encouragement for the broken hearted

[polychoroprene]

God is not a cosmic Santa Claus. He does not give us whatever we want. If that were true, there would be no poverty, no illness, and no pain. Slap happy Christianity is a dangerous thing to spread.

I believe GOD is indeed a cosmic santa claus, provided you meet all HIS criteria for that specific request you made.
take example king hezekiah, GOD sent Isaiah to notify him that he's gonna die, he wouldnt recover. what could be more final than that? a death verdict from GOD HIMSELF.
but later hezekiah wept bitterly and GOD ordered Isaiah to turn around and convey change of verdict...ok, I will give you extension...15 years (that's a long time)...GOD even showed sign of confirmation of this reversal of death verdict.....by moving the sun position BACKWARD...it doesnt get more dramatic than that

so, you can ask HIM whatever you want, provided you meet all the criteria. but if you ask me what the criteria exactly are...well, you got me, I dont know for sure. I believe the criteria differs from one person to other and depends on the request and the time you make the request.

 

[Galatea]

I believe GOD is indeed a cosmic santa claus, provided you meet all HIS criteria for that specific request you made.
take example king hezekiah, GOD sent Isaiah to notify him that he's gonna die, he wouldnt recover. what could be more final than that? a death verdict from GOD HIMSELF.
but later hezekiah wept bitterly and GOD ordered Isaiah to turn around and convey change of verdict...ok, I will give you extension...15 years (that's a long time)...GOD even showed sign of confirmation of this reversal of death verdict.....by moving the sun position BACKWARD...it doesnt get more dramatic than that

so, you can ask HIM whatever you want, provided you meet all the criteria. but if you ask me what the criteria exactly are...well, you got me, I dont know for sure. I believe the criteria differs from one person to other and depends on the request and the time you make the request.

So, God is a cosmic slot machine? And no one knows when or how to get a jackpot? Wow, that is really rather coy of God.

 

[Ugly]

most of the time where break ups are "tough" is for sexual relationship. it's especially tough on the female. loss of virginity will "reduce" the worth of the female, especially in asian culture and christian community.
non believers are the only group to turn to if you dont want virginity to be an issue for the next relationship. that's why it's VERY UNFORTUNATE if you have sex before marriage. and no do over.....

So basically you're accusing this woman of sex before marriage based off of false logic. Judge much? Zero basis in reality for your statement. Speaks more about your mind than others behaviors.

 

[Lynx]

Just recently went through a breakup. Still don't want to give up on love!

What would it take for God to give me the desires of my heart?
one word.
one snap of his fingers.
one breathe from his mouth.

The Lord is faithful!
For those who are also having a heartbreak of whatever kind. The Lord is bigger than all of our troubles.
He is ABLE, He is anxious to do it!
we just need to hold on and don't let go.
halleluja

Howdy jellybelly and welcome to the singles forum.

Sadly what you have seen here is currently the norm. Any thread might turn into arguments for no good reason, complete with insults and disparagements.

Please don't let it get you down. You'll learn fairly quickly which people are here to hang out and which are here to snipe at others. The ones who just want to hang out and chat are pretty cool once you get to know them.

 

[dave_in_KWC]

Marriage is not a promise from God. Nor is He "anxious" to give us anyone. He is anxious to see the unsaved come to Him and for us to have a relationship with Him.
God's goal is not our happiness but our holiness.

I agree with these comments by UGLY and would add that God is after our desire to be wholly directed toward Him and for us to delight ourselves in Him. Another way of saying what UGLY is addressing is to say that ANYTHING we desire or focus on more than our Redeemer and Lord is an idol and this includes desiring a marriage partner, in my opinion and from what I understand of the Scriptures.

