Sorry for bothering all of you with these questions I've had, but this is the last one. So like you've said (and I agree), I have OCD. And also what you've said is that symptoms of OCD can be intrusive thoughts, which are bad thoughts that pop into head without a chance to stop them. Obviously it would be bad to call upon it follow these thoughts, but since I don't and cannot help these thoughts, are they sinful? And forgivable?
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Good morning AlexT2po,
I can't speak for anyone else, but I have bad thoughts as well, from time to time. Regarding this, I believe that the powers of darkness are able to influence us with unrighteous thoughts. It is when we entertain them, i.e. meditate upon those thoughts that it becomes sin. Whenever they come I immediately push them out. When they do come, I confess them and ask God to help me not to entertain them.
As far as there being forgiveness for unrighteous thoughts, most definitely. For Jesus said that, all sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven. And John said, "if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness." It is all part of the life-long process of being transformed into the image of Christ.
Confess those thoughts to God and ask Him to help you push them out when they come so that you don't entertain them. That's what I do anyway.
I can't speak for anyone else, but I have bad thoughts as well, from time to time. Regarding this, I believe that the powers of darkness are able to influence us with unrighteous thoughts. It is when we entertain them, i.e. meditate upon those thoughts that it becomes sin. Whenever they come I immediately push them out. When they do come, I confess them and ask God to help me not to entertain them.
As far as there being forgiveness for unrighteous thoughts, most definitely. For Jesus said that, all sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven. And John said, "if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness." It is all part of the life-long process of being transformed into the image of Christ.
Confess those thoughts to God and ask Him to help you push them out when they come so that you don't entertain them. That's what I do anyway.
Thoughts are only sinful if you choose to act on them. The thoughts of the OP are a symptom of OCD. Depending on the severity of these thoughts in is possible, in rare instances, that the person will have an overwhelming urge to act of them. In this case, even that would not be a sin as the actions were a result of the underlying disease or malady. In severe cases of OCD it may be necessary to seek professional help.
I agree with you that certain thoughts, if dwelled upon, can lead to sin. To avoid temptation it is best to pray to God for deliverance and to fill your mind with more wholesome spiritual thoughts to contemplate and to act on.
You are also right in saying that those in love and believe in Jesus will obtain atonement for any sinful thoughts and actions.
I agree with you that certain thoughts, if dwelled upon, can lead to sin. To avoid temptation it is best to pray to God for deliverance and to fill your mind with more wholesome spiritual thoughts to contemplate and to act on.
You are also right in saying that those in love and believe in Jesus will obtain atonement for any sinful thoughts and actions.
God bless you, brother!
D
I'm not trying to argue here. I'd just like to clarify something, so people understand a bit better.
Many of us call ourselves OCD because we have some habit that's pretty compulsive, but it's not OCD. Some of mine are refilling the TP holder only when it's empty, while hubby wants it refilled when there is one left. I think our pots fit better on the pot hanger if it goes small, big, medium, but hubby likes small, medium, big. This is just preference turned into habit. Some compulsiveness.
OCD is Obsessive compulsion that blocks out everything else. Same thought circling around and around again, with a compulsion to act on it. Dad is away a week, so I clean the whole house. All he sees is a pear hidden behind a curtain in the kitchen that should have been thrown away on Day Five. That's it. Tunnel vision on that one pear. It's 40 years later, and I could mention that pear and he'd go off yet again. He can't help it. It should have been thrown out at Day Five.
So there is no such thing as not-severe OCD. Obsessive is severe by the very nature of the word. Our problem is we can see it's okay to have differences of opinion on pears, TP and pots. OCD people cannot.
Alex, I know you are stuck on this. Even if you don't bring it up again, you're still stuck on it. The only change you can make is being nice to other people by letting the thought stick in your mind rather than bother anyone with it. I get that. (I don't get it as in I'm like that, but I know your stuck kind of "I get it.") God's not mad at you because your mind does that to you. It's kind of like someone with Tourette's Syndrome going to church and cursing. The person behind the outburst didn't sin. The body does something the person doesn't want it to do. Your mind does something you don't want it to do, so you are not at fault.
