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> Stumbling Blocks, What are yours?
Elspeth 
Posted: 05-Apr-2004, 05:48 AM
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I think most people who have been Christians for a while have discovered a stumbling block or two. Those things that keep tripping us up. For some it is their intellect, for some money and for others relationships. Almost anything can be a stumbling block, that something that is used to keep us from being as close to God as He wants us to be.

Mine may be a bit strange but it falls under the category of God?s will for my life. When I was 13 I met the boy I was certain was fated to be my destiny. A certainty that never faded until he married someone else. Long story and not relevant. I went on with my life, putting him out of my mind for close to 20 years.

The thing is, they say when you look back over your life you are supposed to see how God worked in it for good. I can?t see that. I?ve been traveling a difficult road for the last 20 years. There are times when I?ve thought - if this is the plan for my life, then God doesn?t like me too well. And, to add to the confusion, I learned a couple of years ago that the one I always thought I was supposed to be with has been traveling a different, but equally unhappy path. Neither of us have a marriage the way a marriage should be.

So, this opens up all kinds of questions about plans for our lives, God?s will, etc and etc. For the last couple of years I have struggled with this. And add to the mix all the inherent mid-life questionings, I?ve just been a mass of trying to figure out what it?s all about.

So many people want to make this into an easy answer. God has a plan. If life is good we are faithful to His plan, if life is bad then it is our own fault. That has been hard for me, because I see my situation to be more a result of others choices than of mine. My first love chose someone else. My husband chooses to drink. Two decisions that have greatly affected my life, but over which I have had no control.

It was helpful to me to read an essay on prayer that compared prayer to a three-legged stool. Our petitions are one leg, God?s desires for our lives a second and the counter effect of the workings of the adversary the third. This metaphor allows for the thwarting of God?s will. For this is earth, not heaven and because of that God?s desires for us can be circumvented by our free will or the free will of others. Why He allows that to happen sometimes and not others is a mystery, but the mystery of living in this imperfect world.

I have found some peace by thinking that I wasn?t wrong in my youth. I did recognize God?s will. And when that was thwarted, I went on with my life as faithfully as I knew how. Then again, it could be that I am just stubbornly holding onto something I should have let go of years ago. It?s hard to know.

So, what are your stumbling blocks? And if you want to comment upon mine, feel free.


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Compassion is the sometimes fatal capacity for feeling what it is like inside somebody else's skin. It is the knowledge that there can never really be any peace and joy for me until there is peace and joy finally for you too.
- Frederick Buechner



If society prospers at the expense of the intangibles,
how can it be called progress?

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tsargent62 
Posted: 05-Apr-2004, 08:00 AM
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My biggest stumbling block is Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). It's a pain in the butt. If it weren't for medication it would be worse. I have trouble remembering things, even important things, unless I write them down; even then it's no guarantee I'll remember. I really hate the fact that I'm so easily distracted. Again, withouth medication, linear thought is an absolute impossibility. I start down a train of thought, but I can't filter any other input that interferes with it, so I go off in a completely different, unrelated direction. That in itself is the definition of ADD: a lack of filters. As we ADD sufferers get older we learn to deal with some of these problems, but they never go away. However, the there are lasting emotional effects. I tend to suffer from depression as a result of my inability to perform as I know I can and from years of hearing "You could do so much better".

Many times I've prayed for God to make me "normal". To take my ADD away. Given that it is caused by a chemical imbalance, He made me this way, so there must be made a reason. Unfortunately, this creates a lot of stress for my wife. You see, both my oldest son and my daughter have ADD as well, so poor Maria has 3 of us to deal with. Oy!


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Todd



Normal is a relative term. For some reason it is not a term my relatives use to describe me.


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MacEoghainn 
Posted: 05-Apr-2004, 03:50 PM
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I could take the easy way out and say women are my stumbling block, but I won't. My biggest stumbling block is me. Pride, lack of faith, lust, ect... all affect me.

What was it that Paul said? I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.
For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do?this I keep on doing. (Romans 7:18-19)

MacE
(living under Grace, because if we were under the Law I'd be in big trouble!)


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MDF3530 
  Posted: 05-Apr-2004, 04:53 PM
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My "stumbling blocks" are of a different sort. I have a gambling problem and attend Twelve Step meetings. I try to avoid going by the riverboat casinos here in the Chicago area. I just don't want to flush the gamble-free years I have down the drain.


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Mike F.

May the Irish hills caress you.
May her lakes and rivers bless you.
May the luck of the Irish enfold you.
May the blessings of Saint Patrick behold you.


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Roisin-Teagan 
Posted: 05-Apr-2004, 05:59 PM
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QUOTE (MacEoghainn @ Apr 5 2004, 03:50 PM)

What was it that Paul said? I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.
For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do?this I keep on doing. (Romans 7:18-19)

MacE
(living under Grace, because if we were under the Law I'd be in big trouble!)

I couldn't have said it better, because without Grace I don't know where I'd be! unsure.gif thumbs_up.gif


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Roisin-Teagan

"There, in that hand, on that shoulder under that chin---all of its lightness delicately balanced and its strings skillfully bowed---it becomes a voice."---Rich Mullins

"At 18, if you have oversized aspirations, the whole world sees you as a dreamer. At 40, you get the reputation for being a visionary." ---Rich Mullins

"God gives the gifts where He finds the vessel empty enough to receive them."---C.S. Lewis

Éire go Brách!
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Roisin-Teagan 
Posted: 05-Apr-2004, 06:08 PM
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QUOTE (MDF3530 @ Apr 5 2004, 04:53 PM)
My "stumbling blocks" are of a different sort. I have a gambling problem and attend Twelve Step meetings. I try to avoid going by the riverboat casinos here in the Chicago area. I just don't want to flush the gamble-free years I have down the drain.

