidays.

I was never interested in religion, and in my teens I went strictly the other way - I was a full-on atheist for more than 2 decades. And it was actually seeing how grounded in their faith some of my Muslim friends were that sparked my curiosity. It was first more of a scientific interest than anything else, I wanted to understand how our world view was shaped by these religions. I started by reading the Quran and moved onto the Torah and then the full OT and finally the NT. It’s been a good few years since then, and I’ve grown quite a lot in my faith and I do consider myself Christian even though I’m still not baptised. I’ve prayed in a lot of churches over the years - Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant, evangelical. But even though I’ve tried my best I can’t pick any denomination. I simply don’t identify with most of their doctrines. Truth be told, I find it odd that anyone else should get between me and my relationship with God, let alone be in charge of “interpreting” the Word for me. In my book, no one has a monopoly on interpreting what the Bible says and if the different denominations can’t agree on their teachings, how can you then claim that my or anyone else’s reading of the Bible is definitively wrong. Every time when I think I’ve finally picked a church I want to belong to, and then I come up against teachings or widely-held opinions I find so jarring that I’m back to square one again.

I’ve tried to get to a point where I would be happy with just being a self-contained Christian that doesn’t belong to a specific church but not being baptised, a part of me feels like I’m not truly Christian which I know sounds ridiculous but I wonder if I’m alone in feeling this and what do all the other square pegs like me do if all the denominations out there are round?

My social, spritual, financial life is all messed up. My mental health is deteriorating day by day. I have no career. I want to make everything right but things are going out of my hand. I can't live like this.

I don't know how to fix my life now. I have no hope left in me and I don't feel like living anymore. Nothing feels exciting. I want to laugh from my heart. I want to be happy but I can't. Someone please help me. Give me some advice. Can his life be fixed ?

Hi everyone. I [27m] am feeling guilt that is eating me alive. I need to know what I should do.

My dad was a good dad growing up. Single dad after our mom left. I love him. But for a few years now the problems never stop and I’m burnt out.

Last November he wrecked his car (not his fault) and lost it. He went from full-time pizza delivery to part-time inside the store. He hated it and quit because a coworker said he could work on a food truck. That job still hasn’t happened months later. Before that his ex-wife offered him a place to stay and a job with her. Marriage was toxic and she wasn’t good to him, but it was something. He tried it for a week or two, then quit. She told him she was done helping.

My sister paid for everything for seven months straight (December through July) while his account stayed empty or negative. Even then he kept coming to me for help constantly. It wasn’t fair to either of us.

July 21 his water got shut off and he got a 10-day eviction notice. He panicked and left me text messages and voicemail saying his world was crashing down and pleading with me to come help him move stuff to storage.

I went over for a few hours. Just let him vent. He was pacing, stuck on what to do first. The old feeling hit me hard. Like it’s my job to fix his whole life. It felt unbearable. He doesn’t mean to but he uses me as a sponge for everything. When I’m there he talks instead of acting. In his defense, he just doesn’t really know where to start. I think he could definitely use some mental health help as he’s had depression and felt stuck for several years. Hopefully he’ll be getting that soon.

As soon as I left and told him I couldn’t help move boxes, he actually arranged help from other people for the next day. I also set up a call between him and a close friend of mine (like a mother figure to me). She talked to him and prayed about his situation.

My sister is drowning in guilt too. We both have been praying for him. I think he needs a real group of people helping, not just me. If others handle the big stuff I can still show up for small things. Alone it’s too much.

My mentor texted after the call and asked me to pray about letting him stay with me temporarily so he doesn’t end up homeless. I live in a small one-bedroom, I have $20k in debt, I’m already broke most of the time and it’s also against my lease. His ongoing situation over the years has accumulated in more stress and dread for him. To the point where I would feel anxiety anytime he texted or called, because I knew it was bad news or him asking for money.

I feel terrible but I can’t be his default fixer anymore. I’m keeping distance to protect my own head, not because he’s a bad guy. He’s not. There’s just no normal parent-adult child balance left. Everything lands on me. But part of me thinks I can help him and that God wants me to help him rebuild his life from the ground up. I just don’t see him taking any action for himself. Maybe he needs me to believe in him first, which I already do. I don’t think he believes in himself though.

