How to be more like Jesus

2 Responses to “How to be more like Jesus”

1. kaitlyn on January 22nd, 2008 7:01 am
   

   i kindof struggle with obeying my parents, and being really mouthy.. i cut alot of bad habits that i did to be more like jesus…shoplifting,drinking,smoking, …i didnt like myself and one day i just picked up the bible and didnt put it down…i dont cus or cheat. but i can be really jugdmentle. in my head i think things but i dont say them out loud. ……i dont want to think these things because god love him just as much as me and through christ he/she is my brother or sister. no about being mouth tords my parents sooo times things come out that i dont want to . and i often notice myself saying hurtful things… how do i stop?????

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2. DeSwiss on January 22nd, 2008 3:58 pm
   

   @ kaitlyn on January 22nd, 2008 7:01

   All kids struggle with obeying and being mouthy to their parents to some extent. Some more than others, depending on the person the parents, and their life circumstances. So this is natural. Its a natural process in developing your own abilities to think critically and decide for yourself. Which is a psychological and emotional survival technique. While living with your parents you get the chance to “try-out” your critical thinking abilities without as many consequences as would be the case if you were forced to live with your decisions while in the real world and on your own.

   I’m glad you cut out the “bad habits” of shoplifting, drinking and smoking. But I’m glad about it no matter whether you did it for Jesus, or just because you knew it was wrong.

   As for being judgmental of others, this too depends upon the person and the circumstances of their life. I’m assuming that since you’ve discontinued those other negative behaviors for Jesus, that you’re a Christian. And in the bible, Jesus says that we are to “judge not, lest we be judged.” Which is something almost every Christian (and non-Christians) has trouble with doing. We draw conclusions in our judgments about people based upon our expectations of them. If we expect others to live up to our standards, then we aren’t likely to be very forgiving when they fail to meet them.

   Look at Christianity the way it is today in America and most other places in the world. Instead of emphasizing Jesus’ message of love, hope and compassion, Christians tend to emphasize how others fail to meet their standards of conduct. Sniffing around others trying to discern what sin they’ve committed and how they’ve come up short. So what if someone’s gay? Whose soul should each Christian be worried about? Their own, or someone else’s? Doesn’t your bible tell you that “all have sinned and come short of the glory of god?” So that would mean that even the most perfect person that you know still doesn’t come up to the standards of your god. Its impossible to do according to your bible.

   You can’t stop your mind from thinking things that are difficult for you to deal with. That’s what becoming an adult is largely about. Learning to navigate through the mazes of life, meeting and successfully overcoming its obstacles and traps, its highs and its lows. And there will always be lows. When those lows become consistent a problem, then you may have a medical problem with depression, manic-depression, or what is now referred to as being bi-polar. If such thoughts seriously compromise your ability to function, to just get through from day to day and is debilitating you so that you cannot do simple things like school or house work or having friends, then you may need the help of a professional.

   Ask yourself when these thoughts enter your mind, Why? Why do I feel this way right now about this person? Am I prejudging them? Am I asking them to live up to my standards? Do I have the right to expect them to live up to my standards?

   The only people I’ve ever met in my almost six decades of life who’re consistently judgmental of others, are those who waste their time worrying over someone else’s life choices, instead of their own. In other words: most Christians. And my father was a minister and I grew up (literally) in the church. And look how long it took me to admit the truth! You still have time.

   Part of the problem that Christians have in reconciling their stated faith against the realities of life, is that the Christian religion is incomprehensible. There are some things which can in fact be learned from some of it. Like loving one’s neighbor as one’s self. And doing unto others as you’d have others to do unto you. But it is in fact still just myth. And its isn’t even the first myth that has advanced these ideas of love and concern for our fellow humans. If it hadn’t been for Constantine, you may be praying to Zeus or Isis right now. And there are so many contradictions within Christianity as to make it almost impossible to discern a consistent line of thought in their beliefs. These kinds of religious contradictions usually either leads to a person to (1) breaking away from church concluding that its all BS, or (2) developing a keen sense of “cognitive dissonance,” where the conflicts are simply overlooked and ignored because they undermine everything else.

   You’ve got a ways to go, kiddo. So my advice for you is to lighten up right now. Enjoy your youth and freedom from worry. There’ll be plenty of that leftover for you when you’re an adult and have no choice but to deal with it. In the meantime, study. Study the secular world, science and also religion. And not just from some Sunday School books. You might like to start here:

   http://www.pocm.info/

   As for your final question: How do I stop? You stop by deciding that YOU are. Not depending upon Yahweh, nor Jesus, nor the Flying Spaghetti Monster, but upon Kaitlyn. That’s the only one who can stop you or start you. If you’re a Christian, then you know that your biblical tales say that god gave you free will. So the same free will that previously allowed you to convince yourself to shoplift and cuss, is the same free will that will help you control your thoughts and actions. Its the only way in the end.

   Depending upon a mythical god to help you in your day-to-day life will only leave you sorely disappointed. But information and education can at least help you put your life and life in general into some kind of perspective and context. And you need to start right away.

   Good luck!

   DeSwiss

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