You belong to God, and he is not letting go. He knows what's in out hearts, knows us better than we know ourselves. We convince ourselves that we don't want Him, that he doesn't love us, that none of it makes sense...but I'm here to share His promise that he sees the longing you hide so deep and He is going to fulfill that. It's hard to believe, sometimes, and we get so caught up in our circumstances, but every single thing in your life [even the bad ones] is carefully crafted to heal your heart from the wounds inflicted by this world, designed to bring you into close contact with the One your heart beats for.
You can run and you can rage and you can try to ignore Him, but He isn't going to let go and if it takes your whole life He is gonna show you how to let yourself be loved.
Don't give up. No matter what's going on right now, you still belong to Him and He's still in control. The things that seem so frustrating and painful right now are the very things that you'll one day rejoice over because they led you to Him.
i've been looking for books about depression, particularly christian ones, and i wondered if anyone had any recommendations. also i found some books on google and wondered if anyone had read any of them and what they thought:
a practical workbook for the depressed christian by john lockley depression: a stubborn darkness by edward welch seeing in the dark by gary kinnaman and richard jacobs
not about depression but seemed interesting: Cruciformity/Apostle of the Crucified Lord/Inhabiting the Cruciform God by michael gorman the depression advantage by tom wootton (not christian i don't think) when saints sing the blues by brenda poinsett protect us from all anxiety by william burke
any opinion on the above, or other recommendations, or just great books you've read would be much appreciated. i've lost my way recently and need some inspiration.
by the way, everyone who's asked for prayers recently, be assured i am praying for you.
Um.. hi guys..
I was wondering if i could pop in here?
I, well, used to be a self harmer and I stopped for ages.. but the other night I did it again. I'm a bit lost.. but I'm also a christian.. and would love to chat with you all.. if that's ok?
I've been christian all my life. Church every week, went to a Lutheran high school, and have always believed. In high school and everything I was really annoyed with having church every week and what not, but i still believed in what i was taught. These past 2 years when my family life has fallen to pieces its hard not to be angry. I'm thankful to God for bringing my mom through surgery and stuff, but then they find another tumor on her brain. I'm just so angry. They say that God will never test you with more than you can handle but i feel like these past couple years He has. Like Hes just pushing to see how long it will take before i crumble and kill myself. I feel like i've been knocked down and He is taking the opportunity to kick me none stop.
“The good things don’t always soften the bad, but vice-versa, the bad things don’t necessarily spoil the good things and make them unimportant.”
“Nobody important? Blimey, that’s amazing. Do you know, in nine hundred years of time and space I’ve never met anyone who wasn’t important before.”
“If it’s time to go, remember what you’re leaving. Remember the best. My friends have always been the best of me.”
Hm, well im also christian (Idk.. but there has to be a god, or i'd be dead at the moment.) But i started to Si, and i think i will be diagnosed with anxiety and depression (the reason for si), i've stopped lately due to friends being there for me, and im glad. The last time i cut made me realize i could die, because in the middle of school, i used a razor and cut through my veins.. i bled all day, it hurt so much and i had to use the bathroom alot. I had a panic attack.. it was horrible :(. So i promise to me and my friends id stop.
Quote:
Originally Posted by stars_and_scars
Is it RIGHT to tell your Pastor that you self-harm? ... not only tell him/her, but ask for help? or would that ruin your relationship with them ?
They will help you if their honestly christian/catholic, theres no reason to hate some one who si's, they need help, and the pastor could help.
Is it RIGHT to tell your Pastor that you self-harm? ... not only tell him/her, but ask for help? or would that ruin your relationship with them ?
i don't think right or wrong comes into it, unless you're telling them deliberately to hurt them, but that's unlikely. as for whether you should, that depends on whether you trust them first of all. and then, what do you want from them? is it something they can give?
i told our priest, first of all that i was struggling, then later that i SHed, and asking him for help was the best thing i've ever done. four years later he's still talking to me and i still trust him (he treats everythign i say as if it was said in confession). also he's equally capable of meeting me to talk about serious stuff, or coming round for dinner as my parents' friend. i think he must have seperate compartments in his brain or something.
so over all, i think if you trust him, and you're not expecting him to have the magic words which will make everything better, there's nothing wrong with telling him.
Can i just pop in here and WOW. I am very impressed by this board. I used to be super involved in this website in fact i just to be a chat mod and tell me HOW I did not know about this forum? One of the main reasons I quit modding and actually left this site for a long time was because of my new found faith in christ and I no longer fit in at RYL as I wasnt self-harming and I hadnt been struggle with thoughts of it at all and I was saved by God into a new life style and I felt like I couldnt share that with anyone for fear of breaking the rules, because after all I used to be a mod I should know the rules pretty clear, but I never spent time on the forums and I didnt know all the rules in them. How i wish i knew them then. Any way i just want to say i think this is the coolest forum i haver ever stumbled across on RYL and I hope to spend some more time in here getting to know everyone.
Something my pastor said on Sunday made me think, but I'm not quite sure what to make of it. So opinions would be great.
He asked me what was going on because I was OCDing like mad and I told him that I had slipped up because of freaking out over finals and because everything at home had gotten pretty nasty. He asked me why I had to "witness my pain on my body, when God is witnessing it anyways, even if nobody else is"
Oh, and him finding out about the SI was one of the best things that happened to me, even though I didn't intend him to know. I was on a youth group trip and someone grabbed my arm and opened up a few cuts. I didn't have any bandages with me so I had to ask him and the rest is pretty self explanatory... He has been absolutely great about it though.
this is my magical medicine cabinet. Left to right they contain: courage, hope, calmness, and strength.
The magical part: They NEVER run out, so borrow some any time you want.
Are you saying you aren't really sure what that means? What I take of it is that God sees the pain and the hurt you are experiencing and that more often than not when we self-injure it is a way for us to show the pain we are experiencing weather that be to yourself or to others. Hurting yourself is a way of taking the pain you feel inside and bringing it out. What I believe your pastor is saying or asking is why do that to yourself when god alone can see your pain and your hurt without you ever bringing it to light on your body. That god can see the deepest parts of us and that with out even saying a word god knows everything we are going through and dealing with.
Your pastor sounds like a really great guy I'm glad you have him.
I am a catholic all of my life. I just got confermed this past easter time, but for some reason now I want to become an atheist. Please pray for me so that I do NOT become atheist.
I'm a christian and for the last couple of days/weeks ive been finding things a little difficult. i have slipped up once or twice. I am trying to stop but that is proving difficult at the moment.
x
my friend posted this, it really hit me atm. so figured i'd post here
“The good things don’t always soften the bad, but vice-versa, the bad things don’t necessarily spoil the good things and make them unimportant.”
“Nobody important? Blimey, that’s amazing. Do you know, in nine hundred years of time and space I’ve never met anyone who wasn’t important before.”
“If it’s time to go, remember what you’re leaving. Remember the best. My friends have always been the best of me.”
