New Catholic finding it hard

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crazzeto said:
What specific issues are you having? Just general issues with the faith it’s self? Issues with your level of involvement at church, or how you perseive how much involvement is possible?
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Just why we should be Catholics? and why do we go to hell if we are bad?! haha 🙂

I think that I am ok now 🙂 I thik that I am just like a naughty child not doing what his parents are telling him - I was a rebel haha 🙂 I will just accept and do good so that I do not have to go to hell and learn through more pain and suffering. The pain that we suffer is just to teach us the negative aspects of sin, I think? 🙂
 
crazydyl said:
Just why we should be Catholics? and why do we go to hell if we are bad?! haha 🙂

I think that I am ok now 🙂 I thik that I am just like a naughty child not doing what his parents are telling him - I was a rebel haha 🙂 I will just accept and do good so that I do not have to go to hell and learn through more pain and suffering. The pain that we suffer is just to teach us the negative aspects of sin, I think? 🙂
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Well if you feel like you’re in a good place then hallelujah, but I’d hate to just leave you off thinking you need to be a martyr for the true faith, at least not in a metephorical sense of living an unhappy life for no good reason!!

You should be living a life of hope in the resurrection of the Lord, and uncontainable gladdness that you have found a deeper and more meaningful relationship with Christ! Feel free to PM, email or post back here if you ever need any idea’s in how to get more involved, learn more, meet more people and find more joy in your faith!
 
crazzeto said:
Well if you feel like you’re in a good place then hallelujah, but I’d hate to just leave you off thinking you need to be a martyr for the true faith, at least not in a metephorical sense of living an unhappy life for no good reason!!

You should be living a life of hope in the resurrection of the Lord, and uncontainable gladdness that you have found a deeper and more meaningful relationship with Christ! Feel free to PM, email or post back here if you ever need any idea’s in how to get more involved, learn more, meet more people and find more joy in your faith!
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Hehe ok 🙂 I don’t need hope 🙂 I just know that sinning is a bad way to live so I won’t do it anymore 🙂

Thank you for your responses everyone 👍 I will pray for you all so that you are happy and do not sin 🙂 SINNING MAKES US SAD! 🙂
 
crazydyl said:
Hehe ok 🙂 I don’t need hope 🙂 I just know that sinning is a bad way to live so I won’t do it anymore 🙂

Thank you for your responses everyone 👍 I will pray for you all so that you are happy and do not sin 🙂 SINNING MAKES US SAD! 🙂
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It makes God sad too 😦
 
As a convert of a few years I completely understand this feeling of not being where I need to be with my faith. I know people say to get involved with your parish. I moved shortly after converting and the parish I started in had a very poor RCIA class. I do not feel like learned anything I didn’t already know about my new faith. My main issue is I would like to be in a study that teaches me something. The Catholic based Bible studies I have been around only skim the surface. I grew up hard core Baptist. I know the stories and a lot of the principles of the Bible, but I by no means am a scholar. I know there is more to learn but am hard pressed to find a way to learn it. If anyone has suggestions please throw them my way. I know I need help!:confused:
 
rainalaska said:
As a convert of a few years I completely understand this feeling of not being where I need to be with my faith. I know people say to get involved with your parish. I moved shortly after converting and the parish I started in had a very poor RCIA class. I do not feel like learned anything I didn’t already know about my new faith. My main issue is I would like to be in a study that teaches me something. The Catholic based Bible studies I have been around only skim the surface. I grew up hard core Baptist. I know the stories and a lot of the principles of the Bible, but I by no means am a scholar. I know there is more to learn but am hard pressed to find a way to learn it. If anyone has suggestions please throw them my way. I know I need help!:confused:
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Just do not sin! Sin makes people and God sad! 🙂 You just have to stop rebelling against God! 🙂
 
rainalaska said:
As a convert of a few years I completely understand this feeling of not being where I need to be with my faith. I know people say to get involved with your parish. I moved shortly after converting and the parish I started in had a very poor RCIA class. I do not feel like learned anything I didn’t already know about my new faith. My main issue is I would like to be in a study that teaches me something. The Catholic based Bible studies I have been around only skim the surface. I grew up hard core Baptist. I know the stories and a lot of the principles of the Bible, but I by no means am a scholar. I know there is more to learn but am hard pressed to find a way to learn it. If anyone has suggestions please throw them my way. I know I need help!:confused:
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Are there any bible studies around you that use the Catholic Scripture Study program? www.cssprogram.net, it’s a terrific series written by excellent orthodox theologians and authors. If you know of any, or are in a position to suggest study materials I would suggest giong that route.

