Im new and need some advice

[finale]

Hi everyone

I want to find God but I am not to sure where to start witht the bible.

When i was younger my parents use to take me to church on sundays so you could say I was raised in a christian home. However my parent ended up going through a bad divorce which messed things up pretty badly as well as myself.

Ever since I moved back to stay with my father I was finally given the choice to do what I wanted(and i was also of age then). As a result I stopped going to church and seldom read my bible.
I eventually started taking a big interest in the conspiracies that seem to be taking place these days and was eventually lead to things like meditation, chakras. Basically a lot of these new age teachings.

Now after going back and forth on the new age stuff and the bible, i feel like I can say that God is the only way forward. However I still have so many questions on some of the teaching, techniques, etc. that i have come across as a lot of them seem like they could be very useful or beneficial.

So my first question is, what is the view that the bible gives us about things like meditation and chakras?

How can we tell whether these type of things were created so that we may use them to achieve some purpose or if it is satan trying to mislead us?

And lastly, where or how do i start reading the bible? I have heard people say that reading the bible from the beginning to the end like a story book isn't the best way to go about learning the bible.

Sorry for such a big introductory post but I have had a lot of this stuff on my mind.

Thank you for reading this post and for any replies :)

 

[ALightbulb]

Hi finale!

It is said that for first time readers, it is best to start on the gospel, like the books of Mark or John. It is also said that it takes 21 days to build a habit, so if you really are determined to read, I suggest John because there are 21 chapters. Before you read, I recommend praying and simply asking God to help you find Him and develop an intimate relationship with Him. He knows your heart, and He knows what you want, but He wants to hear it from you.

I am not experienced enough to answer any other questions you have, but I wish you the best, and I will keep you in my prayers!

 

[Rex]

Hi finale!

It is said that for first time readers, it is best to start on the gospel, like the books of Mark or John. It is also said that it takes 21 days to build a habit, so if you really are determined to read, I suggest John because there are 21 chapters. Before you read, I recommend praying and simply asking God to help you find Him and develop an intimate relationship with Him. He knows your heart, and He knows what you want, but He wants to hear it from you.

I am not experienced enough to answer any other questions you have, but I wish you the best, and I will keep you in my prayers!

Good advice ALight
when I was younger I found that Proverbs were very useful, they will help you discern the proper path as well as identifying things that are of God and those that are not.
I would encourage you to stay away from pre packaged bible studies, as they have a tendency to lead you rather than allowing the questions you will have to be answered by the power of the Holy Spirit. In other words listen to that still small voice in your heart that has lead you back to Christ.

Meditate on the word of God
And put the chakra on the back burner until you you are better rooted in Christ

 

[finale]

You guys have no idea how good i feel to see such positive and encouraging words of advice. Thanks a lot guys. Guess i need to get started (<-- that smiley is an understatement haha)

 

[Axehead]

You guys have no idea how good i feel to see such positive and encouraging words of advice. Thanks a lot guys. Guess i need to get started (<-- that smiley is an understatement haha)

I will also add that when you receive Jesus Christ (John 1:12) you can be very confident that He will lead you into all truth by His Holy Spirit. He is a Good Shepherd and will lead you perfectly as you keep the eyes of your heart on Him.

Axehead

 

[theophilus]

So my first question is, what is the view that the bible gives us about things like meditation and chakras?

The answer to the first part depends on what kind of meditation you mean. The Bible frequently tells us to meditate on God and his word. This means to spend time thinking about them and trying to understand them. But new age groups often advocate a kind of meditation which consists of simply emptying the mind and not thinking about anything. The Bible never teaches this kind of meditation and practicing it may open you up to the influence of evil spirits.

Chakras are part of Hinduism and Buddhism and aren't mentioned in the Bible. This should be enough to show that Christians shouldn't have anything to do with them.

How can we tell whether these type of things were created so that we may use them to achieve some purpose or if it is satan trying to mislead us?

Everything you need to know is found in the Bible so the best policy is not to use any method unless you can find some Biblical support for it.

And lastly, where or how do i start reading the bible? I have heard people say that reading the bible from the beginning to the end like a story book isn't the best way to go about learning the bible.

The best way would probably be to read the New Testament first and then go back and start through the entire Bible. There are many parts such as the genealogies and the details of the sacrifices that are difficult to understand so perhaps when you are reading the Bible through for the first times it might be easier to skim through these parts and focus on the parts that are easier to understand.

One thing that might help is to get a Bible that has crossreferences and when you find something hard to understand just look up the verses in the references. Sometimes you will find something that will help you understand the part you are reading.