Marathoner

That's not what happens, my friend. The more distant an object casting a shadow is from a location impacted by the umbra, the smaller that umbra becomes in relation to the actual size of the object casting that shadow. That's the observed effect. You have to duplicate the conditions of a solar eclipse in order to prove physicists wrong. Go for it.

I see much conjecture and assumption regarding scripture, with judgment being rendered that's identical to how I was judged a long time ago. There were some men supremely confident in their grasp of scripture to the degree that they declared I was "never one of them." They also had declared that they knew the will and purpose of the Lord, so their judgment was beyond reproach. They were correct in that I was never one of them; I never was and never would be. They were also correct in that they understood the will and purpose of the Lord, for He delivered me from their domination and control. The day before those men cast me out, the Lord told me what they would do --- and what I should do --- the morning of the next day. What they intended for evil, the Lord purposed for good. That never fails to render me speechless when I watch it unfold. I also never cease to be amazed by the conviction of some who believe that they have the Lord all figured out. God does whatever He pleases, showing mercy to whomever He will.

That hypothetical airplane fails to meet the following criteria: 1. It is not spherical in shape with a diameter of 2,159 miles; 2. It is not 238,900 miles away from the earth. What meets the above criteria? The Moon.

It's interesting to consider where we came from and how the Lord called us from this world. I wasn't Christian and I surely wasn't reared in a Christian home. I was expressly forbidden to have Christian friends. I wasn't allowed to go into their churches or Sunday schools. I would be punished severely if I was caught violating this rule. Years before the Lord revealed Himself I had heard His voice, but I didn't know who He was. As far as I knew, God was beyond my comprehension and it was impossible to know Him. After the Lord revealed Himself, He sent me to a brother who was not evangelical in any sense of the word. I was welcomed as a member of his family and I lived in a spare bedroom; this brother introduced me to the scriptures and the Body of Christ. During those years I spent with his family I was given unfettered access to his expansive library; I started reading through his English translation of the Septuagint (I have my own copy) along with his collection of early Christian literature. Theologically speaking, I share more in common with you than I do with most evangelicals I meet. Dispensational Theology is foreign to me. My old friend didn't teach anything like it.

Beyond the northern face of my mother's land in the mountains, I discovered a broad arroyo carved into the slope. A partially buried Model T Ford was resting there. Based upon other artifacts found in the general vicinity (coins) that ancient automobile was approximately 80 or 90 years old. It was a rather fascinating rusted hulk to be sure.

Of greater interest is the curious blanket.

I'm in agreement with @Eli1 in this matter, though I would clarify this is a predilection I've observed specifically among evangelicals; "Protestant" is too broad of a brush to paint with in my estimation. I do appreciate your viewpoint as a fellow outsider looking in, my friend. I'm an evangelical according to the discrete definition of the term but apart from that distinction, I'm an outsider to evangelical circles and their churches. This propensity to support false prophets and an unhealthy fixation upon "doom and gloom" has much to do with the dominance of premillennial dispensationalism among those evangelical circles, Eli1. It's not not fair nor truthful to paint all evangelicals in such a way, for there are some who hold to a decidedly dispensational theology without falling prey to the hysteria of what I call "end times mania." It's all the rage, my friend. No matter the time it's always the same: the end is just around the bend. This was the rage during the late 19th century... the early and mid 20th century... 1988, the 1990s, the year 2000, 2012, 2020, 2023, 2024, 2025, and so on.

As others have responded, "Christian" does indeed appear in the scriptures. However, "true Christian" does not, nor does "true disciple" for that matter. There's also the modern context of "Christian" to consider. NConly shares the passage from Acts where disciples were first called "Christians" so according to the scriptural definition, a Christian is a disciple of Jesus Christ. The problem we encounter has to do with a widespread compulsion to judge others to determine if they are a "true" Christian or not. There is only one whom we ought to judge in such a way, and that one is our own selves. As for others, the commandment of the Lord is clear and concise; to wit, that we love one another as He loves us and, love our neighbor as ourselves. Both of those commandments are one and the same. That has nothing to do with judging teaching and the like, something we are called upon to do so that we don't find ourselves led astray. However, abstaining from accusatory finger-pointing and rhetoric is the rule to be sure for we are only judging doctrine, not individuals with regard to their standing with the Lord. Correction in meekness is called for, not accusation and strife. It is not our place to judge whether someone else is a "true Christian" or not, either. Why? We simply don't know, brother. The one who is judged and slandered by the self-righteous will be revealed as the beloved of the Lord. The unrighteous judge will be judged by the same measure by the Lord Himself.

