DaniJ87

this is interesting... Switzerland gun politics. In Switzerland, it is mandatory for just about all households to have guns... and yet their crime rate is much lower than ours...

It sounded like the original poster wanted to find out why people read the versions they do... not necessarily start a whole debate in which everyone tells everyone else why we should all CHANGE what we read... I read from several versions, and I have used the KJV, NIV, NKJV, ESV, and occasionally, for a reference, the Message bible, as well. My primary bibles are the NIV and ESV. ESV is very similar to NKJV, and strikes me as sounding like a blend between NIV and NKJV. There are some ludicrous claims about why certain bible versions are better than others, and I would advise anyone here who is curious about them, to do your research, rather than believe any certain reasons given on this message board- if truth is shared here, it will be found elsewhere as well. I don't want to get into a lot of mess about "KJV is better/worse/good/bad"... because that road has already been taken, and it won't probably change anyone's minds to say anything about it now. However, I will say, that I like the NIV personally, because it was translated from the oldest manuscripts- the Alexandrian manuscripts-, and when I did my research on bible versions, it seemed that the NIV translators had worked very hard to make the NIV as accurate as possible. I just purchased an ESV bible, but I haven't used it a tremendous much yet, so I won't comment much on it. I grew up going to a bible-camp where they used only KJV... and at home my family memorized things from the NKJV and occasionally NIV... this made it quite annoying to be at camp and have to re-memorize a verse in KJV, because I already knew it in NIV, but that wasn't good enough for the camp people, because NIV was substandard somehow. About the "omitted verses"... My NIV does include those Mark verses... it just places a note next to them, stating that there are such and such manuscripts that do not include them, and that these other ones do, and that they are debated... I believe that there are no verses in any of the version disputes however, that if deleted would eradicate any doctrine in the Bible- just a repetition of it.

yes, I do love it... and my day isn't over yet! I can't wait to see what He has in store next, on a day like today! ~Danette

Republished from my blog: korismos.blogspot.com Oh wow. Yesterday and today I made a couple of major blunders... and God was far, far too merciful to me, in keeping them from affecting me. First of all, yesterday I forgot to move my car from its spot in the resident lots (where I could have it during the weekend, but not during the week, since I don't have the right permit) to a student lot on lower-campus.. I realized this at 1:30 in the morning... and seriously contemplated moving it... but then I decided that if I were to move it, I wouldn't have had enough sleep last night, and then I would feel dead during my finals today- so I decided that I would just deal with getting a ticket on my car- it would only be five dollars, after all... (never mind that I only have $4.50 to my name...) My alarm went off at 6:55 in the morning, and I switched it off, and lay back to wake up... I didn't. I fell asleep. But in my switching off of the alarm clock, I somehow managed to switch the SECOND alarm on- which buzzed promptly at 7:45... 15 minutes until my first final of the day. I did not grab my backpack, or anything... and I didn't shower, wash my face, brush my teeth, etc... I used some mouthwash, brushed my hair, got dressed.. and ran outside... to my car, which just because of my stupidity the day before... was in the parking lot outside of my dorm... WITHOUT a ticket! I was nearly two hours past the ending of the "permit-free" parking... (Friday 3pm, through Monday 6AM) and my car did not have a ticket. I climbed in, and drove the path that brought me past the top of the hill... and it was open?? Open? It is NEVER open at 7:50AM... but it was. So I got to take the short-cut route, of driving down the hill, rather than having to get on Clairemont and driving around the campus and down. Furthermore, at this time of the morning, it was nigh impossible that I would find a parking place in the Phillips parking lot, because it's the most convenient parking lot on lower-campus... but with everything else God was doing for me... I decided to check it out. So I did... and then I was amazed again- as I found a parking place right away. Then, I realized I didn't have a pen with me- and for finals, I definitely needed a pen! But there, on the floor of my car, was a pen- actually a nice one, that works, and I liked! When I got to the building my final was in, one of my classmates was standing outside- the class hadn't started yet... and so I went climbing up the stairs, to my ENGL 225 class... and to make everything even better- my teacher brought breakfast to class- bagels and donuts and juice and cream cheese. :-D My final went wonderfully, too. There was one question that I didn't know.... but most of them were easy- and my essay topic was something that I was familiar with discussing- free speech on college campuses- and my teacher even let us use our books! I had left my book (and my whole backpack, for that matter) in my dorm- but my teacher had an extra copy of the book sitting out So I had one to use. So to recapture: God gave me way more grace than I deserved for all of my stupidity this morning... and I am so thankful!

hey... I visited your blog and left you a comment... :-) explained how to post pictures, for you... ;-) ~Danette http://korismos.blogspot.com <<<<< my blog.

The thought of time, and God being in the future, and knowing everything is amazing. Mind boggling. I know that free-will and God's omniscience go together.. but my poor brain is too lowly to comprehend it. Thank you Lord, for doing such amazing things for us!

It's worshiping the creation rather than the creator of infinite power. It's working for the wrong side. The losing side. Futile. Pointless. Stupid to do- you will lose in the end if you are on the devil's side.

