MiraculousFaith

I've done very similar things. I've wondered if writing this script is God's way of healing me or helping others work through their own struggles. I'm okay with either one. It's worth it for that alone. Thank you for the prayers!

Hello! It has certainly changed for the better in the past six months. I just got out of a relationship a few weeks ago, which ended up being a good thing for me. I did have a couple of experiences, but mostly I felt indifferent about my most recent sinful endeavors. I think it's dead horse at this point, but I still have the temptations. I've realized that none of it is worth my time. The best way I can describe the screenplay is that it is based on my own story but is told through another character's eyes, if that makes sense. I've been writing for a long time, mostly journaling. I've never known whether any experience of mine would become public, but, being in film school, I actually have the opportunity to create the film for real. We'll see if it happens. After my last post, God showed me Proverbs 3:5-6. I don't know why exactly, but it quelled my fears and gave me peace. A day or so later, I had a sudden flood of ideas of how to write the screenplay. It was crazy! I've written lots of things, but I don't think I've ever had such an obvious frame of reference for writing a story. God gave me peace about the situation, but I didn't know what that meant exactly, then the flood came. I wrote nine pages (which is a little shorter than other types of publications, but still quite a bit) on a Sunday morning before church. It's really an interesting process. I'm fairly certain this is Spirit-lead. I certainly want to use it as a tool to warn others. Exposing the darkness with light as it's said. I have no clue what God is planning to do with it, and admittedly, I'm scared to know what will happen, but I want to be faithful. If God wants to use my experiences to reveal the Truth to others, who I am to say "no" to God? He already has been doing this, but I suspect it will evolve into something larger. Does it still fascinate me? Unfortunately, yes. However, I know I'm standing on God's rock, and I can't forget that. It's been a healing process for my mind.

I'm currently a youth worship leader, I also help with worship on Sundays. I've been doing this for the past two years. I love to serve in the church and community whenever I can. I used to run a musician's club at my university before 2020 happened and a personal medical situation. It unfortunately was something I had to let go of due to these factors. I've basically been healing, building up my resume, and trying to finish school, and going where the Lord sends me beyond that. These temptations and struggles still happened in spite of this, perhaps because I am still rather young (22, in fact) and still growing. I will say that I have certainly been doing better.

Hey, everyone, I'm feeling confused and really down about this screenplay I've been writing for the past year. It focuses on spiritual warfare -- something I've dealt with in the past. I thought I knew that God wanted me to write this story and film it, and had a few signs that I thought were "a-okays" to really flesh out the ideas, but right now, I feel so conflicted about it. I had an unusual conversation with my mother this week, who's more of a pragmatic skeptic and spiritual person than believer, about some of my experiences. She seemed to have every explanation as to why this or that experience wasn't really what I thought it was, and how I couldn't know for sure. I shared some very personal stories, and it felt invalidating somehow to hear it explained away, even though some were dark and a little traumatizing for me. Some of the conversation really seemed odd to me, but I don't know if it's a perspective thing on my part or a true difference in belief. We've definitely had conversations like this before about spiritual things, but this got fairly deep. For some reason, I just left that conversation very low, as if I could only agree with her explanations. I know someone else can't determine my own beliefs, I just can't help but feel as if I'm the one who's losing; as if I don't really understand what's happened in my life. I can't explain it. I just have begun to wonder if I should drop the script completely, though I don't want to obviously. Today, I was frustrated with God about something I saw in church history. I don't usually get flustered like that with Him, but ever since I had this convo I've been on edge, like I don't really know if I understand myself or my life. The irony is, I finally feel like I'm hearing God's voice again this week, after a stressful relationship that had to end for my health and theirs. I finally feel like I'm getting back on my feet, but this is bothering me. What do you do when you just don't know what to think? How can I still know if this is what God wants? I'm doubting it for the first time in a year. Maybe I'm not to write this story after all? I don't know what else to do but pray and hope it becomes clear again.