O God, You are my God; I shall seek You [SUP][b][/SUP]earnestly;
My soul thirsts for You, my flesh [SUP][c][/SUP]yearns for You,
In a dry and weary land where there is no water.
[SUP]2 [/SUP]Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.
[SUP]3 [/SUP]Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips will praise You.
[SUP]4 [/SUP]So I will bless You as long as I live;
I will lift up my hands in Your name.
[SUP]5 [/SUP]My soul is satisfied as with [SUP][d][/SUP]marrow and fatness,
And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips. (Psalm 63, NASB)

As part of my time with Jesus, I'm reading a book called "When I don't Desire God - How to Fight for Joy" by John Piper. It addresses this issue of who and what we desire as followers of Jesus and what Joy truly comes from. It is available for free to read online at: https://document.desiringgod.org/when-i-don-t-desire-god-en.pdf?ts=1471455013

 

[polychoroprene]

So basically you're accusing this woman of sex before marriage based off of false logic. Judge much? Zero basis in reality for your statement. Speaks more about your mind than others behaviors.

where did I say it's her? show the quote where I accuse OP of this. I'm stating a fact that most of tough breakups indeed apply for sexual relationship, multiple statistics and studies support this. so, not zero basis in reality, but proven time and again by many people. it speaks not about my mind, but about reality of this world, experienced by many people where many couples who's about to get married and later found out the female is not a virgin anymore, need more time to struggle, some even cancelled the marriage. go ask pastors, church counselors, etc. I actually volunteered in church for youth, so I know what I'm talking about. 90% of rough breakups is exactly because of this, all female, the same old song, lost virginity..... so, I return your question to you...judge much?

 

[polychoroprene]

So, God is a cosmic slot machine? And no one knows when or how to get a jackpot? Wow, that is really rather coy of God.

it's not coy, GOD is adhering to HIS LAWS to the dot.
no one knows when or how to get the jackpot? true, nobody can know for sure. Joshua asked the sun to stop, although it was technically a wrong instruction, he shouldve asked GOD to stop earth from rotating, but hey, GOD got the point, and HE granted his wish.
and again, hezekiah....he did changed GOD's death verdict, very hard to refute.....
if you dont get what you wish for, check if it's against any of HIS LAWS, if if you're sure it isnt, but still dont get it, hten that just means you missed some criteria. I've heard testimony, although I cant verify it, a cancer patient already in final stage, basically just waiting to die. she's been praying for healing for almost a decade, nothing, the cancer kept getting worse. but, later she went to see her estranged mother and reconciled with her, and the next day, the cancer completely gone. apparently, in her case, the missing criteria was forgiving her mother...you see, this cancer patient's case is the classic "sex before marriage, torn condom, single mother, unwanted child", so the mother said many hurtful things to her during her childhood, and that made her bitter. so, yeah, I do believe that once you met all the criteria, you can get your request.

"[FONT=&quot]And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][FONT=&quot]You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it."[/FONT]

 

[Galatea]

it's not coy, GOD is adhering to HIS LAWS to the dot.
no one knows when or how to get the jackpot? true, nobody can know for sure. Joshua asked the sun to stop, although it was technically a wrong instruction, he shouldve asked GOD to stop earth from rotating, but hey, GOD got the point, and HE granted his wish.
and again, hezekiah....he did changed GOD's death verdict, very hard to refute.....
if you dont get what you wish for, check if it's against any of HIS LAWS, if if you're sure it isnt, but still dont get it, hten that just means you missed some criteria. I've heard testimony, although I cant verify it, a cancer patient already in final stage, basically just waiting to die. she's been praying for healing for almost a decade, nothing, the cancer kept getting worse. but, later she went to see her estranged mother and reconciled with her, and the next day, the cancer completely gone. apparently, in her case, the missing criteria was forgiving her mother...you see, this cancer patient's case is the classic "sex before marriage, torn condom, single mother, unwanted child", so the mother said many hurtful things to her during her childhood, and that made her bitter. so, yeah, once I do believe once you met all the criteria, you can get your request

Don’t you think if that were the case, God would spell out the criteria? God is not cruel.

Making the sun stand still is not adhering to God’s laws to the dot- it is going outside His laws as He put the Earth and planets in motion.

You put the onus on people, when the onus is on God. He decides to grant or deny requests based on whether or not the requests interfere with His will.

