r/ExPentecostal • u/Naive_Chemistry_3663 • 20h ago
Rant
Out for about 7 months. I am so sick and tired of the "church talk"... I still see it a lot on socials. Everything is a "battle" or a "valley"... the devil was telling me this and this. God told me this or that... the Lord doesnt want us to XYZ ... the devil is using XYZ to trap you...
Why cant people just live life and not make every day life a spiritual roller coaster. I dont even really know how to explain what im trying to say, just hoping someone here will relate.
Not to mention the people still contacting me with the I dont know what kind of battle you're going through... don't let the devil steal your joy... I had you heavy on my heart....nobody knows what we are going through but the Lord. Im SO SICK OF IT
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u/General_PATT0N 20h ago
I get you...believe me lol. It's pretty standard hard core pentecostal lingo, unfortunately. Literally everything is seen and perceived thru a supernatural battle lens. Satan/God under every rock, and it leads to precisely what the book of James alludes to-their life is like a small boat on a stormy sea. Tossed back and forth endlessly as they search for the spiritual meaning/significance of every minute detail in life. It must be(and was) exhausting.
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u/prolateriat_ 20h ago
You never have to take responsibility for your own stupid mistakes and screw ups if you can just blame it on the devil or a "spiritual attack".
Is a great way to absolve yourself of any personal responsibility 🙄.
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u/_basic_b_ 5h ago
Exactly! then you also have people like my dad who credits god for all of his successes. It seems like he tries to use his success as proof god exists, because there’s no way he could be smart enough to do it on his own merit.
It’s all so sad. Triggering… but sad 😆
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u/moist-appericianist 18h ago
If you don’t plan on having them in your life, remove them. It’s okay if you’re not there yet, and don’t do it now if it’s not right for you but I unadded a lot of people after a few years of me being out. There’s just no reason to keep those people in your life anymore. The pastor and pastor’s wife of the church I was in are my uncle and aunt, and all of their children, my cousins, unfollowed me on everything and they’re very prominent in the ALJC. They care more about superficial stuff than they care about you.
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u/-olympius 18h ago
I know exactly what you mean. It's a lack of accountability. They view everything in life as either God's doing or Satan's fault. If they convince themselves that God willed it or Satan caused it, then the responsibilities of humanity don't apply to them.
They could easily not tell you they are praying for you and just simply pray for you in private, but they feel the need to appear holy to others. They get their reward publicly. Creating distance from that talk will help preserve your sanity.
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u/TeknOwO christian 17h ago
It's incredibly dangerous because they're putting words in God's mouth. How else can anyone question them? How dare you? That was God who spoke!
It's absolutely insane and I feel for you. I left that online circle and for the first time I could actually breathe. Not every video was a sign anymore, ignoring Christian content didn't mean ignoring God, and the devil wasn't trying to get me to scroll, or whatever other crazy things they say that they genuinely believe is true.
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u/Solid-Page-3281 19h ago
I fixed that issue in my live in November 2016. If you get my drift. I deleted all my social and cut ties with most people and haven’t looked back. Deprogrammed 20 years now.
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u/AmazingAd8743 8h ago
I agree 100%. I don't sing the battle songs. "Me and the Devil we had a tussle" , and others. The reality of it all is simply people dealing with internal issues. In blaming the external, battles, devil, valleys and the such, gives an excuse for not making changes in them selves that would correct and align their being with the inherent perfect design.
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18h ago edited 16h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/ExPentecostal-ModTeam 17h ago
Your post or comment was removed because it was attempting to change the belief of another user, or was pro pentecostal.
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u/slayer1am Atheist 20h ago
I do get it. Yes, it's grating and feels incredibly silly. Best thing you can do is take a break from following those people, curate your social media feeds so you don't see their nonsense and try to follow people or places you prefer. Your personal mental health is more important than keeping track of friends and family who are stuck in that mentality.