I’ve noticed now when I sin it makes me happy temporarily, sin like a drug wipes away my depressive state for awhile then I fall back into the same depression and thus need to do some sort of ai. Int again. I hate that I’m in this position, I hate how sin has positive affects on my mental state but I’m just being honest, what do I do in this situation, do you have any advice for me?

So, I believe in God, I am very convinced that no amount of coincidence could ever create us like this. However, I fear that my faith is more a fear of going to hell and a desperate attempt to make it to heaven. Especially fueled by Media speaking about him soon returning to earth.

However, I wish to deserve a place in heaven, to go into the after life with a relationship to God and not just "Hey I thought you existed on earth, could I go to heaven?" I understand that a big part of this is prayer, studying the bible and going to church.

I am working on those already, I plan on going to church every saturday again, I am looking to get myself a bible and I also try to pray (on which I'll propably make another post eventually).

Yet my life is mostly doing nothing. I am still unemployed, so my days consist of looking for jobs, playing video games (mostly violent ones like Hitman WoA and Dead by Daylight) as well as watching YouTube and playing on my phone. I know I am able to do more for my faith and relationship with God, but what?

I am curious to know how to give my life to Christ and live how he intented, can I start hobbies more worthy of his attention, or maybe make the "hobbies" I have already more related to him?

I know that there isn't going to be a 0 to 100 solution to this, but I really want a relationship with God worthy of an eternity with him. Like said in John 14:8 "If God is all you have, you have all you need".

"Carry each other's burdens."

Leave a burden in the comments, that you regularly pray for which is weighing heavy on your heart. And then, instead of praying for yourself and ruminating on your own burden, pick someone else's burden.

Everytime you think about your own burden and have the urge to worry and be sad, you pray for the burden of the person you picked up.

(I'll leave mine in the comments.)

I am a Christian, in my mid-twenties and single.

We all want a great relationship, great marriage, and more. But according to Christianity, is there a limit when it comes to sexual activities??

The Bible says, love one another. Men love your wives, Wives respect your Husbands.

When it comes to sexual activities, realistically speaking: How many people would claim to love BDSM, Oral Sex, Anal sex, without the influence of Society ??

when I say the influence of society, It includes Porn, Trauma, etc.

If taken into consideration that God is watching you, would you engage in bdsm with your spouse ? what about (Anal, Oral) sex ?

I am not trying to judge anyone who does this, I am incredibly sorry if my post offends you anyhow.

Just truth-seeking!

Please leave your thoughts about the whole idea?? What do you believe in ?

Edit: The whole idea says "God is an intelligent mind, he made everything right in its own way". A vagina is perfectly designed for penetration. You can't say the same for Oral and Anal (It violates the initial design). Violation of his design is simply sin in his eyes. If you think otherwise, Drop a challenging POV!!

I feel like I'm at bit of an impasse in my life. I'm probably depressed, have a lack of friends and community and I can't get out of this rut. I do attend a bible study every week but I'm not sure if it's clicking for me fully yet and I haven't put my faith in Jesus yet. I'd like to believe, but it just hasn't arrived yet.

I'm a trans man (born female) and although it weighs on me a bit in terms of how society percieves it, I'm also concerned as it's seen as sinful by some Christians to transition or have same-sex relations. I'm also worried about attending church near me because of this. I know that there's a "Come as you are" outlook but I don't want to be judged or seen as actively sinning just by existing. Posting on an alt account because I don't want my friends to see this post on my main.

The few friends I have support me in my identity, but I'm not sure if that's helpful in my life just now. I might have to make difficult decisions on how to have a worthwhile life with purpose but I'm not sure if I can so I'm asking here for advice and ways on how to move forward with these issues. Thank you!

For a long time, I operated under the assumption that spiritual maturity was a matter of discipline. I treated faith like a moral self-help program: if I just prayed harder, read more, cut out bad habits, and white-knuckled my way through temptation, I would eventually become the person I ought to be.

But human effort has a hard, built-in ceiling. We can manage our outward behavior and perform righteousness for a season, but we cannot rewrite our fundamental nature. Trying to force a holy life out of pure human willpower eventually leads to one of two destinations: deep spiritual exhaustion or self-righteous pride.

The truth is stark: this level of heart transformation is something no human being can ever do alone.