Do not tell me my sister died and my request was denied because of something I did or did not do. This is one of the most horrible things I have ever read on this site.

 

[tourist]

it's not coy, GOD is adhering to HIS LAWS to the dot.
no one knows when or how to get the jackpot? true, nobody can know for sure. Joshua asked the sun to stop, although it was technically a wrong instruction, he shouldve asked GOD to stop earth from rotating, but hey, GOD got the point, and HE granted his wish.
and again, hezekiah....he did changed GOD's death verdict, very hard to refute.....
if you dont get what you wish for, check if it's against any of HIS LAWS, if if you're sure it isnt, but still dont get it, hten that just means you missed some criteria. I've heard testimony, although I cant verify it, a cancer patient already in final stage, basically just waiting to die. she's been praying for healing for almost a decade, nothing, the cancer kept getting worse. but, later she went to see her estranged mother and reconciled with her, and the next day, the cancer completely gone. apparently, in her case, the missing criteria was forgiving her mother...you see, this cancer patient's case is the classic "sex before marriage, torn condom, single mother, unwanted child", so the mother said many hurtful things to her during her childhood, and that made her bitter. so, yeah, I do believe that once you met all the criteria, you can get your request.

"And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it."

Apparently, God has a scorecard, and if you cross all of the 't's' and dot all of the 'i's' He will answer your prayer. Never knew that about God, always thought He was full of compassion and mercy. I guess you learn something everyday.

 

[polychoroprene]

Don’t you think if that were the case, God would spell out the criteria? God is not cruel.

Making the sun stand still is not adhering to God’s laws to the dot- it is going outside His laws as He put the Earth and planets in motion.

You put the onus on people, when the onus is on God. He decides to grant or deny requests based on whether or not the requests interfere with His will.

Do not tell me my sister died and my request was denied because of something I did or did not do. This is one of the most horrible things I have ever read on this site.

I see, so according to you, Joshua turned GOD into a law breaker, a sinner?
I dont know the condition behind your sister's death...and why is that about what you did or did not do? it's supposed to be between your sister and GOD. it's not horrible, it's just the way it is.
GOD already spelled out the criteria...the BIBLE. Read, pray, read, pray, keep doing that. GOD provided the way, the direct access to HIM, come at any time, plus a HELPER, the Holy Spirit will remind you of what you may have forgotten or missed.

 

[polychoroprene]

Apparently, God has a scorecard, and if you cross all of the 't's' and dot all of the 'i's' He will answer your prayer. Never knew that about God, always thought He was full of compassion and mercy. I guess you learn something everyday.

GOD indeed has a scorecard, you're saying HE doesnt keep tabs on us?
HE will answer your prayer, maybe yes, maybe no, and maybe you can even change HIS answer from no to yes, like hezekiah.
if HE was not full of compassion and mercy, HE wouldnt die on the cross to save us. we can now leniently come to HIM without any restriction. read OT, especially leviticus to understand just how hard it is to come before the LORD. not only that, HE also sends us a HELPER, the HOLY SPIRIT
I guess, you do learn something new everyday...

 

[tourist]

GOD indeed has a scorecard, you're saying HE doesnt keep tabs on us?
HE will answer your prayer, maybe yes, maybe no, and maybe you can even change HIS answer from no to yes, like hezekiah.
if HE was not full of compassion and mercy, HE wouldnt die on the cross to save us. we can now leniently come to HIM without any restriction. read OT, especially leviticus to understand just how hard it is to come before the LORD. not only that, HE also sends us a HELPER, the HOLY SPIRIT
I guess, you do learn something new everyday...

I try to learn something new each day but unfortunately not from your posts.

 

[polychoroprene]

I try to learn something new each day but unfortunately not from your posts.

then show me where my fault is, and maybe I can learn something from you, or perhaps it will further confirm that I'm right.
but before that, have you actually read the BIBLE, from genesis all the way to revelation? if you havent, then you're just making conjectures based on your own morality.

