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I fall so short.


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#1 Revdavid

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Posted 22 July 2011 - 07:35 AM

I always feel I fall short. In my heart I know I should find all satisfaction in Him; but still in so many areas I feel lacking.
In relationships, in abilities, just in my spiritual walk in general. Anyone feel like this?
Sometimes feelings can be a great strength; at other times a tremendous weakness and burden.
Just wondering what Scriptures hymns or anything else has helped you when you feel dissatisfied or unfulfilled?
I do feel a close fellowship with those who share in these forums. Thank You.
In Christ our Healer,
Pastor David

#2 Jeff Lonsinger

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Posted 22 July 2011 - 04:48 PM

Your transparency is quite refreshing. You have simply given voice to what I expect many of us experience but rarely express. As I read your post I was remembering a seminar at General Council led by singer/songwriter Michael Card. He was examining the whole theme of lament throughout the Bible. The statement that he continually returned to was "All worship begins in the wilderness." If I understand that properly (and I may not) it is the dissatisfaction and unfulfillment you speak of which are the very things that God uses to draw us into deeper worship.
What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. A.W. Tozer

#3 Joel Stoddert

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Posted 22 July 2011 - 07:55 PM

I always feel I fall short. In my heart I know I should find all satisfaction in Him; but still in so many areas I feel lacking.
In relationships, in abilities, just in my spiritual walk in general. Anyone feel like this?
Sometimes feelings can be a great strength; at other times a tremendous weakness and burden.
Just wondering what Scriptures hymns or anything else has helped you when you feel dissatisfied or unfulfilled?
I do feel a close fellowship with those who share in these forums. Thank You.


It's good to "see" you again, David. Thanks for being transparent. I too feel like this regularly, for, a you say, feelings are a mixed bag. One of the Scriptures I've found helpful in recent years is Jacob's ladder, with Jacob becoming a man of God because of that limp. Compared to my younger days, I preach with a limp, for example--& live with it too. The story reminds me how times of struggle in our relationship with God can be transformative instead of detrimental if we're open to what the Lord may be seeking to teach us. A wise friend once told me that no experience he'd had had ever truly been wasted. I was young then, & wondered if that was a bit simplistic, but at the age he was then, I agree! Lastly, I'll leave you with a verse that's re-centered me on many occasions--Jeremiah 29:11.

#4 Travis Richey

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Posted 23 July 2011 - 02:25 PM

Hi David,

It's good to hear from you again. IF you're like me, you get here sometime, and don't at other times. But I always find myself heading back to this forum for a Spiritual lift.

Like you describe so well, I also find myself struggling...struggling with sin, struggling with those feelings of inadequacy, and manytimes feeling like I've lost direction and purpose. Two things right now are a big help for me, and one followed the other so quickly, that I know it is not coincidental.

First, I found a book by Stephen Coey called "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People." The book is not written per se as a Christian book, but were you to read it, I'm sure you could annotate scripture references on every page, and at the end of the book, Covey does provide his personal witness. Anyway, it is about taking control of one's "persona" and determining to recognize that we are influenced by things, and as a result don't/can't see reality for what it is and we require a "rewiring" of our brains...getting rid of old habits and acquiring new ones. It has been a great help for me, and has showed me where I tend to let "feelings" and "emotions" get in the way of what I really ought to be about.

The second thing happened just this week. While driving to work in the mornings, I listen to John MacArthur's broadcast, and this week he was talking about Essentials for Growth in Godliness. One part of this talk caught my attention as he describes God's Love, and the fact that Love is an action, not an emotion or a feeling. It fit perfectly into what Covey's book has been speaking to me about...that I have choices of action, and do not have to be always looking for a feeling or emotion. I can will myself, by reading God's Word, and praying to Him, to trust in His Spoken Truth no matter what I might be "feeling" at the time. Am I feeling hopeless? God is the God of Hope. Am I feeling unloved? God is Love, not an emotion, but the essence of Love itself.

