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Author | Topic: My God versus Your God..Amen and Phat Only | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Phat Member Posts: 15934 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.3 |
Amen, let me tell you a little bit about my past.
My parents were not really overly religious,but they did go to church at I never really thought much about God. I never felt as if I knew Him or anything. I did meet some cool old ladies at church that just seemed so "in love" with Jesus that it made me curious. I wondered why they were always so happy! Between the ages of 18 and 30, I was quite crazy! I smoked pot, tried a few other drugs, drank beer, goofed off, and in general never thought much about spirituality. Well...I can't say never! My friends and I would sit around in the park at night and discuss God and reality and Pyramid Power and UFOs and mystical feelings and Rock Music. Then I began to become athletic! It was funny, really....because I was never in very good shape my whole life so it was strange to have started riding my Mountain Bike and actually see myself getting in shape! As it turned out, I rode 5000 miles in 2 years! Then something happened! At Age 32, this girl I knew invited me to church. I thought she was nuts but I took her up on it. Church was weird. People were so darn happy! (It looked almost phony, but it also looked as if it could be real.) Then....on January 9th, 1993 I met the Holy Spirit. Since that time, I have been aware of GOD or what I believe to be God influencing my life in ways never done before that time. For a couple of years, I went along with the indoctrination of conservative dogmatic ( see Dogma ) and oftentimes ungrounded beliefs of organized religion. It was a Charismatic Non-Denominational Church and it did get a wee bit weird in there at times! Some days they would be waving prayer hankies around in the air. Some days they would be on the floor in prayer, while some folks spoke in the gibberish of tongues. Sometimes there would be strange Altar Calls where people would get slain in the Spirit and all such ritual and exclusivity which characterizes much of charismatic or fundamentalist Christianity today. If you watch T.B.N. or Daystar Christian TV, you will see the extreme commercialized version of the type of Christian pablum that I was exposed to. Despite all of that, I still had that unique and personal belief and feeling that God was with me and that there was more to the world around me than the media, the educational system, and everyday interaction and experience with skepticism and folks who questioned organized religion could provide. When I first came to EvC, I was quite a fundamentalist and a charismatic who never really questioned nor chose to define what it is that I believed. I was quite content to be uninformed and unenlightened as pertaining to the secular world and the scientific method of examining everyday reality. (some will tell you that I am still that way, but I have come a long ways in the last three years! ;) ) Before we go on, it is your turn now, Mr. Amen! Tell me how you grew up to believe the things that you do....give me an idea of your religious upbringing! :) Edited by Phat, : added features! Edited by Phat, : No reason given. "All that we call human history--money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery--[is] the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy."--C.S.Lewis * * * * * * * * * * “The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants.â€--General Omar Bradley * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * "The free man owns himself. He can damage himself with either eating or drinking; he can ruin himself with gambling. If he does he is certainly a damn fool, and he might possibly be a damned soul; but if he may not, he is not a free man any more than a dog." -GK Chesterson
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Phat Member Posts: 15934 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.3 |
It can be fun to debate other people. I suppose that for me at least, the question in my mind is what I wish to inform them about and whether I feel it necessary to attempt to teach or whether it is better to attempt to learn from my ideological opponents. You may have heard the old saying: quote:
I still believe in One God...not a bunch of different Gods nor relative gods. To me, there may well be many paths up the mountain, but there is only one entity that you meet at the top no matter which path you take up that Mountain. We have a lot of time in this thread...so chill and take it slow, as will I. Edited by Phat, : fixed quote
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Phat Member Posts: 15934 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.3 |
Let me ask you some questions, ok? 1) Must a person be saved? If so, why? What exactly is it we are saved from? 2) As a young Baptist kid, what is your mission in life according to you? To God? To your parents? I also want to let you read this email that I got. Let me repost it here for you:
BTW I saw your church website.
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Phat Member Posts: 15934 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.3 |
I noticed that you started another topic and as I was browsing through it, I saw this Link from a Lutheran Church Website. Quite informative, by the way. ;)
Just out of curiosity, did you use a search engine to find that link or is it a source of information that you previously used?
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Phat Member Posts: 15934 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.3 |
Salvation is not at the top of everyones list, and some folks even believe that salvation is irrelevant. I guess the point I want to make is that there are lots of brands of Christianity that I was never exposed to, and its a bit pompous of me to claim that only one brand is the right one. (I do, however, emphasize a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ as a cornerstone for any Christian.)
Phats Church Some more basic questions for you: (Just answer them briefly and honestly, and we can go from here)
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Phat Member Posts: 15934 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.3 |
Jar always tells me to question my beliefs, for it is through questioning that we develop our beliefs. I do this to some extent, yet I wont let go of dogma and of some beliefs which I feel very strongly about. I have let go of the idea that the earth is 6000 years old...or thereabouts. I suppose GOD could make it that way regardless of what scientific evidence suggests, but why would an Omnipotant Creator choose to fool us? Moreover....why is science a bad thing? Is it not the best critical analysis that humans are capable of? Should we toss away our intellects and simply accept belief?
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Phat Member Posts: 15934 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.3 |
I saw the recent issue that you had with Jar and the comments that were made by all concerned. Ironically, this is on-topic regarding my God and Your God.
Before I start, I want to encourage you to submit to the discipline, even if you think it unfair. The reason is that it will be good for your patience and your ability to deal with emotions. OK? My next question is this:
Now may be the perfect time for you to tell me about your "dark side". :) Finally, I will close with this scripture:
Sincerely Yours, (I have toleave and go to my church group now, but will reply to you before tomorrow. Hang in there and dont let your emotions boil over! )(Tell me about your dark side. :D Edited by Phat, : added
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