 

[Galatea]

I see, so according to you, Joshua turned GOD into a law breaker, a sinner?
I dont know the condition behind your sister's death...and why is that about what you did or did not do? it's supposed to be between your sister and GOD. it's not horrible, it's just the way it is.
GOD already spelled out the criteria...the BIBLE. Read, pray, read, pray, keep doing that. GOD provided the way, the direct access to HIM, come at any time, plus a HELPER, the Holy Spirit will remind you of what you may have forgotten or missed.

God agreed to Joshua’s request, because it aligned with God’s will. People can not make God do anything.

My sister was dying, or perhaps brain dead already. I prayed fervently all the way to the hospital that she would live, or that God would bring her back to life. That was foolish, about bringing her back to life, but desperate times call for desperate prayers. I gave her CPR, but was unsuccessful, although I had been trained every year for five years.

You stated that there are things we must do in order for God to grant our requets, but we don’t know what it is we are supposed to do. That is kind of cruel, in my opinion.

I stated that God grants or denies requests based on His agenda and not based on what we do or not do. I can say I believed with every atom of my being that He could raise her from the dead.

 

[seoulsearch]

then show me where my fault is, and maybe I can learn something from you, or perhaps it will further confirm that I'm right.
but before that, have you actually read the BIBLE, from genesis all the way to revelation? if you havent, then you're just making conjectures based on your own morality.

Hello Poly,

Welcome to CC!

I do believe that you have the intention of giving people hope.

However, may I ask you a question?

Jesus had two very memorable prayer requests while He was here in the flesh and on the earth:

1. Matthew 26:39 -- "My Father! If it is possible (if there is any other way), let this cup pass from Me..."

2. John 17:20-23 -- "I pray... for those who believe in Me... that they may be completely one (unity among believers.)"

We all know the story of Jesus' suffering and dying--though God COULD have found a way, He did not--and the clear answer to Jesus' own request that God would find another way was an all-too obvious, "No."

I just did a quick Google search for the "number of Christian denominations, 2017" and the numbers ranged from 1,100 to over 41,000. Even a short glance at many of the posts here would show that there is anything BUT unity within the current Christian church, so it seems, at this time at least, that Jesus' request for believers to be one has also been met with a "no" (though I know some will say that Jesus' prayer for unity will be answered in heaven.)

However, the fact that God said, "No," to Jesus' request to avoid suffering and dying is undeniable.

May I ask, what do you believe Jesus' shortcoming was that resulted in Jesus' not having his prayer answered with a "yes", as you are claiming that we all can do, as long as we meet all the qualifications?

How did Jesus fail, and is that why you believe God made Him go the the cross, despite his plea to avoid this?

In other words... What do you believe Jesus did, or didn't do, or what did Jesus believe or not believe, that would cause God Himself to answer Jesus' own prayer with a "No"?

 

[polychoroprene]

God agreed to Joshua’s request, because it aligned with God’s will. People can not make God do anything.

My sister was dying, or perhaps brain dead already. I prayed fervently all the way to the hospital that she would live, or that God would bring her back to life. That was foolish, about bringing her back to life, but desperate times call for desperate prayers. I gave her CPR, but was unsuccessful, although I had been trained every year for five years.

You stated that there are things we must do in order for God to grant our requets, but we don’t know what it is we are supposed to do. That is kind of cruel, in my opinion.

I stated that God grants or denies requests based on His agenda and not based on what we do or not do. I can say I believed with every atom of my being that He could raise her from the dead.

there are thing that we must do before HE grants our request. you may not know, or you already know, but you refuse to, like the cancer patient refused to forgive her mother for almost a decade until finally she surrenders and forgave her mother.

"After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before."

as I said, what one must do WILL differ because everybody has their own life, circumstances, wrong choices, right choices, weaknesses, strengths, etc. that's why the HELPER, the HOLY SPIRIT will help you to remind you of what you may have forgotten or need to do. this is NOT cruel.

