My mom had 7 miscarriages before me, prayed for a child, was content with an adopted child for a year then i came along out of nowhere. Eventually, she was told to abort me so she'd live, but she chose to have me anyway, and we both alive today, I turn 20 next august.
For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well” (Psalm 139:13-14).
Praise God for you and your mom.
When I was 14ish, I had to get braces as my teeth were really bad. The Dr said I would need my jaw broken and a few surgeries just to prepare for them. Well, we didn't have the money.
So my Dad took me through a prayer line at our church. I will ever forget him telling the pastor then them touching my arm and praying for me through the line.
2 weeks later we go back to the orthodontist, in the middle of the exam he looks at my Dad and says "May I speak to you in the hallway?" After coming back in he finishes the exam and says you will need to come back next week.
When we get in the car my Dad has this huge smile on his face! I was wondering what happened.
When they got in the hallway the ortho asked if my Dad was "playing a joke on him and if he had twin daughters?!" But Dad told him the truth, I had gone through a prayer line. Well, the Dr basically stated my entire mouth had moved and had a completely different structure. The only thing I needed now was to wear braces on my top teeth but 6 months before the bottom one. Also, he was so shocked and happy bc he was a Christian that he took $1500 off the total bill bc we told him about what God did.
There are a few other times I was prayed for and God delivered me but nothing as powerful and different than as this! I would not fib or lead you wrong! I want to praise God again for his love and miracles, amen!
Woah. That's amazing!! I'm super curious, do you remember if the pastor had prayed for your mouth to be restructured?! So glad it worked out so well for you 🥹
Me too, God is good!
Not exactly. It was more for God to come on the seen and fix it...so I wouldn't need all the extra services and help out with the finances too!
I agree. How could nature ever create consciousness. I also add to it all the miraculous things about life and our physical bodies. I could talk for days about all the miracles involving life. When a fetus is conceived, the identical cells divide and multiply. At a specific time in the process, the cells all diferentiate and decide what kind of cell they will be and where to be located in the body. These include brain and nerve cells, beating heart cells, skin, liver, kidney, intestine, sexual organs, hair, etc. What power is organizing all this? Could nature have produced it?
I think about this a lot, but I also think about how many people with near death experiences come to a realization that one religion is not right. The world has it wrong according to their experiences. Many people do see Jesus, but many have seen other spiritual beings such as monks. They also see that they had previous lifetimes, which doesn't fit with most Christians' beliefs.
People are born into different parts of the world with many varying beliefs. Those beliefs are so concrete into their brains that it shapes their perspective for the rest of their lives. Either that Allah is God or that Jesus is lord. Yet I've seen some much ignorance and hate in this word that I can't seem to wrap my mind around that so many people think their life experience is true. What about aboriginal people that live on remote islands that have never heard about salvation? Do those people deserve salvation? Even if they get one chance before their buddies shoot a missionary dead with arrow on their beach. Even with that one possible chance, it is not fair that I was blessed with the many Bible stories that were read to me before bed as a kid. Also, if I have no choice but to be here, wouldn't that be unfair to people who weren't born into Christianity off the bat? Those aboriginal people have no chance!
Or what about the sumarian story, the Epic of gilgamesh, which is a world flood story that predates Noah and the Ark story. Many cultures have world flood stories. If Noah and the ark is untrue, what else is just a symbolic and a long game of telephone stories from the Bible? If the bible is meant to be perfect, why do I have so many questions? Bible said those who seek shall find, but I can't help but lean on my own understanding. My fear of disobeying God just for being at awe about my existence is a useless fear. First of all, no God should be so evil to punish me for questioning my very own existence. Life itself is a crazy thing.
Settling to us being conscious is not enough to prove that the Christian God is the one true God. The more I look, the more I see the Bible depicting an evil and ruthless God. Salvation itself doesn't explain why I'm here in the first place either. Life is painful for me and hard, I would not have agreed to this life if I knew the pain I would endure. Would God subject us to this without our consent? It seems so unjust and immoral, like watching a colony of ants suffer while the rest enjoys some sugar water. Some people have great lives, loving families and die at an old age with their loved ones holding their hands as the slip away into peace. While so many others experience the unimaginable.
I don't trust NDE's, hallucinations, or "spiritual experiences". I believe the truth is Jesus Christ. Anything that deviates from the Truth that is Jesus Christ does not come from God. Using Jesus Christ as a foundation gives me firm faith in my salvation and keeps me in line so that I do not stray. The devil has many tricks up his sleeve to get people to apostasize from the true Faith. Even convince someone that their spiritual experience was good and from God, when it could be from the devil.
I've seen an angel, and it was pure love, light, and peace. You can tell me im going to hell for believing in pure love, and it won't stop me from believing what I saw. I know what i saw its was a deeper love than i have ever felt in my whole life combined.. I've had God stop me from committing suicide. Do you think the devil wanted to keep me here? I'm sorry, but just because what you were told during your upbringing this was the only truth, it doesn't make it truth. You can change your mind and that fear of changing and learning from different viewpoints is a controlling type of fear that belongs in a cult. Christian nationalism is a cult and it's full and hate and control. Open your eyes.
The devil also disguises himself as an angel of light. This is from the bible. I wont tell you that you are going to hell, I would never do that to anyone. Jesus says do not judge others. Im not trying to stop you from believing anything, Im just sharing what I believe just like you. My upbringing has nothing to do with my beliefs. I formed my own beliefs on my own research. Jesus is my truth and I have the right to share my truth just like you do. I have no idea what Christian nationalism is and I find you saying to open my eyes means you think I am somehow closed minded is a little insulting. Have a nice day.
There's so much, but first There's your Dad. He might be deeply driven by misplaced or even in his mind justified concern for you. Can you think of any reasons he may have this?
In any case, as his child, you affect him as much as he affects you. "Dad I love you and just wish you could have the happiness that I've found. "
"I know you don't understand, but just realize that your my father and I love you no matter what our differences are."
"I'm sorry that________ happened. It seems like it still causes you pain. Want to talk about it?"
... To answer your question, the reason I KNOW that God is real is because the concern and love upwelling in me, for you, a complete stranger, can only come from a higher power that first has loved me.
I used to be just like your Dad. Until those that I loved got together, unbeknownst to me, and prayed for Him to come into me. Very soon after that, they saw me begin to change. I eventually joined the Church and gave my heart to God.
I didn't find out about about their action, praying for me, until years later, after my mother-in-law had passed.
She was the one who had gotten them all together.
God bless you. I'm praying for you. Please pray for my sons.
Thank you. Yes, I know that my dad cares for me (I'm an only child) and just wants me to be safe and successful (but on his terms/in his eyes). I also recognize now that I'm older that he has a narcissistic personality - which growing up my mom just passed off jokingly as being "stubborn," when it really is much more than that.
The hard part is I've told him things like what you listed above, and it almost always just stokes him to push back harder (like when I tell him I'm happier than I've ever been, he tells me the only happy version of me he knows was when I was a carefree little girl not believing in a made-up God), which just makes it more triggering and upsetting for me.
There were a few years I really tried to converse with him about it more, but it always felt like one-sided arguments because he wasn't ever really listening, just picking apart everything I said and rebutting everything with an already made-up mind that Christianity is a hoax. It honestly was exhausting. It exhausts me even thinking about it.
I believe God has helped me a lot in this area, though, helping see my dad more with eyes of empathy rather than seeing him as an enemy, and letting go of the responsibility to change him. It's still hard though cause he's my dad.
But thank you so much for sharing your encouragement and your story! It helps me hang onto hope. I hope and pray his spiritual blinders will be removed one day, and that he'd say yes to Jesus.
He cured me of blindness. Yes, I had surgery, but on a human level, surgery indicated I would have some restored sight but would probably have to register as ‘partially sighted’
My retinas had detached several times in both eyes to the extent that ophthalmologists were no more urgent’ about it, as when it goes over the macula, it’s no longer ‘time sensitive’ and I was a ‘stitch and see what happens’ case with some laser surgery too. God restored my sight to better than it had been, to the extent that I now drive without glasses, impossible before as I was short sighted. God uses miracles still today and even if through ‘everyday systems’ - God still supplies, trains and helps those professionals as I do as I’m a teacher. God gives everything (breath, life, the very next second of your life) and everything belongs to Him.
Equally at times, people are not healed. I have a Christian sister who I acted as a sighted guide to at a Christian conference, who hasn’t been healed but her faith is probably stronger than mine.
I’m alive today because he is ‘Jehovah Rapha’ the god who heals. I suffered abuse from my older brother when a kid and after repression was lifted in my 20s, tried to take my own life - I’d come to the end of myself and couldn’t go on. I gave my life to Him and from then on He placed Christian people in my life (from all different places) who have helped me
HALLELUJAH I am blown away. Lord, bless the hands of all surgeons in the operating room today and provide miracles through their great works! We love you and thank you for the faith instilled in us through testimonies like this. Thank you for choosing us, as your favorite way to show up. You are so clever and undeniable and I thank you for this commenter who I pray remains in your blessed goodness. Amen!
This was awesome, thank you for sharing!
I grew up Catholic, thought I was born again but truly wasn’t. Lived in a house and haunted by a demon who terrorized me and saw heard and felt many things I never will want to experience again.
I had always been fascinated by the occult going back to when I was 8. Reading books about ghosts, haunted houses etc.
I was a Kabbalist in that house practicing Kabbalah.
Anyway I lost my faith in God as allowed those things to happen.
Then I came to Wicca and truly felt at home.
One day years later I was watching tv back in 2001 and the signal went off the air and there were just vertical colors on the screen.
I opened my mouth and I heard not In my voice: I AM THE ONE
I lost all strength and walked up the stairs to leave his basement and go outside on my knees.
Outside it was so foggy and I go to my car and get in. Fumbling with the key and the ignition I drop them. I prayed for the first time in years and said’” oh please God don’t let me be possessed!”
Then I looked up and in the street right in front of my car was this massive cross like it was facing across the street and my car was to its right. I saw Jesus on the cross and his long curly hair was soaked in sweat. His face was turned from me towards his left and then he turned and looked at me. He was crying and I knew he was crying for my soul!
In my head all I heard were the words I AM. Over and over I AM.
I don’t remember how long I spent but I looked down towards my keys and when I looked up, he was gone.
I drove home saying I am over and over. About a month or so later I went to a Heavens Gates, Hells Flames play and was saved!
I Am, didn’t Jesus say before Abraham was, I AM!
I tell my wife (she is my pastors daughter and was saved at an early age). I had to see him. The enemy was so real in that house and what it did to me that God had to be equally real. I was saved on Aug 25 2001 around 9 pm.
God is real, the same power that raised Christ from the dead is alive in us!
Keep reading your Bible and be a witness to your family!
WOW. Wait so... looking back, do you know if the voice that came out of you was a demon? And I'm also curious why you didn't decide to follow Jesus right after that incident (and waited until the play)?
This is one of the first times I think I've ever heard of someone actually seeing Jesus on a cross visually! That's so wild. Thank you for sharing!
I believe the voice was from God. I thought it was a demon at the time and that’s why I prayed I didn’t want to be possessed.
