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Richard T · 2025-10-10T22:30:45-0500

AetheriusLamia said:
I've studied for decades, and read all of the Bible multiple times, continue reading the Bible daily, and now I'm praying in accordance with Mark 11:24, Jesus telling us to 'believe that you have already received it'. Yet though I will to do this, thoughts occur in my brain involuntarily such as,

"You're just engaging in wishful thinking."

"This probably isn't going to happen."

"Your experience and observations of the world are better explained by atheism."

"Your petitions haven't been granted because God wants you to be 'Eastern Orthodox', or Mohammedan, or some other religion."

Although I try repudiating these thoughts as demons whispering to me, by recalling Sacred Scripture, by engaging in logcal argument, by prayer for the demons to be banished from me, and continue asking God to give me more faith and unwavering faith, the thoughts continue, and it appears to me I genuinely believe them - that when I die everything will be over, life done - because I am discouraged, downhearted, depressed, sad, rather than excited about being healed soon, rather than be happy that God is bringing about a greater good every moment I'm not healed, rather than be content knowing no matter what happens God will make it right.

What do you think? Is there some way to stop doubting? to be finally convinced the Gospel is true?

While I love Mark 11:23, the way it works is you have to hear from God to have that kind of faith. You can pray for faith but "Faith comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God. The word there is spoken word or rhema. Now I always say that God wants to talk to us more than we want to listen. Sometimes we just let ourselves got in the way. To me, the things that may help you, is to continue in humility, asking God to speak to you. Find yourself some Christian praise music, or even an older hymn that you can entreat God with.
As you seem to be stuck, confess all the doubts, all the religious thinking about various versions of Christianity and just get real with God, letting him know that you give your life to Him, that you do believe the bible is true and that you want to experience His fellowship and love. Sort of like starting with a blank canvas in your expectation to God with only the word of God as your protection from errant doctrines. The scripture below I think speaks to this, that we have to empty ourselves, become more child-like and see God in the purest and simplest form.

It would be good to seek God in a church too. When I was at my lowest point, someone told me a church where the power of God was real. I was skeptical but I grown up in a church where there was not even talk of God's power. What I received was different than what I expected. I saw real love and joy in the church people. Super genuine and not fake like I have seen so much of before. It only took a few services that I was singing the song "I exalt thee" and it was as if something just lifted off me. I could not wait to get to the altar so I set there squirming until the preaching was over. The power often missed is the church that can actually be so sensitive to God that they hear him, follow him and create an atmosphere where our hearts can connect to him. I am not talking about some New age garbage but the real God of the bible who really is heart to heart, connected to solid Christians that really worship him in spirit and truth.
I do believe you really are going to find God speaking to you, giving you the faith you so desperately seek. God bless you always!

1 Corinthians 1:26-27, which says, "For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. 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".

GodAndChocolateVanilla · 2025-10-10T22:29:00-0500

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RDKirk · 2025-10-10T22:23:59-0500

Hvizsgyak said:
And for the longest time, women were the solid backbone of a family. They guided their young ones in doing God's will. Unfortunately, women wanted more to their lives (which is understandable in our day and age) and they started to take a "not as solid as before" backbone position (though I'm starting to see a small but steady return back to that position). Maybe it is time once again for men to take more of the responsibility in the religious sense to lead their young ones to Christ.

The church would not have gotten anywhere without women from the very start. Women are indispensable.

dms1972 · 2025-10-10T22:23:13-0500

Kathleen30 said:
DMS perhaps the person has yet not fully comprehended theologically the perfect justice system of a perfect God. And that it being only a permanent redeeming sacrifice which could make null and void the consequences of sin. That being the blood sacrifice and death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ . That is what the law demanded of which of none of us could ever keep all except Christ . It is finished

Just picking up the thread again.

