Yes, I Do Believe!


blackcat

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Okay here goes foks. I have always believed in One God, then Jesus Christ (His Son)and the Holy Spirit. Way before I even heard of the LDS church. I was baptised many years ago and stopped going for many many reasons to many to count. But people still believe that I now become an athest because I don't go to church. I would be a complete ________ (you can fill in the blank) if I did do so I could never deny either one. Knowing full well that they(the God head)is with me 24-7 no matter if I want them there or not. I could not do anything without them, why can't people understand that?! Please respond

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Okay here goes foks. I have always believed in One God, then Jesus Christ (His Son)and the Holy Spirit. Way before I even heard of the LDS church. I was baptised many years ago and stopped going for many many reasons to many to count. But people still believe that I now become an athest because I don't go to church. I would be a complete ________ (you can fill in the blank) if I did do so I could never deny either one. Knowing full well that they(the God head)is with me 24-7 no matter if I want them there or not. I could not do anything without them, why can't people understand that?! Please respond

Blackcat,

Welcome, to this board, hopefully you'll get some inspiring responses and stick around. This section is for non-LDS Christians (of whom there are a number on this board including even a moderator, even though it is an LDS board.) so I'll give you a reply from that perspective. I'm glad you still feel in relationship with Father God, His son Jesus and the Holy Spirit. For us that is the foundation, it is your continued confession of faith that is the keys to the kingdom. We have Jesus promise that He will always be with us, and if He is with you then you are part of His church no matter if you manage to attend any particular gathering of His people.

I have known a number people who have maintained a vibrant faith whilst not being a member of any specific grouping of Christians, although it is not a road I would advocate cause for me personally I would think it much tougher to travel without spiritual companionship. The classic example is coal of fire, whilst amongst other coals it continues to glow but when removed to be by itself it tends to glow less. That being said there are times and situations where some people for various reasons need space and time to stand off. I don't know the reasons for your stopping going to the LDS church but I certainly wouldn't judge any man/woman if their spiritual walk meant that for a season or two they needed time to heal, reflect, recuperate or just pass through a spiritual desert time.

On a practical level, and I offer this without knowing the specfics of your situation, I could suggest some of things I've seen people do whilst passing through the kind of times I've just mentioned above. If you wanted to just worship God without any immediate strings than find your local "Mega" church (usually churches larger than 2000) and quietly pop in the back row, you can retain anonimity quite safely. Or just find a group of Christians to hang out for meals or socail events with, build relationships were people can offer support without necessary insisting that you attend their specific church. They are any number of "emergent" churches that offer very low key ways of interacting. (Emergent churches is a new word for groups of christians who are trying to learn to do faith communities in very different ways to which we mostly all normally do church.)

If you want to work over your many reason for not attending the LDS church, then I'm sure the LDS people on the other boards would be happy to talk about them with you. (There are some real "Saints" on this board.)

Anyway sorry for the long post, hopefully it wasn't to incoherent, God bless, and may you continue to learn more of Jesus as you walk daily with him.

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"I believe God but ..."

1. I don't go to church.

2. I don't tithe.

3. I don't give up my bad habits.

ETC.

Ironically, most Christians understand that people struggle with gluttony, white lies, anger management, or overcoming addictions, etc. But, we have a hard time understanding why believers don't go to church.

IMHO, God would have us give up our bad habits, go to church, and tithe, etc. He wants our love, and we demonstrate it through our obedience. Church can be hard because we're called to love people who are sometimes unlovely towards us. We are called to sit and listen to teachers we sometime do not agree with, or fully respect. We are called to relationship with people that, under other circumstances, we might not associate with.

But, we are commanded to love one another. Further, if we don't/won't, we're told we really can't claim to love God. (1 John 4:7-8).

So...do you have to go to church to get to heaven? Perhaps not. But, God tells us not to forsake the assembling of God's people, and heaven is, afterall, his kingdom.

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  • 2 weeks later...

"I believe God but ..."

1. I don't go to church.

2. I don't tithe.

3. I don't give up my bad habits.

ETC.

Hey PC,

Are there any known statistics on religion in American prisons? Do more or less residents in our prisons profess faith than those of us on the outside? Do we have a reflection of what is on the outside on the inside?

-a-train

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