Blessings~
Robin
Shattered faith
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Guest
Jim74...G-man and Connor couldn't have said it any better; therefore I have nothing left to add, but, to confirm what the 2 of them have posted, for I know for a fact this is the truth...We all live and learn and grow in the Knowledge of our Lord and Savior "Jesus Christ"...I am sure Jim that you are being tested..We are all tested and tried, and when we pass the test through patience, then we are refined as gold...You will survive this Jim...Just keep your eyes focused on Jesus and try not to look at the troublesome waters...Remember, Jesus calms the raging sea...
God Bless...
God Bless...
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Guest
"And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, "Elo-i, elo-i, lama sabach-thani?" which means, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?""Originally posted by Ms. T Bones:
Jim74...G-man and Connor couldn't have said it any better; therefore I have nothing left to add, but, to confirm what the 2 of them have posted, for I know for a fact this is the truth...We all live and learn and grow in the Knowledge of our Lord and Savior "Jesus Christ"...I am sure Jim that you are being tested..We are all tested and tried, and when we pass the test through patience, then we are refined as gold...You will survive this Jim...Just keep your eyes focused on Jesus and try not to look at the troublesome waters...Remember, Jesus calms the raging sea...
God Bless...
Mark 15:33-34
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lateralus_jenn
- Posts: 23
- Joined: Sun Jun 29, 2008 11:41 pm
Jim: First I'd like to tell you, your story really touched my heart, and I felt your pain through your words. I have been a slave to my depression for many years...my faith too, was shattered...because of my horror, I tried to committ suicide too (jumping into the Cumberland River---not telling anyone where I was going). God had been watching the whole time. A fishermen saved my life...He saved yours that day you looked for the train to jump in front of...he held it away from you. I believe that from the bottom of my heart. I want to share a story with you, I hope it touches you in a positive way. I will keep praying for you. I too have had my battles with medication not working. We just have to take every day, ONE DAY AT A TIME. Through love and faith, through good medical attention and eventually the right medications, I have found my way...to be honest, forgiveness is something I'm working very hard to overcome. Through the medical field, I have learned, at least for me, sometimes we have to be admitted, so that the medical professionals can monitor what works and what doesn't. (that was hard for me, but worth it if I were going to take my life back). This way, when our levels are good, we can be released and take our lives back...We cannot let depression make a slave of us. I pray one day, I will have the courage you have to be able to share why I wound up at the river. You are my new hero!
Because someone once loved me enough to send me this little story, and because there is a real lesson to be learned from it, I wanted to share this with you. I pray it helps you too...
The Devil & the Duck
There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on their farm.
He was given a slingshot to play with out in the woods.
He practiced in the woods; but he could never hit the target.
Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for dinner.
As he was walking back he saw Grandma's pet duck.
Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly, hit the duck square in the head and killed it. He was shocked and grieved!
In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the wood pile; only to see his
Sister watching! Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing.
fter lunch the next day Grandma said, 'Sally, let's wash the dishes'
But Sally said, 'Grandma, Johnny told me he wanted to help in the kitchen.'
Then she whispered to him, "Remember the duck?'
So Johnny did the dishes.
Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing and Grandma said, 'I'm sorry but I need Sally to help make supper.'
Sally just smiled and said, 'well that's all right because Johnny told me he wanted to help?
She whispered again, 'Remember the duck?' So Sally went fishing and Johnny stayed to help.
After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's; he
Finally couldn't stand it any longer.
He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck.
Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, 'Sweetheart, I know. You see, I was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing, but because I love you, I forgave you.. I was just wondering how long you would let Sally make a slave of you.'
Thought for the day and every day thereafter:
Whatever is in your past, whatever you have done...? And the devil keeps throwing it up in your face (lying, cheating, debt, fear, bad habits, hatred, anger, bitterness, etc.)...whatever it is...You need to know that:
God was standing at the window and He saw the whole thing.
He has seen your whole life... He wants you to know that He loves you and that you are forgiven. He's just wondering how long you will let the devil make a slave of you.
The great thing about God is that when you ask for forgiveness; He not only forgives you, but He forgets. It is by God's grace and mercy that we are saved. Remember: God is at the window! When Jesus died on the cross; he was thinking of you! Blessings, Ladyvols1967
Because someone once loved me enough to send me this little story, and because there is a real lesson to be learned from it, I wanted to share this with you. I pray it helps you too...
The Devil & the Duck
There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on their farm.
He was given a slingshot to play with out in the woods.
He practiced in the woods; but he could never hit the target.
Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for dinner.
As he was walking back he saw Grandma's pet duck.
Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly, hit the duck square in the head and killed it. He was shocked and grieved!
In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the wood pile; only to see his
Sister watching! Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing.
fter lunch the next day Grandma said, 'Sally, let's wash the dishes'
But Sally said, 'Grandma, Johnny told me he wanted to help in the kitchen.'
Then she whispered to him, "Remember the duck?'
So Johnny did the dishes.
Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing and Grandma said, 'I'm sorry but I need Sally to help make supper.'
Sally just smiled and said, 'well that's all right because Johnny told me he wanted to help?
She whispered again, 'Remember the duck?' So Sally went fishing and Johnny stayed to help.
After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's; he
Finally couldn't stand it any longer.
He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck.
Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, 'Sweetheart, I know. You see, I was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing, but because I love you, I forgave you.. I was just wondering how long you would let Sally make a slave of you.'
Thought for the day and every day thereafter:
Whatever is in your past, whatever you have done...? And the devil keeps throwing it up in your face (lying, cheating, debt, fear, bad habits, hatred, anger, bitterness, etc.)...whatever it is...You need to know that:
God was standing at the window and He saw the whole thing.
He has seen your whole life... He wants you to know that He loves you and that you are forgiven. He's just wondering how long you will let the devil make a slave of you.
The great thing about God is that when you ask for forgiveness; He not only forgives you, but He forgets. It is by God's grace and mercy that we are saved. Remember: God is at the window! When Jesus died on the cross; he was thinking of you! Blessings, Ladyvols1967
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Mello Nello2
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Tue May 01, 2007 1:33 pm
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Guest
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Guest
Hi,
I didn't have time to read through everyone's responses, but with my experiences with such great and faithful people on this board, and I am certain you got very great and loving responses.
I could say so much, but I posted my story further down on this message board called "The Cross". It's about the darkest hours of my life, and how God showed me later that He was with me even when I didn't think He was. He had given me the sign I prayed for, but I didn't see it at the time. I saw it much later, and it was just this great learning experience. I hope that that is some kind of comfort for you.
I understand why you want signs, and I firmly believe that God gives us signs. However, sometimes we really miss the signs. This week, I feel that I said goodbye to an acquaintance who is preparing to die after a long battle with leukemia. She did all she could including a bone marrow transplant, she seemed to be well, and the leukemia seems to have come back even stronger. She's tired, and she may only have weeks to live. Even during this dark time, I cab see that God is with her, and she knows that too. I guess what I am trying to say is that perhaps your being alive is the miracle and sign. We so often just take for granted the fact that when we are walking, living, and breathing that that is the sign from God, his gift to us, His blessing. I used to struggle so badly with anxiety just getting up in the morning that I wanted specific signs to get through the day. Sometimes God would answer me, but sometimes He wouldn't the way I wanted or expected. I can look back now and see that I was really dependent on people to be used as the sign, and although God can and does use people, at that time in my life some of the people that I was depending on as a sign were really not great for me. I couldn't see that though. God wanted me to know that He was with me, and He would talk to me. Also, someone said, "Just the fact that you are breathing and here is the sign." She was right. I began to seek out the Bible and Christian books, and most of the time, God speaks to me when I listen to His word. There are just so many ways He speaks to us, that we just can't limit ourselves to one or two ways. In addition, although you were looking for a shooting star in the sky, what about the stars themselves? Who put those stars there? God put them there for you.
I want signs, I need signs, and I do get them, or I've gotten them after the fact, but when I don't get them exactly when I want, I have to remember that God says that He's with me, and He doesn't lie. I really think that God has given you signs, but that you perhaps didn't realize those "common" signs-life, your precious beautiful daughters, the stars in the sky-those were the signs.
Finally, I noticed that you wanted someone to represent God for you outside of yourself, through other people, etc. It could have been that God was showing you that He was inside of you in a still and small voice.
I hope this came across the right way because I'm in a hurry, and I may be being redundant, but I just know for a fact that God is with all of us, He does speak to us, and He does love us, and that most certainly includes you:). It took some hardships for me to see that clearly, and sometimes I still have my moments, but it's the truth:).
God bless you,
luvpiggy
I didn't have time to read through everyone's responses, but with my experiences with such great and faithful people on this board, and I am certain you got very great and loving responses.
I could say so much, but I posted my story further down on this message board called "The Cross". It's about the darkest hours of my life, and how God showed me later that He was with me even when I didn't think He was. He had given me the sign I prayed for, but I didn't see it at the time. I saw it much later, and it was just this great learning experience. I hope that that is some kind of comfort for you.