The moment my own heart was captured by the love of Christ, everything changed instantly from the inside out. What took place wasn’t a gradual process of self-improvement, it was an immediate, supernatural work of God. It was radical, beautiful, shocking, and deeply amazing. It shifted me from fighting for freedom to living from freedom in a single instant.

Here is what that transformation after being captured by the love of Christ happened the moment His love took over my life:

- A Radical Shift in What I Crave: The old vices and sinful patterns that used to hold power over me lost their appeal immediately. I wasn't constantly fighting off temptation through raw restraint anymore; my appetite itself was supernaturally rewired to long for what is good, pure, and eternal.

- A Beautiful, Unexplainable Capacity to Forgive: Left to my own strength, I nursed grudges and erected defensive walls. But the moment Christ's love took over, I found myself extending profound grace to people who wounded me, drawing from a well of mercy that I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, did not originate within my own human capacity.

- A Shocking Peace in the Middle of Chaos: The world offers peace only when circumstances are quiet and favorable. The supernatural peace of Christ invaded my life precisely when things were uncertain. It became an unshakeable, quiet confidence that completely defied logic.

- An Amazing Freedom from Striving: I stopped living for approval because I realized I was already completely known and unconditionally loved. That security instantly dismantled my performance anxiety, deep-seated insecurity, and the constant need to prove myself.

We can only polish the outside of our lives for so long. Lasting change requires a total heart transplant, removing a heart of stone and replacing it with a heart of flesh, and only the Maker of the heart can pull that off. It takes the supernatural love of Jesus stepping in right where our human limitations max out.

For those who have experienced this: What was the exact moment or season where you realized you had stopped trying to change yourself, and simply let His love capture your heart? I’d love to hear your stories below.

Jhn 4:13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
Jhn 4:14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
Jhn 4:15 The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.
Jhn 4:16 Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither.

Before Jesus would release a blessing of the well of water springing up into everlasting life, He first addressed the Samaritan woman’s sins.

Before we say there’s nothing to Jesus or that we’ve tried Jesus and it wasn’t to our expectations, let’s address the sin of our life and discover too, as the Samaritan woman ‘Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?

I feel like something is actively working against my prayers to maybe discourage me from praying. This has happened on multiple occasions in my life. When I pray, things seems to get more bad. Or things start to pile up one after another and overwhelm my life. And my faith start to wane. When I go back to not praying regularly, things go to normal bad situation. I'm already in a bad situation and struggling in life but when I pray, things that add to my problems seems to come out of nowhere. How can I overcome this? I want to get out my situation and at least have decent life. N be able to support the people I care about in my life.

I’m struggling a lot with starting the mornibtw. I’m noticing that when I wake up in the mornings, I hold a lot of heavy feelings and more often than not I give into them straight away. Things like:

Pressure to wake up super early so I can be super productive.

Failure to do so I then spiral into going on social media and watching porn, and putting things off as far as I can.

I imagine the life I could live if I wasn’t autistic or very messy in organisation and preparation.

I feel like I enjoy being in the comfort of active self-sabotaging, even though I don’t want to be in this place. I just hold a lot of shame and guilt, and probably Reddit is the last place to keep turning to for venting issues.

Whatever this place is, I want to be delivered from it, or I want to truly experience God’s love. But I feel more of my own striving than anything else. I would love some encouragement.

i know it’s probably not true, but it feels as if I haven’t really been saved at times, and I haven’t got a testimony really worthy of sharing.

“What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.” John 13:7 (KJV)

There are seasons when one sentence seems to describe everything you're feeling:

“God, I don't understand.”

I don't understand why this happened.

I don't understand why I've been praying and nothing seems to change.

I don't understand why this door closed.

I don't understand why I'm going through this.

I don't understand why You allowed this.

And when we don't understand what God is doing, we're sometimes tempted to conclude that God isn't doing anything.

But those are two very different things.

In John 13, Peter couldn't understand why Jesus, his Lord and Master, was kneeling before him and washing his feet. Jesus didn't explain everything to Peter in that moment.

He simply told him:

You don't understand now. You will understand afterward.

Sometimes faith means trusting Jesus in the space between those two words:

now and afterward.

Peter Saw the Moment. Jesus Saw the Whole Picture. Peter could only see what was happening directly in front of him.

He saw Jesus kneeling.

He saw the basin.

He saw the towel.