I must ask then... Since we know that persecution of Christians is BOUND to happen- in fact, we are to rejoice in it, because it builds stronger faith- why do we care about the law? God didn't promise us a rosy life as a Christian- He promised suffering, and sacrifice. He didn't promise privacy, or "american" privileges... he promised persecution and humiliation. If I start being persecuted as a result of the laws, (which have been blown out of proportion- I understood that the government was only listening to known/suspected terrorists and the people they talk to- not the entire population... for one thing, that would be extremely costly and ineffective) it will be God's will, and I will try to rejoice in it, and thank Him for the opportunity to suffer for His sake. Persecution builds faith. America is full of weak pathetic people who call themselves Christians- but never had to stand for their faith, or do anything near like the things that Christians in other parts of the world must do- we meet here in relative peace, in the open, and don't have to be wary of police breaking in to our church services and arresting us. We don't risk being killed for our faith. I read that Christians in China are actually praying for our persecution- to revive our faith! After all- what good is our testimony to be a Christian in good times, when everything is going easy for us? It's when the persecution comes, and you stand for your faith in the face of death or torture, that your testimony is strongest. We are WAY too concerned about our silly rights and liberties- when God gave up all of HIS deserved honors and glory, to die on a cross for us. How much farther can you get from the selfish concept of "but this is my RIGHT!"... your only right, is to worship God with all of your heart, mind, and soul- for that is what you were made for.

Southern Baptist churches also have the bands-on-stage things sometimes... and very upbeat contemporary music :-) ManicSmiley- Whatever church you go to- find one where the pastor actually asks people to turn to a passage in their Bibles when he preaches, (and where he preaches God's word) and find one where the people are friendly, welcoming, and willing to get to know new people.

You raise interesting thoughts, Copper Scroll.... I have never been in a position where I have had to choose whether to follow a rebellion or not in that way... but I do know that God tells us to obey authorities- even those we consider unjust- as 1 Peter 3:13-17 says... Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened." But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. It is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. and if God brings me to that place where I need to choose... I am confident that He will make it clear to me what to do... until then, I am struggling to obey authorities- they are not going to be anti-biblical very often, anyway..... And technically- where does the Bible condemn slavery? Not that I think we should be doing it, or that certain people are better than others... but... as a thought- what verses do we have that condemn it? Any? I can't think of any off the top of my head that mention anything about slavery other than in the context of "be good servants to your masters" and "treat your slaves well"......

Please do not make comments on this movie, since some people ( like me) do not agree with some stuff in it . Second about the Da Vinci code, it's a blasphemy, lie's, and a lack of understanding. This movie is just here to try to divide the church and give comfussion to new believer's in Jesus Christ. So my advice, don't see this movie. It will say things not even in The Bible. And rather what the devil wants you to hear/ I must ask.... why on earth should we refrain from commenting on a movie at all, because you don't like the movie? We don't like the DaVinci code movie, and we're commenting on THAT.......

My Pastor was preaching on the DaVinci code the last two weeks in church, showing us how all of Dan Brown's claims are completely unsupported by ANY data.... just about everything that he says is ficticious, (going along with the "FICTION" genre) or else, unsupported... According to my pastor, Dan Brown's three main claims, (though he makes many, many more) are: 1. The Jesus we have in the Bible wasn't who He said He was... 2. Christianity as we have it today is a lie; 3. The Bible contains just the gospels that were "liked", and that there are around 80 other "gospels" around, that are equally valid.. OK. My pastor went on to smash all of these points.... 1. Dan Brown proposes NO data to back up this point; a supposed likeness in a picture that DaVinci painted, ("The Last Supper") - the allusion to which has gotten secular and Christian art historians moaning; (They have the record of the notes DaVinci made on his painting, defining who each character was,) and he bases most everything on a few documents, that are newly discovered, and unreliable- the Judas papers, for one... OK- info about this: there is only ONE copy... and it has holes ALL OVER it... We saw a photo of it- holes in the middle of sentences, etc... (the sentences, by the way, that Brown had to add things to in order to make his "proof" work....) and a few others.... All, we saw pictures of; all, there is ONE copy of, all are in horrible shape; (most of them are only about 70% there... and it's the gaps that Brown used for his book....) 2. He mispresents the Council of Nicene, (claiming that it was to determine whether or not Jesus was God, rather than to discuss Jesus' relationship with the Father, which resulted in the defining of the doctrine of the trinity) claiming that there was a "close vote" in the matter of Jesus deity..... (reality check- the vote for the trinity, which was the vote that Brown is warping; was 300 to 2....) Brown claims that Jesus didn't call himself God; claims that none of that came about until the early church decided to write things down differently... (hmm.. I wonder why the disciples would ever be willing to die for anything that wasn't true?? um... this doesn't figure properly, sorry...) 3. There are about 20 other "books" that could be termed "gospels"... however, they are not true biographical accounts in the sense that our Gospels are(rather, a compiliation of sayings and quotes, supposedly said by Jesus, etc.); neither do we have a lot of copies of them like we have of all of the Bible books; they are not applicable to life; (my pastor says he did read them in seminary... the gnostic gospels, for instance... gnosticism didn't sound like it held any comfort for life, he says,) and, the giant proof... DO you know WHY we don't have a lot of copies of them? Brown claims it was a conspiracy do get rid of them; rather, it was that people were not willing to die for them. Early Christians chose what they believed to be Truth, and preserved it; the Truth that they were willing to give their lives for, they copied, and risked being found with it, while Christianity was against the law.... some of the "other" books that we have discovered, were actually found in a garbage dump! (meaning.. no, not that you guys just found something awesome, but- hey- you dug up someone's trash!) So.. That's a brief bit of what I learned from my Pastor about the DaVinci codes..... I wouldn't believe on bit of his book, if I were you.... Get one of those research books that systematically smashes Dan Brown's book..... you will learn a lot...