I understand why you want signs, and I firmly believe that God gives us signs. However, sometimes we really miss the signs. This week, I feel that I said goodbye to an acquaintance who is preparing to die after a long battle with leukemia. She did all she could including a bone marrow transplant, she seemed to be well, and the leukemia seems to have come back even stronger. She's tired, and she may only have weeks to live. Even during this dark time, I cab see that God is with her, and she knows that too. I guess what I am trying to say is that perhaps your being alive is the miracle and sign. We so often just take for granted the fact that when we are walking, living, and breathing that that is the sign from God, his gift to us, His blessing. I used to struggle so badly with anxiety just getting up in the morning that I wanted specific signs to get through the day. Sometimes God would answer me, but sometimes He wouldn't the way I wanted or expected. I can look back now and see that I was really dependent on people to be used as the sign, and although God can and does use people, at that time in my life some of the people that I was depending on as a sign were really not great for me. I couldn't see that though. God wanted me to know that He was with me, and He would talk to me. Also, someone said, "Just the fact that you are breathing and here is the sign." She was right. I began to seek out the Bible and Christian books, and most of the time, God speaks to me when I listen to His word. There are just so many ways He speaks to us, that we just can't limit ourselves to one or two ways. In addition, although you were looking for a shooting star in the sky, what about the stars themselves? Who put those stars there? God put them there for you.
I want signs, I need signs, and I do get them, or I've gotten them after the fact, but when I don't get them exactly when I want, I have to remember that God says that He's with me, and He doesn't lie. I really think that God has given you signs, but that you perhaps didn't realize those "common" signs-life, your precious beautiful daughters, the stars in the sky-those were the signs.
Finally, I noticed that you wanted someone to represent God for you outside of yourself, through other people, etc. It could have been that God was showing you that He was inside of you in a still and small voice.
I hope this came across the right way because I'm in a hurry, and I may be being redundant, but I just know for a fact that God is with all of us, He does speak to us, and He does love us, and that most certainly includes you:). It took some hardships for me to see that clearly, and sometimes I still have my moments, but it's the truth:).
God bless you,
luvpiggy
I have been suffering with extreme chronic debilitating panic disorder for 24 years. At the end of last year I was finally more thoroughly and accurately diagnosed with Complex PTSD being the primary diagnosis, along with panic disorder, agoraphobia and depression.
In these 24 years I have begged, pleaded, and bargained with God... all to no avail. I lost and regained faith in God more than once, and finally I got so enraged with God for not curing me that I literally raged at him out loud, fists clenched and all, telling him that IF (big if in my mind at this point) he existed, I HATED him and I wanted NOTHING to do with a God who would let me suffer like this for so long. How could a God ignore so many prayers?
Very recently, I reconciled with God, but this time I really researched scripture and went about asking for my healing in a way that was completely new to me:
1. I asked myself, "Do I REALLY want to heal? Because Jesus asked people he healed, "Do you want to heal?" That's a very important question. Our immediate response is, "Well of course I want to heal. Duh!" But stop and really think about it. I did. And I was ashamed to admit to myself that while of course I did want to heal, I also enjoyed having this disorder as a convenient excuse when necessary to avoid the things I really didn't want to do... like entertaining extended family that I didn't particularly like. "Oh I'd love to have you over for dinner this weekend, but my anxiety is SO bad, I just can't." How could I give up that kind of control? So that's the first thing I REALLY had to work hard on letting go of. I'm still working on this, because it's all a work in progress.
2. I confessed, out loud, all of my sins; the ones I'm aware of and the ones I've forgotten. I repented and asked God for forgiveness. I also asked that He heal anybody and everybody who may be carrying any kind of negativity as a result of my sin(s) against them. I asked God to heal THEM (the people I hurt) before he heals me.
3. I forgave EVERYONE who had ever hurt me in any way. I named each person out loud, and REALLY forgave them. This was SO hard to do because some of these people abused me continually, in unspeakable ways, for YEARS. But those were the very people I needed to forgive the most... for my sake. Not theirs. You can't expect mercy (healing) if you're not willing to extend mercy (forgiveness) to others.
4. I then asked God, in the name of Jesus, to heal me. I didn't say "if it's your will"... I referred to all the scriptures that say that he is ALWAYS willing to heal ANYONE who asks.
5. I got a tape of the healing scriptures and listen to them as often as I can, even while I'm sleeping, so the healing words of God saturate my body, mind and soul.
6. I RECEIVED the healing, because the scriptures also say that we must receive it. If someone here on earth hands you a million dollars you are still required to reach out your hand and accept it in order for it to be yours. Same thing with the answer to a prayer.