Hi everyone, I've been a believer in Christ since 2015. I've been living with my sinful desires for as long as I can remember (#relatable, anyone?). I've always struggled with self-control. Fulfilling my impulsive desires is an easy habit, especially with a lack of motivation. This isn't just true with spiritual things, but natural things as well. For example, I've always procrastinated. The stress of it isn't motivation enough to quit doing it for some reason. I try at the beginning to get things done even when I don't want to. Over time, I lose the luster and fall behind. I tend to need change very often to stay alert and focused. I don't mean minute by minute, but every few months. I chose a career that operates on a short-term project-basis partially for this reason. Sometimes change isn't possible, however. So in those times of perseverance, I need to self-propel, and I struggle to do so. On the spiritual end, my lack of self-control gets me into a lot of trouble. I've long been fascinated by occultism.This week, I made myself a spirit/Ouija board. The stuff fascinates me when it should terrify me. I've been worried I'll never overcome it fully, and what that might mean. I've overcome a lot these last few years, but I'm struggling to renew my mind. It's a grievance against God. I feel numb. Numb to my sin. Hardhearted to it. As if I'll never make it through this and time is running out. As if I should be punished harshly for what I've done. Maybe the enemy is slowly convincing me I'm dead meat; I've come to a point where I believe it, and that really scares me. I know Jesus says that no one will snatch [a true follower of Him] out of the Father's hand (John 10:28-29). I just wish to know if I am simply deceived and belong to the devil, so I can move on with my life instead of this mental hellscape I've given myself to. I really do believe in Christ, but the mental battle is rough. I want to stop being selfish and resist these ungodly desires, to stop causing more problems for myself and start being the solution. I need a practical first step to walk out and help create good habits and destroy bad ones. Any advice?

(This might be in the wrong place, but I wasn't exactly sure where it should go. Please redirect me or move this forum if it's in the wrong place. Thank you!) I've been around plenty of Christians who celebrate Halloween, and in the past couple years I've been around Christians who either have never celebrated or stopped celebrating at some point in their life. I'm personally divided on the subject of whether we should or not. Since it's the appropriate time of year, I'd love to hear why you do or do not celebrate spooky day, and why you are convinced of this stance. I'd hate to start a fight, so I'll tell you now that I'm really looking for answers which can be backed up, or at least clearly understood with a little bit of explanation. I'll leave the deciding of whether or not your answer is "justified" up to the readers, but again, please don't fight. I'm asking this just to hear the different takes on it. As for me and my family, I always celebrated as a kid. Trick or treating, decorations, silly Halloween movies, and all that jazz. I realized at some point during my late teens that Halloween seems to bring a big pull toward the occult (something I have dealt with heavily in spiritual warfare) when you grow out of the candy and costumes. Whether it's in movies and TV or the actions of people, ungodly practices, monsters, demons, and other strange things seem to not only be prevalent, but normalized during this time of the year. I think the thing that really set me off on this journey to find what stance I should take on Halloween as a Christian started when I started meeting Christians who did not celebrate it. I'd never been around anyone who was like that. I would ask them why they decided against it. "It's a holiday that celebrates death.", "The occult is prevalent and even encouraged during Halloween.", "The holiday is a high holy day for witches and Satanists (this one coming from ex-witches/Satanists)." are all general reasons I've heard. I personally don't know if the "high holy day" reason is true, but I can definitely understand the other two and why they might be problematic. On the other side, I've heard reasons such as "We don't do the scary stuff.", "It's all fun and games.", and "We don't call it Halloween and do a fall festival instead." Not sure if the third reason really counts as being for Halloween, but you get the picture. I can think of a few verses that I'm sure will show up in the responses as they always seem to show up in this convo: "Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them;" - Eph. 5:11 -- This is the most common one I hear in objection. "For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness." - 1 Thess. 5:5 "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. " - Eph. 6:12 "In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. " - Matt 5:16 -- "How can we shine our light if we're participating in darkness?" is usually what I hear with this one. Alright, I'd love to hear from you, Blessings!