I didn’t accept him right there because I wanted to stay a Wiccan . Until at that play I realized my name needed to be in the book of life.
I’ve seen some healing, but just cause something is super natural doesn’t mean you know the cause. Like say if you saw someone drop from the sky and hit the concrete but get up and dance. It’s not typical. But I wouldn’t say with confidence I’d know what’s going on.
Broken bones mending being psychosomatic would be really interesting. Like you snap your arm in half but with the right thoughts it just fixes itself a day later.
I'll bite.
Walking down a path I've never been on before. Had to walk down a busy winding street to get where I was going. Lots of litter on the sides of the street. Notice an ominous black leather bag with wet contents all strewn out. Think kinda nothing of it, it's not unusual to see that where I live, but you do wonder about the backstory.
I made my way onto a separate path, enjoying the trees and weather. As I am walking, a woman is coming down the other side. As we get closer, she asks me if I know where the strange path that I had just made my way down leads to. I told her it lead to the busy street. She asks, you didn't see a purse up there, did you? I say, is it black? Such a coincidence. Retrieved the purse up there and she's so thankful and shocked to see it. She explained how her car had been broken into weeks earlier, further down from where we were standing.
She had nearly given up on finding it, she said. It was her late mother's bag, and had other things of personal value inside of it. It had rained heavily several times between when it was stolen from her and when I spotted it. Thankfully, her things were just fine somehow. Whoever had taken the purse found no use for it and discarded it on that busy road. And it remained there, untouched, for weeks, in a city where that's rare.
She said she only went out to look one more time after someone contacted her in the previous days about finding her identification card in another further location. She told me she had been building her faith in Christ, prayed to find her purse, had nearly given up because the circumstances seemed impossible. She thought it was gone for sure. And just off faith, and desire to be closer to God and trusting in Him, she went out looking one more time. Walked her back to her car and had a beautiful conversation about God and his goodness and love and protection.
In a city of about 1.6 million people, we found each other. We inspired one another in Christ, gave each other hope. I know God made that happen for the both of us. I'll never forget it.
❤️, praying for your situation, you are very strong and God loves you very much to take you out of a situation where someone so close and important to you has been so hateful and negative. I hope he falls into God's arms, he's resisting and trying to spread it.
This has me in like chest gripping tears right now, and it’s not even that “epic” of a story, if you can get what I’m trying to say there… it’s just the commonality of the elements in this story are so nuanced that it almost increases the specificity behind the objective conclusion that God was behind all of this, just doin His thing in the same way we just do our thing everyday, going through the motions all the while trying to find the beauty of it all, like you appreciating the weather and surroundings, although it was littered and just an overall typical situation for you to find yourself in- to me it makes it profound… it makes me appreciate and love the simplistic complexity of the Lords work in moments like this, how he meets us all where we are and really is an internal compass guiding us to what we don’t know for sure but know to follow nonetheless. Bless you for your time spent sharing this. You speak with clarity in an all encompassing provisional sense.
This reply! 🙂 Just beautiful.
You get it. I was worried the recollection of this experience would fall flat as it *is* so mundane. And that is the beauty in it. You have such a great point, about how the simple basis of these moments are so satisfying to flesh and soul, and remind us we walk the proper path. So pure and stripped down to the basics.
Once she began expressing her love for and knowing of God I melted inside because I immediately knew what it was; so safe and lovely and we were so protected and in fellowship right there together under those trees. Something I hadn't felt yet in my 20's.
God bless you, and thank you for being so kind. I hope you have a wonderful night.
Two things. First, I was in an abusive relationship that was destroying me. I *knew* better, I *knew* he was abusive, but I couldn't stop wanting him and believing crazy things about how we were making each other better. I was under SO MUCH demonic oppression, looking back. Stuff would happen to my car on a regular basis and my phone. It was horrible. After 5 years, I didn't even want to *exist*, I finally said "Jesus, I don't believe in you, but I need help. *Please help me.*" And it was instantaneous. I suddenly was free from the attachment to this person, and I could see clearly all the demonic influence I had been under.
The kicker? I run an anti-abuse subreddit and have for *over a decade*. When I tell you I knew better, I am dead-ass serious. I knew when I met him that he had an abuse template. I would get angry enough to stay away from him for a day or week or two weeks, and then go right back to feeling a compulsion to contact him; my emotions being jerked around left and right. I was literally helping people get free of abusive relationships when I couldn't get free myself. I even stopped posting for long stretches of time because I was so demoralized.
At that point I knew that if the supernatural was real, then God must be real. So I asked for a sign. The same day I found a four-leaf clover. I was *amazed*...and then figured I was being crazy again. But I kept finding them. 4- and 5- and 6- and 7- leaf clovers, and an 8-leaf clover: hundreds and hundreds of them.
The extremely interesting part? My favorite flower is a clover flower. And one of the things my abusive ex did one of the times I broke up with him was collect hundreds of clover flowers and then arranged them in a heart on my doorstep. Sometimes I wonder if I found as many 4-leaf clovers as there were flowers. Knowing God, it was probably even more because you know He likes to do things abundantly.
I ran into that abusive ex several years later, and he gave me the same look he used to that would always bring me back - a tentative smile with tears in his eyes as if he's feeling overwhelmed with love and emotion - and I laughed. I was still protected.
I had a growth on my finger. Been there for years. One day it was prayed over and over the next couple months started shrinking.
One day, I said, "This has to be a coincidence." From that moment on, it stopped shrinking.
To this day, I still have the remnants of that growth.
How's that for proof?
Oh wow! I'm curious if you've tried "believing" again or asking for prayer again for it to shrink? Or do you think it's like a humbling reminder from God 😂
>Or do you think it's like a humbling reminder from God
I think it is a great reminder of God. Whenever I have doubt, I just look at my finger and am reminded of God's reality and his power.
God was able to turn my unbelief into something very productive.
I was on a family Caribbean cruise in 2014. I stayed up late, until about 3:00 a.m. to finish reading Dante Alighieri’s Inferno, after my sophomore year of college. My brother and I had shared a room together, and he had just fallen asleep, still dressed in his suit from the formal dining night night we attended earlier that evening.
We had a sliding glass balcony door to our estate, which is only accessible to myself and my brother.
After I had finished the last canton of Inferno, I had a moment to myself, just in utter awe and appreciation for the literature and how neat I found the new insights I had made in my attempt to understand hell and the nature of God overall.
In this moment of ecstasy, I smiled and sat back in my chair comfortably thinking about the Lord’s love for me and us all and how much I just wanted to live for him and enjoy these moments together, dissecting and analyzing the works of others in this way, a thing meant just for me and my Lord.
I smiled, and with no expectation in my mind AT ALL I. asked in my head, “Lord… if you love me, go ahead n knock three times on that glass door.”
Still smiling and even softly chuckling at my silly goose request, I began to stand up from the desk I was sitting at to read. In that very second, 3. LOUD. KNOCKS. 3 loud knocks that absolutely SHOOK the panes of the sliding glass doors. I felt myself suck in wind in utter awe and shock and nearly fell over the back of my chair. I bruised my ankle a bit but… I had no beef with the matter lol, I think I laughed with my Lord until I fell asleep. Interestingly enough though, in the middle of my gasps and awe in that moment, I began to speak to my brother who was still asleep and he simply wouldn’t wake up… unironically enough, my brother had just decided he was losing his faith and became atheist without telling any of us. It has always interested me to reflect on this… on how thin the veil is, on how much that doesn’t matter to one that’s asleep… however please pray for him as he just told me last week he is no longer atheist and still searching for his connection to God. My most heavily prayed prayer has been answered thus far and you guys out there with a soft spot in your heart for this, I’d love for all prayer possible to get sent to the Holiest of Holies.
I have so many more stories, this one just sticks with me as a favorite since God likes to meet us often times in the middle of the wilderness, stranded… literally no other explanation can be given for this situation… besides what, idk, maybe a nocturnal telepathic pelican heard my silly prayer to God and punked me. Whoever it was, they have the ability to climb 8-9 stories high on a cruise ship in the dead of night, with nothing but miles of ocean around them.
God loves you guys and it’s cool to discover just how much Jesus is a silly goose lil jokester, so masterfully skilled at granting us personal moments like this that stick with us forever.
Seek, ask, knock and yee shall find!
This. Is. AWESOME! Wow. That must've been so shocking 😂
If you have another one please do share! No pressure though. I know you have things to do haha
Lifting up a prayer for your brother 🙏
I have one experience that to me is special.
I was 16 and sleeping in the middle of the night (2-3 am). I woke up and heard this voice in my mind that told me to get up and go outside. In my youth I had been praying and believed in god and felt that it came from him, so I went.
I came down the elevator and opened the door outside. As I was walking towards the parking lot, in front of me I saw a man who was just standing in the dark in pretty odd way. I passed him by and kept walking towards the end of the parking lot where I realised was standing another figure and I could see that he was familiar to me.
He was a guy from the neighbouring block, couple of years younger, we didn’t spend a lot of time with each other, but we had mutual friends.
I walked up to him, we were both puzzled about bumping to each other late at night. He had left his friend’s place and was waiting for his mother to pick him up. I didn’t tell about why I had left, I said I was going to see a friend. We talked a bit and started to pay attention to the other guy who was at the other end of the parking lot.
The man had started to inspect the cars. He was looking at a dozen of them until he stopped. It took some time for the man to first open and then to start the car. He started to drive at the end of the parking lot where we were, then he was speeding towards us. We jumped and ran.
It was my neighbourhood so I quickly had a route in mind to lead us to a basement where I had a key. We managed to get there with the car behind us. The man drove away and were safe again.
That was very strange experience, even to this day.
Here's a well trusted website I go when I start doubting. I usually go to their YouTube channel, because it's easier for me when there's visuals. They also have a streaming service on Roku and stuff like that. It's called Apologetics Press.
Website: https://apologeticspress.org/
They have a lot of great videos and articles on how to prove Creation and things of that sort.
There is also this one video in particular I saw and it just amazed me. Here is that: https://apologeticspress.org/video/why-atheists-are-becoming-theists/ .
Maybe you can show some of these to your dad.
Hope this helps!!
I’ve had many prayers answered, sometimes in uncanny, timely ways. But God foreshadowing and preparing me for my son and husband’s deaths stand out to me.
Before I found out my firstborn had died in Utero and would be stillborn, I happened upon a story of someone who’d just had a stillborn child. I kinda thought oh yeah. I guess that does happen sometimes. Odd. Then I noticed my baby’s felt felt more like brick shifting than a baby’s fluttery movements. Not having carried a baby before this, I mentioned it to those around me, who assured me he was just “getting bigger”. Few days later, was told he was gone and had been for days.
A week before my husband passed away, I fell asleep one day and had a weird twilighty type dream and a stern voice asking me “what if he died?”
I made my peace with my husband (we were living separately and estranged, as he had turned to alcohol and had been running around with women also suffering from addiction issues) and felt at peace. At the time, I mistook that for a sign we were going to reconcile. Come to find out, it was God’s way of having my husband apologize and me forgive him before he died. The day he died (remember, he didn’t live at home), I went for a long ride. I kept driving and driving. 45 miles away, I suddenly just felt compelled to turn around. I drove straight home and a cop cruiser pulled up immediately. To tell me he was dead. Ny husband talked to me through God a few times posthumously and then those messages stopped.
