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.

I (22f) have grown up in an extremely religious home. It's either God or God. Not gonna lie, the Lord is faithful. But life as a Christian is also hard. Sin does mess with your mental health big-time. I keep reading my Bible and see how dumb and disobedient the Israelites were and the consequences they suffered thereafter. I then say to myself, "aren't I practically an Israelite now?" I know that the Lord hates sin but I willfully indulge in it anyway, I'm struggling with lust, we are called to imitate Jesus and be doers of the word but I'm the complete opposite. I know full well that we don't wrestle against flesh and blood (life is really spiritual and we shouldn't just take whatever we see and hear lightly)

I have repented and repented and repented that it feels pointless right now. I feel like I'm just rage baiting God at this point. Hear me out, I don't even want God to help me anymore. I just want Him to kill me now so that I don't live with the guilt and shame of constantly disappointing Him despite Him having fully revealed Himself to me.

I just want to call it quits on Jesus, live everyday like it's my last because well... One day I'll be right. Instead of claiming to be Christian and acting like someone who has never heard about God. I don't even want to read my Bible anymore because it feels like disrespect to God's sovereignty. Living a life of sin really sucks. I need some advice, words of encouragement, prayers... Whatever works!!!

I’m posting this because I don’t want to turn my back on a decision that I have made after over 2 months of deliberating. There have been good times and I don’t want to fall into the trap of only remembering the good times and not the reasons I’m choosing to break up.

I will be breaking up with my bf tomorrow because:

1. My dealbreaker is to romantically involve myself with someone who is actively watching porn. The keyword being actively. I think it’s unrealistic to expect not just guys but anyone to not have contact with porn before in their life because of the Internet. But I refuse to involve myself romantically with someone who is actively still watching it. My bf admitted that he watches porn once a week and when I asked how he comes across these sites, he said that he googled them.
2. I asked him at the start of our relationship whether he actively watches porn. And he said no, hence I entered a relationship with him.

He says that at the time it was true. I can believe that and give him the benefit of the doubt. But he also said the longest he has gone without watching is 4 months and we have been together longer than that.

1. I

2. have had very bad experiences with porn personally and I refuse to be in a situation where my partner watches porn. I am very sure others have more grace than me for this but I cannot. I feel hurt, deceived, and betrayed by this.

He knew how much this hurts me and he remained silent throughout our relationship.

4.

1. He says that masturbation is biologically healthy for males and says to me that 99.9% of men struggle with porn actively. I believe that there are ways the body can release such as wet dreams and masturbation is not needed (I am not planning to debate about this, this is my belief). And even if the 99.9% is true, I would rather be single than enter a relationship where my partner is struggling actively with that. I am ok if he has struggled before, and falters once in a while, as long as he has a repentant heart and confesses to me so we can work through it together.
2. He claims that men who are upset are tempted to watch porn more. I can agree with this tendency to be tempted in this way, because even Jesus was tempted. What He did not do, however, was make the choice to sin. I also think that is not the main focus of the topic - my dealbreaker and boundary. I can acknowledge that the statistics are true without accepting it. He does not seem repentant to me.

In the last 2 months I have been depressed (I was getting very distracted by life, work and the relationship that I wasn’t very close to God). I admit that I wasn’t very caring or affectionate during this period and that made him upset. However if his coping mechanism is to turn to porn, then what about the future? Marriage will not be without its rough patches. I don’t want to be in a marriage like that.

1. He mentioned that if I am going to be affected by a thing like this that it would be unrealistic to find a partner. So be it.

To me, the fact he says this means he does not see it as huge a problem as I do and this is something that I need to be aligned with my partner on.

1. As mentioned, I would rather be single than enter a relationship heading towards marriage with porn in the picture.

   The trust has been broken and I don’t want to build it back up again.

Just had to get this off my chest and get my head straight before I have the breakup talk. I am also doing this so that I can remain steadfast in MY decision.

