walla299

That's one of the reasons I posted it. This is stuff that's going to affect believers whether they want to admit it or not. Sooner or later the world shows up in church - and the leadership & congregation should have some idea how to apply scripture to the situation and deal with it. The particular sin doesn't really matter - everyone needs to hear the gospel since we're all sinners and we're called to proclaim the gospel.

If this post needs to be moved, that's okay. I ran across this article about how we as believers should respond to all the transgender stuff that's going on in society today and thought it should be shared. This is going to be confronting us, our communities, and churches at some point and the writer has some good points - biblical points that apply to other groups and all groups since we're all sinners by nature. http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-should-we-respond-to-caitlyn-jenner There is also a list of other resources at the end of the article.

Umm . . . by any chance did you mean easier to copy the (magnetic) strip using cheap scan tools? The chip cards are more secure than the older kind, supposedly. I remember Fez mentioned them being used in his country because they cut down on fraud. Trick is that a new credit card reader is needed to use the chip equipped cards as intended . . . otherwise you're still using the old magnetic strip on the back.

Its a security thing designed (hopefully) to reduce credit card fraud. You can read more here: http://gizmodo.com/what-are-smart-credit-cards-and-why-are-they-coming-1520171221 This wiki article is pretty technical, but the technology has been used in other countries for years: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_card

A sifting? You bet. Its going to start costing something to be a Christian in the US sooner than many think. Gay marriage is just the start, but history shows the real church flourishes under persecution. Its not going to be comfortable or fun, but the true sheep will be separated from the goats.

I found this article and found it a bit convicting. It reminded me that there's still a lot of the old man that needs to be replaced with Christ. I'm better about sharing my faith today, but there's always room for improvement. Thankfully, the Lord is not finished with me yet. You can continue reading here: http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/we-talk-about-what-we-love

Sure didn't, did it? Our pastor is a former biker and has tatoos from that former life. He's said several times (as others have on this thread) that they are a reminder for him of what Jesus walked him out of after he got saved. They have also opened doors for him to witness to others who otherwise might not listen. Something I've learned over the years is that my old personal definition of a "Christian" when I was younger needed to be expanded a lot. I've gone to churches where leathers and long hair were not noticed and the Spirit was definitely at work there and many got saved. The gospel is a message to be proclaimed. Its not about a dress code.

Welcome.