Mike,
Thanks for sharing. I know it had to take courage to open up about something that personal. I think it will help others who might be struggling with their own vices (whatever they may be). And we ALL have or had at one time vices we struggle(d) with in some form or fashion. smile.gif
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Elspeth 
Posted: 06-Apr-2004, 07:20 AM
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Too true Roisin. We all are made imperfectly. Whether that be a physical or mental condition that keeps us from all we want to be or our desires to do what we shouldn't. And there is a power in this world that works against God. A power that knows our weakness and does all it can to exploit them. I am finding myself on the verge of anxiety attacks. It is a struggle to focus on what is good and true. But I know the closer I get to God, the more the adversary tries to keep me away. I've been finding myself repeating part of the Lorica (sp?) of St. Patrick that was posted - Christ before me. Christ beside me. Christ behind me. Christ below me. Christ above me. I might be paraphrasing, but the idea of having an insulation of Christ all around me is a comforting one.
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tsargent62 
Posted: 08-Apr-2004, 12:09 PM
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Mike,

Thanks for sharing with us. I can't imagine what a gambling addiction would be like to deal with. I thank God that you were able to kick it. I know by my mother's alcohol addiction when I was a kid how valuable the Twelve Step meetings can be. I also know what kind of hell addiction is. I just gained a whole new respect for you, my friend. Praise God for helping you climb out of your own personal pit.
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CelticRoz 
Posted: 23-Apr-2004, 02:15 PM
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My stumbling blocks are anxiety and depression. I have suffered with this for many years. It is hereditary in my family and though I have been through many years of therapy (group and individual) I still battle it every day. It can really take over your life if you allow it too. The weird thing is that I have a great life and nothing to be anxious or depressed about and yet I suffer it daily anyway. Thank God for medication! Hope you all don't think me weird now. unsure.gif
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Aaediwen 
Posted: 23-Apr-2004, 03:47 PM
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We all fight evils in outselves, I believe. One I've been more concious of lately is that I feel I may be a little too arrogant, a bit too sociologically anal... too much wanting to brag.



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CelticRoz 
Posted: 23-Apr-2004, 04:40 PM
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Hi Aaediwen! Good to see you! How are you doing, my friend?
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WizardofOwls 
Posted: 23-Apr-2004, 06:03 PM
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QUOTE (CelticRose @ Apr 23 2004, 03:15 PM)
My stumbling blocks are anxiety and depression.  I have suffered with this for many years. It is hereditary in my family and though I have been through many years of therapy (group and individual) I still battle it every day. It can really take over your life if you allow it too.  The weird thing is that I have a great life and nothing to be anxious or depressed about and yet I suffer it daily anyway. Thank God for medication!  Hope you all don't think me weird now. unsure.gif

Rosie, a ghràidh, I would NEVER think you were weird! You are a true inspiration to me! One of the best friends I have that I've never actually met! Every time I run into you on these boards it is a true plesure for me! You always have something good and kind and cheerful to say to me and to others! I struggle with a bad attitude and grumpy disposition, but you bring out the best in me!

So you keep your chin up and hold your head high! God loves you and He is on your side! He knows the very number of hairs on your head and has known all about you (both the good AND the bad) from before you were even conceived! You are a child of the King! And that makes you royalty! king.gif smile.gif

And always remember: if God be FOR us who can be AGAINST us!!!!

From your brother in Christ!


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Slàn agus beannachd,
Allen R. Alderman

'S i Alba tìr mo chridhe. 'S i Gàidhlig cànan m' anama.
Scotland is the land of my heart. Gaelic is the language of my soul.
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CelticRoz 
Posted: 23-Apr-2004, 07:04 PM
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Oh thank you Allen! You are so very kind. I enjoy your company just as well and always so very happy to see you on the site here when I do!

You and your family take care, my friend! Glad I am able to bring out the best in others. I strive to do that! thumbs_up.gif
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WizardofOwls 
Posted: 24-Apr-2004, 07:55 PM
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You are welcome my friend! smile.gif

Personally, my stumbling blocks are mostly personality related. Impatience, stubborness, quick temper, bad attitude. I thank God every day for His help, because without it, I don't know where I'd be today.

Boredom is another major problem of mine. I am mentally hyper-active and get bored very easily with most anything I try to read or work on. The only exception to this was fantasy books. Before I returned to Christ two and half years ago, I was very much into Dungeons and Dragons and reading fantasy novels. All of the time. They consumed my time. Once I got saved, though, I felt compelled to give them up. That left a HUGE hole in my life that I didn't know how to fill. I threw myself into my Scottish Gaelic studies and piano lessons, discovered the Left Behind series of books and consumed them in no time, and started buying every Christian book and CD that I get my hands on, so that when boredom struck again I'd have something decent to lay my hands on. This is still a big problem for me. I'm just gald I have the Lord on my side to help me through it! smile.gif
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CelticRoz 
Posted: 26-Apr-2004, 10:06 PM
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QUOTE (wizardofowls @ Apr 24 2004, 08:55 PM)
Personally, my stumbling blocks are mostly personality related. Impatience, stubborness, quick temper, bad attitude. I thank God every day for His help, because without it, I don't know where I'd be today.

Now I can relate to these! You can see how imperfect I am! LOL

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