No. Most people --- boys and girls alike --- are born with 24 ribs. However, some people (both sexes) are born with more or less than the standard 24.

Pattern recognition gone wild. When one is strongly inclined to believe something in this world, one will see evidence of it regardless of the facts at hand. Suspicion, mistrust, and a fair degree of paranoia turn accidents into planned events. This was an accident. Those happen.

A lunar eclipse happens one or two times every year. It's a common occurrence.

It's a thing.

"Pickled garlic and oyster pizza is evil and a real believer shouldn't partake."

That difference is found after the resurrection of the Lord. It's important to make this distinction because many Gnostic schools during the time of the apostles taught that the Son of Man did not come in this flesh, which is to say a body like our own. We know that He did indeed. The Gnostics taught their blasphemy in keeping with their truly bizarre cosmology; the "material" world was created by an evil diety, therefore all material things are irrevocably evil. The Gnostics were incomprehensible heretics as a whole.

You would have enjoyed my task earlier today, I think. One of our clients needed a lift (and back again), so I was honored to oblige. Yes, this included my client's devoted canine companion. She came along for the ride! She's a perfectly behaved dog inside of a motor vehicle; she understands that I need to devote all of my attention to driving. She positions herself in the front passenger seat on account of our client's desire to sit in the back of the van. Hilarious. All she needs is a seat belt! The dog is adorable. She reminds me of my adopted mother's devoted canine guardian... there's even a superficial resemblance between the two, though my adopted mother's canine bodyguard was bigger and heavier than our client's caretaker. When we arrived at our destination, my client opted to leave the dog in the van with me... Oh! Woe is me! That dog was beside herself with grief. Oh, whatever was to be done? Dejected and rejected, she positioned herself next to me in the driver's seat. I had to console this dog so she would stop moping. I loved it!

I love the Lord because He hears my voice; He has inclined His ear toward me. I shall call upon Him for as long as I live. (Psalm 116)

I don't mind sharing these things, brother. It offers the reader a glimpse of the compassion and mercy of the Lord and how He is not like man who can be harsh and even cruel. Consider how the Spirit ministered to me during those times when there was no hope, and I was afflicted with psychotic depression. Understanding what psychotic depression is, is needed to appreciate why hearing His voice was so important. Psychotic depression is marked by delusions pertaining to self-worth; these delusions are accompanied by a specific internal dialogue. What do I mean by that? Internal dialogue = self-talk and our own thoughts, not to be confused with "voices" associated with psychotic disorders. The internal dialogue of psychotic depression is horrific, a running self-commentary populated by things my mother would say to me during childhood. Indeed, it was as if I internalized my mother's voice and made it my own. These delusions were also accompanied by memories of traumatic events --- PTSD --- that were warped by the depressive psychosis. That's what psychotic depression does; it warps everything, changing one's perception of reality and relentlessly battering the one who suffers with successively more nightmarish visions leading into desperation. That desperation is what leaves the one in torment vulnerable to suicidal ideations... desires... and eventually, impulses. The latter occurs because nothing can stop the nightmare. When it's impossible to sleep and food makes you ill, it's a warning sign of things to come. There is no treatment for psychotic depression --- nothing at all --- and the prognosis is bleak, my friends. I should point out that circumstances have nothing to do with the relentless cycle of severe depression. It arrives regardless of how relatively happy (or not) you are, and it can literally take everything away... including a life. In the throes of the nightmare, the One who made Himself known to me spoke. What He said was completely at odds with that delusional narrative and those horrible visions; when all I wanted to do was die, He said that I would not. I told Him that I wasn't fit to live, but He declared that He alone makes me fit to live, I do not. It wasn't in my hands at any time, and no child --- or man --- deserved what I had endured. It wasn't my fault and I did nothing wrong. All I had to do was listen to His voice and I would endure the otherwise unendurable, learning the meaning of courage along the way. Courage? Oh yes. The Lord spoke of courage, teaching me that courage is not the lack of fear or terror but rather, the resolve to face both without compromise. I looked upon those nightmare visions which displayed my demise over and over again and I found strength in the encouragement of the Lord, who was always contrary to the psychosis of depression. I lost the fear of death and with that, those nightmare visions never returned again. There's this notion afoot which naively asserts that the Lord will "take it all away" or simply make whatever it is disappear if we only have faith, but that wasn't His work in me. This was the fiery trial and the means by which I learned how to trust in the Lord and His word, whether He speaks those words with His mouth or they are memorialized in scripture. One and the same to be sure. I marvel at how the Lord sees fit to work. He spared my life miraculously, but my recovery in the wake of my brush with the grave was accomplished under the guidance of the Spirit one... step... at a time. I didn't realize that the process of my recovery prepared me for what followed afterward. Regardless of what the Lord does, it always serves His purpose and will. Always! This includes hearing His voice.