I have reasoned this exact logic out just like you said right here. It's hard to even comprehend this kind of situation sometimes, especially because no one ever thinks it would happen to them. But I love something one of my friends (who also struggles with depression, ironically) said to me: "God saw the world and decided it needed one of you." I think about that sometimes. It's not amazing, cure-all advice, but it always gives me pause, personally. It may not for you or anyone else, and I am sorry if that is the only thing I have to contribute to this conversation. Blessings!

I didn't know how else to respond to every one of you without making a couple dozen posts, so I want to sum up everything in one so all have the same info. I'm flattered by all the responses, and I want to thank you all very much first of all. Second: addressing the concern about counseling. Yes, she is definitely in counseling, therapy, has psych appointments, etc., and has been on multiple meds for the past few years. She is currently in heavy treatment and also legally required for related reasons to receive that treatment. I don't pretend to know what her life is like and I applaud her for how far she has come since I met her even. It wasn't very long ago that I experienced suicidal thoughts, and not too many years ago that I acted on them. I sort of agree with the notion about advice: there's only so much you can say or do before someone tunes you out or chooses not to believe what they're hearing. In my own experience, I didn't want pity, I wanted help. I try not to pity her (though I feel bad for her in the pain sense, because I know it's painful -- perhaps more than my own pain was) and I have just been there for her. I think what makes this hard for both me and her is the nature of her current bout of depression. She says she feels guilty and as if she's making wrong decisions that affect her life and others (which, again, is unfortunately true). She doesn't feel like she has a great relationship with God right now and every offer of prayer from me or others has pretty much been denied. I think if she really felt desperate she would welcome it (as more of a last resort). I personally take it as a somewhat good sign of simple disconnect; she's more worried about her doubt than her doubt should worry her. I just hate that it's contributing to the depression currently, and if I could make that part go away, I would. So because of all this, I ended up telling her that everything she's asking the "why" questions for is completely normal (because it is). And that she should not feel bad about thinking through faith and religious beliefs. That God will guide her through those things, and all she needs to do is lean on Him for that spiritual guidance. As far as mental help, I only hope she will rehab fully and be consistent about her treatment. I always always always encourage her to continue treating her physical and mental health alongside her spiritual, because I believe that all three are a part of our well-being. I've heard people tell her that medicine doesn't work, and I know she wishes she did not have to take it, but I always caution against it, especially cold turkey. I always tell her that if something isn't working or she doesn't feel she needs it to talk to her psychiatrist and decide how to deal with it. At the end of the day, she's an adult. She's going to make the decision she thinks is best, but I hope that decision would be in sober-mindedness, and even if not, with her support system helping her. I can only respond in a realistic way, which can sometimes feel unsympathetic to me, but I think being honest with her is the best choice on my part and so far it has helped her sort through some of her thoughts. I never play it down, but I try to avoid making it bigger than it seems, if that makes sense. Not sure if that answers every concern, but I hope it all makes sense. Thanks!

Cursed by a creepypasta? I would like to know why that made you feel cursed. I don't know if I totally understand.

Hi, I have a friend who has dealt with a lot of mental challenges in her life, including depression. She's been on meds (partially by force and not simply by choice) for much of her teenage and adulthood (she's in her mid-20s). This past week, she has been claiming to be severely depressed by reoccurring doubts that are plaguing her. She claims that she isn't sure she really believes in God's truth (but she is more worried about the doubt than it deserves in my opinion), and that her decisions are leading her down a terrible path. The irony is that, yes, she has definitely made a lot of bad -- at least bad to me -- decisions, but I know that God still loves her and is walking with her. Today she messaged me that she felt suicidal, but also assured me that she would not act on it. I've been down that road before and I'm apt to believe her at this time, but I don't know for sure how I should respond. Was wondering what you might tell a friend who feels like a no-good burden and is far too hard on herself for her flaws, to the point of excessive worrying and fatalistic mindset. I don't want to encourage any erratic behavior, but I am also not so sure she would enjoy ending up in a mental hospital again (for the second time in the last month). I briefly considered taking her while we were hanging out today, and I know it sounds kind of odd, but I think there is a spiritual warfare aspect to this alongside the other mental issues she's already struggling with. She isn't sure what to make of it all, and I guess I don't know either. It's a strange and probably difficult situation, but I'd appreciate any experience or advice I might be able to pass along to her as a friend. She is certainly trying to better herself, but right now it isn't working out the best for her. Thanks!

