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Exactly! Thank you ------------------ Ditto !!!!!!!! I believe this forum is good for bantering scriptures and beliefs back and forth. Maybe some 'limited' fellowship. Possibly some growth due to the above. If people are disabled and unable to attend church "assembling together", then that is one thing, but , just because some of us have been hurt, or, don't want to put the effort to gather together with a congregation is no reason not to go. Are there bad churches out there? Certainly. Are there hippocrites in churches? Certainly. I am probably one of them, and, some reading this may even be, self examination is always required, with repentence. But, with the bad churchs out there, there are good ones filled with people who love Jesus. Just takes some effort to find them. Just thinking out loud here, but, here are some things that are part of normal Christianity that are really hard to do in the "Worthy church" : Taking communion. Giving and receiving the ministry of laying on of hands. Eyeball to eyeball ministry. Being 'perfected' by the ministry gifts (4 fold or 5 fold whichever you subscribe to:-) Submitting one to another, I have seen alot of 'i don't need you to tell me what to do' in this forum, but that is normal for people who never interact personally with each other. Supporting true widows and orphans, those who genuinely require help cause life has beat them up. Giving of ourselves (time,talent,money). I suppose for every reason I just gave, someone will tear it down saying how circumstances they have experienced just invalidates what I have said. But, thats ok I suppose. Those who don't want to submit to Hebrews clear scriptures don't really care about what I have to say. Ray . . . But there are somethings that there are no substitutes for. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hey, you find a church as you described, and I will burn the tires off my truck getting there. This board is a effective church. If one needs eye to eye, or hands, there is many churches to help out. I am so sorry for you. We can't rely on the church to replace our personal time with God, but God gave us the church, the body of believers, to affirm each other and hold each other accountable. Whether I'm alone in my home 6 days a week or out working and trying to live a godly life among the world, I look at my time with my church family each Sunday as a time to refresh myself and rebuild my endurance for the week to come. When I have physical/finacial/emotional/spiritual struggles I know that someone will be there for me, not just with words like I can get from this board, but with real tangible help. I'm on my way out the door to bring a meal to a couple who's just had a baby. I can't wait to go and rejoice with them. I have also taken meals to people in the hospital and prayed with them. These are things God wants us to do for the people around us. My family has been on receiving end of meals and hugs and tears and rejoicing. You can't get that over the computer. If you haven't found a church that gives what you need, keep looking. Not only is it worth it, God wants us in church. He gives us gifts to use, He gives us instructions on the set up of His church (1 Timothy 2 and 3) and He repeatedly instructs us in personal, face-to-face dealings with Christians. While you're looking remember that we live in a fallen world, no church (the specific group who meets) is going to be perfect, because humans attend that church and humans aren't perfect. Find a church that embodies the Biblical church as much as possible and throw yourself whole-heartedly into it's growth and development.

I accepted Jesus as my Savior at the age of 9. I was all alone, no one helped me pray, I didn't walk down the aisle and I didn't really feel any different. I spent the rest of my childhood wondering if I was really a Christian, had I really done enough? Why didn't I feel any different? Each time there was an invitation I wondered if I should go forward. Finally when I was a teenager a few things fell together, I hope they will help you understand God's love: Ephesians 2:8,9 For it is by GRACE you have been saved, through faith-and this NOT from yourselves, it is the GIFT of God-not by works, so that no one can boast. (We're nearing Christmas when we'll receive gifts. Do we do anything to earn those gifts? No, the only thing we have to do is accept the gift. Salvation through Jesus is a gift all we have to do is accept the gift) I'd known this verse for years, but I still didn't feel like a Christian, then one day I found this: 1 John 5:13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. It all came together. God's word says that all I need to do is accept His gift and I will have eternal life. I may not always feel like a Christian, but God's word says it's true, so it is. It's that simple. Accept the gift and you are a Christian. You don't have to do anything else. Stop worrying, stop fighting the truth, just accept the gift. None of us will ever acheive perfection and God knows that, that's why He sent His Son, it was the only way we could ever be good enough to enter Heaven. It's been explained to me like this: we will still sin, but if we accept Jesus, God will no longer see our sin. When He looks at us He sees us through Jesus (instead of rose-colored glasses, I imagine God looking at us through "Jesus-colored" glasses). We still need to try not to sin, because it was our sin that caused Jesus to have to die for us, but our sins have been forgiven, they will not keep us from heaven as long as we accept Jesus as our Savior. I pray that you accept the truth and that through God's truth you will be able to find the strength and desire to live the life that God has designed you for.

