Death has been called "the new obscenity", the nasty thing that no polite person nowadays will talk about in public. But death, even when unmentionable, remains inescapable. The one sure fact of life is that one day, with or without warning, quietly or painfully, it is going to stop. How will I, then, cope with death when my turn comes? (J.I.Packer, "Growing in Christ")
John Preston said, "I shall change my place, but I shall not change my company."
7- define "monagamy"
see "define faithful"
monogamy...one partner. Period.
8 - What are you looking for in a life time mate?
I'm not interested in "stuff". I don't want a man for the stuff he can give me. I want a man who will strive to be Jesus to His bride, God to His bride
...He will bestow preciousness upon me
...He will be my refuge, (Psa 61)
...He will stand up for me (Psa 94)
...He will nourish and cherish me (Eph 5)
...I will trust in his steadfast love (Psa 52)
...He will speak tenderly to me (Hos 2)
...He will be merciful and full of loving kindness (Tit 2)
...He will wipe away my tears (Isa 25)
...He will make me beautiful (Isa 60)
...He will carriy my sorrows (Isa 53)
...He will come to serve (Matt 20)
...He will restore my soul, He will lead me in paths of righteousness (Psa 23)
and the tears are right here.
I think we saw real progress today. She's getting stronger and I helped her with PT for the first time since I left last week there are exercises that she's doing on her own that she could not do then.
I was just re-reading a couple of articles...
Barack Obama said during his presidential campaign that Reinhold Niebuhr was one of his favorite philosophers.
I've been reading "Mere Christianity"
Niebuhr said, "we use evil to prevent a greater evil"
and
“There are historic situations in which refusal to defend the inheritance of a civilization, however imperfect, against tyranny and aggression may result in consequences even worse than war”
Lewis said, "There is no evil without good"
some would say that "evil" is the opposite of "good"
Lewis says that evil is not the opposite of good, but rather it's the perversion of good.
There can be no evil without good.
Unless we have the ideal to compare an action to, there is no concept of what it means to violate God's Law.
is having food to eat "evil"? No, it's a good thing, but to have it because you stole it is a perversion of the good thing (having)
Unless you have a concept of what "truth" is, the term "lie" has no meaning.
Rest is a good thing...perverting rest into slothfulness is not.
Wine is a blessing, drunkeness perverts that blessing into something that is not good.
there is a concept of "just war". Some buy into it, others don't.
When Niebuhr said, "we use evil to prevent a greater evil", he was referring to war. If war is always "evil", then protecting a nation against attackers is using evil to prevent greater evil.
Questions:
If evil is not the opposite of good, but rather the perversion of good, what is the good that war is the perversion of?
If war is used to protect and prevent evil, is it "just war" evil?
5 - Always single, divorced or widowed?
That's a simple question, easy answer...and it can feel loaded. We've established that "single" is a requirement, not we get to the "why"? (For an idea of how I feel about the issue, read Jay Adams' "Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage in the Bible" - it's all about forgiveness and restoration)
I am a widow. I was married for 23 years and following that was in a relationship for nearly 8 years.
6 - how have you changed and what have you learned in that “single, divorced, widowed” process?
I've learned that there are many reasons to be single. I've learned through much study that divorce is not a "deal breaker" and I will not attend any church that believes that it is.
3 - Does "LTR" mean "long term relationship" or "life time relationship"?
I don't know how to give my love for just a little while. I'll be looking for "til death do us part".
4 - define "faithful"
Faithful means: When I think of love, I only think of one person. I'm not interested in finding more than what I have.
One person's heart belongs entirely to the other.
If you have a history of a pattern of the things below, please examine yourself carefully. A man once told me "there are men who have cheated...and then there are cheaters". You should know which one you are before you make another person love you.
- No "looking" with the intent of finding a new relationship.
- no public profiles with "looking for..." in therm
- No "poking",
- no flirts, on list or not
- no behind the scene chatting.
- no having coffee
- no browsing profiles
- no dating on the side
- no movies, dinners, shopping expeditions.
- no sleepovers
- no physical contact (kisses, long hugs on the couch, "sexual" activity, and (of course) the biggie...don't have sex with another person.
These are all physical things that reflect the heart. If your heart is not committed to faithfulness, don't bother me.
I don't have a problem with female "friends" on forums, but I would not have a problem with my "other" screening male friends for me (meaning "friending" them before I approve them) and it would be nice if that went both ways.
I know that I intend to be a woman of integrity, both as part of a couple and as a single woman looking. My commitment is that I will not "friend" a man without having his woman on board with it first.
As a woman on integrity, I intend to ask if a man is free of entanglements BEFORE any chatting takes place.
Faithfulness is a hard limit...If you won't commit to that with me, leave now.
I'm down 13.4 pounds since June 6 (18 days)
I'm walking, but not cycling.
I'm going to go to Meijer Garden today, to CC to fill out the loan app.
1 - Are you a Christian?
yes
2 - define "Christian"
A Christian is a person who believes and follows the teachings of Christ and the Apostles. Not just the "red letters", but the whole counsel of Scripture.
I'm helping to take care of my mom.
That act of care-taking is the biggest part of what is helping me. This woman that I love, that nurtured me and took care of me...is in need.
There are moments (not very many), but for the most part, I'm glad that I can be there.
Some if it is going through the motions...some of it must be hard for her, so I'm "matter of fact" about it.
"Our Father"
Community here on earth. The same Father who is Father to me is the Father to a believer on the other side of the planet.
"our"...unity.
My blood brother has the same physical father as I do. We (Dave and I) are very different, but our dad is the same dad. He treats us differently, because we are different people...but he is the same.
Right now, I'm angry and frustrated with Dave...but he's still my brother and I love him. Don't like him much, but I love him.
We have the same father.
"Father"
the One who gives us life. Who nurtures us, feeds us. the only one who will be there always.
Everybody else will leave, only God is the constant. Trust no one but God.
"Abba" - Father...a term of intimacy, kinship and surety.
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:14-17, NRSV; cf. Gal. 4:5-6)