Certainly. Here in New Mexico, the green chile and pineapple pizza is a thing. Both toppings go well together.

@AdHoc has furnished an excellent response so if I have anything to contribute toward answering your question, it's as follows: God does whatever He pleases (Psalm 115:3); God is merciful and swift to forgive (Psalms 86:5, Nehemiah 9:17, Jonah 4:2); God has mercy upon whomever He chooses (Romans 9:18); God looks upon the humble and contrite as His house and place of rest on earth (Isaiah 66:1-2); We are so much more than imperfect men and women. We are the temple of God (the temple of the Holy Spirit) raised without human hands --- living stones --- and His holy nation of kings and priests. The work of the Lord has never been about the lofty expectations of men who focus their gaze upon the wise and the mighty among themselves; it pleases God to choose the lowly and the broken vessel. These are the humble and contrite whom the Lord regards upon His throne in heaven. The lowly shall be exalted.

Indeed. If my own point hasn't been clear enough for some in the topic, it's simply summarized in the following way: I have nothing to do with the cares of this world being the pursuit of dominance, power, wealth, and the like. Politics are the contrivance of men, and there is no scriptural mandate to pursue such a thing. Political pursuit by necessity is oppositional, meaning that enemies are required; this is antithetical to the teaching of Christ and His apostles. There is a religion that is not pure in the sight of God, being a religion that looks after the cares of the world. Because of this, it is accordingly stained by the world. It is not the faith of Christ. The New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) is an example of such an umbrella religion, and the NAR is the driving force behind the Christian Nationalist movement. CN is an outgrowth of the Christian Identity movement. Neither is Christian in word or deed. That sums up my view of the subject matter.

Indeed. We need only look toward the words of Christ to inform us about His teaching regarding leaders: But as for you, do not be called Rabbi; for only One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters. And do not call anyone on earth your father; for only One is your Father, He who is in heaven. And do not be called leaders; for only One is your Leader, that is, Christ. (Matthew 23:8-10 NASB) You touch upon another attribute of Christian Nationalism: declaring civil authorities whom their luminaries dislike as Satan... tools of Satan... and so on. This is the means by which chosen enemies are established; collective objects of hatred and scorn are useful in manipulating social groups who cling to a common non-kinship identity. We find CN narratives echoed in the rhetoric of many evangelical circles. Individuals do not have to identify as Christian Nationalists in order to sympathize with the movement. Sympathy is all that's required. Authoritarianism is a foundational building block of the CN narrative. Favored men in positions of civil authority are cast as having been chosen by God; men who run afoul of CN sentimentality are cast as servants of Satan.

