winsomebulldog

This is just so amazing!

"Inclusive" = secular, worldy, wishy-washy, spineless, etc., etc., etc.... Maybe they could get Joel Osteen or Rick Warren.

Yes, I noticed this as well. And the fact that they described her rape as "alleged" though I suppose the alleged part is that it was done by her stepfather as opposed to someone else. What a sad thing for a young girl. And then to have her tragic situation turned into a circus by abortion rights activists on top of everything else. Poor child.

I'm just sick of some people screaming racism every time immigration reform comes up. As though asking or even demanding ANYONE who wants to live in this country do so legally is somehow racist. It's pathetic. I don't care who you are or what your original nationality was, I welcome you with open arms, so long as you DO IT LEGALLY! Hubby worked with several Croatians who had come here and neither of us had any issue with that. Why should we? They did it through legal channels are are now legal citizens of this country. The fact is, with the obvious exception of Native Americans, we are all immigrants. My distant family history traces back to England and Germany. Just a few generations ago, my family chose to come here for whatever reason and that eventually let to me. We are a nation of immigrants and there isn't a thing at all wrong with that. I just have no respect for those who refuse to seek their residency through legal channels. I don't think they deserve to be given the same rights and privileges of legal citizens. If they are granted these things then it is an outright slap in the face of every person who has done the right thing and gone through the proper channels. Of course, I can well understand why Obama would dislike the law. As far as I'm concerned, I still haven't been convinced beyond doubt that he is himself a legal citizen of this country.

Oh, my! This is so tragic! The poor young man! It just breaks my heart. Praying for him and any other family and friends touched by this terrible tragedy.

Neat! But I'm sad to say that I doubt I would go far in this competition.

Not even a little? Of all the things I've read of in the Bible, the Exodus has never been one I had any doubts about. Honestly, I can say I've never doubted the stories and/or miracles of the Bible at all. The only thing I've ever struggled with was the human emotional side of some of the orders issued to the Children of Israel. For example: it has always seemed kinda harsh to me that a woman was condemned for not screaming for help while being raped if she was somewhere that she might be overheard. But, that's just my own feminism getting in the way. As for the story of the Exodus or the Flood or Daniel or David or Solomon or anything else, it is just something I've always had faith in. No doubts there.

I keep feeling more and more like we're rushing head-long into a time and place where it will be illegal to be openly Christian. I know that's what's coming, but it feels so much closer now than it ever has before. All the anti-Christian groups out there just seem to grow stronger and stronger and our Government and Legal System is so clearly on their side. God be with us all as these dark days draw nearer.

I never saw the show, but I can well imagine him saying this. He obviously believed he was "on the side of angels" so to speak. I reckon he's figured out the truth by now, though.

Yeah, I'm kinda fed up of all the conspiracy theories floating around out there. The most sickening to me are the ones saying 9/11 and Oklahoma City were perpetrated by our own government. I believe our government is more than capable of lying to us about something "for our own good." For example, that whole "The CIA does not assassinate people" spiel has always seemed kinda idiotic to me. If the CIA is not assassinating our enemies then they darn well should be IMHO. But I cannot conceive of some dark government entity deliberately setting out to kill thousands of Americans just so they could get government and public support for things like invading Afghanistan and Iraq and the Patriot Act. And if that had been their plan then it was an idiotic one because anyone with half a wit would have known all along that the overwhelmingly liberal leanings of this country would make the anger after 9/11 fade quickly once the media started harping about how many innocents were being killed in the fighting. As if that isn't supposed to happen in a war. As if we're somehow supposed to go over there and take out Al Qaeda by begging them to pretty please stop hating us and trying to kill us. The idiocy of thinking that way is just inexplicable. People die in war. Even the innocent. That's just the way it works.

Best that he learns early on that some of us on here are a little... different when it comes to our senses of humor.

Gives me chills just looking at it. God's mighty power as shown through His creation! AWESOME!

Cool!

Fez, if I was there and saw that, I'd have to assume you were a zombie and set you on fire.

