@Shadowrunner81@xanga - I don't mean to be contentious, but it is very much a part of the fabric of Christianity to "call out Christians for their apparent lack of faith."  It certainly should not be done out of spite, or out of a sense of self-righteousness, but part of what makes Christianity Christianity is the pursuit of holiness and Godliness.  There is no indication in the New Testament that faith is a personal or private matter, because the ultimate good in faith is not security or self-satisfaction with religion but intimacy and reunion with God.  To that end, exhortations and calls for Christians to renew that passion and love are both necessary and justified.

I disagree with the original poster in that his description of "Christians wander around in depression and addiction year after year after year and complain and complain and in their pride think they are justified because they're Christians and they go to church." is a gross oversimplification of people who are very deeply hurt and whose souls are twisted and struggling; they are often seeking God as well.  But I think his main point is that people blame God for their feelings of spiritual failure and distance, when everything in Scripture encourages us to draw near to Him, and that He will draw near to us.  I think the author accurately attributes feelings of spiritual weakness in our culture to a self-serving mentality, in which we confuse the promise of grace with the assurance that faith requires little effort.

Consider the following from the book of Hebrews (11-12):

And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. 37 They were stoned]"="">[f]; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.

 39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. 40 God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

 4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5 And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:

   “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, 
   and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, 
6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves, 
   and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.”]"="">[a]

 7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8 If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! 10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

 12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13 “Make level paths for your feet,”]"="">[b] so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.

Besides strongly disagreeing with the apparent tendency to just throw temper-tantrums whenever you don't get what you want as a way to "fix" your marriage and your relationship with God (they will fix neither), I do adamantly AGREE with the desperate need for our brethren to get very serious about God.  

I read this, and I had just posted something that wasn't with God.

I want to thank you greatly. I struggle with Depression, but that doesn't mean I should give in to laying in bed and not doing what I can to make myself cheered up.

I struggle, but I have been making myself struggle alone, no longer. I am reaching for Him and letting Him take the reins for a bit.

Thank you for the post!  I want to share this with my friends.  My favorite line of yours, a line that hit home, is "And if you take just a little pleasure in having these struggles because
it brings you a sense of justification of your need for love,
attention, and pity from others..."  I used to do that.  The past month, though, I've been getting a real passion, a real fire for God.  It almost gets frustrating when not everyone else around you is the same!

I was raised Christian but the past several years I've had a weak relationship with God. I went to church this past week and felt revived. I now realize a strong relationship with God is absolutely important. I was trying to figure everything out on my own but I need to trust Him with what He's doing in my life. 

I pretty much agree; a lot of us aren't doing so hot right now. I include myself in that, but the reasons for that are between God and me. No excuses, but it seems that being a Christian is a constant struggle, a constant fight, a constant battle. You really don't get the chance to just relax and know that you're "okay", you know? You are constantly fighting your nature and the nature of the world you live in, constantly struggling not to drown in all of this around you. I think you only get in trouble when you do one (or both) of two things; when you stop struggling or when you stop asking God for help.
Depression and things like that are not so cut-and-dry, though. Sometimes it's very hard to be positive, joyful, and optimistic living in this world, with all the terrible nightmarish things that happen every single day. Sometimes you just feel like God is so far away, and it's so very easy to fall into despair. But even in the worst of it, God has been the hope I cling to. Sometimes hope is the only thing you have, and it has to be enough, at least for now.

I needed to read
this. I was raised in a Christian home but felt ambivalent until two
years ago when some events and struggles basically made me boomerang
back to God. My life has never been the same, but periodically I
struggle again with the same things. I find that when I am not a free
person, going to church doesn't do sh*t for me and I'm so glad someone
else agrees because most people don't understand. They think me not
going to church is the cause of my struggling, when in reality, what I
really need is to pray, fall asleep on the beach, see God's
magnificence, breathe clean air, drink pure water, read material like
this, meditate, run to Christian music, etc, because because THAT is
what brings me closer to God. I don't know about other Christians, but
for me, I feel when I fall off course, it's due to a lack of love or
care for myself, and it has nothing to do with other people. I can blame
others, but being with or without self-love, which is largely
synonymous to being wit or without God because God is love, is an issue
so far removed from others, but completely central to my conscience. I
always feel the need to get serious with God.

I think you need to get serious with God everyday.

@LadyGwenivere@xanga - very well said.  that was my complaint with what was written as well.  some don't understand how hard it is to actually have a relationship in general not to mention God.