If that was the case then he may have been a christian seeker. I was expected to be in mutual submission with this chap however, and so I thought i'd ask a couple of questions of him. As the incident was a good few years ago, I had partly forgotten my thoughts and discernment at the time, but its coming back to me that I felt it had to do with process theism, and that the church was infected to some degree with that despite being considered evangelical. I was annoyed with the Pastor at one point and even quite upset because I felt he wasn't properly addressing the issue of process theology and re-affirming the Biblical teaching on Salvation. I ceased to go after that, but felt a mess.

For process theologian Shubert H. Ogden there is no saving work performed by Christ. His theology incorporates elements of Bultmann's existentialism into process theology.

Process theology has been a problem in many evangelical churches, and I wonder why that is? Has a live orthodoxy been lacking in them?

MotoToTheMax · 2025-10-10T22:16:02-0500

MrMoe said:
This has nothing to do with the topic of this thread. Please stop derailing this thread.

As I said before, candidate Spanberger (D) refused to answer a simple yes or no question on whether she will continue to endorse Jay Jones after this scandal.

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I commented on what Candidate Spanberger should do, you know, the video that was posted, as part of the topic. That you don't like my very presidential verbiage and prose is not my problem.

mark46 · 2025-10-10T22:14:22-0500

We might add the no-reason 39% tax on Swiss goods.

BPPLEE · 2025-10-10T22:12:31-0500

MotoToTheMax said:
It's an inside joke. I love inside jokes. I hope to be part of one someday.

He couldn’t even come up with his own material to make threats with

stevevw · 2025-10-10T22:11:01-0500

Bradskii said:
Killing someone to protect your own life is self defence. In that context (relative to that context) it's morally acceptable.
Killing someone innocent, predetermined and illegally is murder. In those contexts (relative to those contexts) it's morally unacceptable.

Do those two satements make sense to you?

Yes I have always understood this rationalisation.

We can say if we are talking about murder that it is qualified already as an immoral act then it is absolutely immoral fullstop. Theres no contextualising. Murder is not self defense by its very nature to be even compared to murder.

In fact in some ways its a completely different moral. The moral of 'life preservation and protection' comes in as the greater moral that takes over. So its more a completely new moral issue rather than the same moral issue being contextualised. I don't think morality is so binary in that sense.

Its like lying. The example of lying about the Jews hiding in your attic. This is not about lying but saving human life which is the greater moral. This takes over as the moral truth. Its no longer about lying as a moral issue to have to contextualise that lying is ok. I think thats the wrong way to look at this and sort of implies lying is ok and can be rationalised away.

Its about protecting innocent life. In fact the person has already committed to that moral before the Germans come to their door. Denying the Jews are in the attic is part of protecting the life of the Jews.

Its comparing apples with oranges as they are not the same moral issues or moral truth any more. But completely different morals clashing. Maybe thats another way of contextualising lol.

But I think theres an important difference as by using greater morals its always grounding the context in a moral objective. Rather than rationalising immoral acts away based on arbitrary context. Or subjective determinations of what is justified contextually.

Vambram · 2025-10-10T22:10:55-0500

Hans Blaster said:
Who said I was, or are you implying that?

It appears that you might have. Because the Venezuela dictator claims those are innocent people in those boats. Whereas, President Trump, Secretary Pete Hegseth, and our military says those boats were illegal drug traffickers.

bbbbbbb · 2025-10-10T22:01:24-0500

Lord Herbert

bèlla · 2025-10-10T21:59:49-0500

stevevw said:
But thats the point. Their funding should not be withheld because they hold a different belief. As opposed to the worldview beliefs of the State. Or as opposed to the worldview beliefs that the State chooses to endorce or support. All groups should get the same treatment regardless.

The government isn’t responsible for supporting christian causes. If they want to rest on their beliefs they need to raise the money. There’s millions of believers. They have more than enough to draw from.

stevevw said:
The State is suppose to be neutral which means all worldview beliefs have equal rights to exist and be expressed without fear or favour. Catholics and Christians organisations should be able to get funding without any conditions from the State as far as their different beliefs and how they are practiced in society.

