Who strengthened your faith?

Apollo

I was born a Christian. I strayed for a while but I found my faith again when I pray to the Virgin Mary. Through her I also found myself being inspired again by the New Testament and the teachings of Jesus Christ. Now I find Christ's spirit in Pope Francis and I've become a devout follower.

Who strengthened your faith? Who led you back to Christianity?

Cinna

I grew up Catholic but then left the church. I came back after I began to see a therapist who does Christian counseling. At first I went to a nondenominational mega church but found it very unsupportive when my family had a crisis. Now I attend a tiny Catholic Church and love it.

Slate

I also grew up Catholic because of my mother. I also pray the rosary as often as I can.

Francis

The bible strengthens my faith. I have learned to pray, whenever I feel stressed. I also like singing and listening to Christian songs. I do go to church on every Sunday to listen to the word of God. I like joining friends who are positive about the bible so that we can read and share about different scripts.

lamanlupa

In my 30 plus years of existence, I could say that I experienced a lot in this life but never did I questioned the goodness of my faith. I love my church. I don't think I'll go anywhere else. It's true I may stumble and fumble along the way, but isn't that the way to your renewal? To change for the better? I am a Catholic, I'll always be one,

zurminister

Well, it was my parents who first taught me the ways of God and my second teachers were my teachers in school. I was also lucky that I had a very close relationship with our Parish Priest and this is the reason why my faith has been strengthened by these support systems of mine in my Christian belief and I am very thankful to all of them because they have all strengthened my faith.

briannagodess

It was my mother who always urges me to go to church when I was young. She taught me how to pray the rosary. She also encouraged us to be active in the church and always give to other people. So in that sense, she was the one who strengthened my faith. During hardships and successes, she always says that I should never forget God.

joshposh

I lost my faith the day I finally could on my own freely.  If anything the Catholic church and their practices lead to my decision.  Jesus Christ openly spoke against the rich, and yet the Vatican looks like a palace where they all where expensive garments and dressed in gold.  The Pope looks over crowd like a false idol which the bible clearly states not to worship idols.  But they do it anyway.  Between that and the pimped on clothing and gold chains, that was the beginning of the end for me.

CatholicChick

The two people who have strengthened my faith over my lifetime have been my father, and my mother-in-law. Both were good people who cared for and about others, and were and are living examples of how to live a faith-filled life in these troubling times.

harpazo22

Nowhere in the bible does it say we can pray to the virgin mary. She is not an idol, she cannot hear our prayers, she is not God. The bible says there is only one mediator between God and man, the man Jesus Christ. No one else. Jesus intercedes our prayers for us to the Father, not any dead saint. Catholics get their doctrines from man made traditions, and not the holy bible, word of God. We must be born again (John 3:3). Without being born again we will not see the kingdom of heaven. So like Paul said, test yourself whether you be in the faith. Make sure you're saved.

soja

Who strengthened my faith? Jesus, himself and the Holy Bible. The only way to strengthen your faith, in my opinion, is to read and break down the Bible to better understand the context. Churches can be a tricky thing, especially when trying to find the one for you. Churches are a great way to help strengthen your faith through the word of God. It can be hard for many to try to make Church more that "just a place". This comes with finding the church for you, and also listening to a pastor that can help you how to understand, and apply certain aspects of the bible into your daily life.

soja

I find it challenging to find time for Jesus everyday. Although, it is essential as a Christian to put other things aside and sacrifice time for Jesus. Jesus assures you that it is supposed to be how he plans it. Just sitting down and researching questions that you have about life, in the Bible, is a great way that helps me strengthen my faith and relationship with Jesus. This way, as a Christian, I am helping fulfill my duty in becoming knowledgeable about what to do in ceratin situations. As long as I know what the Bible says, and what God would want me to do, it gives me more confidence in my decisions.

zurminister

This should definitely start at home and the parents of a child should be responsible in strengthening the faith of a child like what my parents did which started first at home. This then should be followed by by the teachers of the child at school and should be done during the formative years of the child during his days at school and I was fortunate enough that I had great teachers who taught me all they knew and indeed strengthened my faith in God.

angela10

My parents. I grew up in a tightly-knit Roman Catholic family, and my parents have always encouraged me and my siblings to regularly go to church and to pray everyday. While initially it seemed like a chore, I've eventually managed learned to incorporate communicating with God in my daily routine. I've had some rough times in the past, and experiences I never thought I could survive, but right now, I can honestly say that my faith is stronger than ever, mainly because of how my parents raised me.

Francis

The word of God strengthens my faith. Whenever I feel that that am in trouble or backsliding, I do pray and read the bible to strengthen my faith. I have recently realised the power of prayer. The Bible strengthens my faith through reading it.

JRyan

Your questions made me think hard. Who/what strengthened my faith and what led me back to Christianity? Well, I do not think I was ever lost. I always know that God exists and it is my duty, as one of His creations, to follow Him. As for what/who strengthened my faith, I would say that the poor did. Looking back, I never wanted many things, but, at the same time, I never felt grateful for what I already have. Seeing the conditions of the less fortunate strengthened my faith in Him; it made me feel thankful and closer to Him.