7. I gave thanks by repeating over and over again "thank you for my healing".
8. And finally, and this is probably THE most important part... I put my faith into action. The healing scriptures say that every time Jesus healed someone, he would then instruct them to do something, like "get up take your mat and walk", and the person would do it, and it was in taking this action in faith that he was healed. So I couldn't stay home and say that I was healed from agoraphobia (for example). So because I was asking God for "the impossible" I had to do "the impossible" to receive the answer to my prayer, to receive my healing, to receive my miracle.
And you know what, it's working! Without a word of exaggeration, within a few short weeks I have gone from being completely disabled to the point of having to go on disability, to being what I consider 80% cured. I still get some physical symptoms of panic, but without the panic (I know that sounds strange). And when I do get the symptoms, I talk to them, and I tell them that Jesus has already healed me of them so they have no more purpose to serve in my life. And they go away almost immediately.
I am confident that I will be 100% cured from all of this because there is no question that Jesus does heal, and he heals things that are MUCH more severe than any panic disorder and/or depression, so why wouldn't he heal me (or anyone else who asks in faith) of this as long as I do what he expects me to do... as long as I do MY part.
In these 24 years I have begged, pleaded, and bargained with God... all to no avail. I lost and regained faith in God more than once, and finally I got so enraged with God for not curing me that I literally raged at him out loud, fists clenched and all, telling him that IF (big if in my mind at this point) he existed, I HATED him and I wanted NOTHING to do with a God who would let me suffer like this for so long. How could a God ignore so many prayers?
Very recently, I reconciled with God, but this time I really researched scripture and went about asking for my healing in a way that was completely new to me:
1. I asked myself, "Do I REALLY want to heal? Because Jesus asked people he healed, "Do you want to heal?" That's a very important question. Our immediate response is, "Well of course I want to heal. Duh!" But stop and really think about it. I did. And I was ashamed to admit to myself that while of course I did want to heal, I also enjoyed having this disorder as a convenient excuse when necessary to avoid the things I really didn't want to do... like entertaining extended family that I didn't particularly like. "Oh I'd love to have you over for dinner this weekend, but my anxiety is SO bad, I just can't." How could I give up that kind of control? So that's the first thing I REALLY had to work hard on letting go of. I'm still working on this, because it's all a work in progress.
2. I confessed, out loud, all of my sins; the ones I'm aware of and the ones I've forgotten. I repented and asked God for forgiveness. I also asked that He heal anybody and everybody who may be carrying any kind of negativity as a result of my sin(s) against them. I asked God to heal THEM (the people I hurt) before he heals me.
3. I forgave EVERYONE who had ever hurt me in any way. I named each person out loud, and REALLY forgave them. This was SO hard to do because some of these people abused me continually, in unspeakable ways, for YEARS. But those were the very people I needed to forgive the most... for my sake. Not theirs. You can't expect mercy (healing) if you're not willing to extend mercy (forgiveness) to others.
4. I then asked God, in the name of Jesus, to heal me. I didn't say "if it's your will"... I referred to all the scriptures that say that he is ALWAYS willing to heal ANYONE who asks.
5. I got a tape of the healing scriptures and listen to them as often as I can, even while I'm sleeping, so the healing words of God saturate my body, mind and soul.
6. I RECEIVED the healing, because the scriptures also say that we must receive it. If someone here on earth hands you a million dollars you are still required to reach out your hand and accept it in order for it to be yours. Same thing with the answer to a prayer.
7. I gave thanks by repeating over and over again "thank you for my healing".
8. And finally, and this is probably THE most important part... I put my faith into action. The healing scriptures say that every time Jesus healed someone, he would then instruct them to do something, like "get up take your mat and walk", and the person would do it, and it was in taking this action in faith that he was healed. So I couldn't stay home and say that I was healed from agoraphobia (for example). So because I was asking God for "the impossible" I had to do "the impossible" to receive the answer to my prayer, to receive my healing, to receive my miracle.
And you know what, it's working! Without a word of exaggeration, within a few short weeks I have gone from being completely disabled to the point of having to go on disability, to being what I consider 80% cured. I still get some physical symptoms of panic, but without the panic (I know that sounds strange). And when I do get the symptoms, I talk to them, and I tell them that Jesus has already healed me of them so they have no more purpose to serve in my life. And they go away almost immediately.
I am confident that I will be 100% cured from all of this because there is no question that Jesus does heal, and he heals things that are MUCH more severe than any panic disorder and/or depression, so why wouldn't he heal me (or anyone else who asks in faith) of this as long as I do what he expects me to do... as long as I do MY part.
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