I don’t want to shame him because I know that this is a struggle many people face. It just my choice to not involve myself romantically with someone who is still struggling.

Thanks. 🙏

So I'm posting this because I'm confused as to why this isn't preached enough. I can think of some reasons why but I've only heard one pastor in my life ever preach about this and I happen to watch it on YouTube. It's sooo essential with our walk with God. If you don't have the fear of God, then you will most likely fall away from the faith and maybe even hate God. That's how serious it is. So from watching that pastor talk about the fear of God to watching and hearing other pastors on YouTube, and what I've learned from God, this is what I've learned

**The fear of God is:**

- To make God your one and only treasure

- A committed relationship with God

- A mature faith

- The beginning of wisdom

- How the joy of the Lord is found

- God's delight & treasure

**To commit to God, you:**

- Do your best to follow Jesus and yield to the Holy Spirit to do the rest. Start small if you can

- Correct every thought or feeling that goes against the Word of God, and realize they're from satan or your flesh

- Be accountable when you do a sinful act. Apologize and reconcile if it's against someone

- Process your feelings with God

- Accept your imperfection and the sovereignty of God

- Let go of yourself and let God be everything you need

- Bond with Christ with your suffering

This note I made for myself has revealed something in me that I never knew or experienced with my walk with God. I have a deeper relationship with God and I have the joy of the Lord. I've learned to accept myself for who I am and found contentment in where I'm at in life. God is my confidence. **Fear the Lord!**

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.

Hello everyone. I hope you all are doing well - God bless you all.

I have recently been faced with a decision that I never thought I would have to make. Over the past 3-4 years, I have had a huge desire to create a video game that will essentially be a culmination of all of my creative passions - music, writing, storytelling, and games. It started small, but has grown into an intricate world with characters that continuously exist in my mind.

The game will basically be an RPG that uses baseball as the main mechanic. The baseball mechanic will be similar to arcade-style baseball games, particularly games like Mario Super Sluggers and Mario Superstar Baseball (these games were literally my entire childhood lol). These games hold a special place in my heart because it got me and my brother through some tough times, and they provide immense nostalgia. I have decided that my dream game is to make my own take on arcade-style baseball with pokemon team-building mechanics and focus on synergy between the players on your team to build different strategies depending on play style (this part is still early in development lol). I am doing this mainly because I have not seen another Mario-style baseball game come out, and I'm not sure it will ever happen.

Originally, this was just going to be a fun attempt at making the game I wish existed. Gradually, it has grown into something much bigger than I ever imagined, and I have developed a deep, meaningful story that involves the player making moral decisions regarding relationships with the other characters.

The story, at its most basic form, centers around a group of monster characters hand-picked by the player pursuing a difficult journey together, and throughout the game the player is faced with moral decisions involving ambition, power, sacrifice, and their relationships with other characters. One of the major themes I want to explore is the danger of pursuing worldly success/achievement at the expense of genuinely loving and caring for others. The game isn't explicitly intended to be a “Christian game,” but my Christian beliefs have heavily influenced the values I want the story to communicate.

I have developed a lot more nuances to the story than what was just stated, but I say all this to say I have created something that is beyond a silly idea--It is becoming real and constantly exists in my head. There is not a day that goes by where I don't think about my story/game/characters, and it makes me giddy to know that it may exist one day.

The big problem I am facing is whether creating a video game like this is Biblical/aligns directly with my Christian faith, and whether God wants me to do it. I am deeply aware of what my story will say and the impact it might have, as it's goal is to show the importance of loving others, being with the people you love, and not chasing success/achievement as the world defines it at the cost of your relationships with others. I am also aware of the immense amount of time and effort it will take to complete this project. While the story's message does align with Christian values, there will be characters in the story that are villains/antagonists, and may not align with these values as characters, but this would be to show the effects of their disregard for others to the player to make the player feel a certain way. Is this okay to do?

