LOVE???

[LoveAnna]

I am speaking from experience. I have been a Christian for 27 years. Of that time I can only think of one person who said they were a Christian that really loved with the love of Christ. That is the man who led me to the Lord, and he is long gone to be with the Lord.

Sometimes I feel bad. I wonder have I ever done that? Have I ever loved someone with a sacrificial love? But then I know that I have.

This one man who became a pastor of a Bible preaching church of what is almost the Calvary Chapel demonination is who I will expose now. I went to his house and slept there one summer Friday. The next day I cultivated a garden, and the whole summer I helped the garden to grow. One day I raked his lawn. An hour or so after I started I went inside to find him napping with his kids. I joined the church in helping him move. This is the same guy who I asked to help me move a month later. I had no help, and he said he didn't want to help either. Another time we were going to meet at a coffee house and "fellowship." I waited for a half hour. I then called his house. I found out that he wanted to spend time alone with the Lord. But he didn't have the respect for me even to tell me. This is christianity in a nut shell to me. As far as my experience in this world, THE LOVE OF JESUS BEING THE MOVING FORCE IN CHRISTIANITY IS A 100% LIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I know the Bible is true, and I know Jesus as my Savior. But His followers since I became a Christian 27 years ago are as far from His example as any followers of Him could be.

I do need the Spirit to help me become strong. I have had a few days of resisting temptation and praise God. But Christians could not care less.

I wrote a few days ago about being empty. That is the feeling i get from the church. Those of you who get such wonderful warm emotions from the church are blessed.

I do wish people would stop telling me how much they love me. Those are just words you know? You need to prove it. How easy is it to say I love you, say a brief prayer, and hit send?

I guess you may pray for me and that is loving, but it is not really a sacrificial love is it? No not really.

There is a book called the 5 love languages. For me to love me is to spend time with me. Outside of that your words are just words, easily said, but rarely done.

I am bitter at the lie of love that christianity is supposed to give. So, out of my bitterness, I lash out and tell you to prove it. 27 years of Christianity and I have never been loved with a sacrificial love. Jesus said that the world would know we are Christians by the way we love each other. If that is the measuring stick, the love of Jesus is dead to me in this world.

How do I close? God bless you? In bitterness my heart would not be in that. Go with God. Yea. That seems to apply.

 

[buckets]

It's sad but I understand what you mean
there isn't that much loving each other as Christ loved us

Maybe we (meaning you and I can change that)
you said one man did it maybe we could too

It is Christ's commandment to love each other as he loves us that's big cause he died for us
if only for this moment we can try to love each other (even though we are complete strangers)

God bless and I love you

 

[sandtigeress]

I am speaking from experience. I have been a Christian for 27 years. Of that time I can only think of one person who said they were a Christian that really loved with the love of Christ. That is the man who led me to the Lord, and he is long gone to be with the Lord.

So then your statement below that christians do not love with the love of god, is wrong. Because you knew at least one
person. I would like it, if you would count yourself in aswell, if you would say that you are such a person too.
But i would guess, that your current bitterness, stops you from beeing that. I am very glad, if that assuption is wrong !
Because it is the love for god and then the love for ones neighbors that holds us completly in christ.

Sometimes I feel bad. I wonder have I ever done that? Have I ever loved someone with a sacrificial love? But then I know that I have.

That is wonderfull for you. And a very good experiance.

This one man who became a pastor of a Bible preaching church of what is almost the Calvary Chapel demonination is who I will expose now. I went to his house and slept there one summer Friday. The next day I cultivated a garden, and the whole summer I helped the garden to grow. One day I raked his lawn. An hour or so after I started I went inside to find him napping with his kids. I joined the church in helping him move.
This is the same guy who I asked to help me move a month later. I had no help, and he said he didn't want to help either. Another time we were going to meet at a coffee house and "fellowship." I waited for a half hour. I then called his house. I found out that he wanted to spend time alone with the Lord. But he didn't have the respect for me even to tell me. This is christianity in a nut shell to me. As far as my experience in this world, THE LOVE OF JESUS BEING THE MOVING FORCE IN CHRISTIANITY IS A 100% LIE

So, nobody said that the life of us believers would be easy.
And everyone makes mistakes, even big ones like dispoiting someone who needs to feel valued.
A pastor is not perfect, noone here on earth is. If someone can not fullfill the role, we want them to,
then sometimes they are not the right fit, for that position. Like that pastor who might not have been
the right fit to be close friend to you.

Sometimes we assume, that people would react the same way we do and that they would show their love
the same way as we would in that situation. But people are differnent, and sometimes we see too late
where indiffernce and/or bitterness has coused a lot of harm.

