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Wherever we spend the majority of our focus and energy on is what we worship. A challenge...

"For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren." (Romans 8:29)

This shows me where God's focus and energy are. So, if our prayers are elsewhere . . .

"Therefore I exhort first of all that prayers, supplications, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:1-4)

So, this is where God wants our attention > "first of all". This is possible with God in us having us pray the way He means this.
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Fellowship Not to bite and Devour others

NOT TO BITE OTHERS AND DEVOUR
•Not to be destructive and harm others
•It can come back on you

Having Faith Scriptures
‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭1:3‬ ‭KJV‬
remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;

‭Galatians‬ ‭5:6‬ ‭KJV‬
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

Ways you can have faith in Jesus Christ
Scriptures

‭Galatians‬ ‭5:13‭-‬15‬ ‭KJV‬
13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

‭Psalm‬ ‭25:8‬ ‭KJV‬
Good and upright is the LORD: Therefore will he teach sinners in the way.

I have used my faith in serving others in the love of God not biting and devouring people.

As fraud scandals erupt in Minnesota on Gov. Tim Walz’s watch, accountability is in short supply

I’m glad that we can agree that [state and federal] governmental oversight has caught people who’ve been alleged to have committed fraud.
Usually it is the lavish spending that gets them caught. In this case money was given to people that did not have a long track record. The Democrats in Minnesota throw around a lot of taxpayer money.
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Day 6, Proverbs Chapter 6


At the end there, it says a troublemaker in the family. Interesting!
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Curzon's note and the question of apostolic succession in the church

My understanding of the events leading up to Apostolicae Curae is that the Pope was minded to recognise Anglican orders, but the English bishops point blank refused (for reasons one can understand). So the Pope and his advisers had to concoct a reason for rejecting recognition, and came up with the notion of “defect of intent” on the grounds that the Anglican wording of the ordinal had changed for a period in the 16th century.
In my opinion saying that the Pope was minded to recognise Anglican orders but the English bishops point blank refused shades the fact that the English bishops wanted the recognition and had struggled for it. Another point is that the English bishops could refuse an offer if they had received one, but they hadn't, the Pope's bulla was not an offer.

Well, one might see a kind of offer in par. 39: We wish to direct our exhortation and our desires in a special way to those who are ministers of religion in their respective communities... Let them be the first in joyfully submitting to the divine call and obey it, and furnish a glorious example to others. ... their Mother, the Church, will welcome them... led back to her bosom. And We, ourselves, in every lawful way, shall continue to promote their reconciliation with the Church...

But it's more a surrender offer than an offer of recognition.
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Elites out of touch? Study shows the influential 1% hold different views from average Americans

You seem to be confusing wealthy with elite.
Yep.
It appears the pollster is looking at the people who wield actual power and influence within major urban centers as opposed people who just made good in life.
They think they know best and we do not. So we should not have the freedom to choose government.
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Jesus' strategic self-disclosure

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Jesus was careful and strategic about telling people who he was. In the first year of his public ministry, he interacted with a Samaritan woman by the well in Jn 4:
25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.”
Jesus declared to her that he was the Messiah. She, in turn, told her townspeople about Jesus.
39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.
Jesus claimed to be the Messiah. They didn't stone him. They actually believed him.
Meanwhile, he wasn't so straightforward with the Jews.
Two years later, Mt 16:
13b He asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
People were confused about Jesus' identity. Peter knew better:
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Peter knew Jesus was the Son of Man, the Messiah, and the Son of God.
20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.
Jesus didn't want to advertise that he was the Messiah. Even so, they tried to stone him at least twice (Jn 8:59, 10:31, Lk 4:29) when he made some self-disclosures. He wanted to control the timing of it.
Finally, they arrested Jesus and took him to the Sanhedrin. Mt 26:
The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”
The high priest wanted a clear answer from Jesus.
64 “You have said so,” Jesus replied.
Jesus did not deny it.
“But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Still, Jesus humbly called himself the Son of Man.
65 Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy.
To them, it was blasphemy.
66 What do you think?”
“He is worthy of death,” they answered.
The consequence of calling yourself the Messiah and Son of God was death. Sure enough, they crucified Jesus the next day.
The Samaritans had no problem with Jesus calling himself the Messiah. Some Jews had a problem with Jesus implying himself to be the Messiah and Son of God and tried to stone him. Finally, the high priest would not tolerate that and demanded the death penalty. In all this, Jesus was strategic about his self-disclosure and level of publicity: how much to say and to whom.

France: LGBT Activist Charged With Sexual Abuse of Disabled 4 Year Old

We do not control our life, our environment, our experiences or our inner thoughts. There is not need from our side to "cooperate", because we do not control such changes.
I agree to a certain extent.

Peace and grace
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Trump's 2nd butler PA Speech: fact-checking


PF Politifact fact-checking grades many of Trump's assertions at this speech,
as FALSE.

Trump's language, painting the previous Butler shooter as a "cold-blooded
assassin", is a rhetorical device. What the FBI has learned about this guy,
is that he was an alienated loser, who couldn't qualify to joing a local
shooting club. The facts of the Butler shooting, suggest that the shooter
didn't have much of a clue, what the preparation of an assassin, would
have been. That Trump would use this language, suggests that he is
addressing people who also, don't have much of a clue what a "cold-blooded
assassin" does.