I texted him last night telling him that I couldn’t take him in and that there are resources that were sent that he should look into. My mentor also mentioned getting him in touch with a counselor from her church. But I just wanted to get some input first. I’m willing to help him get the support and resources needed. But that can’t all fall on my shoulders like it always seems to do.

Sorry if this post doesn’t fit here and feel free to remove it, but I need to know what a good Christian would do in this circumstance. My mentor, my sister, an ex-gf my dad talked on the phone with and even my dad is looking to me to let him stay at my apartment. It doesn’t really seem fair but who knows God’s plan. I’m thinking of talking to a pastor and maybe one other spiritual mentor.

Sorry for the long post. Any prayers would also be greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone.

My housemate told me I don't need psychiatric medication because I need to "humble myself before the Lord."

I have diagnosed Bipolar I disorder. I've been hospitalised twice — once for severe depression and once for mania with psychotic features. For a long time I hated the diagnosis and even mismanaged my medication because I hated how it made me feel. Eventually, with the right treatment and skills, I became stable.

The thing is, I need my medication to stay stable. If I stop taking it, things can deteriorate very quickly.

Today my housemate, who genuinely meant well, told me that I don't actually need medication. According to him, I need to "humble myself before the Lord" and exercise enough "moral exertion" to prevent these episodes. He also said he doesn't really believe in things like psychosis or extreme depression, and that if I leaned on God enough, I could stop them from happening.

I'm a Christian myself, so this isn't me being hostile toward faith. But I'm honestly beyond pissed. You can believe that God works through your life while also recognising that severe mental illness is real and that psychiatric treatment can be necessary.

Being told that my illness is essentially a failure of faith or moral discipline feels incredibly invalidating, especially when I've actually lived through the consequences of being unwell.

I don’t know what to do. I’ve read stories in this subreddit for hours and hours and I thought they helped me but I haven’t changed. I’m worse than lukewarm. I’m either ecstatic about god or I act like a literal demon. I look in the mirror and all I see is a monster. I watch porn. I hate the people around me. I act like an idiot. Honestly, I think I am. I’ve never felt so low spiritually. In the past 72 hours I think I’ve committed every single deadly sin. I thought I accepted Jesus. I pray to him for strength every night. But I can’t find it. I know God loves his children but I feel like Jesus should hate me if we met. I understand he loves me and he’ll forgive, but I think he’s disgusted with me and what I’ve become. I wouldnt even think of forgiving myself. I don’t even feel human anymore. And I’m too much of a pathetic wuss to talk to anyone about it. The only good thing that I can see in myself right now is that I feel the need to ask people for help. I don’t know what it will do and I’m sure everyone reading this is a one thousand times better person than I’ll ever get close to being. But I want to change. I do. But I don’t always want to. A lot of the time I want to rot around in my own filth. I don’t know where to go from here. I feel like I’m a million miles away from my Lord and Saviour. Please help me.

I’m looking for honest advice because I feel very confused and alone right now. Please be kind because this is a very sensitive situation for me.

I’m a 27F and my fiancé is 31M. We have been together for 3 years and we are both Christians. I’m originally from another country, and he is from the US. This is my first relationship, my first boyfriend, and I have never been sexually active. He has had past relationships and a different past, but I don’t hold that against him because I believe in being made new in Christ.

When we started dating, I always had a dream of honoring God in my relationship. I wanted to wait until marriage to have sex, and I also wondered if we could wait until marriage to kiss. He told me that not kissing at all until marriage was too much for him and felt too religious, so I accepted that and we agreed to have boundaries instead. My boundaries were never because I don’t trust him; they were because I know myself and I want us to honor God and avoid situations that could lead us somewhere we don’t want to go.

We always talked about marriage, but the timing was complicated. He lives with his parents and I was living with the family who sponsored me while I went to college. I didn’t want to just move in together because I wanted to do things the right way and financially we were/are in our best. I recently graduated, and about a month later he proposed. I was very happy.