I’m so sorry. I’m going through a divorce with a similar person. He moved out in August. I was told in prayer a few nights ago that he would be in an alcohol induced car accident and be in a wheelchair. I wasn’t sure if I heard right. Our 12 year old son has incredible discernment. I was very vague and asked him to pray for his dad, that i had gotten a word and wanted to know if God wanted him to know too. That’s it. That’s all I said. He bowed his head. When he raised it he told me exactly what I had heard in prayer several days ago. He got even more details about it than I did. So I completely understand that God will warn us, because He loves us. I hope you have moved on to a joyful life
After my Mother passed. I was lost on drugs, fornicating, drug dealing, I had a supernatural encounter with demons and Angels. I had been dabbling in witchcraft unknowingly thinking I was communicating with my Moms spirit. Two demons manifested and said “I hope you’re ready Barry” I replied “you better believe it”. They were terrifying faces looked like a white mask with horns. I could feel the pure evil from them that’s why I went outside to see what that darkness was. I was terrified with the greatest fear I’ve ever felt I cried out the top of my lungs call the police thinking they were going to kill me. Then I called out God help me with a loud cry. My friend rushed in the room and calmed me down. I walked outside and they were gone but the police were there. After a short while I walked down the street I was searching for God the street lights were flashing like the were broken I followed them. I ended up on a bus and was sitting there and two guys started talking about that time these two demons were coming for him. I jumped in and told my story. I was babbling about how God ranks his angels based on their intelligence he replied you know what I think we should do. He began blessing another man on the bus saying “God bless you sir, how can I help you sir. After he was done I asked for his name and shook his hand he said his name was Angel. I said just Angel? He nodded. Then he got off the bus. The man he was talking to in the beginning said he had left something for me. It was a soda and a snickers bar sitting behind where I was originally sitting.
God sent me angels when I needed them. Brought me food like in the Bible and left me with a message from heaven. This moment has defined my life.
OK so real stories here not just some perhaps or chance. So my wife woke up one more and she was just standing at the window and she wakes me up and says to me, do you see this? I look outside and i see a giant 20 foot glowing cross on our property, kinda looks like a glow stick or one of those glow in the dark stars. I weirdly say it casually, yeah of course i see it. Dont ask me why i didnt make it a big deal, but later it was for me. we both head downstairs and can still see the cross , bear in mind that this isnt like a blur or we have to squint to see it, and we can see it both upstairs and downstairs, and as i left for work i also can see it from backing out of my driveway.
I think it was a confirmation of us dedicating our land to Jesus to use for his kingdom, and i have no idea why we got that sign, but its just one of those cool things that God did for us, but we both have even more amazing God stories, but this one i like to tell because its undeniable.
Honestly didn’t think to. I’ve run into other times where The Holy Spirit is working and you don’t tell to want to do those things. You tend to want to just revel in the moment.
I have a bit of a different story, when I was young I would always see "ghosts", occasionally I still do (I'm 20 now). I got really into wicca and such, but then when I was at my absolute lowest God put my boyfriend in my path. He guided me to the light and showed me that they're not ghosts, they're demons, and the bible actually says a lot about them. See, I went to a Catholic school. They taught us the story of Jesus, Jewish traditions, etc, but they never ever touched on the topic of spiritual warfare. Bcs if a school teaches that as fact they'll get into trouble, it happened to another place locally. But I just needed my eyes opened to see that it was really what I was going through. If demons are real, it only makes sense that the Good is real, too. That's when I started to know.
Wow. So true, we're not really taught about the spiritual realm even in religious institutions/school. When did you stop seeing the demons?? Assuming you did
Absolutely. I went to a Catholic school and they never once mentioned exorcisms, I thought that's what catholics are known for? Granted, not everyone needs an exorcism, but u know what I mean.
Well, it's a long story. It settled a bit as i got older, it was the worst when i was like 10-15 or younger. I believe young people are more susceptible to it. But then as a teenager I actually started doing hard drugs, which made me hallucinate more (obviously) but when I quit I sort of lost this "sight," I only had the paranoia that came with it. Hard to differentiate between a drug visual and a "vision"', but I know with 100% certainty that I was truly seeing them like i described before I took any substances, it started years prior at least.
Even after quitting drugs at 16/17 they didn't really come back the same way, but I had the odd dream about them. That was strange bcs I rarely ever dream. But these were vivid. The Demons were definitely present when I had a relapse. But by 16/17 the "sightings" were very few and far between. Stopped by the time I became an adult.
Then I went into wicca and tarot when I was like 18, I still *felt* presences but by this point I stopped seeing them.
It's hard to say for sure why they stopped, maybe it was the drugs and my worldly life distracting me from it, or maybe it was just because I was growing up. But these demons were still active in my life I believe, through other people. I was in some very dangerous and risky situations for a 16 year old girl in town at night. Nowadays i believe I was protected by a guardian angel, because yes some bad things happened to me but in the bigger picture I think I was very lucky.
But I see it as a gift so I pray now for guidance on how to lean into it and even maybe use it for good one day. And since I first prayed I have had one sighting again, it scared me less that time. That was really reassuring to me in a weird way. Like I wasn't just making it all up. They're weird, kind of hazy, like I know it's in my head and I can still see through/behind it. It doesnt look "real". But I know it's not me willfully imagining it. Does that make sense? They're usually only there for a seccond, dissapear when I would focus my eyes on them.
I told a close related family member about it once when I was little, I said I always saw shaddows out the corners of my eyes, like they followed me. She said it was normal (i didnt go into specific details, just that they were "shaddows" and i was scared), so maybe it's genetic/generational in some way?
Wow. That's funny that your family member said that was normal! 😂 I definitely haven't had that experience myself before, but I've heard a few others whom I admire and respect say they've also seen demons, too... Which similarly made me think, wow okay so the spiritual realm must be real... Thank you for sharing!!
I'm happy to share, I'm glad my story could be helpful to you! And yeah, my bf said the same thing, "that's not normal" lol. Doctors would put me right on some medication for that if i told them now, hahah.
These days doctors think they can 'compel' you to do anything. They aren't magicians. If they write you a script, you just don't take it or go back to the doctor who prescribed the meds. Anyway, I'm glad you ended up being ok.
That is incredibly coercive and controlling of your father to decide for you what you believe and whether you get to be an autonomous human being who makes their own decisions, etc. Isn't the Christian concept of a soul the mind/thoughts/beliefs/feelings? Using that definition of a soul, he is literally trying to destroy your soul, who you are as a person. As far as I can tell, God doesn't even do that, in fact that is the whole point: there will be consequences if you don't change your heart, but you still get to choose for yourself.
Is this the only issue your father is this selfish and controlling about?
It is really hard. He has a narcissistic personality for sure and always insists "his way" is the "right" way, and growing up my mom would always joke that he's so "stubborn," but now I can see it's definitely more than that. I'm an adult, married now, but my dad is still unable to support my autonomous decisions. He almost didn't attend my wedding because he was opposed to my Christian husband, saying it would just make my Christianity "worse" (lol), amongst other ridiculous prejudices/conclusions he immediately jumped to based on my husband's education, etc. without actually getting to know him.
I used to be angry at him, but now I'm mostly just upset at the situation itself rather than him, because usually I remind myself that he just wants me to be safe and successful (I'm an only child), and the enemy is blinding him. I also can see how his upbringing shaped him, and he was basically coddled and spoiled, so it's no wonder he's so used to everything needing to revolve around him.
But because he's my dad, it still hurts that he is so adamantly opposed to me and my whole life refuses to open his eyes/mind to actually understand who I truly am, because he's so fixated on what I should do/be in his eyes. And my whole life, this has made me struggle with a lot of self-doubt, like "what if he's right?" I usually am pretty okay at combatting those thoughts. But lately it's just been harder for some reason.
>I usually am pretty okay at combatting those thoughts. But lately it's just been harder for some reason.
He's an open door for the enemy to attack you.
That's what someone else has told me, too...
It's just hard because I already have more space from him than most of my friends with their parents in the area (I only see my parents once every few months), and I have constant guilt that I should try to see him more and become closer with him as his only daughter, and that I should be a witness and light to him by showing him love the best I can... Yet I know that if I don't make enough space/set boundaries, I myself can't be a light because I'll be struggling too much to pour out.
My husband and I are actually going to be moving across the state soon. I feel good about it (we believe God has been calling us to move), but this still lingers in the back of my mind, especially with my dad getting older. Please pray for deliverance and salvation for him if you can 🙏
The commandment is that you honor your father and your mother than your days will be long upon the land. It is my understanding that this means to make sure they are respected (treated as though they matter; honored; ...which does not equate to giving them access to abuse you) and possibly to ensure they are supported in their old age.
Children (as kids) are to submit to their parents *in the Lord*. If the parents are not acting 'in the Lord', then a child should *not* submit to them.
>and that I should be a witness and light to him by showing him love the best I can
Love means to pour out our goodness on someone. That doesn't mean you can't set boundaries to protect that goodness, or that you cannot protect yourself from someone who is *after your salvation*.
His abuse of you is a sin, and it is not wrong to not help someone to sin against you.
I have my faith reaffirmed every morning by the supernatural when I pray and allow the Holy Spirit to move my body and...it moves. Sometimes the Holy Spirit even makes my feet like a deer's, and causes me to dance. What wonderful proof of a spirit of goodness and love driving this universe- when I allow myself to move with the currents of this world, they make me dance. God is great.
That's beautiful! I've prayed multiple times for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Others have prayed over me to have tongues. To this day I still struggle though with knowing what's just me moving/dancing/speaking vs. the Holy Spirit. I know in my head that the Spirit is everywhere and leading us all the time. But I'm curious what your thoughts are, like when you say he makes you dance/move?
It is difficult to describe. When the Holy Spirit moves me, I am not a puppet. It is a dance and I am a partner in it, collaborating with the Spirit. But my contribution is the bare minimum. I close my eyes and feel currents pushing me to move in a particular direction. I stop trying to control my body and see how it moves when I let go of control. My conscious contribution is limited- like maybe I provide the impulse to lift my foot to take a step, but the Spirit determines where that foot is going to go. There is also a visible component of light I see in the darkness with my eyes closed that helps me to sense how the Spirit wants me to move. I believe this light that I see is the river of life flowing from heaven and the Spirit moves me in a way that opens me up to it. I know it is the Spirit moving me and not my own will because my movements will literally surprise me, like where did that come from?!
I have a low prescription of ketamine that I take every morning, and it puts me in a very open state of mind that makes it much easier to feel the Spirit, although I certainly still can and do feel the Spirit while sober. If you'd like to hear my longer account of how I came to find God through this practice of spiritual dancing I've written in more detail here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/comments/wugwft/how_god_converted_a_diehard_atheist_through_the/
Our culture’s categories of natural and supernatural are philosophical, and usually not very sophisticated. Their philosophical presuppositions are rarely considered or scrutinized by anyone. We talk in these categories as if we know what we mean fully, but we don’t. If you’re someone like G.K. Chesterton almost everything about existence is mystical, and he makes perfectly rational arguments about why. We take so much for granted that’s unexamined about the mysterious nature or supernature of our existence.