Exactly! Thank you

I'm not going to take the time right now to look up Bible verses (I should be in bed, I'm just suffering from a small case of insomnia), but I can tell you that being part of a physical church is one of the most important parts of my walk with God. Having face to face contact with other Christians is vital to being a strong, maturing Christian. They keep me accountable and they lift me up when I need it. Think of it as an opportunity to develop like-minded friends. We all need friends and God has created the perfect environment to develop friendships. I truly can't imagine why a person wouldn't want to go to church, so maybe it's not a matter of making yourself go because God said so, maybe it's a matter of finding the right church. Make sure they preach the Bible and they make you feel comfortable. It may take more than one visit to know for sure if it's the right church for you, but look around. God does want you involved in a church and it's only going to help you become more like Christ.

Belinda- You have received some good advice, listen to it. Get yourself out of the situation you are in. Find a church/friend/shelter/organization who will listen to you and help you. Do not allow your family to keep you in a bad situation. Too many people view sexual abuse as embarassing and only a physical thing, but the wounds go so much deeper. One of the things I learned when I was in counseling was that sexual abuse victims always belittle their experiences: I was young, I hardly remember it, so it isn't that bad; or He only touched me, so it's no big deal; etc. But someone took your innocence away and that is a lifelong wound. To all sexual abuse victims- if you haven't already, get counseling. I always figured I'd get counseling "someday," just to ask the question: I was sexually abused, but it doesn't bother me and it hasn't affected my life. Is there something wrong with me? Then I found an article in a magazine that led me to a website with symptoms of sexual abuse and I couldn't believe how much sense it all made. Things I never considered were possibly caused by my past were listed and I fit a lot of the symptoms. Like I said previously, someone took away my innocence and that changed my life in ways that I will never know (even if you're an adult when the abuse takes place, innocence has been lost). I still have lessons to learn and steps to take, but with God's help and with the guidance of a counselor, I'm on the right track. Find a Christian counselor, pray for courage and take the steps to become the complete person that God wants you to be.

Garza-I'm praying for you, your parents, the baby's father and your unborn child. It will take a lot of courage for you to face your family, but God allowed you to get pregnant for a reason, so He will take care of you if you trust Him. Your parents will be mad and disappointed, but give them time. Don't get mad at them in response to their actions (whatever they may be) accept their decision and deal with it. If you show responsibility and maturity they will be more accepting to you in the future. If you really think your mom will throw you out, find a friend who can take you in for a few days, meanwhile give your parents time and keep in contact with them, patiently, even if it means leaving messages on their answering machine or sending letters. Explain your plan, whatever it may be (hopefully to finish school, continue to work and to give your child the best life possible) and let your parents think. I'm sure they will turn around and be there for you. Also remember that there are a number of organizations to help unwed mothers. In my area it's called Alpha Women's Center. Talk to your church, your mom's church or find a church in your area who can lead you to a helpful organization. They can find a place for you to stay, offer emotional support and help through everything that you will be facing for the upcoming months and years. Keep in contact with us, I want to know how best to pray for you.

This isn't a question, but I thought some of you might like to know that since I posted earlier this week (need encouragement), I got a job. I'm actually a telemarketer, which means I have to work at night. I hated the thought of this job and the hours that it meant, but it actually isn't as bad as I thought it would be. I know it's only temporary, and I can see how God can use me, so I've got a lot of praying to do. Something interesting I thought of as I drove home, I start out my phone conversation with: "you have been chosen to receive a two year gift membership to any of our healthclubs..." I mentally changed it to something much more worthwhile: "you have been chosen to receive eternal life? This is a free gift from Jesus Christ and all you need to do is accept it. This is a very exciting offer and its value is far above silver and gold. Is this something you'd be interested in?" This job is an encouragement to me, first of all at least someone was willing to hire me (although a trained monkey could do this job) and second many of our friends are from church and our unsaved friends, although they're rough around the edges, they're good people, so sometimes I forget how different I am from the world, my co-workers have certainly reawakened me. It's encouraging for me to see how different I am and it spurs me on to want to be the best that I can be. Each of my co-workers are willing to lie to get "what they want," and it's funny 'cause it just makes their job harder as they have to stumble over their explanations and make better stories. They were noticing that I had an easier time and I made the most appointments, I'm praying that tonight they will really see the difference and that I can have an opportunity to share why I am the way I am.

