Frustrated with myself

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pwlj_christ87

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I am getting very frustrated because I dont know how to treat others … I know that I have to love others as myself… however i dont know how to act around those who are evil.

this i mean, when i turn on the tv… when i watch sports and see figures that i know are up evil… .when i am at my gym and hear music that is ungodly… when i can quickly look at someone and know the type of person they are… when i am around lazy workers at work and people that dont believe…

i know i have to love others, but am i entitled to be angry as well because of this?

i want to live in a state of perfection always, that is why i love sundays and church the most… but when i am put back into “life” im constantly around this evil… it angers me… i feel belittled…
 
pwlj_christ87 said:
I am getting very frustrated because I dont know how to treat others … I know that I have to love others as myself… however i dont know how to act around those who are evil.

this i mean, when i turn on the tv… when i watch sports and see figures that i know are up evil… .when i am at my gym and hear music that is ungodly… when i can quickly look at someone and know the type of person they are… when i am around lazy workers at work and people that dont believe…

i know i have to love others, but am i entitled to be angry as well because of this?

i want to live in a state of perfection always, that is why i love sundays and church the most… but when i am put back into “life” im constantly around this evil… it angers me… i feel belittled…
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Oh very good topic and points.

Consider telling God those in prayer…complain about yourself. I tell God often “how Lord can you love such a knucklehead as I am…I am such a messy child…love me more…show me the way with this or that person…don’t trust me so much…give me more grace…I am a needy child of yours…and I waste Your grace so badly…and I am sorry…give me a greater desire to love that jerk at work…send your angels to help me. Don’t keep me waiting, unless it’s good for me”

Pray your complaints often to God…and as a child of God ask for lots and lots of things…graces and great holy desires. Offer him moments…tough situations. Confess sincerely and frequently…but as a child, happily.

God bless.

You have great desires,…take them to Your Father God, often, daily.
 
Good post eh-

I think we also need to remember things like -

Judge not…

Remove the log from your own eye…

Love even your enemy…(oh, you said that)

You know what to do.

Jesus forgive us.
 
I know your feelings. It would be good for you to work on your virtuous of humility, charity and patience with others, with God’s grace. I always have the tension to check out what other colleagues are doing, especially the ones who “do not work as hard as I do”, I rather want them to be ‘as perfect as I am’. Keep in mind that without God’s grace, you posses nothing, and you can do literary nothing good. Be thankful to God for the graces he gave you, to work hard and not to get involved in the evil. Ask God the grace to be merciful to others and to realize that you are not better than they are.
 
The only thing you can do now is pray for humility and pray for them. And remember this. Did Jesus come to earth to save the righteous or the sinners? I think we all know the answer.
 
Hi there- I think this is pretty common. When striving to lead a virtuous life, it CAN be frustrating to see all that is undgodly around us. It is hard not to grow cynical or at least be upset at people. I know that in my own personal journey I have to remember my faith is a gift. So many don’t have the gift of faith. Perhaps all the people you encounter it is a good opportunity to either spread love to them (even in the form of a simple smile) or to share your faith in some special way (i.e. saying something about the Rosary or that God is with them). It can be hard to share faith with everyone of course so perhaps just praying for the person is equally as good but I remember in the book of James it says we have to provide for our brothers and sisters who are physically in need and not only just pray for them. Yet, what I think you are saying is those brothers in sisters who are not physically in need, just have no sense of God in their lives…keep praying my friend. Your ability to reach others is equivalent to your spiritual union with the Lord. If you have faith, even if it is just a mustard seed, God will see that it grows and you will make a difference in the world. You are the light of the world, my friend. You were made to let that faith shine. It is something I need to pray for too. I am so weak and a sinner and need prayers myself.
 
Mr_Clean said:
Good post eh-

I think we also need to remember things like -

Judge not…

Remove the log from your own eye…

Love even your enemy…(oh, you said that)

You know what to do.

Jesus forgive us.
Click to expand...
👍 👍

Yes. I think an important part of Jesus’s message is not just that I am a sinner, but so is everyone else. So I need to get over that. And quit noticing their sins as if their sins are more special and sinister than my own.

Some people’s sins show more than mine. Some are more popular to denounce publicly than others. For example, if I see a homosexual couple doing a PDA, that immediately triggers my gag reflex. But if I see a young couple I know to be living together outside of wedlock, that is still wrong, but it doesn’t quite get the gag the same way.

When I get that visceral reaction to someone else’s behavior, to me that’s a flag that I need to “mortify my triggers.” Others may think it’s OK to feel gaggy but I’m not satisfied with that; I don’t want others’ behavior to take away the peace Jesus gave us, even momentarily.

I’m not saying that if someone is gay I should accept that as being OK, just that why should I notice they are gay and have that negatively influence how I feel about it, compared to somebody who is not gay but goes around angry all the time?