I know the Bible is true, and I know Jesus as my Savior. But His followers since I became a Christian 27 years ago are as far from His example as any followers of Him could be.

We are human.

I do need the Spirit to help me become strong. I have had a few days of resisting temptation and praise God. But Christians could not care less.

i do not know, how to answer that, but if i had glossed over that sentence, it would confirm to you, that o did not care.

Sometimes it helps to try to see oneself as an other person. How would you respond to you, if you were a neighbor.

As for caring, is it not enough that you care ?!?
You did something good, so you were happy and god was happy, who cares about others.

I wrote a few days ago about being empty. That is the feeling i get from the church. Those of you who get such wonderful warm emotions from the church are blessed.

Yea that is a blessing, just like it is a blessing to talk (or write) to and with other believers, because to be together in the
name of our lord, means that jesus is among us, and that (!) makes for the warm emotions.

I do wish people would stop telling me how much they love me.

because you wont believe them.
But love can not be proven to an unbeliever. One could do a lot of nice things, and spend imense time with someone,
or giving him the free space, he seems to need. If the other person is not receptive, his mind makes up alternate
reasons. and may ask for more and more to feel it again, because so much of the love present gets rejected at a border
of bitterness, that he/she has build around oneself.

Those are just words you know? You need to prove it. How easy is it to say I love you, say a brief prayer, and hit send?
I guess you may pray for me and that is loving, but it is not really a sacrificial love is it? No not really.

of cause not. Not all love needs sarifice, most love does not.

There is a book called the 5 love languages. For me to love me is to spend time with me. Outside of that your words are just words, easily said, but rarely done.

well, why do you only see that kind of love and have you understood, that other people may feel different.

I am bitter at the lie of love that christianity is supposed to give. So, out of my bitterness, I lash out and tell you to prove it.

thereby falling into your own trap, of not showing love.
And you reject love with that view, because the love shown too you, is small (ok, that is true), you take it and instead of
feeling joy at those rays of love, you twist them and reject them as unproven and use that ditorted view
to fuel the bitterness in saying, they are bound to be false.
The more that hedge of bitterness grows, the larger the rays of love have to be to shine through, untill
perhaps only gods love comes through.
Please ask god to remove that hedge (wall of bitterness), or for a way to disolve it, because that bitterness not
only makes you feel unconected from the love of your neighbors in christ, it also makes it very difficult for your
love to shine into other hearts.

Bitterness is a very strong poision to once mind and emotional wellbeing, and an effective way to block out love and hope.

27 years of Christianity and I have never been loved with a sacrificial love.

Yes, you have, Jesus gave your life !!! That is enough sacrifice for all of us.
At least it is for me, noone has to earn my love.

Jesus said that the world would know we are Christians by the way we love each other. If that is the measuring stick, the love of Jesus is dead to me in this world.

Go on, find a way with gods help to be able to see the love again, because it is there !
Not always, and not always, where we are searching, but the love is there and very much alive.

How do I close? God bless you? In bitterness my heart would not be in that. Go with God. Yea. That seems to apply.

There is something that stopped me, from turning my heard to stone in anger and hurt last year.
I was so devasted, I did not want to feel anymore, I wanted to close my heart and I felt it changing, and
then I had the awfull knolledge, god lives in my heart, and I am turning a living place over to be solid
stone. I cried for a long time, but with gods help I was able to keep my heart as it is, a little to mushie, to easy to
show forgiveness, and never able to say all that is within. ...
But I degress
What i want to say, if you give your heart over to a bad feeling (like bitterness, like hate) that is the same heart,
that you gave over to the lord to come to live within you. And do we not want to give god our best, instead of
our selfindulgence in feeling bad.

The other thing is what do you want to define yourself. Do you want bitterness to be the feeling that defines you,
or do you want it to be the love (love for yourself and love for other people). Because people will be discuraged and hurt by your bitterness and only the very brave will reply it with the love you crave. If you radiate love the return percentage will be higher, but it may never be more than lets say 20%.

So, go with god too. And God bless you (my heart alows me to feel that wish for you).

 

[Ugly]

The bible says that broad is the road to death. And even that many people who think they are Christians will not make it into heaven. The reality is much of what you have experienced is not from Christians in reality, but only in title. Once you come to an understanding that there are far less Christians than there are people claiming to be, the more you will see it is less and less of a lie. And that the true lie is people lying to themselves and trying to lie to God. And in these false claims people make about their faith is a path of destruction, which you have fallen into. But really, we are to focus on God.
You quote the verse 'they will know we are Christians by our love'. Well, if you aren't seeing that love, then apply that verse and what do you come up with? Not that that allows us to judge a persons true faith, but it can be enough to cause us to question many peoples faith. People are still fallen, sinful, hurt humans trying to make their own way through this difficult life. Some still bear the fruits of these hurts, of their pasts, of their nature.
To make all this worse, so many Christians are ignorant and follow false teachers and are being fed a steady diet of self help wrapped in the bible. They teach we need to be happy, rich, powerful... not servants. When you tell people God wants them to have this and that and that its all about them, that's how they will act. And you are seeing the evidence of this false teaching. A selfish people focused more on what they think God owes them than people who grasp the true message of the bible.

