becoming a Christian

[serina]

What was your experience of becoming a Christian? How or when did you know for sure you were a Christian? I grew up being taught that you had to pray to ask Jesus to come into your heart and forgive your sins. I remember praying this several times growing up b/c i was always worried i wasn't sincere enough or something. there was a lot of talk of going to hell in my schools and chruch so i was always worried about this. once i started drinking i felt guilt all the time but alcohol relieved the guilt.

now that i am trying to work these steps and turn my life over to God, i wonder what has hindered me from never feeling the peace/assurance that i am forgiven. is it just me? once i reached my teen years i became very rebellious and didn't want anything to do with religion. i was always told that if you weren't saved that God didn't hear other prayers so praying all these prayers now i want to know for sure.

so how were you certain that you were saved or a christian. i keep praying and can't understand why i don't feel peace. i just feel depression, anxiety and fear.

[gimmeid]

You ask Christ in your heart, the action is His, the Holy Spirit will start(or continue) working in you and your life. For me, a lot of my misery has been denial, anger, things I won't let go of. And there have been milestones where entire clods of crud came out, giving me a season of relief. God wants you to be an example of His power. People's nature just doesn't change anymore than a tiger can change it's stripes.
When we change, people notice, it glorifies God.
And I don't think much I can do or behave is so much wrong in itsself so much as any of my ways causing harm directly or indirectly to others, causing others to stumble, is unacceptable and when that is the fruit of any of my ways, God will not deal very gentle it seems. Anything in me holding me back from my potential, the way of life God will have for me, also is dealt with, in spite of my stubborness. The Spirit will lead you in understanding of what is at work in your life if you allow. Remember also, we -die-. God has that to work with. Sorry. Both in areas of our life where we refused to budge, and physically one day.
I earned my black belt younger, and was trained hard. As I mastered simple principles, more disipline and growth was required of me. It was not fun. I sweated, endured agony, sometimes cussed, bled, gave up, came back and faced weak areas inside and out, and whether patient or harsh, my Instructor was never anything less than firm in his resolve and vision of what I could be.
After my first tournament, I never came in less than second place again. Out of ten or so. And I find God is my new instructor. He's preparing us for greater things than a martial arts tournament. Would you expect anything less but Olympic-scale plans for us from the Architect of the universe itself?

And in the lowest point, just picture what my sponsor told me plain in a bad time. "When you stand before God, you know, when everythings done,, Jesus is gonna speak up, "He's one of mine." Something He's gonna do. Not something I have to figure out with some magical profound idea.

[cmc]

Amen to that reply.

Serina- Two things will help you, and both are about educating yourself about God.
1. Read God's word for yourself-daily.
2. Find a bible believing church and learn from:sermons, bible study groups and Sunday school

Remember that being saved involves more than a secure place in heaven. It also means that I make Jesus the Lord of my life and seek to follow God. It means that I become His child. This does not mean that I will be happy and peaceful all of the time, or even much of the time. Being a Christian doesn't mean I escape life's challenges and problems, but it means I have Him with me through it all and I have access to His word which contains the grace and wisdom of God. The bible is like an owner's manual given to me by my Creator.

[best]

My baby sister sent me an e-mail and at the bottom of her e-mail was a message. I saved it because I had a feeling that someone would need read the message.


Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect. It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections!

God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but HE did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears & light for the way.

I can pinpoint the time and the day that I said Yes Lord I accept what You are offering.
I can't pinpoint such a moment where my thoughts changed from belief or disbelief that Jesus is real though. First I needed to believe and because of the people and things that the Lord brought into my life, my heart softened and I started to believe the truth that was before me. I bought my first bible and started to read. Before I even finished page one I had a feeling of truth inside that had me say...Wow this stuff is real.