Here's a short cut from MacAuthor's talk and the link to the article. The subject is Love, but I believe it pertains to many other things as well. Our feelings and emotions get in the way of God's reality:

"So, Paul's prayer indicates he's talking about a divine love, God being the source. A defacto love, we already have a measure of that love within us. Thirdly, a decisive love...a decisive love. And I say that based upon the term that is used for love in verse 9, it is the term agape and it refers to the highest and noblest kind of love, listen carefully, which is the love of choice, or the love of will. It is not object drawn. It is not an impulse, it is not emotion, it is not sentiment, it is not drawn to something because of its beauty, its attractiveness. That's the world's love. The world says I love you because you do something to me. The world says I love you because I feel something for you. That is not the love of choice, that is the love of impulse. That is not the love of the will. In fact, people say I fell in love and couldn't help it. Some guy comes home and says to his wife, "I'm divorcing you." Why, why? "Well I couldn't help it, I fell in love." That is not divine love. Divine love can help it. Divine love is the love of will. It is the love of choice. It is decisive. "God so loved the world." And it wasn't because we were so attractive, that is emotions just got out of hand and He fell in love with all of us. Bizarre thought. That's not the idea.


It is the love of choice and the love of will that says I will love you whether you're my friend or my enemy, I will love you whether you do good or evil, I will love you whether you can give me anything or take away everything, I will love you. And Jesus defined it when He said, "Greater love hath no man than this, than that a man would lay down his life for his friends." It's sacrificial love. It's the love of choice. It's the love that chooses to love the unlovable, the unlovely, it's a choice. And you have to make that choice over and over again. I've said to myself many many times, "I will choose to love that person no matter what they do....I will choose to love that person no matter what they say...I will choose to love that person no matter how they might hurt me." It's the love of choice. And it's a love that expressed in meeting a need, doing a deed of kindness, caring for someone in a practical way...humbly serving others. That's the kind of love it is.


It's not the love of a feeling, it's the love of action. It is not really an emotion although emotion will come along. If you read 1 Corinthians 13, the greatest chapter in the Bible on love, love is described. It says, "Love is patient, love is kind, is not jealous, love does not brag, is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly, it does not seek its own, is not provoked. Does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." Every single one of those is a verb in the Greek. Love is an action. Love is a series of actions. It is not a static attitude. It is what you do, not what you feel. It is what you say, not what you think. It is action. It is the love that reaches out to meet a need. And Jesus said, "Love your neighbor as yourself," and the question came. Who is my neighbor? And Jesus told the story about a man lying in a road with a need and said, "That's your neighbor. Anybody you come across with a need." This is the love of the will. This is character that says no matter what you do, who you are, I will sacrificially serve for your good and your blessing.


And, beloved, the church will never survive without this. This should be our distinguishing mark. You see, it's so different from the world. The world's love is totally the love of impulse, totally the love of emotional attraction. It knows very little about the love of the will. Even at its most philanthropic point it plays on the emotion. For example, when they want you to send money to some orphans or some deprived people in some part of the world, they get little sad-eyed children. Why? Because they want to deal with your emotion, not your mind. Because all that human love knows is a response to a feeling. And God has granted to us a decisive agape love which is far surpassing to that...which will love and meet the need of a repulsive person as well as a tender-eyed little starving child. That's biblical, that's divine love. And you have it, defacto, it's there by virtue of the indwelling Holy Spirit and the love of God shed abroad in your heart, and it is activated by your choice, your will."

http://www.gty.org/R...odliness-Part-1

I'll be praying along with you and for you, and ask that you do the same. We all stand in the need or prayer each and every day. May God, the God of all Hope Bless you and keep you.

#5 Revdavid

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Posted 23 July 2011 - 05:29 PM

I really want to thank all of you who replied to this thread. You have all helped a great deal.
Incidentally Michael Card is one of my favorite Christian artists for many years now. He brings deep
understanding of Scripture into awesome song. Thanks. I hope I bring help to some of you instead of lament only.
In Christ our Healer,
Pastor David

#6 Lori Smith

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Posted 27 July 2011 - 12:06 PM

I really want to thank all of you who replied to this thread. You have all helped a great deal.
Incidentally Michael Card is one of my favorite Christian artists for many years now. He brings deep
understanding of Scripture into awesome song. Thanks. I hope I bring help to some of you instead of lament only.


