Recent content by GandalfTheWise

The main reason I'm hopping into this thread is to explicitly encourage @LaBèlla and @RaymondG that I've got similar views after reading this thread and that I tend to agree with much of what they've said. I'm also taken aback at some of the posts I on this thread. This probably isn't just a...

Here's the summary as I see it, drawing heavily from the psychoheresy-aware.org site and their thousands of pages of writing on the subject. I'll freely admit I didn't have the time or inclination to read it all, but I skimmed through hundreds of pages to try to get an accurate picture of what...

During the last supper, the 11 disciples (other than Judas) had basically told Jesus they'd be with him to death if need be. A few hours later, they were running away in the dark leaving him alone. God knows our weaknesses, intents, and what is going on inside of us. He also knows our...

Often, Christians think of the gospel as having two parts. 1. God forgives me. 2. I have to try as hard as possible not to sin anymore. However, the gospel actually consists of these two parts. 1. God forgives us, adopts us as children, and puts us into a right relationship with Him. 2...

Use your time fruitfully. Browsing the internet and doing sudoku (two things I've wasted time on myself) are ultimately not productive. Pick some subject or skill you want to learn (perhaps related to your job or career) and spend that time studying and practicing. In a previous job, I was...

I think the two biggest questions for God to answer are "who should I marry?" and "when should I marry them?". When I was in college, I had little interest in dating, but God arranged circumstances so that I hit it off well with a nice Christian girl at church. We've now been married for over...

The gospel has two important parts to it. The first part we are all quite familiar with. We are forgiven, adopted as God's children, and placed into a right relationship with Him. We often are not adequately taught the second part. We are a new creation in Christ. This does not mean that...

The main core of Christianity is knowing God Himself, not knowing a ton of facts about God and having the right opinions on various matters. Our trust and confidence (i.e. faith) in God ultimately comes from what He does in our life and in those around us. When our faith is based primarily...

The issue is that we all have a finite amount of time in life. A job is where we trade some of our time for cash which is basically the ability to buy things we need and want. It is worthwhile figuring out an efficient and enjoyable way to trade our time for cash. It's also worthwhile...

The historical value of a college degree was largely based in their relative rarity. A degree usually meant being able to find a better paying job and being in more demand. Some college degrees today will probably not significantly financially outperform not having a degree. The traditional...

God created us each to be unique individuals. When we try to be someone else, we're likely to be uncomfortable and fail at it. The question is how has God created you to share with others what He has done in your life? I know some Christians who are comfortable in front of a crowd on a...

There are many good posts in this thread. The main thing I would add is that is God wants us to trust *Him*, not the *method* we are using. I think that is why God uses a variety of ways to speak to us. As a general guideline, the main thing is that God's speaking to us moves us forward...

The gospel really has two parts. Christians often miss the second part. The first part we know well; Christ died for our sins, we are forgiven, put into a right relationship with God, adopted as children, etc. We know this well. However, we often pass over the second part. We are new...

Crying is a way of showing emotion as is something like laughing. The only time I can think of that it would be wrong in God's eyes is if it is faked for manipulating or deceiving someone. If it's an honest reflection of what's inside; it's an honest reflection of what's inside.

Good question. Here are some thoughts about it. If God always did things the same way each time we did something or asked for something, we'd start to rely on our method rather than on God. If someone was always healed when we prayed a particular way, we'd start to pray that way in order to...