The state represents government interests foremost not religion. They need some tea drinking southerners to educate them on the principle. You’ve forgotten your place. You’re a beggar seeking funding like the rest. Don’t allow your religion to confound you. For a people supposedly endowed with the Holy Spirit you function a lot like sinners.

That’s what happens when you seek the devil’s kitty for funds. Where’s your followers gifted in leadership and administration? They’re going to pull the rug eventually.

stevevw said:
The State will give funding to other organisations who hold worldview beliefs that others disagree with without conditions as far as restricting the expression of their beliefs and even its promotion by the State in allowing that belief over other beliefs.

How can you believe in Christ and post that? Stop making excuses for their laziness and omission of creativity.

stevevw said:
Is the State really a neutral actor. Or can they hold beliefs themselves and favour one worldview over the other and thus be biased or descriminatory towards certain beliefs in how they restrict certain beliefs.

It doesn’t matter what they do. You have more than a billion followers to draw from. Why haven’t you done that?

stevevw said:
For example if we turn the abortion law on its head and pretend we live in an alternative reality where abortion is not allowed. The States default position was anti abortion. Then suddenly organisations that believed abortion is ok are in the shoes of those organisations who are not allowed to express their beliefs re funding ect.

More excuses.

stevevw said:
I agree that when it comes to public safety there are laws that all must follow regardless of belief and in this case public safety was at risk and emergency service should have been provided.

Your answers largely reflect the reason I will never support christian organizations. You provided a litany of excuses and finger pointing which removed the responsibility from where it belongs. They’re a disgrace to the Most High.

We’re accountable for our gifts and talents. Irrespective of the world or circumstance you’re expected to perform. I’d rather fund the arts than a bastardization of truth sorely needing a reality check.

~bella

DreamyLaLa · 2025-10-10T21:53:39-0500

Gosh, it's been months since I've posted here! To be honest, for a while, I've been super busy preparing for the release of my anime book series La La Mermaid on Amazon. There's a lot of work that goes into that. But I wanted to let you all that I haven't fallen off the face of the earth.

I'm also currently hosting a giveaway on Instagram to celebrate the upcoming release of La La Mermaid! There are a lot of cool prizes that the winner will receive. I even made a YouTube video all about it!

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Chrystal-J · 2025-10-10T21:51:17-0500

I seem to remember being encouraged to kiss relics at my old church. (They were in protective containers.)

