I'm a new Christian and I have a question for 'old' Christians?

You may have joined a fundamentalist church where everyone wants to share, to reassure themselves that they are on the right path. It's overwhelming if you are not into that. I was never into that. You need to find a church that is less dogma-oriented, where people assume you are a believer, without the interrogation and constant self-affirming sharing routines.

Presbyterians and Congregationalists are more laid back and won't force you to share unless you initiate the sharing.

Christianity should be all about personal beliefs and individual relationships with Christ, without the constant pressure to confess your undying love of Christ. You are not a bad Christian, but you may be judged as that in this church, if you don't go along with their version of worship. Christians change churches all the time, until they find one that is a good fit. Don't worry, you will find a church where you feel comfortable.

No, it doesn't. Not sure what you mean about "communal" stuff.

You still get to be a private person, Jesus is always a gentleman.

If they want you to testify about knowing Jesus personally for your baptism, that's biblical, a public declaration. But you do not have to spend your life going forward for Altar calls.

Not every Church is okay.

And your relationship with Jesus/God is by trust in Him, that is the essence of faith.

"Testifying" of our experiences with Christ is a much larger custom in some groups than in others. But it ALWAYS has to be real or don't do it. They might be making it up for the approval/admiration of others. Some groups even spend quite some time degrading parents in group (in public) to then testify how Jesus then saved them. It's ungodly, it is sin and against one of the 10 commandments.

Stay true to the LOrd. He will lead you where you belong. But there is some public stuff, like baptism should be an open statement of siding with the Lord.

I never feel bad for not seeking the approval of my Christian brethren. Had the gift of tongues since late 80's and never do it in front of Pentecostals because they put too much "opinion" on it, it's none of their business if/what I talk to Jesus about. If they don't like it, they can take it up with Christ.

It's God who decides if you are being bad or not. Do not ever forget that. He "convicts" of both sin AND righteousness.

My son is VERY introverted and would NOT feel comfortable talking in front of others, and many people are like that. That doesn't make you a bad Christian, but it does make your situation uncomfortable. I AM interested in knowing what Church or denomination that you are involved with as there are so many cults that use the name Jesus or Christian, that actually are not, or at least do not teach the Bible like it is supposed to be taught. You use words like, "Communal" and "Expect" and these words raise a red flag and make me suspicious, but they may be okay.Yes, we SHOULD tell others and share with them the "Good News" as that is the "Great Commission" that Jesus gave us- "Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit," BUT if we are shy, we can do that in our own way and on occasion, we need to step out of our comfort zone and 'stretch' ourselves a little, but that pressure should not be put on you at Church. If it is a casual setting and someone asks you to share without pressuring you to do so, that is fine, we all do that to each other on occasion, but with numerous, or new people present, that can still be uncomfortable and in that case, it is acceptable to politely 'pass'. If everything is on the up and up, the pastor or leader will understand your shyness and will not put you on the spot. As a precautionary measure, if you would be so kind, please email me at "massrevealer@yahoo.com" and tell me what group you are associated with and I'll try to help you by telling you what they believe, if they aren't a mainstream denomination. It may save you a lot of heartache in the long run. Blessings to you!

No, there is nothing wrong with being private and quiet. The purpose of fellowship is to be comforted together by our mutual faith, and as we hear God's Word, something may come to mind, and so we discuss it by the Word of God. Yes it is true some churches are intrusive, but it is not with ill intent, rather it is meant to become one body in Christ. What you do not feel comfortable talking about, then just politely say so; there is no test or performance review we must give each other.

You don't have to do this. I was not very social or into the services when I first got saved the second time in 2008 and I only recently began to get really involved with the church. I just had a personal feeling of being Christian and obeying God!

I have been a practicing Christian since I was 33 years old (non-denominational) and I have never been in a church where I was "expected" to talk and share my experiences. I have attended Bible study groups where we would converse and enjoy fellowship, share our thoughts, ask questions and pray together, but never in the church service itself.

On the one hand I see nothing wrong with sharing certain experiences or anecdotes, miracles or our testimony as to how we became a Christian, and I expect this kind of sharing would help the congregation to grow closer together and be an encouragement for those who hear.

On the other hand, there is more intimate knowledge that we are to confess to "one another," but not necessarily to the "entire" church. For example, we should confess our sins, our struggles, our concerns with one another and be accountable to one another, and pray for and with one another, but there is nothing I recall in the Bible that "mandates" a believer must share "everything" with "every" person in a church without reservation.

We are to discern who we can and should trust by their actions and their fruit.

There are some who may attend church that are not yet believers, who are not yet knowledgeable with regard to Biblical teaching/principles and who may not yet be walking with God, or have a relationship with Jesus Christ. We should be careful what we share and how we do so because our words which are often not Scriptural or based on Scripture can affect a person's opinion of Jesus Christ as an unintended result. We are representatives of Christ and as such, we should be very careful and explicit in how and when we share our faith.

If you are ever asked to share something, share what you are comfortable sharing, ask God to give you the words to say, to help you with any shyness, and to grant you wisdom and understanding. If you have nothing to say then don't worry about it and just say "not today," and do not for one second think that this means you are being unfaithful. You may find that there will be a moment when you really "desire" to share something. Just pray that God provides you the opportunities that He wants for you and to give you the right words to say at that time.

Just remember, we "all" need Jesus to save us, because we are all sinners and we all fall short of the glory of God. We cannot be saved by our works, but by our faith in Jesus alone, which will "produce" fruit in us according to God's purpose for our lives and in our own time.

If you believe that Jesus is your Lord and Savior, that He died for your sins, and rose again then you are saved by your faith in Him, because of the work He did on the cross.

We can never earn or deserve His Gift of Salvation, it is God's Gift, freely given. He will never leave you or forsake you.

Read your Bible and develop your relationship with Christ and you will come to understand and know if something, any teaching isn't Biblically accurate.

Take Care and God bless you little sister.

Say "pass". When you are in Bible study or talking about the Bible, or in therapy, or in a relationship and someone ask you something private that you don't want to share at that moment......say pass. Sometimes Christians overwhelm new Christians and they don't realize it. If they are overwhelming you, then it is possible that they will turn you away from Christ and not even realize it. The Bible is hard to understand, so web sites like Biblegateway.com have versions of the Bible that make it easier for the rest of us to understand. If you don't understand something, ask them to explain it to you........since you are a new Christian. That is why I love Joyce Meyer, she uses simple explanations that apply to times today, so it makes the Bible easier to understand. Yes, I think all new Christians get overwhelmed and probably a lot of them got turned off to Christ.

That's typical of some "evangelical" churches. Witnessing is important in those churches, and everyone is expected to Witness in public in church on occasion.

Most churches do not expect such public "sharing" (normally called "witnessing") from their members. If it makes you extremely uncomfortable, change churches. The Bible does not require such public "witnessing" from all Christians - but some churches teach that all Christians should do so.

Again: most churches will *not* expect you to do that.

It does NOT make you a bad Christian. It just makes you a shy one. Nothing wrong with that!

- Jim, http://www.bible-reviews.com/

Not everybody shares. It is not a problem. There are people within Christianity that make a life of silence. You don't have to go that far, of course. I am not the type to offer a lot of personal info to a bunch of people I don't know. You can commune with the Church without doing that.

Some groups of Christians (denominations) believe in sharing these experiences, others don't. You seem to be in one that does. No, it does not mean you are a bad Christian if you are shy about your private experiences. Worshiping God with others in a community is part of Christianity and this you should continue, but baring you soul in a group is not necessary.