I keep telling you to seek help so that utterly-annoying (to you, not to others) mind of yours can be reset not to do that. And it might be reset like NotMyOwn's daughter was reset -- through prescription. Or it might be reset through therapy. But I really hope you get help so you are able to get past this, because this must be incredibly distracting to you.
Life really is easier without that constant nag of a mind.
Many of us call ourselves OCD because we have some habit that's pretty compulsive, but it's not OCD. Some of mine are refilling the TP holder only when it's empty, while hubby wants it refilled when there is one left. I think our pots fit better on the pot hanger if it goes small, big, medium, but hubby likes small, medium, big. This is just preference turned into habit. Some compulsiveness.
OCD is Obsessive compulsion that blocks out everything else. Same thought circling around and around again, with a compulsion to act on it. Dad is away a week, so I clean the whole house. All he sees is a pear hidden behind a curtain in the kitchen that should have been thrown away on Day Five. That's it. Tunnel vision on that one pear. It's 40 years later, and I could mention that pear and he'd go off yet again. He can't help it. It should have been thrown out at Day Five.
So there is no such thing as not-severe OCD. Obsessive is severe by the very nature of the word. Our problem is we can see it's okay to have differences of opinion on pears, TP and pots. OCD people cannot.
Alex, I know you are stuck on this. Even if you don't bring it up again, you're still stuck on it. The only change you can make is being nice to other people by letting the thought stick in your mind rather than bother anyone with it. I get that. (I don't get it as in I'm like that, but I know your stuck kind of "I get it.") God's not mad at you because your mind does that to you. It's kind of like someone with Tourette's Syndrome going to church and cursing. The person behind the outburst didn't sin. The body does something the person doesn't want it to do. Your mind does something you don't want it to do, so you are not at fault.
I keep telling you to seek help so that utterly-annoying (to you, not to others) mind of yours can be reset not to do that. And it might be reset like NotMyOwn's daughter was reset -- through prescription. Or it might be reset through therapy. But I really hope you get help so you are able to get past this, because this must be incredibly distracting to you.
Life really is easier without that constant nag of a mind.
U
And OCD can come in different levels. Granted, OCD is an extreme issue in and of itself, there are still varying degrees of it. It also can manifest in various ways, it's not always identical. My ex that had it, as a child, had hand washing issues. She would tear her hands up washing them over and over again till she'd throw the soap out of frustration, making it too dirty to use. Yet as an adult she rarely had hand washing issues, and when it did happen it was not near as bad. In fact 'physical' aspects of OCD manifestations were often mild and infrequent for her, and obsessive thoughts were her real struggle as an adult. And typically telling her she did not need to do physical things worked. Such as when she would turn a shirt inside out over and over, fearing she would die if she didn't. But once i stated she would not die if she didn't keep turning it inside out, she was able to stop. But with her thoughts, there was no convincing her. All you could do was attempt to make it easier on her and let the thought ride out on it's own.
He has also stated, in another post, he intends on getting help. But perhaps as a teen this isn't going as quickly since there are others involved in helping him, and they may be the ones going slow. Not to mention it can be a slow process depending on insurance, availability of counseling and psychiatrists in the area, etc...
But a promise of 'resetting' is a bit much. Perhaps it's possible, but no guarantee can be made. It's never a guarantee in the arena of mental health.
He has also stated, in another post, he intends on getting help. But perhaps as a teen this isn't going as quickly since there are others involved in helping him, and they may be the ones going slow. Not to mention it can be a slow process depending on insurance, availability of counseling and psychiatrists in the area, etc...
But a promise of 'resetting' is a bit much. Perhaps it's possible, but no guarantee can be made. It's never a guarantee in the arena of mental health.