Rebuilding faith after sin

[lost87]

I have so many questions right now its ridiculous. The overall theme of the questions is how do you rebuild faith after sin? I mean, if you sin enough, you kill the spirit and it ceases to be with you all the time (ex. my life). I don't know how to learn/have faith independent of the feelings that the spirit brings. I don't know where to start in the scriptures, or how to build up enough faith to access the powers of the atonement. I have been reading/praying daily...but there is no direction to my reading, its kinda just an "open up the book and see where it ends up" sort of situation. Should I just start at the beginning of the book of mormon and work my way through? study by subjects? And can you learn/ have faith independent of the spirit? At this point, any advice would be helpful, I just so badly want to find the testimony that I once had again.

Thanks so much and I hope everyone is having a blessed day!

[dazed-and-confused]

oh, my darling sweet 87, good for you. you may not know it, but you are at a place where you can ask HF for the blessings you need.

i know that you may not totally understand.....my friend....here is where you speak to HF.....

i know your despair.....your confusion.......here is where you are able to bare your soul....forget what you THINK about salvation.......you are naked before HF and you are so blessed to be so.....do you doubt that you will be heard?..that you will get...feedback?

my dear sister... just listen....i know you have a hearrt....you heart will guide you........DON'T YOU DARE IGNORE IT.........you don't know how much my sister you are to me.....it doesn't matter....step up and be strong....you are an amazon queen...lol.......ok, so you are a daughter of HF....you choose which is better......as if i didn't know

[mliff]

I havent been to church since 2005 and tomorrow is going to be my first time back. Ive sinned alot and felt I lost everything. A week ago I as I was moving my books around I found my book of mormon and picked it up, It still had the page marked from where I left off, so I started reading and it felt like the spirit was coming back. So I decided tomorrow I am going to go back and hopefully everything turns out the way I hope it is supposed to (not sure what this last statement means) but anyways...It just feels right. So my advice is to start reading either where you last remember or just from the beginning of the book. It helped me start gaining the spirit back.

[lost87]

Thank you dazed and mliff....I just read a really good talk from Edler Scott. It was very helpful....here is the link if you'd like to read it too mliff :) Its kinda a step by step for coming back. It is entitled "finding the way back"

LDS.org - Ensign Article - Finding the Way Back

[Bini]

It's tough. I think rebuilding faith after sin or even just simply being inactive, is challenging because it's hard to find that humbleness and pray for guidance from the Lord. Hubby and I recently received the Book of Mormon via an acquaintance, and we've decided that we'll give it a read at least once a week, maybe a chapter or maybe just a few verses. It's a start for us. Also, just doing individual prayer really starts to build a foundation where there is none. I hadn't really prayed in ten years and since I've started to, I've noticed small differences that have changed my life for the better.

[mliff]

thanks for the link lost, It is really good.

[lost87]

Thanks Bini~ praying is a bit tough, but I know its necessary. I just feel hypocritical and don't know what to say. For the past while I pray for other people when they need it, but I haven't prayed for myself in a long time....I just need to tell myself "suck it up buttercup" and start talking the the Lord again.....on the "To Do" list for tonight

[marts1]

Make a commitment to feast on the scriptures daily, not just for a week or a month.

[rameumptom]

I suggest you do a topical study. Find 100 verses on "faith", and another 100 on "repentance." Then study what things those verses and the verses surrounding them tell us regarding them. Get a notebook and write down the thoughts and ideas that come to you regarding these things.

Then search for 100 good quotes from past and recent General Conferences regarding faith and repentance. Find from these the common key themes. Once you have a list of things that promote faith and repentance, then develop goals towards reaching the long term goal of strong faith in Christ.

Start with some small, easier steps, but build upon them as you go along. Do not just ramble aimlessly in the scriptures. Study them by topic, especially the topics you require for your repentance. Do the same with Conference talks, as well.

Become actively engaged in good works as part of your goals. To serve others, especially the poor and needy, is a great way to regain faith and purify oneself.

[dizzysmiles]

As someone who has just been in your shoes, you start with the basics. Get on your knees in the morning and night. Read "Forgiving ourselves" you can buy it at DEseret Book and it's worth EVERY penny. Open up the scriptures to which ever you desire and read for five minutes. You will find that over time the spirit will dwell with you again and the things you have done, you will find offensive. Another thing I did is played good music in my home daily. It doesn't even have to be hymns, I played christian music like Casting Crowns, Jars of Clay, and so on... Good luck. You can and will overcome and have the faith you need back in your life. Once you start reading the scriptures. they become a story, one that I couldn't put down! It's amazing how you can read the scriptures and one time it might be advice to you, or you want to know more historically about it, other times it's a story. You can never get bored with it. WAtch out because when you are trying that is when satan will be hitting you head on, just rememeber you are stronger than satan and occupy your time where he can't get you. Get on your knees RIGHT NOW, and ask for God's help and forgivness, you may have a crying fest, but if you allow him to take the pain and burden you will feel lighter. For many years I couldn't give up the burdens I was carrying on my shoulders because I didn't thik it was fair to give it to someone who did nothing wrong, that I can be strong and carry my own. Little did I know, that I wasn't using the atonment and it wasn't just for sin, the atonment is there to heal us in everyway. Only you can chose to give it to him, let the burden be lifted off your shoulders.

Edited May 3, 2010 by dizzysmiles

[lost87]

I suggest you do a topical study. Find 100 verses on "faith", and another 100 on "repentance." Then study what things those verses and the verses surrounding them tell us regarding them. Get a notebook and write down the thoughts and ideas that come to you regarding these things.

Then search for 100 good quotes from past and recent General Conferences regarding faith and repentance. Find from these the common key themes. Once you have a list of things that promote faith and repentance, then develop goals towards reaching the long term goal of strong faith in Christ.

Start with some small, easier steps, but build upon them as you go along. Do not just ramble aimlessly in the scriptures. Study them by topic, especially the topics you require for your repentance. Do the same with Conference talks, as well.

Become actively engaged in good works as part of your goals. To serve others, especially the poor and needy, is a great way to regain faith and purify oneself.

I love this idea! I am definately going to start doing it tomorrow....(only because I have a final exam at 8 tomorrow morning and could definately benefit from sleep or it would be tonight!) I think that this will be really helpful in getting things back in order and rebuilding what I let go....Thank you so much!

[LostMarine]

Lost,

I started reading some of your posts back in 2009. Are you still fighting? or are you lost?

S T Fin

[MormonMama]

I've been inactive twice and done some pretty horrible things. I'm living proof today that you CAN rebuild faith. It sounds like you're already on that path, because you have a desire to do so. That is step #1, so congratulations! Just remember, it's baby steps. You might have a big spiritual epiphany one day, but most likely it will be small and simple things that you might even overlook at first. "Just keep swimming!"

[flutterbee]

I suggest you do a topical study. Find 100 verses on "faith", and another 100 on "repentance." Then study what things those verses and the verses surrounding them tell us regarding them. Get a notebook and write down the thoughts and ideas that come to you regarding these things.

This is a good idea. Also, don't try to force a spiritual or faith-building experience. There's a talk by David A Bednar from the last General Conference called "Watching with all Perseverance" that talks about taking advantage of the teachable moments. One of the points brought up is to let these situations occur spontaneously. If you try too hard then it will seem unnatural and stilted and you will get frustrated.