 

[Toska]

I wrote a few days ago about being empty. That is the feeling i get from the church. Those of you who get such wonderful warm emotions from the church are blessed.

I do wish people would stop telling me how much they love me. Those are just words you know? You need to prove it. How easy is it to say I love you, say a brief prayer, and hit send?

I guess you may pray for me and that is loving, but it is not really a sacrificial love is it? No not really.

I am one of the people who responded to your post about feeling empty. Have you tried searching for a different church? One that is more like what you are looking for? One that really preaches the bible and not just "feel good" stuff?

Why do you want people to stop saying they love you? I know we are on the internet and it may seem impersonal or unreal but, you are my brother in Christ. Why wouldn't I love you? As for being loved with sacrificial love, you have that. Jesus gave His life for you. If that isn't the ultimate sacrifice, I don't know what is.

You have been on my mind ever since you first posted about feeling empty. I have prayed for you several times since then. Whether you choose to believe this is up to you. I hope you do since I have no reason to lie about this. You say you want proof, I don't know how to give this to you without meeting you in person. I will continue to pray for you, pray that the emptiness you feel will be filled with the joy of our Lord, that you will find peace, that you will find other Christians to help with the void that is a part of your life, that the bitterness you feel will be replaced with love.

God Bless you in all you do,
Your Sister in Christ

 

[ladylynn]

Hello LoveAnna.,

You are not alone in the feelings you expressed. Sometimes the beginning of a solution is to keep asking "God help me! God help me! " Ask Him to do what He needs to do to change your mind to see what He sees. To show you His love for you and make u able to realize it.

People will always let us down. The Bible tells us to trust in God alone and not on people or circumstances or our feelings about people and our circumstances. Not to depend on people or things for our sense of love and happiness but only trust HIM for those essencials to life. There is a place for friends and relationships. God made us in His image and for fellowship with Him and others like us. but it takes God to put the right people in our lives and for teaching us how to be the very people we needed others to be. You are not alone in your search for brothers and sisters in Jesus loveAnna . Jesus came to mend the broken hearted, and to lift them up, to bring them to a good place. To bless them and reveal His love to them.

Rom.8:37 "Yet amid all these things we are more than conquerors and gain a surpassing victory through Him Who loved us." All these things in life, ALL, even our broken hearts.

I was listening to a story about a donkey in the ditch. This donkey discribed was disgarded and judged useless and worthless by people and tossed in an old well because it was cheaper to just fill in a hole of an old well then to kill and bury this donkey.

At first the donkey was heard trying to get out but he was too small and not strong enough. Then the donkey made these pitiful desperate heehaww sounds as the dirt piled up on him. but no one cared or listened to his cries of fear and deparation. Soon there was no sound from the ditch as the dirt was continually tossed into the hole. Later, long after the people even thought about the doney, to their shock, the donkey, instead of being covered by the dirt, used it and got on top of the dirt, putting it under his feet, stood on the very dirt that was meant for his dimize.

"God uses the very things in life that are meant to defeat and wound us as the steps that lead us to the presense of God." Like the eagle who uses the breeze from a horrible hurricane as he sees it coming and tips into it and goes up to the sky borne upward by it instead.

The donkey story brought tears to my eyes as i can relate to the creature. God reminded me of the Donkey in the ditch story while reading the Dec.18th devotional "Steams in the Desert" That He wants each of His children to be more than conquereors. The writer gives an example of an army who takes the spoils of a battle using the ammunition, food and supplies left on the battle field as the spoils of their battle and using it again in the next. The spoils are to be taken.

The writer goes on to say ' when you went into that terrible valley of sufferiing did you come out of it with spoils? When that injury struck you and you thought everything was gone, did u so trust in God that you came out richer than you went in?
To be more than a conqueror is to take the spoils from the enemy and apropriate them to your self. What he had arranged for your overthrow, take and appropriate for yourself."

I'm learning not to be shocked and appauled by people and myself when we humans fail so miserably. God is for us so who can be against us? You can message me anytime too.

ladylynn

 

[LoveAnna]

Wow. Thank you. It creates a much better feeling when someone says they have had the same experiences. It makes me feel that that I am not being judged and singled out as the reject that I so often feel. Maybe we can be friends.