If you have no such luck I can recommend to you Steve Ray’s Gosple of St. John for starts. I’d recommend pairing it with a good Rev. Haydock Douay Rheims bible, as well as purchasing FaithDatabase (www.faithdatabase.com). You’ll find this takes you very very deep into the scriptures!

God bless, and good luck!
 
crazzeto said:
Are there any bible studies around you that use the Catholic Scripture Study program? www.cssprogram.net, it’s a terrific series written by excellent orthodox theologians and authors. If you know of any, or are in a position to suggest study materials I would suggest giong that route.

If you have no such luck I can recommend to you Steve Ray’s Gosple of St. John for starts. I’d recommend pairing it with a good Rev. Haydock Douay Rheims bible, as well as purchasing FaithDatabase (www.faithdatabase.com). You’ll find this takes you very very deep into the scriptures!

God bless, and good luck!
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Thanks! I will check it out.🙂
 
I think you may be focusing too much in the wrong direction. Go back to basics! Focus on our Lord. Love Him. Trust Him.

Pray, asking for strength and insight. Go to Mass as often as possible. If available, go to Adoration - not once but often. Jesus will help you but you need to meet him half way (well, not even that!). You can do this.
 
lutherlic said:
I think you may be focusing too much in the wrong direction. Go back to basics! Focus on our Lord. Love Him. Trust Him.

Pray, asking for strength and insight. Go to Mass as often as possible. If available, go to Adoration - not once but often. Jesus will help you but you need to meet him half way (well, not even that!). You can do this.
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This is terrific advice! I can’t wait to get my time with the Lord on 06/04… We only get the first friday of the month in support of Our Lady of Lourds (15mi from me) which is propetual.
 
lutherlic said:
I think you may be focusing too much in the wrong direction. Go back to basics! Focus on our Lord. Love Him. Trust Him.

Pray, asking for strength and insight. Go to Mass as often as possible. If available, go to Adoration - not once but often. Jesus will help you but you need to meet him half way (well, not even that!). You can do this.
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Ok, that’s like in a relationship hehe 🙂 Don’t just not make your partner upset, you have to make an effort to get them to like you and show that you love them 😛
 
I think that I have GOT IT! 🙂

Ok, my parents love me and want the best for me, so they are not always easy-going on me and are quite firm so that I do something that I don’t like but will make me happy in the end. I study so that I can have a good life 🙂

God, on the other hand, we are his children and He wants the best for us ie. getting to heaven. He wants only good people in there so this life is kinda like high school! He loves us dearly and wants us to get to Heaven 🙂 God is firm with us so that we learn how to be children full of love and not make heaven a bad place. You could liken Heaven to a mother that has deceased and she has passed on her savings to the best children 👍😛

I hope that I am on the right track? 🙂
 
That isn’t a bad anology at all, sounds like you’re finding your way slowly but surely. Just dont’ place too many expectations on your self all at once, let your self grow slowly in faith. At prayer group yesterday we had a great conversation about how God even had to allow Abrahams faith to grow over a long period of time.
 
Ok, so I guess that I have got that part sorted in my head 🙂

Now, what kind of person does God want us to become? How does He want us to think? How often do we need to pray?What kind of stuff does He want us to like? Is this something too big to write down? hehe 🙂 Perhaps just don’t do things that are not allowed? I want to be special enough for Heaven 🙂
 
crazydyl said:
Ok, so I guess that I have got that part sorted in my head 🙂

Now, what kind of person does God want us to become?
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Toughie, it’s unique to each individual. As lutherlic said, spend time in prayer and adoration, this will help quiet your mind so you can listen to God’s voice.
crazydyl said:
How does He want us to think?
How often do we need to pray?
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Can’t tell you what God wants you to think, since we have free will I’d say God wants us to be free to think whatever we want. Perhaps thinking about him more than about the latest trends and crazes of the culture would be a good choice though 🙂

Pray unceasingly, that is directly from scriptures. There are a lot of ways to go about trying to do this. Jesus prayer is a good start “Lord Jesus Christ only Son of the Father, have mercy on me a sinner”
crazydyl said:
What kind of stuff does He want us to like? Is this something too big to write down? hehe 🙂 Perhaps just don’t do things that are not allowed? I want to be special enough for Heaven 🙂
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I’m not sure what kind of stuff God wants you to like, other that spiritual things. There’s no problem likeing material things (like my 50" HDTV I got several years ago) as long as you’re not **attached ** to them.