People cant make God do anything? Hezekiah would beg to differ. he CHANGED GOD's death verdict, and had a son, although the son turned out to be evil...

raise your sister from the dead? of course HE can. HE did that to lazarus, although HE intentionally waited for several days before actually doing that.

have you read the BIBLE? read it, again, and again, and again, and again, until the day you stop breathing. only then can you gain understanding on GOD's character and behavior.
you;re asking about some manual of this "cosmic slot machine" right? well, guess what, you ALREADY have it, the BIBLE. GOD even sends the HELPER, HOLY SPIRIT to help you understand said manual..

 

[polychoroprene]

Hello Poly,

Welcome to CC!

I do believe that you have the intention of giving people hope.

However, may I ask you a question?

Jesus had two very memorable prayer requests while He was here in the flesh and on the earth:

1. Matthew 26:39 -- "My Father! If it is possible (if there is any other way), let this cup pass from Me..."

2. John 17:20-23 -- "I pray... for those who believe in Me... that they may be completely one (unity among believers.)"

We all know the story of Jesus' suffering and dying--though God COULD have found a way, He did not--and the clear answer to Jesus' own request that God would find another way was an all-too obvious, "No."

I just did a quick Google search for the "number of Christian denominations, 2017" and the numbers ranged from 1,100 to over 41,000. Even a short glance at many of the posts here would show that there is anything BUT unity within the current Christian church, so it seems, at this time at least, that Jesus' request for believers to be one has also been met with a "no" (though I know some will say that Jesus' prayer for unity will be answered in heaven.)

However, the fact that God said, "No," to Jesus' request to avoid suffering and dying is undeniable.

May I ask, what do you believe Jesus' shortcoming was that resulted in Jesus' not having his prayer answered with a "yes", as you are claiming that we all can do, as long as we meet all the qualifications?

How did Jesus fail, and is that why you believe God made Him go the the cross, despite his plea to avoid this?

In other words... What do you believe Jesus did, or didn't do, or what did Jesus believe or not believe, that would cause God Himself to answer Jesus' own prayer with a "No"?

Jesus was sent specifically to die on the cross, that was HIS mission from the start. it's a calling if you will, the one that I dont envy at all.
so, just because the answer is NO doesnt always mean it's because HE had any shortcoming.
as I said, if you dont get what you want, it's either because what you ask is against HIS LAWS, or you missed something.
in this case, I believe it's the former.

 

[joefizz]

where did I say it's her? show the quote where I accuse OP of this. I'm stating a fact that most of tough breakups indeed apply for sexual relationship, multiple statistics and studies support this. so, not zero basis in reality, but proven time and again by many people. it speaks not about my mind, but about reality of this world, experienced by many people where many couples who's about to get married and later found out the female is not a virgin anymore, need more time to struggle, some even cancelled the marriage. go ask pastors, church counselors, etc. I actually volunteered in church for youth, so I know what I'm talking about. 90% of rough breakups is exactly because of this, all female, the same old song, lost virginity..... so, I return your question to you...judge much?

Do you even read what you say?
Same old song?...that's rather a "heartless" attitude to take and treating people as "statistics" instead of "people".

 

[joefizz]

most of the time where break ups are "tough" is for sexual relationship. it's especially tough on the female. loss of virginity will "reduce" the worth of the female, especially in asian culture and christian community.
non believers are the only group to turn to if you dont want virginity to be an issue for the next relationship. that's why it's VERY UNFORTUNATE if you have sex before marriage. and no do over.....

Actually sexual relationship doesn't "reduce anyone's worth" that's quite a misconception,we all are the "same worth"to God that's rather offensive to say such a thing.

 

[polychoroprene]

Actually sexual relationship doesn't "reduce anyone's worth" that's quite a misconception,we all are the "same worth"to God that's rather offensive to say such a thing.

to GOD, no, but to other humans that's definitely NOT GOD,... yes.
you can poll christians how many prefers virgins over those who had committed sexual relationship....I guess you can already guess.
I'm a volunteer counselor, I know what I'm talking about, not making this stuff up.
as I said before, many guys broke up with their girlfriend once they know that she's not a virgin anymore. some even about to get married, but once know about this, cancelled the marriage.