I have two thoughts to share on this topic. First of all, I heard a sermon a couple of years ago about "looking at your own bowl." The idea was that God has given us a lot and we're only unhappy when we look around at the things others have (the pastor used the analogy of giving his kids bowls of ice cream. They were both thrilled until one looked in the other's bowl and saw that he had more). No matter what we have or don't have, we have to remember that God has given it all to us and He's given us the greatest gift of all, His Son. It's hard to do, but we need to look at the blessings we do have, not the things that we don't. The more we practice being the thankful, the easier it will be and we can also ask for help. We don't have the strength to stand up to the pressures and materialism and desires of the world without God's help. Finally, I heard a theory (there's probably a better term for it, but that's the basic idea) that every generation has had it's blindness to God's will. For example, we all know that God doesn't approve of having more than one wife, but many of the men in the Old Testament did and it didn't seem to occur to them that it was wrong, it was just an accepted part of their culture. Perhaps our blindness is materialism. We just assume that it's our right to have things, whether it's truly stuff: cars, clothes, whatever or more intangible things: a spouse, children, education, etc. It's built into our culture. Jesus didn't have a home, and income or even the promise of food everyday, but He served God and He always had what He needed. I personally don't have the strength to look at the things of the world and not desire them, but I'm practicing and it is getting easier and I am happier with the things that I do have. I've got a long ways to go, but with God's help I can learn to serve Him more perfectly, more completely without letting the stuff of the world get in my way.

I know this is long, but I hope someone will read and have some words of encouragement for me... Wow, where do I begin? I'm glad I've found chatrooms, they help me get thoughts out without worrying about making my friends feel guilty or making myself look stupid. I've had a tough year and a half and while parts of it make sense, there's still things I need to get off my chest. In June of 2004 I lost my job. I'm a teacher and the school I taught at decided it needed to teach their students in a different way and I wasn't certified to teach the subjects they needed. I was about 2 months pregnant at the time and my husband and I had just purchased our first house, so it was rather stressful, but we figured God would care for us as He always had. At the end of the month I had a miscarriage. I don't know that I can even describe my feelings. I thought I was at the height of grief at that time, but in some ways I think I struggle more now. Anyway, I had just gone into counceling to deal with some issues from my past. It was wonderfully helpful talking to my Christian councelor, but it did force me to deal with some emotions that I hadn't thought about. I was basically taught not to express my emotions as a child, so I really didn't know how to deal with the emotions of my past (including being sexually abused, isolated and in some ways neglected) and the new emotions I was facing. By about October I was a mess. I still didn't have a job (Michigan isn't exactly a mecca for teaching jobs, unlike 90% of the other states), I was learning to deal with my emotions and I hadn't gotten pregnant yet. I felt worthless and I was sitting at home trying to find things to do other than obsess about getting pregnant. I was almost panicky by December, our baby had been due on the 31st and my best friend was due 11 days after that. I needed to get pregnant immediately, I didn't want to deal with those events unless I was pregnant. I found out for sure I wasn't pregnant on a Tuesday, my friend's baby was born that Friday (one month early). Things did get better though, I got a long-term substitute job at the end of January and that kept me busy until June. My husband and I felt led to take on 2 exchange students for this school year, so I spent the summer looking for teaching jobs and preparing for our girls. At the end of July I hadn't been called for a single interview and my husband lost his job. One week later our first exchange student arrived. We reasoned that we had stepped out in faith when we decided to take the girls, so God had a plan, we just couldn't understand it. It has been amazing. I'm constantly reminded of the feeding of the 5,000. Somehow there's always what we need, when we need it. My husband has a new job now and he's happier than he was at the old one. I'm still unemployed. I've made a very difficult decision to take a break from teaching for a few years and at this point I'm looking for anything I can get even if it means working nights and weekends. I still can't get a job. Meanwhile, there are 4 pregnant couples at church, my best friend is pregnant again (oops), and one of our unmarried friends got his live-in pregnant. Our girls are settling in well and we're having a blast with them. I keep reminding myself that we wouldn't know them if I'd had our baby and one of the girls isn't a Christian, so I know that God is giving us an opportunity to share His love with her. I just feel so beaten down. I've learned so much through my experiences of the past 17 months and I'm a better person because of it, but God still seems to be testing me. Why does He allow our unsaved friends to get something I want so much? I trust Him to care for us, and I'm so grateful for all He's done when we were (are) so financially strapped, but I'm willing to work, why won't He give me a job? I know I won't have answers to my questions anytime soon and maybe never, but I really need encouragement. I keep thinking that we're on the brink of some amazing blessings, and then we get another no. I know God won't test me more than I can handle, but I'm beginning to wish He didn't have so much confidence in me. Please give me some encouragement or even some answers and also I'd appreciate some prayer. Thank you.