In a somewhat related topic: my husband's family is Independent Baptist. I was raised Southern Baptist. Neither of us ever experienced rituals like crossing oneself or using repetitive prayers. (I've memorized The Lord's Prayer, but not because I think reciting it is somehow pious or particularly beneficial. My understanding and belief is that it was given to us as a model for our own prayers. Back to the topic at hand. ) I have never been superstitious. I find it absurd behavior, especially for a Christian. Which was why I was outright stunned when I was riding with my father-in-law in his truck once when a black cat darted across the road in front of us. He crossed himself instantly. I was too shocked to react. I have laughed about it since, but I also feel disappointed that he would do something so superstitious. 1st: black cats are just cats like any others. I've owned black cats before and never viewed them as evil or somehow unlucky. (I don't actually believe luck exists either.) 2nd: I do not know why any Christian would think making the sign of the cross would somehow ward off perceived evil. (I'm not saying I don't believe evil exists, but a simple act of crossing oneself is no way to deal with it.) Having said all this, I do not see any problem with it in the way Attreyu is describing his use of the ritual. I wear a cross as a way of identifying myself as a Christian and as a tangible reminder to myself in those moments when I feel myself slipping. What Attreyu is describing seems to be the same. I don't worship the cross, I worship Christ. And I don't really care whether the implement that was used to kill Jesus was a pole, a pike, a stake, a "T" shaped cross or some kind of "X." It's like Christmas to me. It's the accepted tradition and so long as it is fine with me so long as it is viewed correctly. So cross yourself if you like, Attreyu. In answer to your original question, I cannot think of any passage of scripture that would prohibit it so long as you don't ascribe some mystical power to the motion.

LOL I saw a commercial yesterday for episodes of Next Gen on BBC America. In it, Picard says, "Let's make sure the name Enterprise is never forgotten." (Or something to that effect.) This just goes to show that Star Trek will live on and on and on and on...

I'm fascinated by how you continue to refer to homosexuality as being genetic while not providing one iota of proof. I've heard that they found a "fat" gene and a "alcoholic" (or was it "addiction"?) gene. Yet, every person who has these genes is not destined to be fat or an addict. Even if some scientist rose up tomorrow and proved that there is such a thing as a "gay" gene, I would still argue that it was a choice. Think about it. Some people like tomatoes. Others do not. Some people love the color orange, others do not. How much of this is learned behavior and how much is just some genetic quirk that makes tomatoes taste good or orange an appealing color? Homosexuality isn't some inescapable part of our genetic code. It is a choice. A person with the "fat" gene may have to work a little harder to not put on weight, but they aren't irreversibly destined to be overweight. A person with a gene that marks an addictive nature does not necessarily have to be an addict. And my favorite evidence, the scientist who decided to do a brain study on violent criminals. He found that the criminals he studied all had similar brain patterns. And he followed that up by admitting that his brain pattern was just like theirs. He wasn't born a murderer. He CHOSE not to be a criminal. He CHOSE to be a scientist. If you have some scientific proof that homosexuality is hardwired into a person's genetic code, please show us. I'm sure we would all love to see it.

No, it has to do with demonically influenced perversion. Then by that logic, no one is responsible for their own sin. We can do anything and say the devil made me do it. What about individual accountability? No, that's a misunderstanding. I was demonically influenced to desire suicide. If I had not resisted the desire and gone through with it, I would still have been responsible for my actions, would I not? Demons often work by screwing your perceptions - even your own feelings. I've had enough unpleasant experiences with them to figure this out. It saved my life once to realize what I was feeling was not me. ...which answer avoids the question of individual responsibility. How do you know it was a demon rather than bad brain chemistry or the temporarily overwhelming weight of your circumstances? In the final analysis, no one, demon or otherwise, influences how we feel unless we choose to let them. Spoken like a person who's never experienced depression or any one of a whole host of other issues. I've been desperately depressed. Suicidal. Almost catatonic with it all. But is was never, ever my choice. It wasn't as if I could just get up, shake my head, and decide to be happy. I have heard the absolutely twisted thoughts that ran through my head and whether they came from bad brain chemistry or a demon bent on pushing me over the edge, you can bet that I didn't choose to endure that agony. To imply that such things are simply a matter of choice is to belittle the struggle that countless people endure on a daily basis. I am alive and reasonably whole today because God carried me through those darkest of times. Not because I chose to wake up one day and stop listening to the dark ramblings inside my own head.