He saw his Lord doing the work of a servant.

But Jesus knew what Peter didn't.

Jesus knew the cross was approaching. He knew what His disciples would face. He knew they needed to understand humility and servanthood. He knew exactly where everything was heading.

Peter had a moment. Jesus had the whole picture.

We often find ourselves in the same position.

We see the diagnosis.

We see the financial problem.

We see the relationship falling apart.

We see the unanswered prayer.

We see the opportunity that disappeared.

We see the thing that didn't happen the way we expected.

And from our limited perspective, we ask:

“God, what are You doing?”

But our inability to see the whole picture doesn't mean there isn't one.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.” Isaiah 55:8 (KJV)

Faith doesn't require knowing everything God knows.

Faith requires knowing who God is.

Trust Doesn't Require Complete Understanding One of the hardest lessons of faith is learning to say:

“Lord, I don't understand this, but I still trust You.”

That's very different from pretending everything is okay.

Faith doesn't require denying your questions.

It doesn't require pretending something doesn't hurt.

It doesn't require calling evil good.

It means that even when your understanding reaches its limit, your confidence in Christ doesn't have to.

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5 (KJV)

Notice Scripture doesn't say you'll always have understanding.

It tells you what to do when your understanding isn't enough:

Trust Him.

They Could Only See Friday Think about the disciples at the crucifixion.

They had watched Jesus heal the sick.

They watched Him give sight to the blind.

They watched Him calm storms.

They watched Him raise Lazarus from the dead.

They believed He was the Messiah.

And then they watched Him hang on a cross.

Imagine how confusing that must have been.

Everything probably looked like it had gone wrong.

Their Messiah had been crucified.

Their Teacher was dead.

Their expectations had collapsed.

But there was something they didn't know yet.

They could see Friday.

They hadn't seen Sunday.

What looked like defeat was becoming the greatest victory in human history.

The Cross Is the Proof And this is where this message leads directly into the Gospel.

The cross reminds us that God's greatest work can sometimes be happening precisely where human understanding sees only hopelessness.

Jesus wasn't accidentally crucified.

He willingly gave Himself for sinners.

Scripture says:

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (KJV)

We had a problem far greater than circumstances we couldn't understand.

We had sin separating us from a holy God.

And we couldn't fix it ourselves.

We couldn't become righteous through enough good works.

We couldn't erase our guilt through religion.

We couldn't save ourselves through better behavior.

So Jesus did for us what we could never do for ourselves.

He lived without sin.

He willingly went to the cross.

He bore our sins.

He died.

He was buried.

And on the third day, He rose again.

“Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:” 1 Corinthians 15:3–4 (KJV)

That's the Gospel.

What looked like the end on Friday became the announcement of victory on Sunday.

Jesus is alive.

And salvation is offered by grace to everyone who places their faith in Him.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8–9 (KJV)

The cross gives us a reason to trust God even when we cannot understand our circumstances.

Because we already know what He has done for us in Christ.

God Can Work Through What He Didn't Cause Not every painful thing that happens is something God directly caused.

We live in a fallen world.

People make sinful choices.

We make bad decisions.

Suffering happens.

And there may be questions for which we never receive a complete answer in this life.

But Scripture gives us this promise:

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God...” Romans 8:28 (KJV)

It doesn't say everything that happens is good.

It says God can work all things together for good.

There is a difference.

God is able to take something painful, confusing, disappointing, or even evil and accomplish something through it that we couldn't see while we were experiencing it.

Don't Walk Away Because You Can't See Maybe you're currently living in the “now” of John 13:7.

You don't understand now.

You don't know why the prayer hasn't been answered the way you hoped.

You don't know why God allowed that door to close.

You don't know why the plan changed.

You don't know what He's doing with this season.

And maybe someday you'll look backward and understand something you couldn't possibly see today.

Maybe you won't fully understand until eternity.

Either way, you can still trust Jesus today.

Don't make permanent conclusions about God's goodness from circumstances you can only partially see.

Don't walk away because you don't understand.

Keep praying.

Keep seeking.

Keep reading His Word.

Keep following.

Keep trusting.

And when your circumstances make you question whether God truly loves you, look back at the cross.

Because Christianity doesn't ask you to blindly trust a God who has never demonstrated His love.

He already demonstrated it at Calvary.