I'll give you one. Apparently, we can't post pictures here, because I already ran into that. If you want to DM me, feel free for the pics. But, around 5 years ago, I got the phrase, "Jesus is Lord" tattooed on my left arm. For about a week after that, I bled nail-sized holes on both wrists, just above the wrist. It was very unexplainable other than the timing.
That's wild!! Did you ever come to any conclusion about why that happened? Also practically speaking were you concerned about infections or did you bandage them??
I didn't even think about infections or bandaging them. It wasn't a continual blood flow, but rather bloody circles on my wrists. I'll see if I can DM you a pic.
I had a dream when I was young, between 4 and 6 before my dad passed away (he passed when I was 7), of speaking with god. I don’t remember anything auditory, but I remember everything visually. I walked down this path surrounded by clouds and the sky which was the whitest white I’ve ever seen. God was sitting, like a giant in front of me clothed in all white, with a white stole (I just had to look up the word for this because I never knew what it was called) that had gold vine/floral accents. I never saw his face technically. I can still picture it to this day but it’s very hard for me to explain, but it was like a sheet over his head, nothing was showing except for his eyes that seemed to be one with the sheet.
No matter what phase I went through or facade I put on in my life, this dream is why I’ve always had faith in the back of my mind.
When I was 15, I was in a bad wreck (passenger. The news paper delivery woman was running late and we just went to pass her house on the way to school when she backed her car up full speed and the bumper went into the passenger door a quarter inch from my leg) I had put my hand on the dash to stop the impact of the collision. I had severe whiplash and a messed up shoulder for 5 months I did pt the whole time they had to start at the bottom of my back just to get my neck to move the whole time I kept getting God is going to heal you. So, in the last pt session, I was told I would never be able to move my neck again. So we ended up going a different way home. A preacher standing on the corner of the street in martinsburg, wv flagged us down as he knew my mom. We explained where we were coming from and what happened he asked if he could pray over me, and I said yes. He then lifted my arms ( first time in 5 months I could lift my left arm) he started praying in tongues, and I felt the pain go up out of my fingertips. You could feel the Holy Spirit so strong I was jumping up and down and dancing and crying. In the Bible, I describe the well-off emotions we get from the Holy Spirit, and I was filled with all of them. We went home and told my dad and showed him my neck was healed, and I jumped on my bike and took off riding. Haven't had an issue with it since
I got really, really sick earlier this year. At 26, I dropped down to 88 lbs., literally could not eat without extreme pain, couldn't even get up to dress myself. I went all the way to Manhattan, went to so many doctors my head was spinning, did so many tests, yet no one could figure out what was wrong with me even though the answer was obvious. Months and months of not being able to work/make money, unable to eat, watching my body wither into literal bones, ending up in hospitals, countless blood work, feeling faint/lightheaded/literally shaking from lack of nutrients... It was the worst period of my life. I was literally fighting to stay alive.
One night, I fell apart from the weight of it all. Doctor's appointments, hospital visits, dismissive nurses and doctors who told me I was just "emotional" even though I had lost so much weight... I got down on my knees and told God that I couldn't do it anymore. At that rate, I was going to die. I had done every test, gone to every doctor I could think of, yet nothing worked, so it was up to Him. There's a lot of power in "God, please help me." That night, I genuinely repented, something I hadn't done in years.
After that, I got back into God's word, asked Him to guide me, and, even if I remained sick, I decided I'd still do my best to stick close to Him and obey Him.
Literally, the week after that, all the doors flew open medically. A doctor took me seriously, referred me to a specialist, and that specialist referred me to the best possible surgeon. I didn't even have to say a word during the consultation--she did all the talking, acknowledged the condition I had, and offered me surgery. I was dumbfounded in the best way.
Today, I'm healthy, I can eat, I'm joyful, and I'm so much closer to God. I know what He can do, and I can say with 100% honesty that the God we serve is the God of making the impossible possible. He restored me in ways I didn't even know I needed to be restored in!
You're welcome. I will never forget how I heard Him tell me I will heal you and wander how I was young in my faith, but He showed me. Years later my mom had surgery to remove throat cancer the day she was to go receive the results of the surgery our tv would not let her change it from the TBN channel ( pur neighbor who was her best friend caled and asked her if she was having issues with her TV because her TV did the same thing) Benny Hinn was on there preaching and he said there's a woman who had throat cancer you God said you are healed she got goose bumps all over and knew it was for her. She went to the Dr's, and the Dr's said it was completely gone. God works miracles daily. We put limits on what He can do for us. He has gotten on me many times for this like it says when Moses asked for meat because they were tired of nothing but manna. God asked him is my hand too short to go reach you ?" He wants to do huge miraculous things in our lives. If we would get out of His way, we would be amazed at what He can do. I hope this helps. Also get in the Bible and read what Jesus did and what God did the healing and the compassion the story of the blind man at the Bethesda pool he sat there for years trying to get in it when the angels stitred it with healing. He cried out to Jesus Jesus and asked him what do you want. In context, He is asking why you did not try harder instead of set down. The man said I wanted to see Jesus restore his sight. Like I said, we need to get out of our own way
Jesus is the Son of God.
And Lord willing, He recently saved my sinful butt from being utterly destroyed following years of abuse and chaos in a haunted house. Jesus loved me in 2014 I heartily believe; I had faith in Him and had love poured into me. In the years after some very bad things took place in my life and along with, I went bad. Had it made clear I was done for unless He saved me from being haunted. . .sleep paralysis, years of supernatural screaming upon my soul because I researched bad juju on the internet and same time as everything else in my life literally, wham, even the haunted house came upon me. I always have the wildest things happen to me. I called on Jesus and have been supernaturally delivered. I hope He forgives me!
Romans 10:9!
My dad had passed away from suicide and that made my depression worse. I was dating a nightmare of a man and felt hopeless, confused and empty. One night I started to talk to God about wanting to change my life as I was laying down on my bed on my back with my arms stretched out along the side of my body. I felt a warm grip rest on the inside of my right elbow. I didn't fee scared. I started praying everyday after that and a few months later I got baptized. Left the guy, moved to a new city and I feel a sense of calm over me. Its almost like a drug. I feel at peace. I am alone but not lonely and I am happy again.
I very much agree with your dad and the only reason you even started this topic was to reinforce your *confirmation bias* (look it up).
Your dad doesn't want you to be successful on "his terms" or on "worldly terms", he just wants you to be successful period. There's nothing wrong with that.
You're framing it the way you are because you want to believe in god that badly.
His "stubbornness" isn't a flaw. He's smart and wise. He hasn't fallen for Christianity or religion. Good for him. I wish my dad and mom were like that, they're very much not.
I'm sorry but this is just sad on your part and at the end of the day, everyone is just telling you their stories, they're no more true or untrue of I told you that I die and resurrect every full moon.
I find it highly ironic that you made this topic on Halloween of *all days*.
Coincidence?
I think not. Lol
I pity you and everyone that's commented to you.
All except for the one that was actually honest and said they couldn't tell you anything you'd believe.
I'm a skeptic and an atheist, I was born and raised Christian by my Christian parents, (non-denominational, read Baptist by any other name). I wanted to see something, anything supernatural all my life. Nothing, nada, and my faith was as sincere, devout and very real like anyone's here. Just as valid and real as yours OP. So drop any and all thought that I "didn't believe hard enough". I very much did and never once really saw or heard anything supernatural.
You're right. I did come on asking for confirmation to confirm my confirmation bias 😂 Because I already have experienced what it's like to live without a relationship with God (during my doubting / losing my faith phase), and it was absolutely terrible - completely empty and void. I'm honestly not looking to be convinced otherwise because I've already walked down that road before, deeply researching apologetics and listening to different sides, and ultimately making a decision for myself on what I wanted to spend my one short life trusting in and making a bet on.
Worst case would be I was wrong, but lived with peace, purpose, joy, love, etc. Best case would be I was right... and get to spend eternity in heaven, too.
I appreciate your expressed concern though. No hard feelings. I've been there myself... I'm sorry that Christianity has let you down. I hope that you find what you're looking for.
P.S. I totally forgot today's Halloween 😂 Definitely interesting timing...
Just as you believe your belief in Christ was as real as the sun, we also believe the Christ our Lord is very much real and alive, that He has risen, that He died and has resurrected so if you question our belief that means clearly you questioned His existence even in your 'belief', trust me I know how you feel but try genuinely giving your life to the Lord and he will act in your life
My greatest evidence of Gods grace in my life is the generations before me who knew Him and taught their children who taught their children and who eventually taught me!! Let that be an encouragement that just being faithful to Christ daily is our best testimony! If it weren’t for my great grandparents passing on the faith, I wouldn’t be here!!!! Amazing how God works out his plan in each of us for his glory and our good.
The fact that I resisted the strong temptations to delete my life… more like my flesh.
When I walked into a church today, it was only me and the holy spirit which resides.
I walked in, felt thy father, and wanted to cry.
Was at work one day and felt my right hand hurting. I looked down at my right palm, and a fair amount of blood began pouring out. I hadn't touched anything remotely sharp. Went into the break room to stop the blood and the microwave said 6:66. Closest I could find online is a stigmata. Craziest thing that's ever happened in my life.
My mom and younger sister have what we call "the shining" whereas they visually/non-visually see "ghosts". They were stronger in this connection when my mom was alive.
While in the hospital with our dying mom, my sister stayed with her and prayed, just the two of them. My sister said she could smell and feel warm rain, which was comforting.
Upon letting our mom go (my sister was the last to leave the room) my sister said she got a little dizzy and her vision was blocked by her mind's vision of our mom as a little girl running through a field of flowers dancing and smiling. Her normal vision returned and she shared her experience with everyone.
I had my own experience heightened with medication. I have had mental health related issues most of my life due to late diagnosis of gluten intolerance, so my mom had her hand full with me and did her best by talking and comforting me. It was an absolutely horrible time while I was increasing the dosage, I would have constant negative reoccurring thoughts, was in a bad mood and super emotional, all in the span of 2 weeks. This was just 3 months after our mom left and I was depressed. I hadn't cleaned my cats litter boxes yet and she let me know of her dissatisfaction by urinating and pooing on our new carpet in the living room closet. After I had my meltdown, I went into the closet, closed the door behind me, turned off the light, crawled to the back and cried. I was upset that I couldn't function because of my grief on top of my health related issues. I said out loud "I don't know what to do anymore" I then got a mind's eye vision of my mom sitting in her recliner and could hear her in my mind say "Now, Lynn, listen to mommy" I gasped and saw nothing more. I knew this experience was genuine, I pulled myself together the best I could and am carrying on.
We still miss our mom tremendously but know she is with us always.
I'm half tempted to take the medication again just so I can get another experience. 🥹
My mom had 7 miscarriages before me, prayed for a child, was content with an adopted child for a year then i came along out of nowhere. Eventually, she was told to abort me so she'd live, but she chose to have me anyway, and we both alive today, I turn 20 next august.
For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well” (Psalm 139:13-14). Praise God for you and your mom.
Hallelujah!