There's this picture - actually more than one I think - of a lighthouse being slammed by a massive wave. la Jumet I think of God the Father every time I see it. Because it represents His power, His supreme command of all of His natural creation. And it reminds me of Him because there is a person standing at the back of the lighthouse, protected from the sea as God protects and shelters us. I don't believe this is a symbol of the Father, but it brings Him to mind every time I see it. And like others have mentioned, seeing rays of sunlight streaming down through the clouds always makes me think of Him as well, though I think it speaks to me more of Jesus because I inevitably wind up wondering if that's how it will look when He returns. I suppose nature itself speaks to me of our Creator. Like is expressed in the song, "How Great Thou Art." But to think of one thing that represents God the Father alone, nothing comes to mind. He just isn't quantifiable. Though, I think there can be representations made, such as artwork, that give a sense of Him. Like those sunbeams or a storm or a giant wave or a thousand other things... it's just in our way of seeing them.

Reminds me of a quote I put on a bumper sticker at zazzle: "My mind works like lightening... one brilliant flash then it's over."

I can certainly relate, kitty. I have lived with depression my entire adult life. It has nearly killed me on more than one occasion. By the time I finally gave in and told a doctor I needed help, I'd already learned how to live with it and how to see the triggers and avoid them. Not that such a thing can be done completely. Life is hard. For someone with depression, avoiding the reality of that is impossible. So, I take meds now and have been in therapy and it has helped considerably. I still have to struggle not to give in to the darkness, but I'm going forward with God's grace and help. I can also relate to your church's response to your illness. I have a dear friend who I love and respect a lot, but I'll have to admit that she has some odd notions about mental illness. She once confessed to me that she used to believe that autistic children were just refusing to engage, as if they had any control over their condition. She's learned better now, but she still tends to lean toward a belief that people blame everything on mental illness when it's really just a choice they make. I have chosen not to argue with her about it, though admittedly she has never tried to tell me I was one of those people. I have made no secret of the fact that I have depression and that I take meds for it and have seen a therapist. I know that some of my church friends don't really agree with it, but they would never say so to my face. Still, I wish they could be a little more sympathetic. Having a mental illness is not a sign of weakness or selfishness, it's a sickness, just like cancer or diabetes. Funny thing is, like other illnesses, God occasionally chooses to utterly heal a person of it. That's my pastor's wife's testimony. She was rushed to the hospital many years ago after trying to kill herself with an overdose of something. (I can't remember what it was.) She was that depressed, that miserable. And God simply took it away from her. I know God heals. I know He can heal anything, be it depression, cancer, addiction, whatever plagues us. But I also know that sometimes He chooses not to heal us. Sometimes we must live with whatever problem we have. Sometimes people die from their illnesses. And sometimes He wants us to overcome whatever is hindering us. It's just all part of His plan for our lives. God is good to us beyond measure. Through all the grief I've known in my life, He provided me with one constant, besides Himself. He gave me a husband I adore and who adores me in return. He will do the same for you. Maybe not a husband, but He will give you what YOU need. He will give you comfort when you need it, peace when the anxiety is so overwhelming that it feels as if you might be crushed beneath the weight of it. He has done that for me. He has filled me with His peace at the exact moment that I feared I would fly apart. I pray that you experience this in your life, kitty. I pray that God will heal you completely, if that is His will, and that He will fill you to overflowing with His grace if you must continue forward with this illness. Bless you, dear. And know that however you may sometimes feel, you are never, ever alone.

From Gumdrop Mountain, near the Butterscotch Falls, just east of Snickerdoodle Valley, in the land of Gobbledegoop. Go on, just TRY to prove it doesn't exist! Is this from Candyland? I used to love that game when I was a kid.

I think these guys are awesome! I go to a small church that doesn't have any "staff" beyond the pastor, and he has a full-time job as a truck driver. (Yep, my preacher drives a big rig! ) We have a building that may or may not be fully paid for. I'm not sure because I'm not the treasurer but I seem to recall that it is paid off. It isn't fancy. We don't even have a sound system. But it serves the purpose it needs to serve by providing a place for us to gather and worship. And that's pretty much my definition of a church: A local body of believers who gather together to read and study the Bible, worship God in Spirit and in truth, and to fellowship with each other. The building in which it happens means nothing as far as I'm concerned. (Though of course having a baptistery handy can be useful. ) An official "church" building, a house or a high school, the real church is the people who gather as a congregation.