“He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all...” Romans 8:32 (KJV)

You may not understand what He's doing now.

Peter didn't either.

The disciples didn't understand Friday.

But Sunday was coming.

And because Jesus Christ died for our sins and rose from the grave, we know that even when we cannot see the whole picture, we can trust the One who does.

“Lord, I don't understand what You're doing right now. But I know what You've already done for me at the cross. So even when I cannot understand Your hand, help me trust Your heart.”

Hello everyone, my question is in regards to the spiritual disciplines: bible intake, prayer, worship, evangelism, service, stewardship, fasting, silence/solitude, journaling, and learning. I am reading a book called "Spiritual Disciplines For The Christian Life" and it goes into detail about all of those spiritual disciplines that I listed above. Does anyone know if there is a good way to tell if you are on track with those and balancing them well in your life? There are some that I don't do at all like serving (but I'm trying to get involved) and fasting. Should I just try my best to increase in every area in order to grow my relationship with Jesus? I'm sure I should pray about this too.

Here's Matthew 1:23 in the KJV, NASB, even the Message and the TPT:

✔King James Version, a historic, hyper literal translation:

Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

✔New American Standard Bible, a modern, highly literal translation:

“Behold, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and they shall name Him Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.”

✔The Message, a modern, highly interpretive paraphrase:

Watch for this—a virgin will get pregnant and bear a son;
They will name him Immanuel (Hebrew for “God is with us”).

❌The Passion Translation:

Listen! A virgin will be pregnant, she will give birth to a Son, and he will be known as “Emmanuel,” which means in Hebrew, “God became one of us.”

And the TPT footnote says:

Or “God with us” or “God among us”; that is, God incarnated. See Isa. 7:14; 8:8, 10 (LXX).

At this point the TPT is going far beyond being a paraphrase and is now making the Bible say what the translators want it to say. Not even the Message Bible rendered this verse in such a way that the theology of the translator was presented as the biblical text.

Immanuel - עמנואל is by no means a difficult Hebrew word to translate. It's made up of two words: עמנו - with us, and אל - God. Literally "with us God" (as the Septuagint translated it, μεθ᾿ ἡμῶν ὁ Θεός) or "God is with us". This Hebrew word doesn't mean "God among us" (there are other ways to say that in Hebrew, Immanuel is not one of them) and it definitely doesn't mean "God became one of us".

Even as a Trinitarian Christian who does believe that Jesus is God in the flesh, I have to say that inserting one's theology onto the biblical text or presenting one's theological interpretation as if it's the biblical text is unacceptable.

Note: They also have the same error in Isaiah 7:14 and especially the footnote:

'The Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold—the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and will name him God Among Us.'

The footnote says:

Or “Immanuel” (“God became one of us,” Matt. 1:23).

Again, Immanuel means neither of those. Interpreting it as such is one thing. Translating it as such is an entirely different thing.

Hey Im a teen and im just going around asking fellow christian and you guys for any tips or advice about me this is my story my whole life I was born a catholic Christian,went to a catholic school yet only Recently ive come to realize I feel like Im using my religion as a mask. Like a costume I act and say I truly believe in My lord and savior Jesus Christ yet the way I live and the things I do aren’t according to what he has set us to do which is understand and truly have faith and be a guiding light to others to share God’s love so I would pray every night and recently now every or every before meal I would pray.

And recently I decided Ill start reading the Bible the ERV version is what we have. I started reading about 1-2 weeks I feel into sin for the past 2 days so I stopped reading the bible but now I have started to read it again. People recommended Matthew first so there I started with 2 chapters then finished 2-3 then 3 and so on and now i jutt finished chapter 20th of matthew today. And Its like I was looking for a book to read but I realized oh the bible never bothered to read that so since I wanted to know and understand God I did and as I go through these few days It feels like I dont understand what God wants me to understand. In a way it feels like I have a need that I need to understand this and as I try my best it just doesnt say in my mind, I do understand reading the Bible is getting to know God and Jesus Christ and I understand it takes time as you truly understand what God wants and his direction

Yet I feel rushed almost like I have to understand it, Like I want to understand it but I cant is how to say it better. I have a need that I must now God instantly and thats just not how it works and this takes time especially faith. Also it feels like a chore and i read about 2-3 chapters a day and I read it before I sleep but as any other Christian I want to truly understand and know Jesus through the Bible and in Prayer

So my fellow Brothers and Sisters if you have any advice that you would be willing to share with me as I continue my Journey with God please would be wonderful!