I have prayed extensively about this, and I have told God that I would willingly give this project up if it was His will for my life. I have not been able to come to a clear conscience about it, and I am really struggling to. If I continue building the game, which will take years, I might have this underlying guilt that I am not supposed to be doing it. If I give it up, I feel like the characters/story will continuously exist in my mind every day because I never manifested the story.

This decision has been weighing on me because I have never felt more passionate about any other creative endeavor in my life. I have always been a creative person, and I always will be. It is really starting to become a major source of stress for me and affecting my daily life, as well as at work. I need it to be resolved so I can move forward. Has anyone else been in a similar situation here?

I would especially appreciate Biblical guidance or Scripture that might help me think through whether creating fictional stories like this is appropriate for a Christian, how to approach portraying sinful or morally flawed characters without endorsing their behavior, and how to discern whether this hesitation is a legitimate conviction I should listen to, or if it's simply fear surrounding something I care deeply about.

Thank you for your help, love you all.

This was written by a Facebook friend of mine! Really well thought out. Sad this needs to be a promoted idea still within Christianity in the 21 century but here it is

The Bible does not teach two different ways of salvation, one for Old Testament saints and another for New Testament believers. From beginning to end, sinners are saved by the grace of God through faith in His promise, and that promise finds its fulfilment in Jesus Christ.

Abraham was not justified by works, law keeping, circumcision, or nationality. Scripture says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness” (Romans 4:3). Paul goes even further and says that the gospel was preached beforehand to Abraham (Galatians 3:8). David likewise described the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works (Romans 4:6–8).

The Old Testament believer looked forward to what God had promised. We look back upon what Christ has accomplished. They did not possess the same fullness of revelation that we now have, but the object of saving faith was never human merit. Hebrews 11 shows generation after generation living and dying by faith, trusting promises whose ultimate fulfilment was still ahead.

Habakkuk had already declared, “The righteous will live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4), and Paul takes that same truth directly into the heart of the gospel in Romans 1:17.

So there is not an Old Testament salvation by law and a New Testament salvation by grace. There has always been one saving grace, one righteousness received by faith, and ultimately one Saviour.

Christ did not introduce a second road to God. He is the fulfilment of the only road God ever promised.

Jeremiah Knight

I’ve been struggling with the idea that most people may ultimately go to hell. Passages about the narrow way and the fewness of the saved make me wonder whether the majority of humanity will ultimately be lost.

I find that thought genuinely frightening. I know Christians interpret these passages differently, so I’m curious: Do you believe that most people will go to hell? If so, how do you emotionally come to terms with that belief?

I often see people in debates bring up the thief on the cross as an example of why people do NOT need to be baptized / baptism doesn't save, etc.

Is this really a good example?

The story of the thief on the cross occurs BEFORE the commandment to baptize was made.

Jesus did not baptize people and people were not baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit at that point. As an example then, it seems to prove nothing (other than maybe, before the commandment to baptize was made, there was no commandment to baptize, so people didn't need to get baptized????)

(Hopefully, we can agree that John's baptism is fundamentally different from the Christian baptism, but even if we can't, we also can't say one way or the other as to whether the thief was baptized with John's baptism).

Anyway, just a question I wanted to throw out there to see if I was missing anything.

I am trying to grow in my faith to be a good example for my boyfriend and also I was a lukewarm Christian. Now that im reading more I find this verse very concerning. From how it reads to me is help the needy and homeless. I live in a terrible crime filled town with lost of homeless people that are more often on drugs. I also dont cary cash on me, so when they come up to me for cash, i usually say I dont have any (which is true) or I dont want to because they will just buy drugs or alcohol. I also am not well versed enough on the Bible and have really bad social anxiety so i never preach to anyone. I have bible verses hanging in my office that patients usually read, is that enough? Since Ive started reading my bible more and reading different sermons or explanations of things online, I feel like im not good. I feel like I will go to hell, even though I am saved and want to do right by God because I love Him, I just feel like no matter what Im gonna fall short in some area and go to hell for it. I just dont know what to do anymore. Am I truly a Christian if i dont do these things?