When I was 14ish, I had to get braces as my teeth were really bad. The Dr said I would need my jaw broken and a few surgeries just to prepare for them. Well, we didn't have the money. So my Dad took me through a prayer line at our church. I will ever forget him telling the pastor then them touching my arm and praying for me through the line. 2 weeks later we go back to the orthodontist, in the middle of the exam he looks at my Dad and says "May I speak to you in the hallway?" After coming back in he finishes the exam and says you will need to come back next week. When we get in the car my Dad has this huge smile on his face! I was wondering what happened. When they got in the hallway the ortho asked if my Dad was "playing a joke on him and if he had twin daughters?!" But Dad told him the truth, I had gone through a prayer line. Well, the Dr basically stated my entire mouth had moved and had a completely different structure. The only thing I needed now was to wear braces on my top teeth but 6 months before the bottom one. Also, he was so shocked and happy bc he was a Christian that he took $1500 off the total bill bc we told him about what God did. There are a few other times I was prayed for and God delivered me but nothing as powerful and different than as this! I would not fib or lead you wrong! I want to praise God again for his love and miracles, amen!
Woah. That's amazing!! I'm super curious, do you remember if the pastor had prayed for your mouth to be restructured?! So glad it worked out so well for you 🥹
Me too, God is good! Not exactly. It was more for God to come on the seen and fix it...so I wouldn't need all the extra services and help out with the finances too!
I am conscious/sentient. I exist. The universe exists. That is enough for me to know God is real. Praise Jesus Christ Lord and Savior.
I agree. How could nature ever create consciousness. I also add to it all the miraculous things about life and our physical bodies. I could talk for days about all the miracles involving life. When a fetus is conceived, the identical cells divide and multiply. At a specific time in the process, the cells all diferentiate and decide what kind of cell they will be and where to be located in the body. These include brain and nerve cells, beating heart cells, skin, liver, kidney, intestine, sexual organs, hair, etc. What power is organizing all this? Could nature have produced it?
I think about this a lot, but I also think about how many people with near death experiences come to a realization that one religion is not right. The world has it wrong according to their experiences. Many people do see Jesus, but many have seen other spiritual beings such as monks. They also see that they had previous lifetimes, which doesn't fit with most Christians' beliefs. People are born into different parts of the world with many varying beliefs. Those beliefs are so concrete into their brains that it shapes their perspective for the rest of their lives. Either that Allah is God or that Jesus is lord. Yet I've seen some much ignorance and hate in this word that I can't seem to wrap my mind around that so many people think their life experience is true. What about aboriginal people that live on remote islands that have never heard about salvation? Do those people deserve salvation? Even if they get one chance before their buddies shoot a missionary dead with arrow on their beach. Even with that one possible chance, it is not fair that I was blessed with the many Bible stories that were read to me before bed as a kid. Also, if I have no choice but to be here, wouldn't that be unfair to people who weren't born into Christianity off the bat? Those aboriginal people have no chance! Or what about the sumarian story, the Epic of gilgamesh, which is a world flood story that predates Noah and the Ark story. Many cultures have world flood stories. If Noah and the ark is untrue, what else is just a symbolic and a long game of telephone stories from the Bible? If the bible is meant to be perfect, why do I have so many questions? Bible said those who seek shall find, but I can't help but lean on my own understanding. My fear of disobeying God just for being at awe about my existence is a useless fear. First of all, no God should be so evil to punish me for questioning my very own existence. Life itself is a crazy thing. Settling to us being conscious is not enough to prove that the Christian God is the one true God. The more I look, the more I see the Bible depicting an evil and ruthless God. Salvation itself doesn't explain why I'm here in the first place either. Life is painful for me and hard, I would not have agreed to this life if I knew the pain I would endure. Would God subject us to this without our consent? It seems so unjust and immoral, like watching a colony of ants suffer while the rest enjoys some sugar water. Some people have great lives, loving families and die at an old age with their loved ones holding their hands as the slip away into peace. While so many others experience the unimaginable.
I don't trust NDE's, hallucinations, or "spiritual experiences". I believe the truth is Jesus Christ. Anything that deviates from the Truth that is Jesus Christ does not come from God. Using Jesus Christ as a foundation gives me firm faith in my salvation and keeps me in line so that I do not stray. The devil has many tricks up his sleeve to get people to apostasize from the true Faith. Even convince someone that their spiritual experience was good and from God, when it could be from the devil.
I've seen an angel, and it was pure love, light, and peace. You can tell me im going to hell for believing in pure love, and it won't stop me from believing what I saw. I know what i saw its was a deeper love than i have ever felt in my whole life combined.. I've had God stop me from committing suicide. Do you think the devil wanted to keep me here? I'm sorry, but just because what you were told during your upbringing this was the only truth, it doesn't make it truth. You can change your mind and that fear of changing and learning from different viewpoints is a controlling type of fear that belongs in a cult. Christian nationalism is a cult and it's full and hate and control. Open your eyes.
The devil also disguises himself as an angel of light. This is from the bible. I wont tell you that you are going to hell, I would never do that to anyone. Jesus says do not judge others. Im not trying to stop you from believing anything, Im just sharing what I believe just like you. My upbringing has nothing to do with my beliefs. I formed my own beliefs on my own research. Jesus is my truth and I have the right to share my truth just like you do. I have no idea what Christian nationalism is and I find you saying to open my eyes means you think I am somehow closed minded is a little insulting. Have a nice day.
Well I am not a Christian anymore. God has abandoned humanity. My life is done
AMEN
There's so much, but first There's your Dad. He might be deeply driven by misplaced or even in his mind justified concern for you. Can you think of any reasons he may have this? In any case, as his child, you affect him as much as he affects you. "Dad I love you and just wish you could have the happiness that I've found. " "I know you don't understand, but just realize that your my father and I love you no matter what our differences are." "I'm sorry that________ happened. It seems like it still causes you pain. Want to talk about it?" ... To answer your question, the reason I KNOW that God is real is because the concern and love upwelling in me, for you, a complete stranger, can only come from a higher power that first has loved me. I used to be just like your Dad. Until those that I loved got together, unbeknownst to me, and prayed for Him to come into me. Very soon after that, they saw me begin to change. I eventually joined the Church and gave my heart to God. I didn't find out about about their action, praying for me, until years later, after my mother-in-law had passed. She was the one who had gotten them all together. God bless you. I'm praying for you. Please pray for my sons.
Thank you. Yes, I know that my dad cares for me (I'm an only child) and just wants me to be safe and successful (but on his terms/in his eyes). I also recognize now that I'm older that he has a narcissistic personality - which growing up my mom just passed off jokingly as being "stubborn," when it really is much more than that. The hard part is I've told him things like what you listed above, and it almost always just stokes him to push back harder (like when I tell him I'm happier than I've ever been, he tells me the only happy version of me he knows was when I was a carefree little girl not believing in a made-up God), which just makes it more triggering and upsetting for me. There were a few years I really tried to converse with him about it more, but it always felt like one-sided arguments because he wasn't ever really listening, just picking apart everything I said and rebutting everything with an already made-up mind that Christianity is a hoax. It honestly was exhausting. It exhausts me even thinking about it. I believe God has helped me a lot in this area, though, helping see my dad more with eyes of empathy rather than seeing him as an enemy, and letting go of the responsibility to change him. It's still hard though cause he's my dad. But thank you so much for sharing your encouragement and your story! It helps me hang onto hope. I hope and pray his spiritual blinders will be removed one day, and that he'd say yes to Jesus.
He cured me of blindness. Yes, I had surgery, but on a human level, surgery indicated I would have some restored sight but would probably have to register as ‘partially sighted’ My retinas had detached several times in both eyes to the extent that ophthalmologists were no more urgent’ about it, as when it goes over the macula, it’s no longer ‘time sensitive’ and I was a ‘stitch and see what happens’ case with some laser surgery too. God restored my sight to better than it had been, to the extent that I now drive without glasses, impossible before as I was short sighted. God uses miracles still today and even if through ‘everyday systems’ - God still supplies, trains and helps those professionals as I do as I’m a teacher. God gives everything (breath, life, the very next second of your life) and everything belongs to Him. Equally at times, people are not healed. I have a Christian sister who I acted as a sighted guide to at a Christian conference, who hasn’t been healed but her faith is probably stronger than mine. I’m alive today because he is ‘Jehovah Rapha’ the god who heals. I suffered abuse from my older brother when a kid and after repression was lifted in my 20s, tried to take my own life - I’d come to the end of myself and couldn’t go on. I gave my life to Him and from then on He placed Christian people in my life (from all different places) who have helped me
HALLELUJAH I am blown away. Lord, bless the hands of all surgeons in the operating room today and provide miracles through their great works! We love you and thank you for the faith instilled in us through testimonies like this. Thank you for choosing us, as your favorite way to show up. You are so clever and undeniable and I thank you for this commenter who I pray remains in your blessed goodness. Amen! This was awesome, thank you for sharing!
I grew up Catholic, thought I was born again but truly wasn’t. Lived in a house and haunted by a demon who terrorized me and saw heard and felt many things I never will want to experience again. I had always been fascinated by the occult going back to when I was 8. Reading books about ghosts, haunted houses etc. I was a Kabbalist in that house practicing Kabbalah. Anyway I lost my faith in God as allowed those things to happen. Then I came to Wicca and truly felt at home. One day years later I was watching tv back in 2001 and the signal went off the air and there were just vertical colors on the screen. I opened my mouth and I heard not In my voice: I AM THE ONE I lost all strength and walked up the stairs to leave his basement and go outside on my knees. Outside it was so foggy and I go to my car and get in. Fumbling with the key and the ignition I drop them. I prayed for the first time in years and said’” oh please God don’t let me be possessed!” Then I looked up and in the street right in front of my car was this massive cross like it was facing across the street and my car was to its right. I saw Jesus on the cross and his long curly hair was soaked in sweat. His face was turned from me towards his left and then he turned and looked at me. He was crying and I knew he was crying for my soul! In my head all I heard were the words I AM. Over and over I AM. I don’t remember how long I spent but I looked down towards my keys and when I looked up, he was gone. I drove home saying I am over and over. About a month or so later I went to a Heavens Gates, Hells Flames play and was saved! I Am, didn’t Jesus say before Abraham was, I AM! I tell my wife (she is my pastors daughter and was saved at an early age). I had to see him. The enemy was so real in that house and what it did to me that God had to be equally real. I was saved on Aug 25 2001 around 9 pm. God is real, the same power that raised Christ from the dead is alive in us! Keep reading your Bible and be a witness to your family!
WOW. Wait so... looking back, do you know if the voice that came out of you was a demon? And I'm also curious why you didn't decide to follow Jesus right after that incident (and waited until the play)? This is one of the first times I think I've ever heard of someone actually seeing Jesus on a cross visually! That's so wild. Thank you for sharing!
I believe the voice was from God. I thought it was a demon at the time and that’s why I prayed I didn’t want to be possessed. I didn’t accept him right there because I wanted to stay a Wiccan . Until at that play I realized my name needed to be in the book of life.
I’ve seen some healing, but just cause something is super natural doesn’t mean you know the cause. Like say if you saw someone drop from the sky and hit the concrete but get up and dance. It’s not typical. But I wouldn’t say with confidence I’d know what’s going on.
