Saved41199

That is hardly a Christian resposne.  We recently heard of a report from believers in Aleppo who siad "Don't pray for us to escape, pray thay Muslims may be converted."  That is the Christian response.
Matt 5:11  Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Matt 5:44  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
 

They are all my heroes. My son is suffering the worst. Two tours in Iraq, and he is now 100% disabled. He's not even 30 yet. He had a traumatic brain injury, shrapnel wounds and due to the well fires and other pollutants, is slowly dying from the damage done to his internal organs. He has trouble eating, vomits blood, and also has a raging PTSD going on. I don't even know who he is anymore. I hate it. 
I truly believe that bad men would stop doing bad things if THEIR sons and daughters were the ones that had to lead the charge, not the sons and daughters, nor husbands or wives of ordinary people like me. I cannot begin to tell you how painful it is to watch that same baby boy you cuddled close struggle with things that you can never understand or fix. 

I was reading John, in the 10th to 15th chapters...and although I've read it many times, reading it now it's different...Much different, there's a whole other layer to the words. Kind of like the difference between a cracker and a scrumptious, multi-layered ice cream sandwich...layers of texture, meaning, visual pictures. Amazing!
(yes, I use food metaphors because I'm on a low-carb diet)

I am the granddaughter, daughter, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, wife and mother of military men. All of them, in one way or another, suffered during or after their military service by things that occurred during their service. I hate war with a passion, a bloody blue passion. What I hate more is this pseudo-patriotism that gets trucked out when convenient, when the truth is that those who send and sent our fathers, husbands, sons and daughters to fight and die don't care about them when they come home, battered, bloody and broken. The next time the people in charge want a war, I think they and THEIR sons and daughters should go first. 

They are all my heroes. My son is suffering the worst. Two tours in Iraq, and he is now 100% disabled. He's not even 30 yet. He had a traumatic brain injury, shrapnel wounds and due to the well fires and other pollutants, is slowly dying from the damage done to his internal organs. He has trouble eating, vomits blood, and also has a raging PTSD going on. I don't even know who he is anymore. I hate it. 
I truly believe that bad men would stop doing bad things if THEIR sons and daughters were the ones that had to lead the charge, not the sons and daughters, nor husbands or wives of ordinary people like me. I cannot begin to tell you how painful it is to watch that same baby boy you cuddled close struggle with things that you can never understand or fix. 

I'm truly sorry to hear about your son. I don't know what I would do if one of my boys had to suffer like that. I'm praying for you, and for him as well. 

Yesterday my daughter got an early offer from the uni. We were told it would be middle of January, but they have already officially offered her a place, which she will accept.
The funny thing is that the other universities official offers come out middle of January, so this one is trying to secure her as a student before the others get a chance.
I can't  help but be proud of our girl.

I am permanently adding your son to my prayer list, as well as Melissa.

I am the granddaughter, daughter, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, wife and mother of military men. All of them, in one way or another, suffered during or after their military service by things that occurred during their service. I hate war with a passion, a bloody blue passion. What I hate more is this pseudo-patriotism that gets trucked out when convenient, when the truth is that those who send and sent our fathers, husbands, sons and daughters to fight and die don't care about them when they come home, battered, bloody and broken. The next time the people in charge want a war, I think they and THEIR sons and daughters should go first. 

I tend to stay out of politics. My problem becomes when people mix Christianity and Patriotism and try to use the same yardstick for both. Jesus said "my kingdom is not of this world". I am a citizen of that kingdom, as an adopted daughter. I just happen to be spending my earthly life here in the USA. I prefer to just stay out of the political realm, mostly because the prince of this world is in charge of earthly kingdoms. I will somewhat impatiently wait for the Lord to take back the title deed to the earth. 

Hiya, Saved, seen you at the other site just today - I will pray for her to fully recover - those post-op infections are common but can be problematic.

We were finally baptized tonight! YAY! Thank you God for everything! 

