life?!?!?!?

[ollie]

Hi, I'm new here.

How about this. You all are wasting your lives for something that may not even exist. No, I am not "saved" and I don't intend to ever consider myself "saved" again. I'd rather not pull off of other's ideas and not grow in any way at all. Trust me, it's a waste of time.

Farrer

"How about this. You all are wasting your lives for something that may not even exist"

"may"??

It would seem that that is a key word in your statement. Like you are just unsure and perhaps God's word has not been presented to you with all its calling power to prick your heart and bring you to faith in Jesus Christ and to accept His gift from God that will free you from the bondage of your unsureness.

Wekcome to the forum,
ollie

[Melody]

Okay if you want to witness to me, don't scare me all right?   Sorry that was just a little weird. Um, well, I've been a Christian before, a strong one. But then...I drifted away from religion and I found that I felt...better.

Hi Farrer,
Felt better in what way?  

[Raphu]

I'm a 15 year old guy who goes to church and worships god, but beside that i always feel like what ever i do is useless and a waste of time becuase its not like we ever look back at all the memories when were in heaven so its like why do good in school cause where your dead and in heaven its not like any of that is still there...........idk, do any of you know what i kind of mean, like when were in heaven its not like we will remember the time at the movies with friends or anything....I'm reading a book and the more i think about it, its like why even read it, when i'm gone it wont matter what i did when i was alive.

What matters is that you are of great worth to God as His arms and legs of love in the body of Christ. The Bible says that we are created for good works - to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the sick, and give shelter to even the stranger. That's a lot of responsibility, but we do not have to do it alone. The Lord is our head and is always with us.

EPHESIANS 2:10 For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to DO GOOD WORKS, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

HEBREWS 10:24 And let us consider one another how to stimulate and provoke one another to love an, GOOD DEEDS and noble activities. 25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

MATT. 25:31-45 When the Son of Man comes in his glory....He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.....Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil & his angels. For I was hungry & YOU gave ME nothing to eat, I was thirsty & YOU gave ME nothing to drink, I was a stranger & YOU did not invite ME in, I needed clothes and YOU did not clothe ME, I was sick and in prison, and YOU did not look after ME.". "Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me."

[farrer]

My darling Christians (haha, I thought that sounded funny),

All right, I don't think I can stress enough that I HAVE BEEN A CHRISTIAN BEFORE. I promise I was. I was crazy about it. I think one of you asked me what I would say if God asked me why I thought I should have been let into heaven. I probably would have said that I didn't deserve it at all but I trusted in his promise of salvation that Christ had taken away my sins by sacrificing himself. Remember guys, you have to have faith to get into heaven, not just good works. Hahaha, you should know that. I also know the process of how to get "saved", so just don't bother telling me.

Now, I am agonostic, so I will conceed to the possibility that God exists. I, probably surprising to you, am not afraid at all of my uncertainty. I don't ever want to be so brainwashed again as I once was. And, just so you guys know, I gave it up after a particularly traumatizing time in my life previously this year. No, I was not angry at God for letting it happen to me or something stupid like that, but the certain event mentioned above was the apparent cause of my apathetic disbelief in everything, including God and love, I had once held dear to me.

~Farrer

[Melody]

I don't ever want to be so brainwashed again as I once was. And, just so you guys know, I gave it up after a particularly traumatizing time in my life previously this year. No, I was not angry at God for letting it happen to me or something stupid like that, but the certain event mentioned above was the apparent cause of my apathetic disbelief in everything, including God and love, I had once held dear to me.

Farrer,
I don't think fanatical extremes of anything are healthy and I don't believe that just because we're believers that we have to give up questioning and seeking.  You can only be brainwashed if you choose to quit looking for the answers.

You haven't said how you "feel better" though.  

[farrer]

I feel better?

Oh yeah. haha. Well the truth is that I worded that wrong. A better way of putting it is that I feel more free to do things and less guilty when I, for instance, use the Lord's name in vain or consider the possibility of another religion. Also the feeling of not being responsible for the death of Christ isn't as encumbering.

Melody, you've been the first person to bring up a good point. I remember that I did question and seek when I was a Christian. But, again, this issue of being brainwashed is all a matter of perspective.