Yes, this is 100% a correct description of this gift. Especially the portion about the timely operation of the Holy Spirit. Not sure if this comment also refers to "picking up", so-to-speak, on spirits of wickedness, but the same definition still applies. I have heard of people who, perhaps at one point or another, have seen invisible things. I also saw another comment on here that mentioned that the gift is only to discern evil spirits. As far as that goes biblically, I am not so sure. However, I can confidently say that 90% of what I discern is demonic or fleshly in nature. I can pick up on falsehood vs. God's truth almost immediately in most cases (as in, I can respond to someone with verses already in mind and the truth which reveals the lie which someone believes). I can walk into a room and I will experience odd desires and unusual tempting thoughts, tension/pressure (as if there is a heavy fog or thick cloud in the room), or the movement of entities that are not visible. There have been cases where I also know the operating spirits' titles/names/intentions (for example, "divination", "deception", etc.). These things do not happen all day everyday; I believe it is only when the Lord allows me to operate in this gift on His time. I'm uncertain why He chooses to do this this way, but I am also wonderfully grateful that I cannot see demons--like, really grateful. They do not frighten me at all, but I am thankful for my very mild gifting, as it can be intense enough with what I already do experience. A note on people who experience their gifting earlier in life: I am a more recent follower of Christ. I came from atheism/agnosticism, and then more or less satanic occultism. I've supposedly, according to my family, had an "imaginary" friend whom they, despite being non-religious and agnostics for most their lives, believe was not imaginary. I don't remember this experience, so I have nothing else to say about that, including any theories. I will mention, however damaging it may be to one's current perception of me, that I was seeking supernatural experiences when I was in my teens out of curiosity. Unfortunately, many of the sought after experiences I wanted were dark ones. It was similar to how I experience these things today, but, in a strange way, very different. I'm not sure how to describe it other than this: They appeared to want my attention long enough to hook me in, but would back off afterwards. Then when I followed Christ, they were determined to strangle me spiritually. In short, things got a lot more intense and real for me as a believer than they ever were as a lost soul. After lots of praying for God to take what I thought may be a false gift, the discernment/experiences have remained to this day, albeit much more matured now that God's Word has shone on it. I still wonder if that means we can receive them prior to understanding them because we were always meant to have them. Food for thought.

As someone who was in your shoes about three years ago, the best advice I can give you is to pray intently, and ask God for wisdom. It's great to go online and Google your questions, and God may certainly answer you in that manner (He did for me a few times). However, I personally was shunned and ignored by some Christians in the beginning. My secular friendships were strained because of our new differences, and I didn't even "evangelize" them, I never wanted to be "that Christian". In the end, I found that I could only really rely on God to guide me, and I preferred it that way. I was tired of being lied to by the world and people who claimed to be God's followers (and may have been true believers) and didn't know how to speak to a newbie who wasn't raised in church/Christian circles. Ask God to reveal what He wants you to learn and where He would have you go, especially when you read Scripture. Following Christ is a daily reality, let him be the leader. Furthermore, you said you "trigger" spiritual warfare. As upsetting as it may be to you, this is not a bad thing. I'm wondering if you might have a background in the occult/witchcraft/New Age as I did. It definitely intensifies the warfare for a lot of people who come out of it (including me). If not, I wouldn't let it bother you too much, because being an irritation and opposition to you is certainly the goal of the enemy. You have God on your side and the armor of God. It seems hard now, but you will find you make it when you surrender to the Lord. One of my memory verses for warfare is: Ephesians 6-11 (definitely read the whole section: verses 11-18) "Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." And James 4;7 "Submit {surrender} yourselves therefore to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you." P.S. Surrendering/submitting is something we all work on daily, so don't feel too bad, and keep growing. God bless you!