God bless,
 
Ok 🙂 I think that I will be ok then 🙂 I don’t like spending money on things that I don’t need though :o A lot of Catholic people like going on holidays though :o I feel bad wasting money because people need it in Africa and countries like that.

Should I put up with a wife that wants to go on holidays? Or look for a wife that doesn’t want to go on holidays? I think that it is really bad of us to waste money on ourselves when people are starving to death, what do you think I should do? :o
 
Well, first, remember that it’s good to budget and prioritize what you need.

Second, while the desire to be philanthropic is wonderful, you also need to contribute to the economy, so that people can earn wages and not starve. There are wonderful businesses that sell Fair Trade crafts and gifts to aid people all over the world in earning their livelihoods. Check out Ten Thousand Villages, Green America, Fair Trade Federation, Equal Exchange and other organizations. Also, if hunger and poverty really concern you and are speaking to you, I recommend checking organizations like Alliance to End Hunger, Bread for the World (Christian, with a huge respect for Catholic beliefs on family planning, as it relates to hunger, as well as partnerships with the USCCB and Catholic Relief Services), Oxfam (International and America)…I’d be happy to let you know of some book titles too. Volunteer at a food pantry or a kitchen that collects food from restaurants to distribute to shelters, connect with political advocacy organizations (you’d be surprised at the change people DO make on the Hill), get involved with your parish. Write about it, speak out. Educate yourself.

Also, remember, for going out to eat and such, some of us would starve if people didn’t. That’s how I pay my way through school and put a roof over my head and food on my plate. That allows me to have extra money so that I can give to things like the Bishop’s Appeal, so that I can go to Kenya and learn what poverty really is (and how to help). So keep that in mind. Charity is good, but there’s still a place for the economy. You don’t and shouldn’t subscribe to over consumption and you absolutely should be responsible for money. Just remember that, in our system, if no one ever bought anything or ever went out, a lot of livelihoods would be lost.

Your ideals are wonderful. But you need to connect with God and find where He wants you…If you try and focus on everything, every issue, every ministry, you’re going to go stir crazy. One of my friends focuses more on abortion, because that speaks to him strongly. That doesn’t mean other issues aren’t important to him, but that’s where he finds his focus. I focus on issues of the economy and environment, but that makes me no less against abortion. I find there are consumption attitudes that allow for a positive view on procedures like abortion and euthanasia, so I want to focus on those. Another friend of mine focuses more on NFP, especially as she considers gender relations and respect for dignity of both men and women, as well as issues of the economy, pro-life and the environment. There are many parts but one body. There’s a reason each individual part has specific tasks instead of a multitude of everything.
 
crazydyl said:
Hello

I am finding it tough being happy and motivated as a Catholic and I am reverting back to my old ways. I don’t want to sin but I just feel alone with my faith and not very happy at all.

Has anyone got any advice? Or help? Are you a happy Catholic? 😦

God bless

Dylan
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As others have said, being Catholic doesn’t necessarily come all the time with happiness or even surety in your faith; to that end, I like to keep in mind James 1:2-11. To cut it short, James basically says that if you get trials and doubts, then rejoice, because you’ll grow stronger in your faith as you go through tough times! 🙂

I will also second the advice to get involved at your parish; I just finished the Mystagogia period, and I’m already in line to help minister to 8th-graders getting ready for Confirmation as part of a team of high-school students. If even high-school students can help in parish life, then who can’t? 🙂 Find something, anything that you feel called to, and run with it. God has given us many ways to serve Him and grow in love and faith towards Him.

Sure, there are times when we doubt our faith or we question how happy we really are; welcome to the journey of faith. Sometimes it’s pleasant weather and a scenic view, other times it’s a torrential downpour and you’re walking through something out of Stephen King’s “The Mist.” Regardless, everyone goes through tough times, and anyone who says otherwise hasn’t been on it long enough, is lying, or is immune to any pain or doubts. 👍

May the Peace of Christ be with you always! :blessyou:
 
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