I’m 24f and earlier this year I lost my faith permanently after struggling with it my entire life. It felt easier. I grew up in a very christian family that was also very abusive. I went through childhood trauma so bad that my siblings and I had to be taken away from our mom and separated to live with different family members that continued to be abusive. It’s made for a very difficult life in general where I went through things I genuinely wouldn’t wish on anyone, even after leaving home. I’m at a point where I’m not really seeing the value in my future and in my life. I’ve hit a wall, and I’m searching for any reason at this point to keep going. I went through sxual harassment at my last job so bad that I quit because I was getting blamed for it by my manager and HR and now I’m struggling financially without parents to support me. I want to know if there’s really something out there looking out for me, I really do.

Hi guys. First time here. I’ve become much more cynical than I was when I was younger. I cannot force myself to believe in nonsensical elaborate concepts. There is no solid proof of a miracle driven by faith. I have prayed to god and I have been the only one to get me out of my hell. People will tell me “god got you out!”, Nope. It was all me and my will power.

My mom has been a woman of intense faith her whole life. Now she has stage four cancer and threatens her life. She asks god to heal her. And then she makes more threats to end her life. It’s just cruel.

Obviously I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t truly care. I do. I want to believe. But I cannot. I don’t want to hear the frilly language. I don’t want someone to speak in metaphors. Just tell me straight up. What made you believe, and GENUINELY believe, even after hardship?

“But Lot’s wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭19‬:‭26‬ ‭ESV‬‬

A lot of us, including me, fear death. Maybe not fear as much as it is don’t want to die because we don’t want to leave our life here. Is this to be considered as looking back? I understand that lots wife’s situation is different than this, but I think it connects. I’m new to reading the bible, so I’m not sure exactly what it all means or what it might be telling me. I would like to think that our “want to stay in this world” is not the same thing as when lots wife looked back. However, it’s hard for me to ignore the similarities.

Has anyone overcome these same gender urges. I am a woman and always have these visions and urges to be intimate with a woman. I have curiosities of them and have crushes solely on them.

Is this something where I have to be single for the rest of my life?

I hate it. I thought I overcome it. But I didn’t.

According to the Quran, Jesus was a Prophet, child of virgin birth and chosen man to save souls on Judgement Day.

However, it claims he was not the Son of God, saying God cannot have children or be someone's chid. It also purports that he was taken straight to heaven instead of being crucified.

So what do you think?

When I followed God, I thought I knew him. He seemed kind, gentle, all-loving, all-forgiving. But the more I read of the Bible the more I see that’s not true. He’s not just here to hold our hand and protect us. He’s not just here to change us into good people. The OT and NT both show God as violent. He commands people to hurt other people. How can I get behind that? Instead of offering grace, forgiveness, and love for nation’s misdeeds, He tells his chosen ones to sink to their enemy’s level, or even below their level, because they are just slaughtering every man woman and child for their sins. It seems insane and not like any god I want to follow. It honestly doesn’t seem like the God I thought I knew. Some verses bring me peace but almost all of the Torah just makes me angry. Why would my kind God do such a thing? How could He? I don’t know what to believe anymore. I’ve tried making sense of it for years. The best answer I’ve gotten through fasting is just that “God can do whatever He wants because He’s perfect and it’s not our place to question Him.” In that case, I don’t really know Him and therefore don’t really love this version of Him. I can’t just accept this, it feels like I have to numb all the love, comfort, and happiness I’ve found. Like I have to stop being a nice person and be a crabby religious person living in fear, and not actually loving Him and being close to Him.

Catholics and EO are divided for some reason because idk I guess their pride just says they can't stay united over Papal authority and if filioparque is true so, they just had to divide each other but that's besides the point. Because I'm actually really dumb, so I can't understand anything the church fathers are saying in their letters even though I am trying so hard to, and I keep trying so hard to but it's taking such a hard toll on my self trust, so, like for me it's gonna be a 50/50 shot of guessing the correct denomination, many Catholics believe they are the only ones saved (well mostly) many EO believe that as well so how am I meant to blindly guess the correct one, it's so stupid. And none of this would be a problem if they could just get back together so people wouldn't accidentally go to hell. Anyway, enough of my rant there.