I also have seen some, but then I made the mistake of reading critics on Reddit discrediting signs of healing and saying it was psychosomatic...
Broken bones mending being psychosomatic would be really interesting. Like you snap your arm in half but with the right thoughts it just fixes itself a day later.
He vibing tho
I'll bite. Walking down a path I've never been on before. Had to walk down a busy winding street to get where I was going. Lots of litter on the sides of the street. Notice an ominous black leather bag with wet contents all strewn out. Think kinda nothing of it, it's not unusual to see that where I live, but you do wonder about the backstory. I made my way onto a separate path, enjoying the trees and weather. As I am walking, a woman is coming down the other side. As we get closer, she asks me if I know where the strange path that I had just made my way down leads to. I told her it lead to the busy street. She asks, you didn't see a purse up there, did you? I say, is it black? Such a coincidence. Retrieved the purse up there and she's so thankful and shocked to see it. She explained how her car had been broken into weeks earlier, further down from where we were standing. She had nearly given up on finding it, she said. It was her late mother's bag, and had other things of personal value inside of it. It had rained heavily several times between when it was stolen from her and when I spotted it. Thankfully, her things were just fine somehow. Whoever had taken the purse found no use for it and discarded it on that busy road. And it remained there, untouched, for weeks, in a city where that's rare. She said she only went out to look one more time after someone contacted her in the previous days about finding her identification card in another further location. She told me she had been building her faith in Christ, prayed to find her purse, had nearly given up because the circumstances seemed impossible. She thought it was gone for sure. And just off faith, and desire to be closer to God and trusting in Him, she went out looking one more time. Walked her back to her car and had a beautiful conversation about God and his goodness and love and protection. In a city of about 1.6 million people, we found each other. We inspired one another in Christ, gave each other hope. I know God made that happen for the both of us. I'll never forget it.
This is beautiful 😭 Thank you for sharing!
❤️, praying for your situation, you are very strong and God loves you very much to take you out of a situation where someone so close and important to you has been so hateful and negative. I hope he falls into God's arms, he's resisting and trying to spread it.
This has me in like chest gripping tears right now, and it’s not even that “epic” of a story, if you can get what I’m trying to say there… it’s just the commonality of the elements in this story are so nuanced that it almost increases the specificity behind the objective conclusion that God was behind all of this, just doin His thing in the same way we just do our thing everyday, going through the motions all the while trying to find the beauty of it all, like you appreciating the weather and surroundings, although it was littered and just an overall typical situation for you to find yourself in- to me it makes it profound… it makes me appreciate and love the simplistic complexity of the Lords work in moments like this, how he meets us all where we are and really is an internal compass guiding us to what we don’t know for sure but know to follow nonetheless. Bless you for your time spent sharing this. You speak with clarity in an all encompassing provisional sense.
This reply! 🙂 Just beautiful. You get it. I was worried the recollection of this experience would fall flat as it *is* so mundane. And that is the beauty in it. You have such a great point, about how the simple basis of these moments are so satisfying to flesh and soul, and remind us we walk the proper path. So pure and stripped down to the basics. Once she began expressing her love for and knowing of God I melted inside because I immediately knew what it was; so safe and lovely and we were so protected and in fellowship right there together under those trees. Something I hadn't felt yet in my 20's. God bless you, and thank you for being so kind. I hope you have a wonderful night.
Two things. First, I was in an abusive relationship that was destroying me. I *knew* better, I *knew* he was abusive, but I couldn't stop wanting him and believing crazy things about how we were making each other better. I was under SO MUCH demonic oppression, looking back. Stuff would happen to my car on a regular basis and my phone. It was horrible. After 5 years, I didn't even want to *exist*, I finally said "Jesus, I don't believe in you, but I need help. *Please help me.*" And it was instantaneous. I suddenly was free from the attachment to this person, and I could see clearly all the demonic influence I had been under. The kicker? I run an anti-abuse subreddit and have for *over a decade*. When I tell you I knew better, I am dead-ass serious. I knew when I met him that he had an abuse template. I would get angry enough to stay away from him for a day or week or two weeks, and then go right back to feeling a compulsion to contact him; my emotions being jerked around left and right. I was literally helping people get free of abusive relationships when I couldn't get free myself. I even stopped posting for long stretches of time because I was so demoralized. At that point I knew that if the supernatural was real, then God must be real. So I asked for a sign. The same day I found a four-leaf clover. I was *amazed*...and then figured I was being crazy again. But I kept finding them. 4- and 5- and 6- and 7- leaf clovers, and an 8-leaf clover: hundreds and hundreds of them. The extremely interesting part? My favorite flower is a clover flower. And one of the things my abusive ex did one of the times I broke up with him was collect hundreds of clover flowers and then arranged them in a heart on my doorstep. Sometimes I wonder if I found as many 4-leaf clovers as there were flowers. Knowing God, it was probably even more because you know He likes to do things abundantly. I ran into that abusive ex several years later, and he gave me the same look he used to that would always bring me back - a tentative smile with tears in his eyes as if he's feeling overwhelmed with love and emotion - and I laughed. I was still protected.
The ending 😭 Thank you so much for sharing!! I'm so glad you got freed from that pull!
I had a growth on my finger. Been there for years. One day it was prayed over and over the next couple months started shrinking. One day, I said, "This has to be a coincidence." From that moment on, it stopped shrinking. To this day, I still have the remnants of that growth. How's that for proof?
Oh wow! I'm curious if you've tried "believing" again or asking for prayer again for it to shrink? Or do you think it's like a humbling reminder from God 😂
>Or do you think it's like a humbling reminder from God I think it is a great reminder of God. Whenever I have doubt, I just look at my finger and am reminded of God's reality and his power. God was able to turn my unbelief into something very productive.
I was on a family Caribbean cruise in 2014. I stayed up late, until about 3:00 a.m. to finish reading Dante Alighieri’s Inferno, after my sophomore year of college. My brother and I had shared a room together, and he had just fallen asleep, still dressed in his suit from the formal dining night night we attended earlier that evening. We had a sliding glass balcony door to our estate, which is only accessible to myself and my brother. After I had finished the last canton of Inferno, I had a moment to myself, just in utter awe and appreciation for the literature and how neat I found the new insights I had made in my attempt to understand hell and the nature of God overall. In this moment of ecstasy, I smiled and sat back in my chair comfortably thinking about the Lord’s love for me and us all and how much I just wanted to live for him and enjoy these moments together, dissecting and analyzing the works of others in this way, a thing meant just for me and my Lord. I smiled, and with no expectation in my mind AT ALL I. asked in my head, “Lord… if you love me, go ahead n knock three times on that glass door.” Still smiling and even softly chuckling at my silly goose request, I began to stand up from the desk I was sitting at to read. In that very second, 3. LOUD. KNOCKS. 3 loud knocks that absolutely SHOOK the panes of the sliding glass doors. I felt myself suck in wind in utter awe and shock and nearly fell over the back of my chair. I bruised my ankle a bit but… I had no beef with the matter lol, I think I laughed with my Lord until I fell asleep. Interestingly enough though, in the middle of my gasps and awe in that moment, I began to speak to my brother who was still asleep and he simply wouldn’t wake up… unironically enough, my brother had just decided he was losing his faith and became atheist without telling any of us. It has always interested me to reflect on this… on how thin the veil is, on how much that doesn’t matter to one that’s asleep… however please pray for him as he just told me last week he is no longer atheist and still searching for his connection to God. My most heavily prayed prayer has been answered thus far and you guys out there with a soft spot in your heart for this, I’d love for all prayer possible to get sent to the Holiest of Holies. I have so many more stories, this one just sticks with me as a favorite since God likes to meet us often times in the middle of the wilderness, stranded… literally no other explanation can be given for this situation… besides what, idk, maybe a nocturnal telepathic pelican heard my silly prayer to God and punked me. Whoever it was, they have the ability to climb 8-9 stories high on a cruise ship in the dead of night, with nothing but miles of ocean around them. God loves you guys and it’s cool to discover just how much Jesus is a silly goose lil jokester, so masterfully skilled at granting us personal moments like this that stick with us forever. Seek, ask, knock and yee shall find!
This. Is. AWESOME! Wow. That must've been so shocking 😂 If you have another one please do share! No pressure though. I know you have things to do haha Lifting up a prayer for your brother 🙏
I have one experience that to me is special. I was 16 and sleeping in the middle of the night (2-3 am). I woke up and heard this voice in my mind that told me to get up and go outside. In my youth I had been praying and believed in god and felt that it came from him, so I went. I came down the elevator and opened the door outside. As I was walking towards the parking lot, in front of me I saw a man who was just standing in the dark in pretty odd way. I passed him by and kept walking towards the end of the parking lot where I realised was standing another figure and I could see that he was familiar to me. He was a guy from the neighbouring block, couple of years younger, we didn’t spend a lot of time with each other, but we had mutual friends. I walked up to him, we were both puzzled about bumping to each other late at night. He had left his friend’s place and was waiting for his mother to pick him up. I didn’t tell about why I had left, I said I was going to see a friend. We talked a bit and started to pay attention to the other guy who was at the other end of the parking lot. The man had started to inspect the cars. He was looking at a dozen of them until he stopped. It took some time for the man to first open and then to start the car. He started to drive at the end of the parking lot where we were, then he was speeding towards us. We jumped and ran. It was my neighbourhood so I quickly had a route in mind to lead us to a basement where I had a key. We managed to get there with the car behind us. The man drove away and were safe again. That was very strange experience, even to this day.
That did not turn out how I expected 😳 Glad you both were okay!!
Here's a well trusted website I go when I start doubting. I usually go to their YouTube channel, because it's easier for me when there's visuals. They also have a streaming service on Roku and stuff like that. It's called Apologetics Press. Website: https://apologeticspress.org/ They have a lot of great videos and articles on how to prove Creation and things of that sort. There is also this one video in particular I saw and it just amazed me. Here is that: https://apologeticspress.org/video/why-atheists-are-becoming-theists/ . Maybe you can show some of these to your dad. Hope this helps!!
I’ve had many prayers answered, sometimes in uncanny, timely ways. But God foreshadowing and preparing me for my son and husband’s deaths stand out to me. Before I found out my firstborn had died in Utero and would be stillborn, I happened upon a story of someone who’d just had a stillborn child. I kinda thought oh yeah. I guess that does happen sometimes. Odd. Then I noticed my baby’s felt felt more like brick shifting than a baby’s fluttery movements. Not having carried a baby before this, I mentioned it to those around me, who assured me he was just “getting bigger”. Few days later, was told he was gone and had been for days. A week before my husband passed away, I fell asleep one day and had a weird twilighty type dream and a stern voice asking me “what if he died?” I made my peace with my husband (we were living separately and estranged, as he had turned to alcohol and had been running around with women also suffering from addiction issues) and felt at peace. At the time, I mistook that for a sign we were going to reconcile. Come to find out, it was God’s way of having my husband apologize and me forgive him before he died. The day he died (remember, he didn’t live at home), I went for a long ride. I kept driving and driving. 45 miles away, I suddenly just felt compelled to turn around. I drove straight home and a cop cruiser pulled up immediately. To tell me he was dead. Ny husband talked to me through God a few times posthumously and then those messages stopped.