Richard T · 2025-10-10T21:40:25-0500

Florian7051 said:
I’ve prayed and not gotten any type of sign or even a feeling on this. I don’t feel love from the church right now. Last Sunday I was told it was my Christian duty to vote Democrat, or I wasn’t honoring Christ (this was a sermon, not a private conversation). I’m a Republican, my cue to leave and never return to that church. I am not the bigot that the extreme left thinks I am. I love and am let down by people in the same breath. I vote Republican because I believe in Capitalism, not because I believe it honors Christ (nor do I think it dishonors him). Don’t get me wrong, I see the need for social safety nets. I am a 100% disabled veteran and if it wasn’t for my Comp & Pen I wouldn’t be able to feed my family, but there is a difference between social safety nets and handouts to everyone (this is Sloth). I have deployed to areas where Communism has destroyed society; it is not self-sustaining. Anyway, I think from a societal perspective the Republican party is better for the economy than the Democratic party. I don’t 100% agree with the Republican party on everything either. Things like Union labor is beneficial not just for maintaining fair wages, but also for protecting the integrity of the trade. Anyway, I digress, my point is I have opinions, and they are mine, and I’m allowed to have them. When politics are brought up Democrats label me as a bigot. I understand why, but I’m not. I see the countless social media posts by Right Wing Christians drunk on pride, beckoning for a war with the Democratic Party, and justifying their anger because they’re “defending their Christian values”, no love in their hearts. I have a daughter who is in the LGBTQ community. While I don’t understand and don’t agree with her lifestyle, I love her. I love her every day. I’m not enabling her lifestyle; I just love her unconditionally. Since when are sinners not allowed in the church? I have sexual sins. I’ve watched porn. I started dating my wife when she was married. She was abandoned and separated but her husband was still alive. I had relations with her prior to marriage. I got her pregnant while she was still married to her ex-husband, I’ve sodomized her, and she isn’t the only woman I’ve had pre-marital relations with. Because my wife was divorced, I didn’t even get married by a Clergyman, but then I was called by God. I repented. Her ex-husband had since passed away, so my wife and I renewed our vows in front of God, and we pray he honors this marriage. I just don’t understand. I love all people. Before God called to me, I found forgiveness in my heart for someone that murdered an ex-girlfriend of mine, and this was before the teachings of the gospel. I joined the Marine Corps to help people. I joined the fire department to help people. My politics have nothing to do with hate. Left extremists hate the right and think we’re all extremists who tote around our AR15s and long for a war with them and want to control the masses through oppression. Right extremists hate the left and think they’re all a violent bunch of radical rebels who want to destabilize the current economic system and take their rights away. And amid all this is the church. Everyone has taken a side. Isn’t there any churches that don’t meddle in politics and just help people find Christ? My wife and I were baptized Protestant so we can’t even receive the sacraments in the Catholic Church. Other denominations are very politically polarized right or left, which I’m not interested in. I don’t believe in predesignation nor do I think the Bible supports it, so there’s that. Other denominations condemn actions that aren’t even supported in the Bible and keep you chained to guilt and fear. Some denominations don’t even notice each other in the pews it’s like being a ghost; others are so cultish you’re not allowed to do anything outside of the church. Tell me, how are you going to help people find Christ without going out into the world. I am always prepared to go down to hell to get someone. I don’t care if it’s a drug house, a strip club, a rave, a casino; when my phone rings and someone needs help, I will go anywhere to get them; it’s in these moments that you sew the seeds of freedom. They may not be ready to love that day, but that seed will grow if someone is willing to put it there and nurture it. I have prayed for a church that loves all. That invites all sinners to come listen. That doesn’t require a membership, that doesn’t make me feel guilty about whatever doctrine they’ve added on to the Bible to make me feel trapped, that doesn’t view someone as hopeless because they see the world differently, that aren’t indifferent about their members or opposite, make you feel guilty or talk poorly of you if you have friends outside of the church. Don’t get me wrong, Jesus is my center, my rock, my everything, but the church is not Christ. Does this place exist on earth, or do I need to wait for the afterlife to find it? I’ve been praying that something leads me to the right church, but I feel more lost now than when I started looking at the beginning of the week. I guess if there’s room in your heart and time in your prayers tonight, I could use some help having my heart reach the heavens. Please lord lead me where I need to be, where you want me to be, this I pray.

Dear God, I thank you for this brother. I pray you help him find a church where there is the love and power of God operating. I pray that he sees himself as you see him. That he is free from condemnation. That he who is forgiven much loves much and that love will permeate his being. I pray you strengthen his family, bring his daughter to Christ and bring more joy into his life. In Jesus name. God bless you brother, I'm biased but perhaps consider attending a church like the Assembly of God? Or even a Southern baptist church seems unlikely to preach much politics, especially from the left. Some charismatic churches too are great, as long as they are not focused too much on money, or have weird end time views. Regardless of the denomination, I pray you light up and will now your place in God. It is a good place too.
Jer 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Tuur · 2025-10-10T21:38:21-0500

HARK! said:
I guess that's possible. After thousands of years of gold being the primary monetary metal; maybe the bankers will sell off their tier 1 assets at fire sale rates.

What's the exchange rate for wampum these days?