Please continue to pray for Melissa...she has some sort of post-op infection and the doctors are scratching their heads. 
Thank You

Biblical repentance isn't a turning from sin(s) per se, it's a turning away from a life against God to a life of believing and following God. Biblical repentance is about turning from doing things our own way to accepting Christ as Saviour and Lord.
In so doing there is a repentance of sin but it's not turning from specific sins such as gossip or adultery that saves; it's the repentance of turning from self to God and accepting His free gift of salvation that sets us in right standing with the Lord.

Even Richard Dawkins has admitted that there was a beginning and that someone created something from nothing.  He's still too proud and foolish to admit that it was the obvious though, God!

In the liberal church I used to attend, I'd lose interest in the sermon in about 15 minutes. I'd fidget, daydream, doodle, that 35 minutes of preaching felt like an all day work meeting and just as boring. Now, our pastor preaches for 45 minutes or more and I don't lose interest at all! It's not that Pastor is loud, because he's not or harsh because he's not, but he has such a passion for the Word, a passion for Christ, a passion for souls...its totally different!

Woo Hoo!  Welcome to the fold!  I admit my eyes got a little watery when I read that.

As an old preacher once said, "The Bible makes us Baptists"!
Our enemies contend that we were never of them, existed before them and follow the scriptures more closely than they do.
My local church is an Independent, Fundamental, Bible Believing, Soul-Winning, Baptist Church!  She proclaims it right on her website's home page!
 
Wayne, I'm so sorry to hear that you've lost a sound church to attend.  Maybe the Good Lord has other plans for you and yours my friend?

I listen to our Pastor's past sermons when I am working on school-related things (I am a technical instructor). Check out www.experienceliberty.com under the media tab. Pastor Teis is wonderful. 
Our baptism is a GO for tonight after the 6pm service. Please pray for us. 

I was lured by Steven Anderson for a brief time.  For someone like me, who is indescribably disgusted by sodomites, his teaching (I now believe by twisting scripture) that God has permanently given up on sodomites, thereby justifying a hatred for them, was alluring.  In my hatred for my own past sinful behaviors and my desire to separate from them, I sometimes get caught up in the temptation to minimize my present sins by focusing on the depravity of those openly and boastfully embracing theirs.
Pastor Anderson's main proof texts are the verses that speak about God giving up on sodomites and giving them over to a reprobate mind (Romans 1:24-28 for example); teaching that it means that God will never have anything more to do with sodomites, even if they repent and wish to be saved.   He teaches that sodomies no longer have the ability to repent.  He teaches that Romans 29-32 is saying that all sodomites, because of the sin of sodomy, are also filled with every item on the list of sins in vv 29-32.  So, if you're a fornicator (or a murderer or deceitful &c.), but not a sodomite, then God has not given up on you and you can still be saved.  Without going into a lengthy study here, I will just say that, through study and basic understanding, I do not agree with that.
I agree that Pastor Anderson's post-trib view is in error, but I am not sure that I would say that that view is dangerous.  However, I think that the way in which he interprets scripture, which led him to that conclusion, is dangerous.  It is the salad-bar style of using scripture; using what fits and omitting clear scripture that proves otherwise.  This is what he has done to arrive at what I believe to be his most dangerous teaching; the teaching that repentance is not needed for salvation.
He says that, because verses like Acts 16:31 and others do not mention repentance, that including repentance with salvation is promoting a works salvation.  Yet, verses like Luke 13:3, Luke 13:5, Acts 2:38 &c., seem to be telling us that repentance is needed for salvation.  It seems that we are even told, in Luke 17:3-4, that we may withhold forgiveness until repentance is shown by the offender; although, since I am still very much a neophyte, I am not dogmatic about this last point.
I would not say that I am a fan of Bible colleges either.  Unless I am missing something, I see no biblical precedent for such a thing, unless one says that the teachings of the rabbis and the studies in the synagogues are analogous to bible colleges.  I would argue that the Christian equivalent to those things would be the local church.  I am also not convinced that any biblically sound Bible colleges exist.  This is just my opinion, however.
The reason that I agree with the statement that Pastor Anderson is dangerous, is because many of his other teachings are spot on.  His teachings on modesty and Christian dress, for example, are very biblically sound, as well as his teachings on the KJV, musical standards, Halloween, television/movies/video games and his teachings on the importance of soul-winning.  However, He has already sent out at least five preachers from his church, to start other churches, who are teaching the same false doctrines.  He (and Kent Hovind and Fred Phelps) are partly the reason that I rarely tell people that I am IFB and that I never do so without a qualification immediately following.  He made a fine film defending the KJV, but I don't recommend it to most people because I don't want to encourage them to seek out his other teachings.
Satan does not need to get people to knowingly bow down and worship him in order to succeed; he only needs to dilute the truth.