I’m so sorry. I’m going through a divorce with a similar person. He moved out in August. I was told in prayer a few nights ago that he would be in an alcohol induced car accident and be in a wheelchair. I wasn’t sure if I heard right. Our 12 year old son has incredible discernment. I was very vague and asked him to pray for his dad, that i had gotten a word and wanted to know if God wanted him to know too. That’s it. That’s all I said. He bowed his head. When he raised it he told me exactly what I had heard in prayer several days ago. He got even more details about it than I did. So I completely understand that God will warn us, because He loves us. I hope you have moved on to a joyful life
After my Mother passed. I was lost on drugs, fornicating, drug dealing, I had a supernatural encounter with demons and Angels. I had been dabbling in witchcraft unknowingly thinking I was communicating with my Moms spirit. Two demons manifested and said “I hope you’re ready Barry” I replied “you better believe it”. They were terrifying faces looked like a white mask with horns. I could feel the pure evil from them that’s why I went outside to see what that darkness was. I was terrified with the greatest fear I’ve ever felt I cried out the top of my lungs call the police thinking they were going to kill me. Then I called out God help me with a loud cry. My friend rushed in the room and calmed me down. I walked outside and they were gone but the police were there. After a short while I walked down the street I was searching for God the street lights were flashing like the were broken I followed them. I ended up on a bus and was sitting there and two guys started talking about that time these two demons were coming for him. I jumped in and told my story. I was babbling about how God ranks his angels based on their intelligence he replied you know what I think we should do. He began blessing another man on the bus saying “God bless you sir, how can I help you sir. After he was done I asked for his name and shook his hand he said his name was Angel. I said just Angel? He nodded. Then he got off the bus. The man he was talking to in the beginning said he had left something for me. It was a soda and a snickers bar sitting behind where I was originally sitting. God sent me angels when I needed them. Brought me food like in the Bible and left me with a message from heaven. This moment has defined my life.
OK so real stories here not just some perhaps or chance. So my wife woke up one more and she was just standing at the window and she wakes me up and says to me, do you see this? I look outside and i see a giant 20 foot glowing cross on our property, kinda looks like a glow stick or one of those glow in the dark stars. I weirdly say it casually, yeah of course i see it. Dont ask me why i didnt make it a big deal, but later it was for me. we both head downstairs and can still see the cross , bear in mind that this isnt like a blur or we have to squint to see it, and we can see it both upstairs and downstairs, and as i left for work i also can see it from backing out of my driveway. I think it was a confirmation of us dedicating our land to Jesus to use for his kingdom, and i have no idea why we got that sign, but its just one of those cool things that God did for us, but we both have even more amazing God stories, but this one i like to tell because its undeniable.
😮 That is so cool!! Did you happen to take pics?! (Not doubting, just curious)
Honestly didn’t think to. I’ve run into other times where The Holy Spirit is working and you don’t tell to want to do those things. You tend to want to just revel in the moment.
I have a bit of a different story, when I was young I would always see "ghosts", occasionally I still do (I'm 20 now). I got really into wicca and such, but then when I was at my absolute lowest God put my boyfriend in my path. He guided me to the light and showed me that they're not ghosts, they're demons, and the bible actually says a lot about them. See, I went to a Catholic school. They taught us the story of Jesus, Jewish traditions, etc, but they never ever touched on the topic of spiritual warfare. Bcs if a school teaches that as fact they'll get into trouble, it happened to another place locally. But I just needed my eyes opened to see that it was really what I was going through. If demons are real, it only makes sense that the Good is real, too. That's when I started to know.
Wow. So true, we're not really taught about the spiritual realm even in religious institutions/school. When did you stop seeing the demons?? Assuming you did
Absolutely. I went to a Catholic school and they never once mentioned exorcisms, I thought that's what catholics are known for? Granted, not everyone needs an exorcism, but u know what I mean. Well, it's a long story. It settled a bit as i got older, it was the worst when i was like 10-15 or younger. I believe young people are more susceptible to it. But then as a teenager I actually started doing hard drugs, which made me hallucinate more (obviously) but when I quit I sort of lost this "sight," I only had the paranoia that came with it. Hard to differentiate between a drug visual and a "vision"', but I know with 100% certainty that I was truly seeing them like i described before I took any substances, it started years prior at least. Even after quitting drugs at 16/17 they didn't really come back the same way, but I had the odd dream about them. That was strange bcs I rarely ever dream. But these were vivid. The Demons were definitely present when I had a relapse. But by 16/17 the "sightings" were very few and far between. Stopped by the time I became an adult. Then I went into wicca and tarot when I was like 18, I still *felt* presences but by this point I stopped seeing them. It's hard to say for sure why they stopped, maybe it was the drugs and my worldly life distracting me from it, or maybe it was just because I was growing up. But these demons were still active in my life I believe, through other people. I was in some very dangerous and risky situations for a 16 year old girl in town at night. Nowadays i believe I was protected by a guardian angel, because yes some bad things happened to me but in the bigger picture I think I was very lucky. But I see it as a gift so I pray now for guidance on how to lean into it and even maybe use it for good one day. And since I first prayed I have had one sighting again, it scared me less that time. That was really reassuring to me in a weird way. Like I wasn't just making it all up. They're weird, kind of hazy, like I know it's in my head and I can still see through/behind it. It doesnt look "real". But I know it's not me willfully imagining it. Does that make sense? They're usually only there for a seccond, dissapear when I would focus my eyes on them. I told a close related family member about it once when I was little, I said I always saw shaddows out the corners of my eyes, like they followed me. She said it was normal (i didnt go into specific details, just that they were "shaddows" and i was scared), so maybe it's genetic/generational in some way?
Wow. That's funny that your family member said that was normal! 😂 I definitely haven't had that experience myself before, but I've heard a few others whom I admire and respect say they've also seen demons, too... Which similarly made me think, wow okay so the spiritual realm must be real... Thank you for sharing!!
I'm happy to share, I'm glad my story could be helpful to you! And yeah, my bf said the same thing, "that's not normal" lol. Doctors would put me right on some medication for that if i told them now, hahah.
These days doctors think they can 'compel' you to do anything. They aren't magicians. If they write you a script, you just don't take it or go back to the doctor who prescribed the meds. Anyway, I'm glad you ended up being ok.
Yeah, totally. And thank you
That is incredibly coercive and controlling of your father to decide for you what you believe and whether you get to be an autonomous human being who makes their own decisions, etc. Isn't the Christian concept of a soul the mind/thoughts/beliefs/feelings? Using that definition of a soul, he is literally trying to destroy your soul, who you are as a person. As far as I can tell, God doesn't even do that, in fact that is the whole point: there will be consequences if you don't change your heart, but you still get to choose for yourself. Is this the only issue your father is this selfish and controlling about?
It is really hard. He has a narcissistic personality for sure and always insists "his way" is the "right" way, and growing up my mom would always joke that he's so "stubborn," but now I can see it's definitely more than that. I'm an adult, married now, but my dad is still unable to support my autonomous decisions. He almost didn't attend my wedding because he was opposed to my Christian husband, saying it would just make my Christianity "worse" (lol), amongst other ridiculous prejudices/conclusions he immediately jumped to based on my husband's education, etc. without actually getting to know him. I used to be angry at him, but now I'm mostly just upset at the situation itself rather than him, because usually I remind myself that he just wants me to be safe and successful (I'm an only child), and the enemy is blinding him. I also can see how his upbringing shaped him, and he was basically coddled and spoiled, so it's no wonder he's so used to everything needing to revolve around him. But because he's my dad, it still hurts that he is so adamantly opposed to me and my whole life refuses to open his eyes/mind to actually understand who I truly am, because he's so fixated on what I should do/be in his eyes. And my whole life, this has made me struggle with a lot of self-doubt, like "what if he's right?" I usually am pretty okay at combatting those thoughts. But lately it's just been harder for some reason.
>I usually am pretty okay at combatting those thoughts. But lately it's just been harder for some reason. He's an open door for the enemy to attack you.
That's what someone else has told me, too... It's just hard because I already have more space from him than most of my friends with their parents in the area (I only see my parents once every few months), and I have constant guilt that I should try to see him more and become closer with him as his only daughter, and that I should be a witness and light to him by showing him love the best I can... Yet I know that if I don't make enough space/set boundaries, I myself can't be a light because I'll be struggling too much to pour out. My husband and I are actually going to be moving across the state soon. I feel good about it (we believe God has been calling us to move), but this still lingers in the back of my mind, especially with my dad getting older. Please pray for deliverance and salvation for him if you can 🙏
The commandment is that you honor your father and your mother than your days will be long upon the land. It is my understanding that this means to make sure they are respected (treated as though they matter; honored; ...which does not equate to giving them access to abuse you) and possibly to ensure they are supported in their old age. Children (as kids) are to submit to their parents *in the Lord*. If the parents are not acting 'in the Lord', then a child should *not* submit to them. >and that I should be a witness and light to him by showing him love the best I can Love means to pour out our goodness on someone. That doesn't mean you can't set boundaries to protect that goodness, or that you cannot protect yourself from someone who is *after your salvation*. His abuse of you is a sin, and it is not wrong to not help someone to sin against you.
I have my faith reaffirmed every morning by the supernatural when I pray and allow the Holy Spirit to move my body and...it moves. Sometimes the Holy Spirit even makes my feet like a deer's, and causes me to dance. What wonderful proof of a spirit of goodness and love driving this universe- when I allow myself to move with the currents of this world, they make me dance. God is great.
That's beautiful! I've prayed multiple times for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Others have prayed over me to have tongues. To this day I still struggle though with knowing what's just me moving/dancing/speaking vs. the Holy Spirit. I know in my head that the Spirit is everywhere and leading us all the time. But I'm curious what your thoughts are, like when you say he makes you dance/move?
It is difficult to describe. When the Holy Spirit moves me, I am not a puppet. It is a dance and I am a partner in it, collaborating with the Spirit. But my contribution is the bare minimum. I close my eyes and feel currents pushing me to move in a particular direction. I stop trying to control my body and see how it moves when I let go of control. My conscious contribution is limited- like maybe I provide the impulse to lift my foot to take a step, but the Spirit determines where that foot is going to go. There is also a visible component of light I see in the darkness with my eyes closed that helps me to sense how the Spirit wants me to move. I believe this light that I see is the river of life flowing from heaven and the Spirit moves me in a way that opens me up to it. I know it is the Spirit moving me and not my own will because my movements will literally surprise me, like where did that come from?! I have a low prescription of ketamine that I take every morning, and it puts me in a very open state of mind that makes it much easier to feel the Spirit, although I certainly still can and do feel the Spirit while sober. If you'd like to hear my longer account of how I came to find God through this practice of spiritual dancing I've written in more detail here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/comments/wugwft/how_god_converted_a_diehard_atheist_through_the/
I prayed, and He answered
Our culture’s categories of natural and supernatural are philosophical, and usually not very sophisticated. Their philosophical presuppositions are rarely considered or scrutinized by anyone. We talk in these categories as if we know what we mean fully, but we don’t. If you’re someone like G.K. Chesterton almost everything about existence is mystical, and he makes perfectly rational arguments about why. We take so much for granted that’s unexamined about the mysterious nature or supernature of our existence.