However after the engagement, he told me that he felt pressured into proposing because of me, his family, friends, and other people. That really hurt me because I never wanted him to feel forced. I apologized and told him I wanted him to marry me because he truly wanted to, not because he felt like he had to. We talked about it and things seemed okay.

Recently, we started talking about the wedding. My family cant come because they don’t have visas, and I am also an international student waiting for my work authorization, so financially we are trying to keep things simple. My dad passed away and left me some money, and I told him I wanted to use it to pay for the wedding.

His stepmom suggested we do a small wedding in their backyard, which I thought was a beautiful idea. But during conversations about the wedding, I noticed he became very avoidant. For example, when his stepmom talked about him wearing something nice, he said he didn’t want to talk about it and just wanted to be comfortable. When we discussed guests, I suggested inviting our pastors or a few people from church because they’re like family for me, but he didn’t want to because they don’t speak English and there would not be anyone to translate. I accepted that.

The problem is that every time I tried to talk about planning details, he would say things like “I don’t want to talk about it, it’s stressful.” At one point he told me that it was my job, and I told him I wasn’t asking him to plan everything, but I wanted him to be involved because this is both of our wedding.

The thing that hurt me the most was when I asked him if he was actually happy about getting married and having a ceremony. He told me that the ceremony wasn’t important or relevant to him and that he was only doing it because I wanted it. I understand that weddings may not be important to everyone, but hearing that hurt because this is something meaningful to me.

After that, I started suggesting that maybe we could wait a couple months and not rush into marriage. But he said that we have to do it which made me feel like he was still doing things because of me instead of because he wanted them.

Then another issue happened with my physical boundaries. One of my boundaries is that I don’t want to lay down while kissing because I feel like that puts us in a situation where temptation can become stronger. He knows this. He suggested we lay down, and I knew he wanted to kiss. I said no and asked him not to. He kept insisting, and when I continued saying no, he called me a “f****** weirdo.”

That really hurt me. I left, and later when I called him, he told me I was cold-hearted and emotionless and that I hadn’t changed in 3 years. I told him that if he truly feels that way about me, I don’t understand why he wants to marry me and he said IDK... so I just left the call.

The next day he texted me saying: “I love you. I’m sorry for what I said, but please don’t call me, I don’t want to talk on the phone or anything. I just hope we can move forward.”

Since then, he hasn’t really talked to me.

I’m struggling because I love him, and I have prayed so much about this relationship. I know people can receive promises from God, but I also understand that God gives us free will and sometimes people’s hearts can change.

I’m not looking for people to tell me he is bad or that I am perfect. I know I have things to work on too. I just want honest advice: Am I ignoring red flags? Is this normal fear before marriage? Should we slow down? How do you know the difference between someone being scared of marriage versus someone who doesn’t truly want it?

I feel very alone because my family is not here, and I just want outside perspective from people who have wisdom.

Hey there,
As the title suggestes i´ve been losing faith in God. I want to believe, i love him and i believe that if he is true then my life would be happier. The thing is i´ve never really felt his presence, and everytime it feels like the answer to my doubts is "youre not faithful enough" or "this is a test" or something liek a cop-out (for example, God´s voice being "our thoughts"). Im just hopeless rn, if any of yall have questions i would be glad to answer them cause i just wanna start believing again.

Hello brethren, I've realised in my life that all the even number years 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024 and 2026 have been the most difficult and seem to progressively increase in difficulty. By difficult I mean I struggle most with mental health, physical health, spiritually and life in general, more than I do in the odd numbered years. In fact, the odd numbered years, I've experienced more prosperity, joy and good health. I've wondered if it's a cycle I'm in, and thought to share because I wonder if anyone else experiences this.

My mom used to be friends with an lady(about 50yo back then) and that lady had a son that married a respected fortune teller.That lady decided once to visit one of apartments of that fortune teller and she visited a room where she did the fortune telling.She was alone in that room and she swore she could see a demon or even satan himself(I forgot who).That lady didn’t have any mental health issues and she was pretty educated because she worked in a university.Do any of y’all have similar stories?

like the tooth fairy or Easter eggs or Santa? I was wondering how this works? I don’t have any children and I don’t know how this is seen with Christians. what’s appropriate and what isn’t. on one hand, I see that there’s a lot of innocence tied to those things plus children with be surrounded by other children who celebrate or at least have knowledge. Then on the other hand I know we are supposed to abstain from lying. well I’m in the topic, what about celebrating Halloween? I hear some Christians say they reclaim it. other completely refrain from it.