I don't think laments are a bad thing. Look at the psalms. How many have gone there to find comfort when in distress? David especially cried out to God knowing that God was willing to get close enough to share in his pain. Indeed, I am so thankful that we don't have a God who is far off; but, One who desires us so much, He has taken up residence within our very hearts. For me it is the reminder of the extreme depths of God's love and passion for us that brings me comfort. Certainly, I could never be big enough to bridge that gap to draw near to God, so He has drawn near to me. What a God; He is so very good.
In The Pursuit of God, A. W. Tozer writes, "Jesus taught that He wrought His works by always keeping His inward eyes upon His Father. His power lay in His continuous look at God (John 5:19-21)."

#7 Guest_Bobby Brown_*

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Posted 30 July 2011 - 07:39 AM

I can certainly identify. However, I don't always feel I fall short...it's only when I'm thinking about my "self". And I think about and listen to myself far too much and too often. If only I would see Jesus and remind (talk to) myself that it's not I, but Christ; and remember the mystery - Christ in me the hope of glory. When I really believe He is here now with/within me forever, I have peace and can rejoice in my sufferings with hope.

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.(Romans 5:1-5 ESV)


In His love,
Bobby

#8 Anthony Guerrero

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Posted 10 August 2011 - 05:15 AM

I always feel I fall short. In my heart I know I should find all satisfaction in Him; but still in so many areas I feel lacking.
In relationships, in abilities, just in my spiritual walk in general. Anyone feel like this?
Sometimes feelings can be a great strength; at other times a tremendous weakness and burden.
Just wondering what Scriptures hymns or anything else has helped you when you feel dissatisfied or unfulfilled?
I do feel a close fellowship with those who share in these forums. Thank You.


Hi Dave,
I know exactly what your talking about. The weird thing is I often look to find "scripture, songs or a book/study" that would speak to me and help me and it doesn't work. At the same time I feel the Lord telling me why go to the resources when all you need is to go to the source. Although cliche it is all so true, He is all I need. Over and over again, my relationship to Him is the focus and I find that I am not as close as I thought I was. He continually calls us to a deeper relationship where our ultimate satisfaction is found, in the abundant life He promises. The original 12 didn't see it either when they walked with Him. It's too easy, yet so hard.

#9 Patrick Loven

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Posted 13 August 2011 - 08:58 PM

I always feel I fall short. In my heart I know I should find all satisfaction in Him; but still in so many areas I feel lacking.
In relationships, in abilities, just in my spiritual walk in general. Anyone feel like this?
Sometimes feelings can be a great strength; at other times a tremendous weakness and burden.
Just wondering what Scriptures hymns or anything else has helped you when you feel dissatisfied or unfulfilled?
I do feel a close fellowship with those who share in these forums. Thank You.



#10 Howard G Brown

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Posted 20 August 2011 - 03:17 AM

I am new to this sort of thing and a member of a Non alliance church. But I have known the Lord for over 42 years and He has taught me a great deal about Himself, and every day is a new and exciting place with Him. He is wonderful even in the loss of the sense of His Absence; for it is when we "don't feel" that we become "poor in spirit" and cry out to Him, and the result is the Blessing of knowing Him even further. I question the use of "feel" so much in your question, or post. Feelings change and to build one's faith and testimony on feelings is living pretty close to the edge where the enemy can deceive one over and over again. "The just shall live by faith" and "Faith pleases God." We walk by faith, even when we don't "feel" it. The flip side of the coin of faith is obedience. They go hand in hand. If I don't "feel" maybe it is time to sit down, "Be still and know He is God", seek His face, and pray that if something is amiss that is causing the "feeling of loss", point it out and let Him have it. The Churches today base a great deal of their activity and attendance on "feelng" and as Tozer has pointed out, have become churches of entertainment, more than worship. Paul says it more clearly, "Having the outward appearance of religion but lacking the inner power there of." Just curious about your usage of "feel" and would like to read other's views on it.

