Topic: You’re Being tempted by the devil

[Jin]

Here is what I know about temptation.
The closer you get to God, the harder the devil trys to get his hooks into you. If you are not being tempted, that may indicate that the devil already has you. Take joy in temptation. Rely on God for guidance. Nobody ever said it would be easy to be a Christian, or to be trans.

[amandam]

Here is what I know about temptation.
The closer you get to God, the harder the devil trys to get his hooks into you.

Right. If he can take your soul, he will. If he can't, he'll try to make sure you are ineffective as a Christian. Put God first and try to relax so that you can be in touch with your emotions without looking through a prism of negativity.

[Northern Star Girl]

@Jin  @amandam
Exactly correct ladies.... 

An additional thought that I have is:

If we are effective Christians and have matured in our faith in God, rest assured that Satan will do his best to tempt you and try make you stumble.   As you know, Satan did attempt to "tempt" Jesus.... without success!!!!
In order to reap the benefits of the scripture James 4:7 and 4:8  we have to be serving the Lord with all of our heart.

Ephesians 2:8-9
New International Version
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

James 4:7-8
New International Version
7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

It is always my great joy to see that we have you and other professing Christians here on the Forums. 
We can edify and strengthen each other as we share our faith.

Thank you for sharing.
HUGS and more HUGS,
Danielle

 

Here is what I know about temptation.
The closer you get to God, the harder the devil trys to get his hooks into you. If you are not being tempted, that may indicate that the devil already has you. Take joy in temptation. Rely on God for guidance. Nobody ever said it would be easy to be a Christian, or to be trans.

Right. If he can take your soul, he will. If he can't, he'll try to make sure you are ineffective as a Christian. Put God first and try to relax so that you can be in touch with your emotions without looking through a prism of negativity.

[Oldandcreaky]

The Bible says that Christians should be joyful when non-Christians challenge them: "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."

[Lady Sarah]

no-moose:

My condolences on your current struggles.  It appears your conversation hit upon two different topics, one highlighting your deep depression and the other revealing that you are transgender and are contemplating transitioning.  A trained professional would be hard pressed to know how to handle such a conversation and provide just the right support you need in the short or long term.

People can sometimes say the most outlandish or unhelpful things in a very difficult conversation. They may also lack the skill to carry on a supportive conversation with another person.  They may also believe in things that run contrary to your beliefs.  Your friend seems to exhibit all three.

Best friends should look for ways to make each others lives incrementally better, if that doesn't occur you are simply acquaintances. Acquaintances don't hold each other accountable for anything meaningful whereas best friends do.

You place great value on what you have long thought of as a close friendship and feel angst about the possible loss of it. That doesn't seem like the kind of behavior one would exhibit if they were under the control of some evil influence.  I suspect that if you could observe all the transgender folks throughout the world you would find them no more "evil" than cis gender folks and many might be pillars of their community.

You aren't choosing to be transgender, you have been one from the first few months of your development. It's a situation entirely out of your control to change. Being "you" is just as natural as your "friend" or the other billions of humans being "themselves".  The difference is cisgender folks became "themselves" at a very early age and we discovered our "true" selves much later in life.  Why anyone would fault us for wanting to be as close to our "true" selves (however far one wants to pursue such an endeavor) as humanly possible boggles the mind.

I wish there was still a "like button" for posts such as this one. You hit the nail on the head.

When someone realizes something such as being transgender, they can find out who is really their friends, and who is just a hang-along. A friend will be with you through thick and thin, and will visit even if you are in jail or the hospital. A friend will always have your back, and defend it. Anyone who won't is not a friend.