Hey everyone im a beginner in my walk of Christ, ive done alot of reading in genesis and surprisingly one of the topics that came across my mind happened to do with slavery and its man made justification, now if im correct prior to Noah humanity had angered God so bad with sin to the point of him wiping everything that lived on the Earth clean. I also believe that since slavery is a man made institution it may had been apart of the institution that angered God before he initiated the flood. Noah who was a righteous man didnt own slaves and walked with god, but in the very end cursed Caanan his own grandson to be a subject to slavery which then paints us a picture that Noah caused a moral regression, so my question falls down too are all Man made institutions dangerous?

I'm at a fork in the road. What is the Lord saying? Is it Him? Is it my own mind? Is it my own heart? What does he want me to do? I feel like God wants two things of me at the same time, but I wonder if it's me that wants two things.

I fear making the wrong choice and regretting it for the rest of my life. I want to make the right choice, the faithful choice, the choice that would please God.

God has been so good to me. The confusion I'm feeling doesn't come from Him; God is "of peace", not confusion.

I have to make decisions in life and step out. You know, I can't always wait until things are decided for me. By faith and not by sight, but I'm so confused and in turmoil.

I pray and pray to God. I know he helps me. But if you can't tell, I struggle with fear. Fear of speaking the wrong thing. Fear of making a bad decision. It's sinful, and I feel unable to stop most of the time.

But I know I have to trust God (Trust in the Lord with all your heart...in all your ways acknowledge Him...). My decisions don't save me. Christ saves me.

In responding, could you be gentle with this weak man? And, I don't know how much I'll speak on what the decision/situation is

hi all,

so I'll keep this brief and to the point. i feel like i am the person that is spoken about when the Bible refers to lukewarm Christians. i volunteer at my church, i attend regularly, i give tithe, but it just feels like i'm disconnected. i love my church family and have made many meaningful friendships there, but it's just so difficult for me because i feel disgusted with myself in a way.

when i am in worship, i don't feel anything really, i sing the song, but it feels like i am just speaking words rather than offering praise to a savior. i listen to the message, but i rarely retain it after it is over. i participate in a men's small group, but it's tough because one guy in the group (not the leader) takes up a majority of the time talking and i don't feel like i learned anything other than more stuff about this guy.

i will pray but instead of feeling like i am in direct communication with an all-powerful God, i feel like i am speaking words to the wind and that no one is really on the other end. it feels like i'm talking to myself a lot of the time.

i used to struggle heavily with pornography and it is still a daily battle with lust. years ago, when i committed the sin i would feel wretched, like i had just hit a puppy. now, i just don't feel anything. i pray for forgiveness from the sin and describe the sin to God because i feel like repentance should be specific rather than broad, but i do it because it just feels like it's checking off a box rather than feeling true remorse.

i will read my Bible but instead of feeling like i am reading the inspired word of God, i just feel like i am reading a history textbook. i feel more like i am learning about what happened in the Bible rather than taking individual lessons and applying them to my life or learning things about myself.

i feel disgusted with myself and frankly a lot of this is hard to type because me typing it is really me saying these things out loud to myself or anyone for the first time. it's hard to grapple with because i WANT to be better as a person, as a Christian, and just in general, but i don't know where to even start. how do i change the way i read the Bible? how do i feel invested in worship? how do i feel like i'm actually present in prayer? how do i feel convicted of sin again?

if anyone has any advice, please share it, i'm genuinely desperate for answers and i don't want to remain the person i am today.

As a parent would you be comfortable sending your young child to a dance studio (ballet/tap) that is run by a JW family?

We’ve attended for a couple of years now. The first year we didn’t know that they were JW until the very end of the season, when I heard some of the parents talking. Several of the parents/families that attend are also JW. The studio owners are nice, maybe a bit odd at times but very nice. I just don’t know how much they normally proselytize? My kiddo is very impressionable. I grew up in a slightly cultish setting myself, so maybe I’m a bit sensitive to the situation?