The bible says that I became a Christian even before the world was formed. God knew what my choices would be and how I was going to be created even before the world began.
Faith (Trust) and acceptance of what God's word says will bring you to the point of understanding you are looking for.
Jesus said...believe and you will be saved.
Do you believe His words to be true?
Do you accept His love that He has for you?
Do you understand and accept what His death on the cross means? (Our "every" sin He paid for)
If you answer yes and repent (turn from you old ways) then you are saved ( a child of His) and you are a Christian.

Jesus said...believe

[toad]

In Feb. 1983 I was doing time in jail for my 4th DWI. I had 90 days to do. I did not come from a Christian home, oh my parents believed in Jesus, but we never went to church except for the rare Easter experience. I knew very little about Jesus, Bible history, and the finished work of the cross. I came from an alcoholic home, my Dad died at age 51 because of alcoholism, my mom married a younger man and after a few years and he died at age 52 of alcoholism. My mother died of liver failure at the age of 58 due to alcoholism.

My dad gave me sips of his beer at the age of 2, at 3yrs old I had my own beer stine (still have, keep pencils in it), and any time I brought it to him he would fill er up. I don't know if I was born an alcoholic, but the first time I drank an alcoholic was born. From the age of 2 to 52 I continued to drink and use every drug that I possibly could. In the middle of my drinking/druging career I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord. I could manage to get a little time sober, but always went back to drinking. What I needed (for myself) was the fellowship of AA and NA which gave me an opportunity to have someone work with me, and at the same time the opportunity for me to work with someone else, ain't that cool how we're all connected?

Back to the jail time...........as I sat in Leeds Farm K.C.Mo., an announce ment came over the intercom telling of a movie being shown in the visiting room. I decided to go. It was "A Distant Thunder" (about the tribulation period) I thought the movie was boring. After the move this prison guard named Smitty got up and gave his testamony. I noticed tears in Smitty's eyes as he showed the love of God that had been working through his life. I had been to Leeds Farm a coulple of times in years past, and knew Smitty, but had never seen this change in him. I knew right off the bat that what I needed in my life was what Smitty had, it was the Holy Ghost. I considered Smitty to be one of the bravest men I had ever seen, to stand in front of a bunch of thugs and cry honestly.

They had some Bibles to pass out and I wanted one. I remember coming close to getting into a fight to receive this Thing that gave Smitty his power. I started reading with the New Testament and found it difficult to believe. I made a decision that when I read something I could not believe I would fake it and go on just as if I had believed it. When the doubt was removed from the process of my reading and with Smitty's tears softening my heart, little by little I began to see God's plan unfolding. I don't know when it was exactly, but somewhere in the Gospels I started believing in Jesus Christ the Son of God, and the finished work of the cross.

You know something? That didn't keep me sober, God loved me so much that He gave me free will, and I love "me" so much that I used it. For me it took the combination of reading the Word of God daily, practicing prayer and meditation daily, having a sponsor who could see through my crap, going to meeting, getting involved in service work, and working with others.

It's the God of your understanding, that's the bottom line in the program. Thanks for letting me share, God continues to do for me what I could not do for myself...................toad

[serina]

thank you all for sharing with me. you all sound very close to God which is where I want to be. my story is different though. i grew up in a Christian home, going to church AND Christian school all my life. I remember as a little girl singing in church, loved sunday school, etc. i prayed with my dad to accept Jesus as a 4 yr. old but I think i did that more for him that knew what i was doing or why?? i don't know. then as i progressed in the Christian schools something started to change.