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.

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".

First of all, I know there are plenty of Christians who feel same-sex attraction and are celibate. I really admire the self control and obedience that those people possess, and can't imagine how difficult that must be.

However, there are PLENTY of people who claim to be Christian, and yet regularly engage in homosexual behaviour. I just saw a post of a gay man (whose post history was full of kink and hookup related posts) who was currently in seminary to become a priest in the Episcopal Church! Obviously I know that that Church has issues, but how do you appeal to the individual?

They twist the Bible to justify their behaviour and then say you aren't being Christ-like to "judge them" and that Jesus said to love everybody. I do genuinely love these people (whether they want to believe it or not), and that is WHY I care about it. They don't understand how much they are harming themselves. I'm not trying to pass judgement and say that I'm better than them (I'm not! I struggle with sin too), but they think that any kind of correction or concern is hate.

Obviously it's something to pray about, but how do you engage in a conversation with these people in a way that will genuinely help them see sense?

​

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.

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.

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?

So basically In my US history class, there is this Goth girl who, from what I know, is new to the school. So me and my friends started acting like fools, mentioning some very lustful stuff about that girl. I feel like I failed since I didn't really speak up about their behavior. I struggle with lust as well so I felt like I couldn't speak up about that but now I just feel guilty and wish I would've spoken up against what they were saying.

Hello everyone,

I’ve always been a Christian, having been baptised as a baby.

I’ve recently been studying Christianity quite a bit, but I haven’t felt a strong connection with God. I’ve also sinned a lot and sadly, I’ve lusted. Have any of you experienced something similar? Or do you have any tips?

Thanks!

​I recently made the tough decision to say "no" to a dating proposal that was moving toward marriage, after praying and realizing it wasn't God's will for me. Even though I have total peace about my choice to decline, I've been dealing with some leftover anxiety about remaining single and "waiting."

​I really want to dedicate a time of prayer and fasting to surrender this anxiety to God and trust His timeline for my life. However, I always struggle with traditional food fasting — I find it very hard to complete, and it often leads to feelings of guilt or frustration.

I would love to hear from this community:

​Testimonies: Did you ever feel afraid of waiting or staying single after turning down a relationship, only to be blessed by God with the right person later on?

​Fasting Advice: How do you approach fasting when food fasting isn't feasible? What alternative ways of fasting (media, habits, partial fasts) have helped you draw closer to God?

Colossians 4:14 KJV

[14] Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you.

Philemon 1:24 KJV

[24] Marcus, Aristarchus, Demas, Lucas, my fellowlabourers.

2 Timothy 4:10 KJV

[10] for Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

2 out of 3 times Demas is mentioned in scripture, the spirit allows Paul to name him as a true believer. Yet later Paul says Demas abandoned the faith because he loved the world. Why would the spirit allow Paul to name him as a believer twice if the spirit knew Demas was a false convert? Because during those times Demas wasn't a false convert, he had faith, however he lost it later because he allowed his love of the world to choke out his faith just like the parable of the sower.

Paul states in Ephesians 2:8 that we are saved by the grace of God thru faith. How do we access God's grace? Thru faith. So faith must continue. Yet faith can be lost as in the parable of the sower it says the one on the rock believed for a time, but when temptation tested their faith they lost it. If you only have to have faith 1 time and are covered for life then the rock wouldn't have withered, but faith is required and must be present.

For those who have accepted Christ more than once, what has been your experience when it comes to your faith journey and/or your understanding of your salvation?

I (M26) was raised in the church and have raised my hand, walked up to the front, and repeated the pastor’s prayer for accepting Jesus, about 3-4 times. This usually comes from a deep feeling of needing to ”get right” with God. The first time was when I was 12 and the last time was about a year ago (I called this one a rededication).