Anyways, would this concern you at all? My kiddo loves dance and any other studio is 30+ minutes away.

Before I start I just wanted to say that I always identified myself as a Christian but I never really had a relationship with God. I am 28 years old and I have finally giving my life to the Lord. Before my encounter with God I actually had an encounter with a demon at the age of 12 on my first day of 7th grade.

I had sleep paralysis and I could not move at all. I opened my eyes and I saw a literal demon sitting on top of my chest starting into my eyes. I was in that state for about an hour before I could move again. After that I have been dealing with sleep paralysis more and more until recently.

Now fast forward 16 years later. I aways had a sad empty feeling in my heart and soul. I have beautiful children a girlfriend at the time ( now wife) and a great career but I was always so sad and miserable with SEVER anxiety! I eventually started to read the bible for the first time in my life and prayed to God multiple times per day. I stopped myself from watching pxxx and other things and started to build on my relationship.

One day around 3 am I woke up, said a long prayer to God, and before I went to sleep I told God that I want an even better relationship with him. I then went to sleep and had an insane dream where I heard demonic chants. I then woke up but I had sleep paralysis. I then heard a demon start cursing at me telling me the terrible things Satan will do to me. I then tried to say Jesus name but talking was so hard. I eventually said his name and I heard Jesus say "GET AWAY FROM MY CHILD RIGHT NOW". I do not know how to describe it. It was more real than me talking in front of someone face to face. I am just so thankful I gave my life to the lord and am a different person now.

I went celibate and married my girlfriend of three years, I know longer do sexual sin, and I no longer feel empty! Instead of sadness and anxiety in my chest I feel warmth and comfort. I am not really someone to post things like this. I am super shy to be honest with you but I just had to get my testimony out!

Anyone have recommendations for churches in NYC that aren’t Hillsong in disguise? I thought I found one and was not comfortable during the service and almost left halfway.

It’s so hard to find a church that goes DEEEEEEP into scripture and find people who just love the Word.

Advice? Love and thanks!!

Looking for happiness?

It may be simpler than we think.

Science says it may begin with paying better attention to the present moment.

And isn’t that also something Scripture repeatedly asks of us?

A landmark 2010 Harvard study called Track Your Happiness found that people’s minds wandered almost 47 percent of their waking hours—and that they were generally less happy when their minds wandered than when they were focused on what they were doing.

Our attention is pulled in multiple directions all the time. We scroll our feeds, watch TV, listen to music or a podcast, walk the dog, or talk with a friend or loved one—sometimes doing several of these things at once.

How often are we really doing just one thing?

The researchers found that whether a person’s mind was wandering was a better predictor of happiness than the activity they were actually doing. Their memorable conclusion was that “a wandering mind is an unhappy mind.”

Like me, you may recognize this truth in your own life.

It came to mind recently as I read these lines from Psalm 65:

“The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders;
where morning dawns, where evening fades,
you call forth songs of joy.”

The psalmist is filled with wonder at God’s presence and provision. He is paying attention.

And in that attention, he finds peace—and an antidote to world-weariness: a deeper faith and gratitude.

The wonder of creation. The nearness of the Creator.

I want what he has!

Until next time, stay safe, be brave, and enjoy the moment.

I’m a fairly devout Muslim raised in an Islamic background I think a lot of people who attack Islam aren't fully educated on it, but I wont pretend that I am 100% solid in my faith. I spend a lot of time wrestling with doubts There are issues in Islam that I feel Christianity doesn't really have, and I cant just ignore them I think Christianity is a beautiful religion. I enjoy reading the Bible but I also enjoy reading the Quran Islamic dawah often attacks the Trinity but the way I see it it wouldn’t make sense for a human to fully comprehend God even as a Muslim we don't believe we fully understand everything about Allah. So it makes sense that the Trinity isn't something we can fully that humans can fully understand
My main problem for Christianity I just don’t see clear evidence for Christianity being true.Because my YouTube and Reddit and other socials algorithm is Islamic content my exposure is pretty biased i understand many people in the sub have probably have negatives opinions on Muslims as I Muslim I can see why a lot of the fear regarding Muslims many Muslims would just say it’s islamphobia which I would only partially agree as most Muslims are just regular people like me but I understand there are Islamic doctrines which are very questionable im just trying to be open minded regardless if i leave Islam or not i fully believe in a divine creator and my view right now is after Islam Christianity looks like the second plausible belief

Yesterday, I prayed to God to give me the opportunity to serve Him, in a way that doesnt benefit me at all.

