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Help with a Question (faith and sin)

February 26th, 2015

Sarah Van Baale‎Got Questions Writers
February 26, 2015

I have most of this questioned answered, but would appreciate some suggestions regarding this line: “I had the stronger faith in Christ when I was sinning so terribly and now that I turned away I feel so much doubt sometimes.”

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  • Fred Apelquist Hard to understand full context without complete question text, especially the part about “turning away”. From what? Sinning? Christ?

    One friend made this observation. It’s like turning away from some bad habit. Even though it’s proper for the long     term, it’s painful in the short term & may make one want to revert to earlier behavior/belief.

    Just some folks’ $.02 from the Washington, DC, metro area. Hope this helps.
    Yesterday at 8:58am · Like · 2
  • Sarah Van Baale She’s turning away from sin, but for some reason finds that her faith is weaker when she isn’t sinning which is the part I’m struggling to address. I’m wondering if she is confusing faith with feeling. But thanks for your help Fred. That observation you posted was helpful.
    Yesterday at 9:27am · Like · 1
  • Christopher Dupre I sort of know what he’s saying. I’ve gone through depression after walking closer with God after a dry spell. It’s the pull of the world. You feel alienated. He needs regular Bible study, and Christian fellowship. He needs to train his mind and heart on God, and be so saturated with Scripture, that he defaults to it in his thinking. The world will then scale off and he’ll feel more at home. There is comfort in bad places, if it’s familiar to you. Romans 12:1, 2.
    Yesterday at 9:35am · Like · 2
  • Dawn James Very good points, Christopher Dupre! I agree completely. You can stress the tremendous importance of daily Bible reading and prayer. We need to maintain our relationship with our Lord. I know because I’ve been there and I did feel far from Him. So, she is vulnerable to anything the enemy can dish out! Also, you can tell her that it is as simple as asking the Lord to help her in her walk. He surely knows her heart and wants that closeness with her.
    22 hrs · Like · 2
  • Lori DeGrazia Sounds like when she was sinning everything was black and white. The conflict (the goal) was evident and she knew she needed to turn from sin. Perhaps she hasn’t received clear understanding of salvation? She has accomplished her goal (turning from sin) but doesn’t know what to do next? Thus the doubts: I thought if I stopped sinning I would be happy and have purpose, etc…. It’s not what I thought it would be…
    I also think you’re probably right that she’s confusing faith and feeling!
    15 hrs · Like · 3
  • Sarah Van Baale Thanks Lori, I touched on that too – The idea that people expect life to get easy once they chose to live for Christ. But I don’t think I’ve ever heard it articulated in such a way that sinning made them feel closer to Christ. It left me scratching my head. Thank you everyone for all the input. I didn’t want to ignore that sentence, but I wasn’t exactly sure how to approach it either. I appreciate all the help.
    15 hrs · Like · 2
  • Marc Weiss All are good comments. Go to Paul’s Thorn – Paul was given a thorn in the flesh. That leads to how the person is feeling: ” For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10 ESV) .

    I have been in that place and sometimes, I struggle in that place for short periods of time, so I get it. Christopher said it – the answer is daily prayer and some sort of Walk with God, whether it be an online sermon, Bible reading, etc. Something.

    This does NOT seem to be confusion of feeling and faith; but in context, I may feel different. Maybe it is because I have been there in my life in 2012 that I can articulate it.
    8 hrs · Edited · Like

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