“No matter how well I do at something, my Dad tells me I should have done better. Just once I'd like to hear him compliment me, but he never does. Sometimes I wonder if he even loves me. Is God like this?”
“I'm graduating from college shortly, and I've already accepted a job that looks like a perfect fit. However, I can't get over the feeling that I might be making a mistake — although I don't know why. Would it do any good to ask God to show me if I'm making the right decision?”
“I feel all alone in the world. I have lots of people I know casually (like at work), but no one would miss me if I left town or died. Why did God make me so shy and unable to make friends?”
“I've been very successful, but one reason is because I haven't been as honest as I could have been. Now the doctor has told me I only have six months to live. I'm haunted by guilt, and I fear death. Is it too late for me to turn to God?”
“Did Jesus ever say anything about hell? I don't believe in hell myself. I believe God is a God of love and wouldn't send anyone to hell. I think preachers who talk about hell all the time are just trying to scare people into believing in their religion.”
“People talk about how hard it is to be a single parent, and believe me, it is. Most of them are mothers, but I'm a single dad and I think that's even harder. I don't know why I'm writing you, but maybe you can encourage me somehow.”
“What's the most serious sin we can commit? Maybe I shouldn't feel this way, but I wonder sometimes if I've committed it, whatever it is. I know I haven't lived the kind of life God probably wants me to live.”
“Why is my Christian life such a roller coaster? Some weeks, I feel like God is very close, but other times I hardly even think about God. I know it shouldn't be this way, but how can I smooth things out and have a more stable faith?”
“Our church is being torn over a specific issue I won't name, but what it really comes down to is whether we accept the Bible as our sole authority (as some in our church believe), or we listen to the world and try to discern if God is saying something new (as others contend). Which way should we go?”
“Recently, we had a vacancy on our church board (which oversees the activities of the church), and I got elected. I tried to get out of it, but I guess they couldn't find anyone else. I want to do a good job, but where should I start?”
“I have a cousin who's into all kinds of mystical things, like voodoo. She claims she could put a curse on someone who hurt me very much recently. Should I encourage her to do this?”
“My friend claims there were many groups calling themselves “Christian” after Jesus died, and some even had their own versions of the Bible that differ from what we have. He says this means we can't trust the Bible, and he thinks I'm foolish to be a Christian. What can I say?”