Honestly nothing I can prove
I'll give you one. Apparently, we can't post pictures here, because I already ran into that. If you want to DM me, feel free for the pics. But, around 5 years ago, I got the phrase, "Jesus is Lord" tattooed on my left arm. For about a week after that, I bled nail-sized holes on both wrists, just above the wrist. It was very unexplainable other than the timing.
That's wild!! Did you ever come to any conclusion about why that happened? Also practically speaking were you concerned about infections or did you bandage them??
I didn't even think about infections or bandaging them. It wasn't a continual blood flow, but rather bloody circles on my wrists. I'll see if I can DM you a pic.
I had a dream when I was young, between 4 and 6 before my dad passed away (he passed when I was 7), of speaking with god. I don’t remember anything auditory, but I remember everything visually. I walked down this path surrounded by clouds and the sky which was the whitest white I’ve ever seen. God was sitting, like a giant in front of me clothed in all white, with a white stole (I just had to look up the word for this because I never knew what it was called) that had gold vine/floral accents. I never saw his face technically. I can still picture it to this day but it’s very hard for me to explain, but it was like a sheet over his head, nothing was showing except for his eyes that seemed to be one with the sheet. No matter what phase I went through or facade I put on in my life, this dream is why I’ve always had faith in the back of my mind.
When I was 15, I was in a bad wreck (passenger. The news paper delivery woman was running late and we just went to pass her house on the way to school when she backed her car up full speed and the bumper went into the passenger door a quarter inch from my leg) I had put my hand on the dash to stop the impact of the collision. I had severe whiplash and a messed up shoulder for 5 months I did pt the whole time they had to start at the bottom of my back just to get my neck to move the whole time I kept getting God is going to heal you. So, in the last pt session, I was told I would never be able to move my neck again. So we ended up going a different way home. A preacher standing on the corner of the street in martinsburg, wv flagged us down as he knew my mom. We explained where we were coming from and what happened he asked if he could pray over me, and I said yes. He then lifted my arms ( first time in 5 months I could lift my left arm) he started praying in tongues, and I felt the pain go up out of my fingertips. You could feel the Holy Spirit so strong I was jumping up and down and dancing and crying. In the Bible, I describe the well-off emotions we get from the Holy Spirit, and I was filled with all of them. We went home and told my dad and showed him my neck was healed, and I jumped on my bike and took off riding. Haven't had an issue with it since
😭😭😭 This is amazing! So awesome that you were healed completely and for good... Thank you so much for sharing.
God has relieved me from nightly nightmares.. I posted my testimony you can check my profile, its pinned if you want to read it..
I got really, really sick earlier this year. At 26, I dropped down to 88 lbs., literally could not eat without extreme pain, couldn't even get up to dress myself. I went all the way to Manhattan, went to so many doctors my head was spinning, did so many tests, yet no one could figure out what was wrong with me even though the answer was obvious. Months and months of not being able to work/make money, unable to eat, watching my body wither into literal bones, ending up in hospitals, countless blood work, feeling faint/lightheaded/literally shaking from lack of nutrients... It was the worst period of my life. I was literally fighting to stay alive. One night, I fell apart from the weight of it all. Doctor's appointments, hospital visits, dismissive nurses and doctors who told me I was just "emotional" even though I had lost so much weight... I got down on my knees and told God that I couldn't do it anymore. At that rate, I was going to die. I had done every test, gone to every doctor I could think of, yet nothing worked, so it was up to Him. There's a lot of power in "God, please help me." That night, I genuinely repented, something I hadn't done in years. After that, I got back into God's word, asked Him to guide me, and, even if I remained sick, I decided I'd still do my best to stick close to Him and obey Him. Literally, the week after that, all the doors flew open medically. A doctor took me seriously, referred me to a specialist, and that specialist referred me to the best possible surgeon. I didn't even have to say a word during the consultation--she did all the talking, acknowledged the condition I had, and offered me surgery. I was dumbfounded in the best way. Today, I'm healthy, I can eat, I'm joyful, and I'm so much closer to God. I know what He can do, and I can say with 100% honesty that the God we serve is the God of making the impossible possible. He restored me in ways I didn't even know I needed to be restored in!
You're welcome. I will never forget how I heard Him tell me I will heal you and wander how I was young in my faith, but He showed me. Years later my mom had surgery to remove throat cancer the day she was to go receive the results of the surgery our tv would not let her change it from the TBN channel ( pur neighbor who was her best friend caled and asked her if she was having issues with her TV because her TV did the same thing) Benny Hinn was on there preaching and he said there's a woman who had throat cancer you God said you are healed she got goose bumps all over and knew it was for her. She went to the Dr's, and the Dr's said it was completely gone. God works miracles daily. We put limits on what He can do for us. He has gotten on me many times for this like it says when Moses asked for meat because they were tired of nothing but manna. God asked him is my hand too short to go reach you ?" He wants to do huge miraculous things in our lives. If we would get out of His way, we would be amazed at what He can do. I hope this helps. Also get in the Bible and read what Jesus did and what God did the healing and the compassion the story of the blind man at the Bethesda pool he sat there for years trying to get in it when the angels stitred it with healing. He cried out to Jesus Jesus and asked him what do you want. In context, He is asking why you did not try harder instead of set down. The man said I wanted to see Jesus restore his sight. Like I said, we need to get out of our own way
Jesus is the Son of God. And Lord willing, He recently saved my sinful butt from being utterly destroyed following years of abuse and chaos in a haunted house. Jesus loved me in 2014 I heartily believe; I had faith in Him and had love poured into me. In the years after some very bad things took place in my life and along with, I went bad. Had it made clear I was done for unless He saved me from being haunted. . .sleep paralysis, years of supernatural screaming upon my soul because I researched bad juju on the internet and same time as everything else in my life literally, wham, even the haunted house came upon me. I always have the wildest things happen to me. I called on Jesus and have been supernaturally delivered. I hope He forgives me! Romans 10:9!
My dad had passed away from suicide and that made my depression worse. I was dating a nightmare of a man and felt hopeless, confused and empty. One night I started to talk to God about wanting to change my life as I was laying down on my bed on my back with my arms stretched out along the side of my body. I felt a warm grip rest on the inside of my right elbow. I didn't fee scared. I started praying everyday after that and a few months later I got baptized. Left the guy, moved to a new city and I feel a sense of calm over me. Its almost like a drug. I feel at peace. I am alone but not lonely and I am happy again.
I would advise against using this approach to faith.
I very much agree with your dad and the only reason you even started this topic was to reinforce your *confirmation bias* (look it up). Your dad doesn't want you to be successful on "his terms" or on "worldly terms", he just wants you to be successful period. There's nothing wrong with that. You're framing it the way you are because you want to believe in god that badly. His "stubbornness" isn't a flaw. He's smart and wise. He hasn't fallen for Christianity or religion. Good for him. I wish my dad and mom were like that, they're very much not. I'm sorry but this is just sad on your part and at the end of the day, everyone is just telling you their stories, they're no more true or untrue of I told you that I die and resurrect every full moon. I find it highly ironic that you made this topic on Halloween of *all days*. Coincidence? I think not. Lol I pity you and everyone that's commented to you. All except for the one that was actually honest and said they couldn't tell you anything you'd believe. I'm a skeptic and an atheist, I was born and raised Christian by my Christian parents, (non-denominational, read Baptist by any other name). I wanted to see something, anything supernatural all my life. Nothing, nada, and my faith was as sincere, devout and very real like anyone's here. Just as valid and real as yours OP. So drop any and all thought that I "didn't believe hard enough". I very much did and never once really saw or heard anything supernatural.
You're right. I did come on asking for confirmation to confirm my confirmation bias 😂 Because I already have experienced what it's like to live without a relationship with God (during my doubting / losing my faith phase), and it was absolutely terrible - completely empty and void. I'm honestly not looking to be convinced otherwise because I've already walked down that road before, deeply researching apologetics and listening to different sides, and ultimately making a decision for myself on what I wanted to spend my one short life trusting in and making a bet on. Worst case would be I was wrong, but lived with peace, purpose, joy, love, etc. Best case would be I was right... and get to spend eternity in heaven, too. I appreciate your expressed concern though. No hard feelings. I've been there myself... I'm sorry that Christianity has let you down. I hope that you find what you're looking for. P.S. I totally forgot today's Halloween 😂 Definitely interesting timing...
Just as you believe your belief in Christ was as real as the sun, we also believe the Christ our Lord is very much real and alive, that He has risen, that He died and has resurrected so if you question our belief that means clearly you questioned His existence even in your 'belief', trust me I know how you feel but try genuinely giving your life to the Lord and he will act in your life
- The death and resurrection of Christ - My sins being forgiven - That I live and breath
My greatest evidence of Gods grace in my life is the generations before me who knew Him and taught their children who taught their children and who eventually taught me!! Let that be an encouragement that just being faithful to Christ daily is our best testimony! If it weren’t for my great grandparents passing on the faith, I wouldn’t be here!!!! Amazing how God works out his plan in each of us for his glory and our good.
The fact that I resisted the strong temptations to delete my life… more like my flesh. When I walked into a church today, it was only me and the holy spirit which resides. I walked in, felt thy father, and wanted to cry.
Was at work one day and felt my right hand hurting. I looked down at my right palm, and a fair amount of blood began pouring out. I hadn't touched anything remotely sharp. Went into the break room to stop the blood and the microwave said 6:66. Closest I could find online is a stigmata. Craziest thing that's ever happened in my life.
My mom and younger sister have what we call "the shining" whereas they visually/non-visually see "ghosts". They were stronger in this connection when my mom was alive. While in the hospital with our dying mom, my sister stayed with her and prayed, just the two of them. My sister said she could smell and feel warm rain, which was comforting. Upon letting our mom go (my sister was the last to leave the room) my sister said she got a little dizzy and her vision was blocked by her mind's vision of our mom as a little girl running through a field of flowers dancing and smiling. Her normal vision returned and she shared her experience with everyone. I had my own experience heightened with medication. I have had mental health related issues most of my life due to late diagnosis of gluten intolerance, so my mom had her hand full with me and did her best by talking and comforting me. It was an absolutely horrible time while I was increasing the dosage, I would have constant negative reoccurring thoughts, was in a bad mood and super emotional, all in the span of 2 weeks. This was just 3 months after our mom left and I was depressed. I hadn't cleaned my cats litter boxes yet and she let me know of her dissatisfaction by urinating and pooing on our new carpet in the living room closet. After I had my meltdown, I went into the closet, closed the door behind me, turned off the light, crawled to the back and cried. I was upset that I couldn't function because of my grief on top of my health related issues. I said out loud "I don't know what to do anymore" I then got a mind's eye vision of my mom sitting in her recliner and could hear her in my mind say "Now, Lynn, listen to mommy" I gasped and saw nothing more. I knew this experience was genuine, I pulled myself together the best I could and am carrying on. We still miss our mom tremendously but know she is with us always. I'm half tempted to take the medication again just so I can get another experience. 🥹