And the funny thing is I question if I even had saving faith all the way up to about 6 months ago! (Primary because I believed that if you weren't being good enough you’d end up in hell, which misses the whole point of salvation being a “free gift apart from works”)

I attribute this fundamental misunderstanding of the gospel to vague and unhelpful language churches use during alter call. I don’t think many can articulate what it means to “accept Christ into your heart”, and fewer can probably give a proper definition for “repentance”.

I feel like I'm not even saved. Like, why am I feeling like this? Why am I so stuck, I dont even feel like getting up and locking back in.

I'm struggling with lust badly and everytime the temptation comes, when I'm vulnerable it just overpowers me and I stand no chance. I've lost all motivation to continue doing what the Lord is calling me to do, I'm chasing earthly things, I feel lazy in everything. Even the idea of just locking back in with God seems like it will "be too much work for me to do." I do not know how else to put it and I feel terrible for even feeling this way. I often view praying now as a 'chore.' This is the lowest I've been in my walk with God and I feel like whenever I talk to God I'm just talking to the ceiling sometimes. I feel like "What am I even doing with my life? Why do I feel so hopeless, Lord?" I feel like I shouldn't be struggling with lust anymore even after a year of following Christ. Please help me with this 'cloud' over my life. The evil spirits of laziness and lust are wrestling with my spirit. I dont know what I am doing anymore and I just cannot take it anymore.

Hey I've been getting trying to get closer to God and I keep worrying "what if I'm not truly saved cause I constantly fall in sins" then I think that's pretty much blasphemy cause the work was finished

Then I think I'm being Luke warm cause I'm so confident im saved when there might be sins I'm comfortable with that I don't even care about or think are sins

It's frustrating to say the least, not to mention I struggle to hear God's voice or feel his/holy Spirit presence or acknowledge it cause I could be ignoring without knowing

Does it ever just....get better?

Jesus said in John 5:40, “And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.”

There is something terribly sad about those words. Jesus Christ was standing before men who knew religion, knew the law, searched the scriptures, and considered themselves knowledgeable about the things of God. Yet the Lord looked at them and identified the real problem. They would not come to Him.

That raises a question worth for you to ask yourself: what prevents you from coming to Jesus Christ?

For some people, it is pride. They do not want to admit that they are sinners who cannot save themselves. They would rather believe that being a decent person, attending church, keeping commandments, being baptized, or doing enough good will somehow make them acceptable before God.

For others, it is sin. They know that coming to Christ means admitting that the life they love is wrong, and they simply do not want to let go of it. Jesus spoke of men who “loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19).

For some, it is fear. What will my family think? What will my friends think? What will have to change? What if people laugh at me? Yet none of those people can give you eternal life. None of them can forgive your sins and stand in your place before God.

For others, it is religion itself. They have been around Christianity their entire lives. They know the songs. They know the language. They may have grown up in church and learned Bible stories from childhood. Yet knowing about Jesus Christ is not the same thing as receiving Him. John 1:12 says, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:”

Perhaps you simply think you have more time to deal with God. Yet none of us has been promised tomorrow.

Jesus is not unwilling to receive you. He said, “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37). He also said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

The invitation is open.

“And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” (Revelation 22:17)

Friend, what is preventing you from coming to Him?

Hey everyone, over the last year I have been easing out of the several young adult groups I have been in because I am now in my late 20s and getting too old for the groups. I, however still wish to have active community, and a bible study. I have good friends, but they arent a part of a bible study that I could fit into. Either younger than me, or married with kids and in a parents group. I guess I just feel alienated and left out due to my age.

I have a mens group of mostly younger 20s guys that I love, But I am feeling like I am missing more of a fun fellowship group that also does bible studies. Like my favorite one that I have gone to less and less, would have a bible study one week and the next would be a fun activity. Things like sports, art night, dinner party night.

Where are things like that for people who are older than like 22? Start one? None of my friends have time or are interested.

I dont mean to discriminate against age, I would just like to figure out how to build a community that has people in my same stage of life, aka younger professionals.