So that’s one message that I hear from Jesus – we can confess our sins to each other, but nobody needs to stand up and point at each other to do it, or they will “rock the boat.”

This reminds me of a cute movie called “Guys and Dolls” that involved drunkards with gambling addictions, turning their lives around. Maybe others won’t see the connection, but I still think it’s a cool song, with Nicely Nicely singing “Don’t Rock the Boat.” The context of “Rock the Boat” here is from the sinning itself, but it came to mind so here I’ll share it:

youtube.com/watch?v=o7kzsZreG0o

MS
 
pwlj_christ87 said:
I am getting very frustrated because I dont know how to treat others … I know that I have to love others as myself… however i dont know how to act around those who are evil.

this i mean, when i turn on the tv… when i watch sports and see figures that i know are up evil… .when i am at my gym and hear music that is ungodly… when i can quickly look at someone and know the type of person they are… when i am around lazy workers at work and people that dont believe…

i know i have to love others, but am i entitled to be angry as well because of this?

i want to live in a state of perfection always, that is why i love sundays and church the most… but when i am put back into “life” im constantly around this evil… it angers me… i feel belittled…
Click to expand...
It is difficult to live around some people who are not christian in their habits. It is agrivating and makes you feel like the dog who is being petted against the way the fur is lying.

I had a friend in high school who was around someone who was constantly taking Jesus’ name in vain.
Finally one day my friend told this person, “Is Jesus your friend since you use his name frequently?” His answer was no. Then my friend said, “Well he is my friend and I would appreciate it if you would stop using his name.”

One time I had to work around a man whose mouth spoke nothing but filthy sexual ideas in every sentence he said. He couldn’t think or say anything decent or even neutral, it was always filthy. I knew if I said anything to him about it he would have just poured in on, so I felt silence was the better way. But I would say a prayer for him.

It can be very difficult to work with people like that, but maybe it is a good thing if they see someone who is different so they won’t think that this is the universal way of everyone. And it affords us the opportunity to say a prayer for them as well.

Use patience and give the difficulty of the moment to Jesus for them, that way you will be doing some real good. I think of what Jesus said that we should be like yeast in bread, to make the bread rise slowly.

May God bless and keep you. May God’s face shine on you. May God be kind to you and give you peace.
 
]Adding a prayer from Scripture against observations-sometimes-veering-into judgmentalism.

Does God call evil those who are misinformed and misled?
Does God or we know what is the true state of anyone else’s souls.
But you say " when i can quickly look at someone and know the type of person they are." I know myself that people decide what I’m thinking or feeling or what my motives are and they’ve often been incorrect.
And where you speak of anger towards “people that don’t believe”, yes, because if they honestly cannot believe, they cannot lie and claim they do, nor can they force faith, faith is a gift from God.
It is God who knows their minds and presumptuous for us to judge these honest unbelievers.

We can, in our own personal lack of perfection, say:

“Who can detect his own failings?
Wash out my hidden faults
And from pride preserve your servant,
never let it dominate me
So shall I be above reproach, free from grave sin.” [Psalm 19:12-13]

Instead of being angry and thereby damaging our own souls, as well as offering no love towards these people, we can pray for them every time we see something in others or in this world that needs our prayers.

Our prayers for them may obtain the grace that leads to their final repentance and acceptance of God and His mercy.
 
Try to turn these occasions of frustration into occasions for growing in love and virtue. Think, for example, that any good you possess comes from God; implore mercy for your neighbour, whom God is so eager to pardon; bear the temptation with patience for the love of God, Who was burdened with the sins of the world etc.

The Rev. Auguste Saudreau tells us to praise God when we see Him offended. He offers this example from the Revelations of Our Lord to St. Mechtilde: “Whenever you see a gesture that scandalises you, praise Me for the nobility and modesty of all My gestures. When you see anyone abandoned to pride, praise Me for My profound humility which made Me subject to all, whom am the Saviour of all. When you see anyone fly into a rage, praise Me for My meekness… etc.”
 
When I am tempted to criticize or judge or get frustrated because someone is living a sinful lifestyle I stop and think: “There but for the Grace of God go I.” I have no business judging another person because before I had a conversion I did many of the same things I now want to criticize others for. And if God were not so gracious, I still would be living that lifestyle.

It is one thing to recognize sin and hate it, and speak against evil things, and fight injustice, immorality, etc. It is quite another to look at a person and pass judgment on them. Every single one of us is capable of backsliding and sinning, even grievously, no matter how good a Christian we may be.

Ask God to give you peace and pray for the world. And ask him for compassion for sinners, and pray for them. And recognize that you are not where they are only because of the grace of God, and He loves them as much as He loves you.
 
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