MichelleVL

My faith was strengthened by a person who played a very important role in my life. This person was my school's Bible teacher. She gave me and my classmates Theology every day for 4 years. I was a very curious child, one who always needed to know the why's and how's of religion. She always displayed the utmost patience with me and my constant questions about God, Jesus, and the Faith. She always took the time to answer my questions and showed me how to apply the Faith to our everyday lives. Whenever I found myself in a position where my faith was seriously questioned, or I was tempted by the sins that any teenager is exposed to, I would remember her teachings. God worked through her on me, and she helped me make many wise choices from a child into adulthood.

arthnel

My connection with God constantly strengthens my faith. Don't get me wrong, I've had my fair share of good time in the world that has not made God proud of me. I had the honor of being Christian growing up and I really connected with God. I had questions and I asked him about hem and I was satisfied with how he helped me along with teachings of Jesus and then the help of the Holy Spirit. When I falter and stray I always have a pull from the Spirit to remember that God will always be there. I pray a lot to keep this connection. Once you have a connection with God, you will go back to him easier when you stray.

lexinonomous

My grandmother  lead me back to Christianity. I never really fell off the band wagon, but more so wanted to be "cool" in high school and was constantly pretending to be an athiest. I always knew in my heart that God was in my life. I tried denying it countless times, but it was always there. My grandmother passed away from cancer and when she passed on I had a very odd, personal experience the night she passed. It renewed my faith and made me realize that I could no longer deny it.

paf_2

Wait if we don't pray to the Virgin Mary in general why is there a prayer directed to her. I am of course referring to the Hail Mary.  This prayer has us going to Mary for guidance. As for who directed me spiritually I guess I would have to say my parents gave me a strong sense of God at work.  I haven't always agreed with the Catholic church but I have never wavered in my faith of the Lord.

lexinonomous

@Paf_2 This is what I was thinking as well. I have been saying this prayer for many years and never thought of it as wrong. I think it is a lovely prayer, asking Mary for guidance. I don't see anything wrong with it.

foolsgold

I was agnostic for most of my life and have only recently been learning to pray again. I am thankful to have met my wonderful boyfriend who influenced me to believe and trust God. He is such a blessing in my life.

lexinonomous

@foolsgold I am happy that you've found someone in your life that has brought positivity. I am a believer that people come into our lives for a reason. I feel like your boyfriend came into your life to bring you back to yourself. Prayer is a wonderful way for you to connect with the earth and yourself as a whole.

Corzhens

I was born and raised a Catholic and I studied in Catholic schools from grade school up to college. It is a given that I would have strong faith because of the nuns that supervised our classes during grade school and high school. Aside from the daily prayer, we also attend mass in the chapel during first Fridays of the month and we were also taught how to pray the rosary.

I was fortunate to be schooled in such institutions because I have learned how to be a decent and productive person. That one I owe to my parents.

djordjem87

I always tried to do it myself but it turned out that others helped me more. When i say others i do not mean those who believed in me. No, i mean those who did the opposite. Those who tried to make my life a living hell. I learned from those more than from anyone else. I am grateful to them as they are my truest friends ever. Without those who hate you you can't appreciate the love you have in your life. I believe the love is all we need in our lives. My faith in everything , religion, love, myself, others was questioned by myself and because i let those malicious people in my life. Once they showed their real faces i was able to choose and i have chosen wisely so far.

zurminister

I was strengthened first and foremost by my parents who taught how to pray and find inspiration and help from God. I was also taught by my teachers all throughout my school years to always have an undying belief in Christ Jesus and always sought for His help and Thanks in everything we do. I was also strengthened by our community Church leaders who did not miss to remind us of the teachings of God and how we can as Christians may follow them and be inspired everyday.

Amelie

My dad's death strengthened my faith. Before that I was just an obedient Catholic girl who went through the motions because it was expected of her. I went to mass every week because my parents said so. I went to mass in school because it was required. But when dad died, I had to believe really fast. I had to hold on to my faith and believe that God exists because if He doesn't, then it means that I'll never see my dad ever again. If there's no God, then there's no heaven, so there's no more chance that my dad is just up there, biding his time, watching over us, and waiting for us to be with him again.

Heda

My friends from my youth group! We always pray and read the Bible with them and they taught me not to be ashamed for my belief:)

DStMars

A life strengthened by the Lord, is a miraculous one. When we go through trials and tribulations, we sometime forget these are tests and blame the Lord. One thing that I believe is we must consider G-d's reasons are not our own. In our minds we think that we are praying for good things that we feel we deserve, then bad things end up happening. Could it be that G-d is only trying to show us that we had what we are asking for all along by removing it from our lives? Its sad that only when something is taken from us that we are grateful for what we had. These days you might pray for wealth and lose your job. usually if you hang in there and become more grateful for what G-d already gave you, you will have learn that you asked for another thing in vain. G-d is no respecter of man. just because we see something someone else with something and think that we also should be entitled to that, does not mean we should. This is the coveting system where they advertise all this material success, and we think in our hearts that if G-d wants to bless us, let it be in that way. G-d told us not to covet anything that is thy neighbors. We can not forget the word of G-d just because our emotions get the wrapped up in everything that we see. Not everything is for everyone to have. You must do your part in G-d's eyes. We are tested our whole lives. Become strong in the Lord or he will chastise who he loves until they understand. A life of chastisement made my faith stronger in The Lord.