#11 Laurie Collett

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Posted 22 August 2011 - 07:59 PM

I always feel I fall short. In my heart I know I should find all satisfaction in Him; but still in so many areas I feel lacking.
In relationships, in abilities, just in my spiritual walk in general. Anyone feel like this?
Sometimes feelings can be a great strength; at other times a tremendous weakness and burden.
Just wondering what Scriptures hymns or anything else has helped you when you feel dissatisfied or unfulfilled?
I do feel a close fellowship with those who share in these forums. Thank You.


We lost (to cancer at age 40)a beloved Pastor, Cliff Frink, who often said "Always be satisfied with what you have, but never with who you are." We can trust Christ to fulfill all our needs, spiritual as well as physical, but part of the longing even born-again Christians have in this earthly life is to be more like Him. At the moment of trusting Christ as our Savior we become justified, because His shed blood has paid the penalty for all our sins, past, present and future. Throughout our Christian walk we become more like Him through the process of sanctification, dying daily to self and using the whole armor of God to fight our sin nature. But the dissatisfaction we feel while in this corrupt body is because we will not be glorified, or made complete and perfect as He is perfect, until we receive our glorified body at the Rapture.
Love in Him, Laurie Collett
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#12 Brian Elmer

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Posted 05 September 2011 - 07:57 AM

I think we all go through times like this. But I have found that looking at my Christian walk from the perspective that God is an artist not a mechanic has helped me tremendously. I recently read "The Art of Being You" by Bob Kilpatrick and he comes at this from the concept that God is making "a new creation" - He the potter, we the clay. He did not die to "fix" us. He is working to form us into the image of His Son. Often I have felt, mainly because of my conservative upbringing, that I always fell short. But after reading this book and others, it showed me that I was seeing my walk as "math" - if I do this, He will do that --- too much emphasis on my performance. After reading "The Art of Being You" and a study in Galatians, I have more clearly realized that I AM justified - made right in Christ. His righteousness was placed on me. My sin was placed on Him. It was not a process but a one time occurrence. The Galatians professed Christ and were saved, but Peter tried to "tack" the "obligation of the law" on them. Paul said, "stop that. In Christ you are free from the law. Stop trying to act as though keeping it will save you!" Grace is a hard thing to fully grasp. Satan loves to tell us about our guilt. But as Ephesians tells us, we are now to walk in Him. I guess as I approach 50, what have realized more than anything is that He wants a relationship with me. A relationship. That's different than trying to do the things that we think might earn our salvation or favor. So, I read current great books (Not a Fan, Radical, Life On the Edge, The Atheist Christian, Unconditional, etc.) and choose to dive into the word. I decide to allow the truth to transform my mind and it's amazing how my relationship with Christ has grown. I have also chose to "cast off the things that so easily hinder". It all is freeing!

#13 tammyshalom

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Posted 14 September 2011 - 03:56 PM

I always feel I fall short. In my heart I know I should find all satisfaction in Him; but still in so many areas I feel lacking.
In relationships, in abilities, just in my spiritual walk in general. Anyone feel like this?
Sometimes feelings can be a great strength; at other times a tremendous weakness and burden.
Just wondering what Scriptures hymns or anything else has helped you when you feel dissatisfied or unfulfilled?
I do feel a close fellowship with those who share in these forums. Thank You.

hi, we all fall short...but by the way your talking it seems like you feel far away from God right now.. we have all felt this way sometimes... the Bible says that you need to "draw near to God and He will draw near to you" Put some time aside for you and God -- i don't care if it is 10min right now but - seek His face - you are not alone and God hears you and understands what you are going through!!! i think you know what you need to do -- Pray - read His word - go to church- put God first and everything will fall into place!! the Bible says that to seek first the kingdom of God and His rightousness (sp?) and all these things will be added to you!!! i hope this helps alittle.... God Bless!!!! tammy