Question:
Hello,
I’m a 16-year-old girl, and I have a loving family and a good life. I was hoping you could help me with my faith. Growing up, my life was very Christ-orientated as my mom worked for the church during summers, and we went to church camp every day. After my dad’s mother died, his faith in Christ crumbled completely, and we stopped going. I’ve just been living a “normal” life since then.
I dabble in sin daily and am not a stranger to it. I want to reconnect with Christ and fully give myself to him. My family no longer believes in Christ, but I do, and I’m sick of being a lukewarm Christian. I’m scared. I don’t want to stray from him. We don’t go to church anymore, and I don’t even have a real Bible, if not for the apps on my phone. At least at the moment, I want to feel a connection with God. I want to know Him. I want to know Jesus, but I’m scared. Everywhere I look, I see people rejoicing and loving Him, building connections with Him like a friend and a father, but I don’t feel that. I don’t have that, but I want to. Please help me. I need a little guidance.
Answer:
It is tempting to allow your feelings to define your beliefs. We all have feelings about our beliefs, but our feelings are not our faith. See What Is Faith?
I’m sorry to hear about your father losing faith in God. Given that all people die, it is sad when someone decides to hold a death against God. I suppose he might have only served Christ to please his mother, but that, too, would be a sadly weak faith. Regardless, your life and your faith are not dependent on anyone else. “The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father’s iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son’s iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself” (Ezekiel 18:20).
You are old enough to find a church to attend and arrange for rides to and from worship services. You have access to Bibles on your phone, so you can start learning about what God taught. You can do a few odd jobs and save up for a printed Bible. Stop using your family’s disbelief and your age to be inactive. If you would like help locating a strong, Bible-believing group in your area, let me know what town you are near.