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Having broken God's heart by committing sins, I made a promise to Him that I would not repeat this particular sin. If I were to do so again, I told God not to forgive me.
Unfortunately, I committed the same sins again after five days . . . which means I broke the promise.
My feelings now are that I will not be forgiven and will not be able to enter the kingdom of God.
How likely is it that God will forgive me for breaking my promise?, after all, I told Him not to forgive me.
If my sins can still be forgiven, please pray for me that God will forgive me and enlist some prayers about forgiveness for me.
Daniel
{ If I promised God I wouldn't sin and told God not to forgive me if I do, if I broke my promise, can I still be saved? }
. . . A few days latter the same Daniel asked:
Anonymous Daniel wrote:
Greetings,
My name is Daniel and I am 20 years old.
Throughout the beginning of the year, I have felt as if I am disrespecting the name of God.
I'm not saying it through words, but through my thoughts. I know I'm not allowed to put God's name in vain because it breaches the Ten Commandments, but I didn't do it intentionally or willfully to disrespect God. When I'm praying, I suddenly think of God's name with a bad word and I can't control it. I struggle to control these thoughts and try to forget this stupid stuff. Since I don't have anyone to ask for help, I am seeking God's help.
I'm scared of committing a terrible mortal sin. The sin I do commit is something I want to repent from, and I pray to God every day to forgive me for it.
In addition, I have scheduled a private Confession with my local priest to seek God's forgiveness. I also worry that I'm unworthy to receive the Holy Eucharist because I am afraid of committing mortal sin again after Confession.
Daniel
{ How do I handle these bad words and thoughts that enter my mind unintentionally since I'm scared of committing mortal sins? }
Eric replied:
If I promised God I wouldn't sin and told God not to forgive me if I do, if I broke my promise, can I still be saved?
Daniel,
God is not going to honor your request not to forgive you. He will always forgive you if you ask him to; if you are Catholic, you should avail yourself of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The priest can give you good pastoral counsel and encourage you in your walk.
To think that we are beyond God's mercy is the sin of despair. The good news about that is that, if it's a sin, not only is it not true that we are ever beyond God's mercy, but we are bound under pain of sin to reject believing that!
It's obvious that you love God and want to please him by avoiding sin. But keep in mind that mankind is very prone to sin; we call this "concupiscence". It's virtually impossible to avoid sinning at all (only one human creature has ever accomplished that). I'm not saying don't worry about sin, you should do all you can to avoid it, but I am saying that you are setting yourself up for big disappointment if you think you can keep a promise not to sin. We *should* resolve not to sin in the future, but that's very different from making a *promise* that we may be unable to keep.
Some sins, we call them besetting sins, are very hard to get rid of. No matter how much we may want to avoid them, we fall into them. God allows this to teach us humility and reliance on him and to purify and sanctify us (make us holy). There are sins it took me decades of anguished struggle to overcome, but struggling with them strengthened me and made me a much better person.
Suffering from a besetting sin may be discouraging but keep persevering! As many times as you fall, arise, and you will be saved. Go to Confession frequently if you are Catholic; there is much grace for avoiding future sins in the sacrament. Satan wants you to think about God's mercy before you commit the sin and God's judgment afterward; it should really be the reverse.
God is far more loving and generous than you can ever imagine he is. I am sure He is very pleased with your desire not to break His Heart and to walk the right path, and he loves you beyond measure. Have no fear that God will not forgive you and never again make such a foolish request.
The good soldier is not the one who never falls but the one who always gets up and keeps fighting. Keep your eyes on Jesus, not on your sins, and, after repenting and seeking reconciliation, look forward and not backward.
I hope this helps encourage you!
Eric
Daniel replied:
Eric,
My heart was literally breaking because I was so afraid that God would not forgive me.
I felt like I didn't have peace in my heart. However, after hearing from you, I feel like I'm being taught a lesson for my stupidity by God. I also thank God for giving me another chance and letting me know it, through you.
Peace be upon you, my brother in Christ, and may God bless you.
Thank you.
Daniel
Bob replied:
How do I handle these bad words and thoughts that enter my mind unintentionally since I'm scared of committing mortal sins?
Dear
Daniel,
You may be experiencing a demonic attack. Demons can harass us, influence our thoughts and make us believe we are unholy and not pleasing to God. This is not possession, but a more ordinary type of attack; it happens to almost everyone at some point, especially if they are trying to get closer to God—the thing demons abhor most. If these thoughts are not just simply human compulsively, then you should try spiritual warfare and use some deliverance prayers, like the St. Michael's prayer.
Saint Michael the Archangel Prayer
Saint Michael the Archangel,
defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host —
by the Divine Power of God —
cast into Hell, satan and all the evil spirits,
who prowl throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.
Above all, don't buy into the lie that you are committing great sin, that is the ploy to get you to stop praying. Pray even more, and sing, that really makes demons miserable.
You can also find a valuable resource in this book on amazon:
As my colleague Bob stated: Demons can harass us, influence thoughts, and make us believe we are unholy and not pleasing to God. This is not possession, but a more ordinary type of attack; it happens to almost everyone at some point, especially if they are trying to get closer to God—the thing demons abhor most.
This is a lifetime struggle we will go through. The Lord will be pleased that you are fighting the good fight. Sometimes mentioning the word, "Jesus" repeatedly will help.
Based on what you said, I think it's important to go over the criteria for committing a mortal sin.
For a sin to be a mortal sin it must include all three conditions:
It must be a grave matter.
We need sufficient time to reflect upon the sin we are about to commit and then must make the decision to sin anyway.
We must give full consent of the will to commit the sin.
So, for a sin to be a mortal sin, you have to 1.) really will it, 2.) know it's wrong, and 3.) it must be a serious matter.
Since these thoughts are unintentional, they are certainly not done with full consent of the will and are not mortal sins so you are welcome to receive Holy Communion every Sunday, or if possible, every day.
Mike
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