I would regularly ignore politician's assertions that they survived some
event, because God had some sort of great things for them to do.

It is a very hazardous thing, to tell God what HE must have meant, by letting
someone survive through some event. As Jesus commented on the collapse of the
Tower of Siloam, and I paraphrase, "Don't look for some explanation of why those
killed in the collapse of the tower were more EVIL people than everyone else.
Because, unless you all repent of your sins, you ALL shall likewise die in
your sins." We do not see Donald Trump referring to the advice of Jesus.

Because this remains a Christian apologetics site, I include the passage...

1 At that time some people who were present there told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. 2 He said to them in reply, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? 3 By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did! 4 Or those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem? 5 By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!”
New American Bible, Revised Edition. (Washington, DC: The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2011), Lk 13:1–5.

Note that Jesus' warning about attributing evil to those who are
killed in disasters, or attributing blessings of God to those who
survive disasters, is followed by Jesus' teaching about a fig tree
that does not bring forth good fruit. It is not what the metaphoric
fig tree SAYS, but what fruit it produces.

Note that in the parable, the fig tree that was under the threat of
condemnation, was allowed to live one more year. Metaphorically,
no doubt, it said to itself, "I was allowed to live, therefore I am
putting out high quality fruit." Of course, the owner of the orchard,
knew differently.

Trump seems to regularly identify SURVIVING as a mark of being pleasing
to God. He does this with members of the military. Those who die in battle,
he has called "losers". Those who came back alive, he calls "heroes".
Why would Trump NOT interpret the actions of some nutBar shooter, in the
same way?

But, this is not how the Bible sees death, in a disaster.

When Sinless?

I think that it's possible to sin without a body, I think that Satan sinned without a body, I think he accused guard of lying without a body.
Good point. However, people have physical bodies, and angels have spirit-bodies, apparently?

So when people die and lose their physical bodies, they cannot commit sins on earth, where physical bodies must exist in order to commit sins. When people die and lose their bodies they are purely bodiless spirits, and exist in an as-yet unfulfilled state, as Paul argued that we are "naked" in that state until the resurrection.

2 Cor 5.For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2 Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, 3 because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked.

So for me, it really appears as if after we die we remain "unclothed" with our glorified bodies until the Coming of Christ. It just isn't very explicit for me, which is why I asked the question.

Angels seem to live in a different dimension, though Satan apparently committed his sin of tempting Adam while adopting a physical body on earth, ie the serpent. But this is pretty hypothetical.
I was thinking about hearing God's speak, I believe that we hear him through other people speaking, that isn't the only way that we can hear him but it is one way. So when a doctor, for example, warns you that you have to give up smoking if you want to avoid dying from cancer that is very likely a message from God in the voice of the doctor. It's a warning about a change in lifestyle that you have to make if you wish to continue to live on Earth for a time. I am sure other examples will occur to you just like they also occur to me.

God bless.
Yes, I agree that it is normal for God to speak to us via people and events, or circumstances. We have to determine how God's love approaches each situation that confronts us. That's quite a challenge! ;)
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Hawley warns nuclear family is 'under assault,' paints faith as unifying force in the US

As participation in civil society erodes, there has been more focus on the government to regulate peoples sense of normativity.
Both political parties are trying to stick their noses in on the nuclear family.
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4 voters charged with intentionally voting twice in Michigan primary election

I’m happy they were caught.
I think, unfortunately, this is one of those types of things that when you factor in the time and resources it would take to catch every instance, it's probably a case where for every one you catch, there's more that you don't.

For the record, I don't think there's anything to suggest that the level of improper/fraudulent voting would've changed any election results.

However, I also don't buy the, almost comically low, numbers that they release to try to re-assure people.


I think this is more like drunk driving, one of those things where due to the sheer volume of people driving, and the limited amount of people policing it, it'd be nearly impossible to know exactly how many people were doing it.

For instance, last year, Cleveland ramped up targeted enforcement of drunk driving laws. They ran a newspaper article stating that they made 16 apprehensions for DUI in a single Saturday night. Does anyone actually believe that those were the only 16 people driving under the influence on a Saturday night in a major city?

Same mathematical and human limitations applies to this.

You've got 150 million people voting, and only about 800,000 poll workers policing the process (with varying aptitudes and "sharp eye for catching things that appear to be off". Despite their absolute best intentions, they're not going to be able to catch everything.
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Fellowship What are you studying/reading in scripture currently?

Trying to take a break from the back and forth debate type threads. What are you currently studying or reading about in scripture? A particular topic or subject? What led you to that particular theme?
I am really into 1rst and 2nd Ephesians these days.
I am into 1rst Ephesians because Paul had an audience apparently so very fully opened to him.
He could pour out all the revelation that was in him concerning the church.

I am into the letter of Christ to the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2:1-7 because
I believe it reveals what happened to the church there when they forsook the ministry of the Apostle Paul.
That was probably the beginning of thier drifting away from the Lord Himself as well.

Christ ever so faithful, frank, loving, and merciful speaks to this church again telling them
where their problem lies and about overcoming this drift away.

They probably were included in the departure from Paul's ministry when Paul wrote:
This you know, that all who are in Asia turned away from me, of whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. (2 Tim. 1:15)
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