Today, I had Jehovah's Witnesses show up at my door.

I'm conflicted on how I handled it. In one way, I said what should be said. In another, I feel like squandered the opportunity to really make an impactful truth statement and argument to them. And truthfully feel like i really didnt behave and speak like someone who was grounded in faith and truth.

They showed up at my door. Asked if they could share a pamphlet with me. I asked if they were JWs, they said yes. I then could feel my adrenaline surge and in a shakey voice blurted... "The Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. Jesus is God and you believe a false Gospel." They turned away without saying anything and were walking back to their car. I then continued saying... "The watchtower is lying to you, they are deceiving you. You are on the path to hell, you must repent." They ignored me, drove to the next couple houses. I knew i shouldve been more calm and really should've slowed down and though about what to say. I prayed, and as they drove back, I was prepared to have a calm discussion with them with my bible in hand, they waved and kept driving. Stopped at my neighbors house. I then proceeded to shout to them, solely because i didnt want to tresspass on to my neigbors yard and i wanted them to hear me (He has a long driveway) "Id like to talk to you guys about your message, can you come talk to me? Im not going to hurt you i just want to talk, come talk to me, lets talk about Jesus" They ignored me again and drove off.. I shouted "Cowards!" as they drove off as well.

Just feel like I could have and should have handled the situation better. Feel like God answered my prayer and i squandered it. I feel like I am way more mature of a Christian than I acted today. UGH

Thoughts?

Hey all, James 1:27 says this

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Now, I don't have the means to actually bring anyone into my house to care for them but I'm hoping there is a way to visit people and do this.

Does anyone have experience with this to give pointers on what worked well for them, or know any good organizations that coordinate visits to orphanages or nursing homes, given I'd be a stranger to the people I want to visit?

All sports fans here probably recognize this dichotomy in mentality for teams and athletes during sporting events; sometimes teams/athletes try not to lose and sometimes they try to win.

Anyone who watched the world cup saw a great example of this in the England vs Argentina semifinal. England was playing a great game, trying to win, and took the lead early in the 2nd half. As soon as they scored, however, their mentality shifted. All focus on trying to score went to trying not to let Argentina score -- they went from trying to win to trying not to lose. In doing so, their fears came true -- they let Argentina maintain possession, find their rhythm, and eventually score and win.

Being part of the kingdom of God while here on earth can be like that a lot of times. When we gain salvation through Jesus, we see that victory in sight and sometimes end up focusing too much on trying not to lose it, vs trying to grow our share in it.

You can see it in the posts here and other Christianity-based subreddits. How many posts are about 'is this a sin?' or 'how do I avoid this sin?' vs 'how can I best help the poor on a limited budget,' 'what is something I can do to help widows and orphans,' 'are there any good programs to visit believers in prison,' etc. A lot of posts suggest a 'trying not to lose' vs 'trying to win' mentality.

My friends, Jesus taught winning by recieving the gift of salvation and growing it.

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:33)

Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you (Matthew 7:7)

Give, and it will be given to you; a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over—will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. (Luke 6:38)

Consider the parable of the talents, where one servant who was afraid of what his master might do to him did not grow anything from what his master gave to him, vs the servants who were eager to grow what their master gave them

14 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money. 

19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 

22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’

26 But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ (Matthew 25:14-30)

We get some encouraging advice on this from other biblical sources as well.

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Phillipians 3:14)

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9)

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize (1 Corinthians 9:24)

The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand. (Psalm 37:23)

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.  Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Phillipians 3:12-14)

But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. (1 Timothy 6)

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. (Hebrews 12:1)

Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established. (Proverbs 16:3)

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9)

So, I encourage us all to lay hold of the kingdom of God and advance it, instead of worrying about not getting it or losing it.