The schools i attended were very legalistic and judgemental. there were rules and more rules and you were treated very critically and labeled "rebellious" if you went against them. if you followed them you were "straight" and not very popular. it was things like no movies, no rock music, hair cuts for boys, long skirts for girls, of course no alcohol (the worst). we had chapel, bible study - mainly i just remember memorization and fear. i was always hearing about people going to hell and tribulation. i was always in fear as a child. i remember praying a lot at night to myself b/c i was afraid i wasn't really saved.

then by the time i reached my junior high years i was already sick of it and hardened my heart to what i heard at school and as result to God. i was very unhappy through school. by the time i finished high school i quit attending church altogether. i started drinking in college and i think i was an alcoholic from the very beginning. i did some terrible things over those years.

finally i quit drinking and went to treatment and over the years i have tried to find a spiritual peace in my life. i have visited churches and prayed, read the Bible., i even prayed again to be saved. but just still feel so disconnected. i don't feel that peace. i feel depression, anxiety, guilt and remorse. i constantly think of those terrible things i did.

now i wondered if i will come to peace with this. my counselor doesn't give me suggestions she just says either you accept Jesus or you don't. i read certain things in the Bible that sounds contradictory to me. i'm just not sure who to talk to about this. i hear stories like yours where you didn't grow up in a christian home and then you changed when you were presented a better way. i just wonder if i am judged differently b/c i did grow up in christian homes, church, school. i feel so damaged sometimes and wish i had never went to those schools to start with. i don't think i would have gotten so off course....but who knows.

thank you for your replies and please pray for me.

Serina

[best]

Originally Posted by serina

i don't feel that peace. i feel depression, anxiety, guilt and remorse. i constantly think of those terrible things i did.

What can you do about such things?
Go back in time and change things? I don't know how to do that, do you?
I can't go back but I can look back about 2000 years and read about what Jesus did for us. Our every sin is paid for. The beatings, the thorns, the cross, the nails...His blood. Jesus paid the full price for your sins and mine.
Ask the Lord to forgive you for what you have done? This I can do. This you can do as well. When we ask, accept, and believe that with our asking we are forgiven... the peace does come. I am forgiven and I believe because everything that the Lord has said He would do, He has done and I have no reason to doubt Him or His word.

A guy at my church was telling me about a conversation he had with his son.
Mom and Dad are the legalistic ones and the son told dad off one day (in truth and with kindness)
Dad said...Son your doing it wrong. This is how we do it.
The son pointed out to his dad... That is your personal relationship with Jesus...This is mine. Both were right. For the dad to do things as the son does them would be wrong for the dad. His personality wouldn't fit and work with how the son does things. The son found that his personality doesn't fit with how the dad does things either.
Maybe with all the legalistic teachings, you are trying to do things the way others think it should be done. How about trying to find your own style and as your personality and the way God made you become matched up with what God's word says, you will find a deeper "personal" relationship with the Lord.
Look at the legalistic teachings as a guide, not the rule. "This worked for me so do it"...should have been said... This worked for me, give it a try and see what works for you and then seek a personal relationship with Jesus guided by God's word.

[namommy]

Thanks for this post. I am considering myself a 'baby christian'. I have alot to learn. Just like being a newcomer to recovery, I have to stop asking why, and start asking how.

I don't know the exact moment the spirit came into me, I just know it feels good. I just know I feel this peace inside of me that I have been longing for my entire life. even with everything going on around me, I can find peace in Jesus. When I read the Bible, and pray, that peace deepens within me.

Some days it feels uncomfortable. People are used to me being this hard a$$, and they mock me when I tell them I am truly trying hard to change. Trying to change and be the way God is asking me to be. But, I have to keep on going past what people think, and try to please God.

I really don't know if this had anything to do with what you posted, but this is what came out.

[serina]

yes, NAmommy and i have been encouraged by your posts. thank you.

[gimmeid]

But, I have to keep on going(edited), and try to please God.

Sounds like your headed in the right direction!

[forgottenchild]

growing up i would always go to church with my parents, and i always believed. i never really nurtured my faith though, until i started having to deal with a drug addict brother and my whole life was spinning out of control. i recommitted to reading my scriptures and praying for strength every day, and i've felt the love of my savior with me since. i know that he's my older brother, and that he died for my sins. i know that he loves me and he feels it every time i hurt. i know that he'll guide me. and i know that he's always there for me.