Riverwalker

Isaiah 40 28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. 29 He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, 31 But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint. 2 Corinthians 12: 9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. Let the Lord be strong in you, fall into his mercy. Let Him love you, let Him heal you, let Him lift you up I am praying for you

I am going to be a little bit blunt here, so I will apologize ahead of time But you have lost something, your focus. This is not about you. You are just a vessel, a conduit God would like to use to reach people. This applies to all of us. When we get caught up in the "gifts" in what we think, in what we do..... we lose what God is trying to do. You say God will let you "carry out my purpose" but it is not YOUR purpose, or YOUR Calling, or YOUR gifts....they are God's and if you will get out of the way and let HIM carry out HIS purpose in you. Then the work and will of God will be done

We are all equal in the eyes of God, but we each have different roles They can differ from person to person. But some roles we are asked to serve are based on our sex. I know this isn't very popular in today's world, but it is what is. Women still make the best moms, and men still make the best dads

Like Starise said it is like being in a closed room which suddenly opens up into a bigger room, and the air is a little fresher, and the light is a little brighter and you have a Homer Simson "Doh!" moment and the feeling lasts for a little while until you start wondering about what's behind the next wall...and the digging begins again

Well thanks coop. I realize the jest that was involved but it ticked something in my mind. No offense meant And yeah the past was rough but it is behind us

Do what you believe is right. That is all you have to be concerned with. God will sort out the rest

how about Welcome to Worthy Forums, we are a serious bunch of believers who try not to take ourselves too seriously, grace, peace, joy mercy, grace and love to you.

not to continue the hijacking of this thread but is ranking really a big deal?

Welcome back, always enjoyed your posts. Keep the faith and the peace

Amen! Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Or maybe just find another church. Disrupting is seldom constructive

Amen Eat right, exercise, learn laugh, love, pray praise work and play. A healthy recipe for life

Often times I am reminded that people can be presented with the word of God on a subject, but because they have their preconceived notions that they built a wall of defense around their ideas and they never receive the word. Yes walls can block out lies, they can protect from attack, but they can also keep the good things out. That is why every wall needs a gate. So that we can receive the good things we need to prosper. In this case a new understanding from a new perspective In California we have a rather impressive mountain that sticks way up (14,000 plus feet) and can be seen from a hundred miles around But depending on where you stand, you get a completely different view Mt Shasta has many different looks and if you only looked at it from one point of view, you would see the mountain, but miss many of its nuanced mysteries So too, is the word of God. We all have our understanding of it...our point of view, but if we are humble enough to accept others perspective we just might learn something. Sure we have to take what they are sharing and make sure it lines up with the word of God, to make sure we are looking at the same mountain. But once presented with a truth of God we formerly did not possess we have to be willing to CHANGE our perspective. Let what we KNOW grow and advance. N0 one anywhere on this rock we call earth has a complete picture. We need the perspective of others to help us see what we can't. I know a lot of people will say that "I don't need other Christians I have the Holy Spirit" which I do believe is different than what the Holy Spirit wants. We all have different life experiences, and those experiences can make us blind to some aspects of the truth of God, and more focused in others. But if we all share, compare (to the word of God) and accept what each person knows of God, we will gain a much better insight into He....who is our everything...is. Keep Humble My Friends

Intelligence can very much get in the way of way your relationship with God. IF you think you know all that, what can God teach you,. But its not really about IQ its about Attitude Pride or Humility 1 Peter 5:5 Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” Those who are proud of their intellect and knowledge find it hard to overcome and get humble. But as the bible says: 1 Corinthians 1:27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty I am a pretty smart person.......but through age I have gained the wisdom to know I am smart enough to know I don't know everything and that I cannot comprehend everything So I bow before God and what he has told us in His word

Haven't even read the thread yet, but had to give you two thumbs way up for this wisdom

I do not hold to Calvinism God offers salvation to all

The goats are the pretenders. the ones who claim to be saved, But God does not know them. They call him Lord, but did not live their life for Him

What is it about the things of this life that we don't want to give up that puts in opposition to God. It can be anything we cling to, from sexual sin, to having that second helping of biscuits and gravy when we know we have to take care of ourselves to be here to take care of our family. We know the things of God are sweet and that things of this world are passing and soon rot. And yet I think each of us has our little stash of selfish rottenness that we won't give up. (If you don't then good job!) is it simply a matter of reserving a little security in what we know as opposed to that which as 1 Cor 13:12 says For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Those of us who have been Christian a long time may have shed a lot of this baggage, but some we may hold on to. But we need to let it all go, and give it to God and trust that He has our best interests at heart. James 4:6But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” Trust God, that he has your very best interest at heart and give as much as you can, if not all to Him Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

As always the sin is always in the why, never in the what Do you fear Lions and tigers and bears, hurricanes, tornados, floods, God....all good things to have a healthy respect for....a type of fear Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction. But are you fearing circumstances when God has promised to take care you. Are you giving more power to circumstances than God, that kind of fear is the opposite of faith, and that is a sin NKJV Romans 14:23 But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin. And while the above scripture is about what you let yourself eat...the broader understanding is, if you know God has said something and you resist it....from fear or desire. (Like I will never leave you nor forsake you) that is sin

I believe Paul is talking about being in an attitude of prayer....connected with God 24.7. Not so much yammering at him. He knows everything we want and need. Jesus also warns us against vain repetitions, thinking that if you just keep bugging God he'll give in. No give it to Him and move on....if you can It is my experience that you can pray for something, give it God, hope for peace, try to take your mind off of it, and yet the anxiety returns. When the anxiety returns it is okay to pray again, not so much for the situation (which you believe God will handle) but rather for the strength to endure and be at peace until it does. Philippians 4: 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus 8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things Wash rinse repeat as needed In a perfect world, we could give the problem to God, get our minds on happier things and wait peacefully for the answer In a perfect world......

From what I heard this is the wrong time to get into bit coin. Investing even With the democrats driving this economy into the inflation ditch the best thing you could probably invest in is Gold. and no its not a sin. Greed and covetousness are, but you can invest and not go there Jesus even used investing in a parable Matthew 25: 14 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. 15 And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. 16 Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. 17 And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. 18 But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. 19 After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ 21 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 22 He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ 23 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 24 “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’ 26 “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28 So take t

Wonderful Insight I went with a church on a "mission trip" to South Korea in the Mid Eighties, little did I know I was the one about to be schooled. It was awesome, they have some serious believer there, made me re-examine myself

If you purposefully say something that is not at all true not at all in any sort of analogous way....is that not a lie I see we have o common ground for continuing this discussion as you have compromised the bible for your own favored agenda

Why is when faced with the simplicity of the truth, those who want to avoid it, use the phrase "false dichotomy. All things are a Dichotomy....they are either true or false. If you define them well enough And we may not be the original audience but we are the audience and if God knew we would discover that he was lying, then why would he lie. Do you see the aspersions you have to cast on God, just to justify what you think is true? (but do not know is true

You jumping to conclusions that are not there. We are the audience for the bible. And God is a miraculous creator But he does not lie, If he said He said he FORMED us from the dust of the earth and breathed life into us, THAT is what He did. He did not have to tell us anything, but since He did we must accept it as it is Either God is wrong, or man is wrong.....now which one do you think it is?