GreyDestiny

I must be honest in admitting that I don't know how to define a friend. 

Lack of friendship today is brought about not only by technology but also age. Not only are more people spending far too much time with their faces in their phones, but opporunities for friendships seem to diminish the older you get. I'd also say a lack of social exposure; a generation raised by television, internet, and video games has little experience with people face-to-face and feel uneasy about gaining it. As a young man, I must admit to falling into this category; I simply haven't spent enough time around strangers growing up and now I find conversation to not only be somewhat vexing but also pretty exhausting.

What I do in terms of being friendly is preferring to listen more than I speak (though one can do the vice-versa; someone's got to do the talking), offering a helping hand if it is needed, and not intruding on another's time or life in an inconvenient or unpleasant way. If I can help it, at least.

Some folks say that everyone is on the spectrum, but i'd say it's more that everyone's a bit awkward and can empathize with some things.

I'd view it like I view a racing video game. It doesn't matter what car you choose, but rather how you use it. Some cars have tons of speed and little handling, some tons of handling and little speed, a few are fairly average, etc. They can all be useful in their own ways. In this sense, autism in not a detriment; merely a different means of going about the race.

I can feel this, especially as someone relatively new and ignorant. 

I was... Supposedly raised a Christian. I say supposedly because my parents didn't do much by way of teaching me. Just handed a small child a bible and figured i'd read it, much less understand it. In truth, unfortunately, that bible just collected dust. That's not to say i'm entirely upset; i'm rather quite glad to not have old habits a younger mind would've clung to. Might have beeen nice to start earlier than I have, though.

Any Christian is on a neverending quest to learn more and grow closer, I feel. I have had some trouble, but I believe the answers we are looking for are with God. There are definitely more people out there that know WAY more than I do, but we need to keep in mind that nobody knows everything. I feel that what it means to be Christian is to seek out the lord, for the lord is truth. Some folks just get so lost and caught up in wording that they leave little room for feeling.

Best of luck on your endeavors, everyone.

I think people might be better able to address the issue if they knew details. It's like asking, "I need a new part for my car because it sounds funny. What part should I replace?" We would have to know the model, the year, specifics on the sound, etc.

Since I lack details, I can only conjecture. If it is God you are speaking with, then perhaps it is a test. It occurs to me that, if he made promises of rewards and did not deliver (at least, not yet), maybe it is because you expect reward for walking in his ways on some level. Reading through this topic, you seem to get somewhat upset about the absence of fulfillment of the promises. Even though they seemingly came without you asking for them, you want them to come true so badly that you accuse God of being a liar when they do not immediately come through. It could also just be a matter of patience and of faith.

Again, I can only conjecture and I don't know what i'm on about. The answers are between God and yourself. Forgive me if i'm wrong.

I read a website/article recently that made some decent points. The link is below.

http://www.cjfm.org/resources/statements/should-christians-keep-kosher/

(Sorry. I just couldn't be bothered to type it all out myself.)

In any case, I was wondering what thoughts any of you might have on the matter.