I'm in agreement with @Slibhin. No one has been forced into a gay marriage; making such a thing legal does not force it upon anyone in the least. It's been my custom to remain silent in matters like these, knowing that my words exert no effect. I cannot help but wonder at the insular lives many evangelicals must lead, for they are so easily offended and even stirred to wrath by the affairs of their neighbor. Indeed, it appears that efforts to govern the affairs of their neighbor is the primary occupation of their religion. I've always been the outsider looking in. It's not sufficient that one abstains from immorality, setting an example of godly conduct for others to witness. No, the proper measure of indignation over the affairs of one's neighbors must be publicly displayed --- holier-than-thou virtue signaling --- in order to impress one's fitness upon their like-minded peers. Failure to do so properly makes one suspect of being a "fake" Christian or worse, one of those progressive Christians! Oh my. I avoid politics like the pneumonic plague. However, if I were so inclined to vote, I would most assuredly not vote for a degenerate like Donald Trump. The man is fake as the three-dollar bill. That's my response to the OP. Returning to the above, I have witnessed the evil of man during my time on this earth time and time again, so the misdeeds of others neither sways nor tempts me to wrath. Hardly. Point to a time when immorality, theft, murder, usury, extortion, and violence didn't stain the nations of man.

You touch upon something I struggled with in the past: is this of God, or is it myself? I brought this before the Lord and sought His judgment. The Spirit answered: Is the word good? Does the word stir you to remember Me? If so, then the word is of God. I've made it a point to share that the Spirit of the Lord does indeed speak to us, for He is the Lord. I hear His voice --- not with these ears --- and I'm not the only one who does. It's entirely possible for us to go astray with what the Lord gives to us, tainting whatever we hear from the Spirit according to our own expectations. The Lord does not always correct us right away when we do that. Our error is the lesson He is pleased to deliver. When I assumed that the Lord meant something according to His word, and I learned that I didn't clearly understand what He said, I learned that I must ask if I don't understand. Part of that lesson is also a timely reminder that I'm a man, and men are prone to error. Humbling.

I'm going to break my traditional silence this one time and articulate precisely why Donald Trump is both reprehensible and vile. This isn't an exhaustive list, of course. I'm not going to write a dissertation about it. Reprehensible: Donald Trump has proven his utter disregard for the rule of law by violating court orders, refusing to pay judgments against him, and lying prodigiously whenever it suits him. Mr. Trump has lied about his net worth and the value of his properties. During the travesty of his time in the White House, Mr. Trump enriched himself and his family by renting his own properties to the federal government at exorbitant rates. His conduct on social media and in the public eye has been nothing less than repugnant and utterly despicable, engaging in puerile behavior such as name-calling, shaming others due to their appearance, and also disparaging their ethnic background. He's a loutish bully whose whining, pouting, moaning, and groaning is shameful to say the least. Vile: Donald Trump has claimed that he could shoot someone, and people would still vote for him. I would say based upon the staunch support of white evangelicals he has enjoyed over the years, this man was telling the truth. It doesn't seem to have suffered any in spite of this criminal's actions in the limelight. First, the man defames a woman in a manner I previously described (see "reprehensible" above) and is fined a hefty sum for the odious deed; instead of paying the judgment he whines and complains about it instead, digging his hole even deeper by continuing to defame the woman! After Donald Trump is held to account for continuing to defame her again, this crybaby has the audacity to claim that he can't afford to pay what he owes. Astounding, considering all of the boorish braggadocio this man engages in about his immeasurable wealth and how he's a genius businessman. Got it. No amount of proof is sufficient to sway his ardent supporters, slibhin. Characterizing those supporters as cultists isn't without merit. When courts rule against Donald trump, they're "rigged." When Donald Trump loses an election, it was "stolen." When Donald Trump is required to pay a sum of money, he suddenly finds that he's unable to pay. Interesting, no? Whatever transpires that doesn't go his way, it's part of a conspiracy that's out to get him. Pathetic and narcissistic. There. That's the only time I'll put it out there. There's no point in it, slibhin. It goes absolutely nowhere as you've seen.

Sure thing. Slap a calendar on the wall and write the following in English, Spanish, German, Japanese, Finnish, Koine Greek, Swahili, and Cantonese: "This is a pagan language." There you go.