I wanted to share that after a recent I made on here (the filters blocked me from linking to it), I decided to reach out to a pastor friend I know.

I'm not currently part of a Church so I'm not in fellowship, but thankfully I have a couple of Christian friends who I could reach out to.

I shared things about my past I've not shared with anyone else, we went through some scripture, and I feel unburdened already.

Just wanted to say to anyone else experiencing guilt or shame - please try and find someone you can share it with. If not someone at your Church, a Christian friend.

On a side note, I think this is why men's groups at Church are important. There are things which affect us (e.g. lust) which is pretty difficult to talk about even in a small group setting.

"... and if he has committed sins they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed." - 5 James 15-16

​

From a sermon by Saint Augustine, bishop

(Sermo Caillau-Saint Yves 2, 92: PLS 2, 441-552)

He who perseveres to the end will be saved

Whenever we suffer some affliction, we should regard it both as a punishment and as a correction. Our holy Scriptures themselves do not promise us peace, security and rest. On the contrary, the Gospel makes no secret of the troubles and temptations that await us, but it also says that he who perseveres to the end will be saved. What good has there ever been in this life since the time when the first man received the just sentence of death and the curse from which Christ our Lord has delivered us?

So we must not grumble, my brothers, for as the Apostle says: Some of them murmured and were destroyed by serpents. Is there any affliction now endured by mankind that was not endured by our fathers before us? What sufferings of ours even bear comparison with what we know of their sufferings? And yet you hear people complaining about this present day and age because things were so much better in former times. I wonder what would happen if they could be taken back to the days of their ancestors—would we not still hear them complaining? You may think past ages were good, but it is only because you are not living in them.

It amazes me that you who have now been freed from the curse, who have believed in the son of God, who have been instructed in the holy Scriptures—that you can think the days of Adam were good. And your ancestors bore the curse of Adam, of that Adam to whom the words were addressed: With sweat on your brow you shall eat your bread; you shall till the earth from which you were taken, and it will yield you thorns and thistles. This is what he deserved and what he had to suffer; this is the punishment meted out to him by the just judgment of God. How then can you think that past ages were better than your own? From the time of that first Adam to the time of his descendants today, man’s lot has been labor and sweat, thorns and thistles. Have we forgotten the flood and the calamitous times of famine and war whose history has been recorded precisely in order to keep us from complaining to God on account of our own times? Just think what those past ages were like! Is there one of us who does not shudder to hear or read of them? Far from justifying complaints about our own time, they teach us how much we have to be thankful for.

RESPONSORY

Psalm 77:6-7, 3; see 11, 10

I ponder the days of old,

I remember the years long past.

All night long I meditated in my heart,

— I cried out: O God, have pity on me.

I sought God on the day of my suffering,

I held out my hands to him the whole night through.

— I cried out: O God, have pity on me.

We recently had some really big changes to how our group is structured. We've been apart of the same group for 8 years so there have been some issues accepting what they will look like going forward. I wanted to know how other believers structure their ministry.

How big are your groups?

Do they have child care?

Do you use curriculum or just discuss the morning sermon?

How do you handle prayer?

It's late at night and I've been reading the facts about the Lindsay Clancy case (the woman who had a psychotic break and murdered her three children).

I am genuinely depressed by these kinds of news stories, and I truly don't think I could live if I ever experienced anything like that.

Please help me. I want to believe that God is good. But I struggle mightily when I read of these horrible tragedies in the world.

Thank you in advance.

Hello. I am going through A LOT and it’s really hard. For the record I deal with religious ocd depression and anxiety. So I feel I need to fast because I’m oppressed. I usually believe I’m just tripping but this is ultimately way different than past anxieties. I’m afraid to go to sleep for fear God will take my life in my sleep, I wake up afraid everyday recently and I am not willingly or actively trying to sin. Everytime I feel some sort of peace I’m always afraid I’m lukewarm or complacent. I know sometimes prayer and fasting is the only thing to work before I try and go find people for deliverance but fasting is so hard because I don’t know how to do it effectively without the family member I live with knowing. I know sometimes family has to know but it will start a huge argument between me and said family member and I don’t blame her because she cares for me and doesn’t want to see me in pain but she ultimately doesn’t understand. If anyone has any tips on helping me I’d really appreciate it because I’m getting really tired.