Furthermore, when you question your faith and seek answers you have already premeditated the outcome of your seeking: Christianity is true. The only way to possibly seek answers from an objective point of view is to BE objective. Obviously, all of you have a bias, which is Christianity. Let me ask a question to whomever feels like answering. Would you still seek answers when you completely surrender to the mere possibility that it will prove you wrong?

Melody, I know my extreme apathy is not healthy, but this knowledge does not lead me any nearer to belief in Christianity.

~Farrer

[Melody]

A better way of putting it is that I feel more free to do things and less guilty when I, for instance, use the Lord's name in vain or consider the possibility of another religion. Also the feeling of not being responsible for the death of Christ isn't as encumbering.

The reason I asked (and your answer was what I was expecting  ) is because my mom said the same thing.  From repeated conversations, it became pretty apparent that she felt better after renouncing Christianity because as a Christian she always felt as if she fell short of the mark.  She felt weighed down by a guilt she had no need to bear.  She obviously truly never believed that our Lord died for those very sins because He knew we could never be that perfect.  It doesn't mean you don't try for that perfection since, as believers, we want to walk the walk, but it means that we shouldn't feel guilty when we fall short of the mark.

Once she stopped trying, she felt better...or so she thinks.  She's much more cynical, unforgiving and hard hearted and it's obvious that she's missing that inner peace.  I pray every day that she'll rediscover her connection to God.

I'm sorry you think we're deluding ourselves, but I know for a fact that the joy and peace I feel inside does not originate within me.  It took me decades of prideful behavior to come to this realization.  

Farrer, may I ask if your involvement with Christianity included active participation in a church?

[nChrist]

farrer,

It's exceedingly obvious that you never knew Jesus. When you speak about the Holy Spirit, all reverence will be used here. It sounds like things were really only a game or a fad for you. In fact, it sounds like you are playing a game now.

It also sounds like you would be happy if we had doubts also. Well, I've been a Christian for over 50 years, and I don't have any doubts. I have the reality of Jesus in my heart, and I always will. There is nothing funny about the reality of Jesus. I would doubt your existence, but not HIS. There are lots of people who go to church and don't know Jesus. There are other people who like to mock the things of God, and it sounds like you are heading in that direction.

Tom

[Melody]

Something very horrible happened to me a few months ago and it caused my to gradually lose my, once again, VERY DEVOUT faith. I realize that you will always be Christian and that's great for you. I actually would not be happy if everyone lost their faith, because I will admit that, in some ways, it is a tragic thing to not believe in anything.

I hope this doesn't come across as patronizing, but Farrer, if you had a true faith, you would have turned to God...not away from...to help you through the awful experience.  It sounds like you "believed" you had true faith but actually didn't.  There are many people out there who believe that just because they say they believe Jesus is their Savior and follow what they think the rules are (some follow church rules, other follow Bible rules), then everything should be right and tight with the world and nothing bad will ever happen to them.  The first time something bad does happen, they blame it on God and decide that since He's such a terrible God, they don't need Him.  That's not faith.

Faith is believing, even when things go horribly wrong, that God has a plan and even the horrible experience will work for God's glory.

Blaming God is too easy.

[farrer]

*twitches in frustration*

Melody, I wasn't angry at God.

All right I'll just tell you guys about the incident. What happened was that I was in an ongoing abusive relationship with my boyfriend and my parents were physically and emotionally abusive as well. My faith was the only thing that kept me going. One rainy day in April, I got in a fight with my mom and she kicked me out. I didnt have shoes on and I had nowhere to go except this church near my house. I hid there for the rest of the day, not planning on ever going home again. I couldn't stop crying, and I prayed that God would help me through this and tell me what to do because I felt so lost. I opened a Bible and read the first verse that I saw. I don't remember what book it was but it said "Get up, and get something to eat. Do not despair." So I somehow found the kitchen and got something to eat, feeling so much happier because I believed that God had spoken to me. Then the police found me there. My boyfriend had called the cops on my parents (I had called him earlier at the church and told him what happened) and they were almost arrested.

I did turn to God, Melody.

My loss of faith was gradual and resulted from recovery from this incident and my relationship with my boyfriend. The cause was apathy. I don't know why else I turned away. Now, I resent God, and I don't know the reason for that either. That may be why I signed on to these forums (I don't even know why I did THAT). It might be a cry for help...so...help please. Disbelief in everything is tragic and, honestly, I hate it more than I like it.

~Farrer