Based on the program I watched, the "Christian yoga" simply uses the physical techniques and disposes of the Hindu philosophy. Here's an article on the thing I saw on tv: Christian Yoga Again, I don't necessarily agree with calling it "Christian Yoga", unless it's just to explain the techniques. But from what I can tell (at least with this particular teacher), she recognizes the Hindu philosophy involved in the chanting, so she replaces this aspect with something biblical. Now if this is the focus, I would completely disagree with it. Our phyical body should not be equated with "flesh", and our spirit should not be elevated above it. Hello sister, I have to point out something here irrespective of yoga or any exericise or philisophy. You mention the following... Why would you say this? Our physical body IS the "flesh" and our spirit SHOULD (or IS) above our flesh. Romans 7:23 (Amplified Bible) 23But I discern in my bodily members [[d]in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh] a different law (rule of action) at war against the law of my mind (my reason) and making me a prisoner to the law of sin that dwells in my bodily organs [[e]in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh]. Romans 8:8-10,13 8So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. 9But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. 10And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 13For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. Please do not take this as a personal attack or become defensive. It is just correction. I see that many people speak out against things that do not have much affect on the building of God yet the things that do are ignored or missed. This is one such example. Let us discern the false doctrines within the church more eagerly. These are the things that destroy. The Church is Satan's greatest enemy. Satan is not blatant in attacking the church through false doctrine but subtle. He does not come as a guy with a tail and a pitchfork...He comes appearing as an angel of light. Appears I'm not the one who needs correction Paul would never have advocated dualism (which is what you're doing here). In fact, he quite adamantly opposed it. Using his letters to elevate spirit over body completely violates their intent. Gnosticism was the most prevalent enemy of the early church. Gnostics taught, among other things, that the body (and all matter) was evil. They taught that in order to obtain a more "spiritual" state (or set the spirit free), one had to deny their body of it's physical appetites. But if we interpret these verses the way you present them (equating body with "flesh") then we end up making the same error the gnostics made. We have to remember that God created our spirits and our bodies. We shouldn't consider our bodies sinful or evil and shouldn't consider our spirit more important than our body. God created both, and both are equally important. This is why we should take care of our bodies, they are a temple, and we should use our members as a living sacrifice to God. So what does the word "flesh" mean? In context, when Paul uses the word "flesh" here, he is not speaking of our physical bodies. He's not speaking ontologically, but ethically. "Flesh" refers to our sin nature, or desires that are in rebellion against God. It cannot mean what you are trying to say because this would pose a problem with verses like John 1:14 which tells us the "Word became flesh" (meaning Christ). Tess, comparing the english word "flesh" in different passages isn't enough to derive this doctrine.... is the hebrew/greek word the same in all of these instances? A lot of the time, translators seemed to have been at a loss for differing words to define the differences between different concepts.... I think that we could think about this "Christian Yoga" as something different... The word "Yoga" was put on there, I believe, in part, to attract people, and to draw a connection to what it is, and perhaps to bring popularity to it. The Hindus did not create the body, nor do they hold a monopoly over certain ways to exercise... if you can separate the hindu beliefs from the exercise, (which I believe you CAN, as apart from the beliefs, what is yoga but stretches and exercises?) why not incorporate certain types of stretching and exercise into part of your day to meditate on God's word, AND strengthen your body, at the same time? I believe firmly that if they did not give the program the name "Christian Yoga".... nobody would have objections to it, (like, they could have called it, "Meditation and Stretching".... and there would be no protesting to this extent...) This seems to be a weak/strong Christian thing... if you can separate the beliefs from the actions that are not sinful, then go ahead- the same as stronger Christians were perfectly able to eat meat offered to idols, without being sinful... but the weaker Christians who just recently came from worshiping the idols, may struggle with the issue a lot more.

You won't get the unbelievers' opinions much in the Inner Court section..... I don't know exactly why they would want to post on here... other than that God is drawing them, and they are seeking.

Sometimes I think it depends mostly on the motivation of the anger... (I'm talking before any actions take place).. If you are angry because YOU didn't get something that YOU thought YOU deserved... it's sinful... it's selfishness. If you are angry because something is being said about God that isn't true, or because glory is being taken from Him; that's righteous... that's how I understand it... though this is a pretty simplistic example.