Vambram · 2025-10-10T21:24:32-0500

BPPLEE said:
View attachment 371370

I agree with Maria Corina Machado.

bbbbbbb · 2025-10-10T21:18:24-0500

Adam

Vambram · 2025-10-10T21:17:28-0500

ViaCrucis said:
No, it's just tragically true.

https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/two-years-hellish-war-have-devastated-gazas-children

https://unispal.un.org/pdfs/UNICEF_CAAC-July2011.pdf

OPT: Number of children killed doubles - occupied Palestinian territory

News and Press Release in English on occupied Palestinian territory; published on 12 Oct 2006 by TNH

reliefweb.int

Truth is not slander.

As Christians we have a moral obligation for speaking truth. We also have a moral obligation to be on the side of life and human dignity.

It is unjustifiable and anti-Christian to support the murder of children in the name of Nationalism.

-CryptoLutheran

Those wars were started by the demonic savages of Hamas who use innocent people, including children, as human shields.

MotoToTheMax · 2025-10-10T20:59:02-0500

BPPLEE said:
You can tell them anything you want, forum rules prevent me from responding any further

I did.

Freth · 2025-10-10T20:49:22-0500

Louise2065 said:
Good morning all,
I’ve been a Christian for nearly 40 years, but like to keep it simple and not get too bogged down with tradition etc…,
I’m seeking some Christian counsel regarding how we accept people in to our church family or should I say not accept?
My belief is welcome one and all, as Jesus would, let him do the working in their lives our job is to love and disciple…..
I am finding fellow church members judging new people, how they look, how they act, are they safe, where are they from? We shouldn’t ask them into groups but vet them so to speak before inviting them to bible studies, online groups, social groups! Who decides how much vetting is enough?
They seem to throw around the words wisdom & discernment to justify that they don’t want someone in our church…..my spirit is struggling with this…. Had anyone else had this with the discernment/wisdom thing?

New people coming into the church are from all walks of life, and so you can expect the full spectrum of worldly appearance and demeanor. People who have been attending church their whole lives don't realize how hard it can be to walk into a church on your own.

Imagine what would happen if the wrong thing is said, or the wrong impression is given. How you treat someone may well be the reason they stay over leave, not only the church, but the faith. (I witnessed this very thing happening in my own church growing up. Gossip about someone new forced them out of the church before they had a chance.)

In my church we have Sabbath school (commonly known as Sunday school), which is the morning study before the main service. The adults, teens and children have their own study groups. There is no one deciding who can and can't participate. All are welcome. The same goes for group activities.

It is unrealistic for a church to expect new people coming in to look and act like Christians when they're coming from the world. It takes time.

I don't consider it to be wise or discerning to turn away people from participating. The point of study and fellowship is to learn and grow as Christians.

Welcome to the forums, by the way.

Say it aint so · 2025-10-10T20:47:10-0500

Always in His Presence said:
Good thing the article did not say they were - !

You have to read beyond the article.

Always in His Presence · 2025-10-10T20:44:50-0500

retired firefighter said:
talking to God

Thank you, but I’ll wait until @The Liturgist answers the questions.

AvilaSurfer · 2025-10-10T20:35:14-0500

Racist? Racists see racism everywhere. I’ve seen interviews with former hostages describing the poor Palestinian people. They’re not blameless.

Fantine · 2025-10-10T20:32:50-0500

Oompa Loompa said:
She was implying that Christians are lack empathy if they refuse to make compromises to accommodate another's sinful lifestyles. Jesus never done such a thing. Therefore, one must conclude that Jesus lacked empathy.

Jesus approached people with love. Our deacon, in his Eucharist retreat, described his death on the cross as the ultimate act of solidarity. So fully human that he experienced the very best and the very worst of experiences a man can have.
I found that insight so compelling. What if God became one of us is more than a slogan or a song. He was our brother.
Saying things with unconditional love is very different from rebuking.
Conservative preachers and politicians often come off as rebuking, punishing, hateful. WWJD? What are many of your leaders telling you?

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