There was a book that had a similar idea - starting with the statement that the Bible didn't have a lick'o-truth in it, the hero in the tale grabbed the man in a headlock slamming him to the ground, grabbing his nose and twisting it til blood squirted out, then sitting the man up, turned in his Bible to this verse -
Proverbs 30:33
"Surely the churning of milk bringeth forth butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood: so the forcing of wrath bringeth forth strife."
He added belief to the fellas thinking - and lead him to the Lord Jesus!

Here's a short version of my personal explanation...
The Old Testament Law wasn't given to Israel as a means of salvation; rather, it was given to show them that they were sinners who couldn't live (in the flesh) up to God's standard. They couldn't earn salvation; therefore, they needed a savior.
My understanding is that many of the laws; such as, cutting their beard, shaving their head, marking and cutting their flesh, etc. was because God didn't want Israel looking like the surrounding idolatrous and heathen countries and thereby basing their "outward worship" of God...or their "outward association" with God on idolatrous practices. Those types of things were associated with idolatry.
While none in Israel (or anyone else for that matter) could keep the law, the law was still holy, righteous, and showed God's standard for living a holy life.
Therefore, while we aren't bound to live by the law, as children of God, we should want to try and please him with our lives. As we grow in grace and knowledge, he will conform us more and more into his image. As a result, we will gladly and freely "adopt" more of the law into our lives, because it shows our willingness to please him. This is a natural thing for those who do it out of love for God...not to be saved...but because we are saved. Not because it makes us better...but because we want to be better. It comes from a heart of love...not because we have to do it, are made to do it, or are commanded to do it.
Romans 13:8-10
8   Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
9   For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
10   Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
We just have to be careful not to become more focused on the law instead of the law-giver (and I'm not talking about Moses). This is a very fine line, and not many people walk that line in love or without making it the focus of their lives. Also, not many people do it for the right reason either. They do it to please other men or to feign righteousness...and God gets no glory for that.

I don't know if you've ever lived in the desert...however, cars overheating when they are not moving is pretty common here. A traffic jam in 110+ degree heat where everyone is sitting usually leads to a few cars overheating. Living in extreme heat is different than living in the heat almost anywhere else. 
Regarding the fan...if the fan is sucking in 110+ degree air, it isn't going to cool off much across the radiator if the car is sitting still...it will also start sucking in the air from the engine itself. Even the news warns against letting a car sit while its running. 
Not trying to be argumentative here but the truth is living in the desert is not like living other places in the summer. I'm from the southern coast of Virginia. Summer here is nothing like summer there. 

Melissa is going into surgery today at 10am CST. Please pray for her, her mom, the whole surgical and medical teams, for peace for her mom, for skill for the medical and surgical teams, for minimal pain for Melissa and a quick recovery. 
Thank You All. 

Melissa is going into surgery today at 10am CST. Please pray for her, her mom, the whole surgical and medical teams, for peace for her mom, for skill for the medical and surgical teams, for minimal pain for Melissa and a quick recovery. 
Thank You All.