I met a girl on a chat about 15 years ago. I think wanted more, but that is not an issue any longer.

It's just that I long for with a strong desire to have a relationship with people like the Bible talks about. Like in Acts 4 I think it was. People would bring their money to the church and they would distribute where there was need. I wish we could have that again. Well, in God's kingdom we will be so one the love will make this memory disappear.

It says you are banned by ADmin Team verified fraud. Why does it say that?

 

[Toska]

I am glad that some of the posts have shown you that you are not alone. A lot of people feel judged and rejected. There are many here that will help you with your struggles. Please just give us a chance to help.

I think she was someone else posing as a 14 year old. The admin team found this out and that is why she is banned.

 

[RedTent]

I think even God is disappointed in our churches today! Much of the focus of scripture is on being kind, on justice, on relationships, and caring for each other's needs. It is difficult, though, in today's crowded world.

Perhaps the movement toward small churches would help. I have gone to a huge church that divided the congregation up into small groups. The group I was in didn't work that way, though. Best they did was pray together when one woman lost her job.

In the church I am in now, I know of one woman who helps an elderly man with housework once a week. Another drives people around occasionally. My neighbor spent over an hour a day relieving a man of care of his wife so he could rest and take a walk. My daughter has taken a homeless woman in her home, she has been there three months, but no one will relieve her of this care. The woman would have to part with her beloved dog in a homeless shelter. I told my bible class, they said my daughter was foolish to let her stay in her home, it was the government's job to do that.

I decided to explore books about people who tried to live as bible says to live with love, and found that it is only Jews who don't know Christ who do that!!!! But I plowed ahead with this idea anyway. Perhaps there are Christians doing this, but there is nothing written about them and I don't know of any. The Jews take it a step further than I would think God asks us to do. Some people say some of the things they do to express how they think everyday doings relate and explain God in their life is sinful and trying to work their way to heaven. An idea they would be amazed at. But the help each other part was what I was looking for and it gave ideas on how that worked out for everyone's good.

The first book I found was "Jewish Life in the Middle Ages" by Abrahams, and was the best. "Holy Days" by Lis Harris is an interesting commentary on this. That led me to "Mudhouse Sabbath" by Winner about trying to adjust from a Jewish lifestyle of everything centering on God, to going to a lifestyle after understanding about Christ where nothing like eating, washing, everyday living was to be connected with worship, like she had been used to.

 

[Blackson]

Love, love, love is the heartbeat of the Holy Spirit, a reason for the Father, altar of sacrifice for Christ, and the lifestyle of the Godhead. Love. Where can I find it in the church today?

 

[tenderhearted]

The church is like a hospital-- it's filled with a lot broken people. People who are responding out of a place of hurt and pain. The church has people with flaws and not everyone is working toward growing in Christ and we will come across their path. Sadly it can give us the wrong perspective of love and even inflict some pain on us. I say this because I've been disappointed by many people in the church. But in the process the LORD has shown me to forgive quickly, so that I do not become bitter. If I let myself become bitter then I am unable to love people and cannot be as effective for Christ. The LORD has shown me that he will never leave me nor forsake me-- that my hope is in him. It isn't easy because the pain is real, but I continue to give it over to Christ. I might not have those fuzzy forgiveness feelings, but when I make the choice to forgive the LORD changes may heart and he keeps me tender toward people. Keep praying about the situation because God is faithful--he will supply all your needs. Sometime it takes a step of faith and trying a new church. God will lead you, so don't give up.

 

[LoveAnna]

Have you tried searching for a different church?

Well, it would take a lot of verses to support my point, but I have no doubt that the church in America is lukewarm... well, I said it would take verses to support it, but I will do it anyway.

Every church in America signs the 501c3. It is supposedly about the separation of church and state (and for a short rabit trail, there is no separation of Church and State in the constitution, or in the Bible, so why would a christian adhere to it? Those words (separation of church and state) were actually penned by Thomas Jefferson in a letter to a church. If I remember correctly it was some church in Danbury... maybe Virginia. The church was afraid the government was going to make them do something they didn't want to do (can't remember the specifics). So, Thomas Jefferson told them not to be afraid that the government would try to control the Church. So really, the only thing separation of church and state was meant to do was protect the Church from governmental control, like what they had left in England.) It is actually meant to hide from chuch goers the incredibly wicked things the government is doing.

What things you may ask? There are so many, but I will reveal some here. Allow me to preface this with supportive arguements. Just because someone doesn't believe something, it doesn't mean it is not true. Look at our origins. Some would say that we were created, and others say we are just evolved slime. It doesn't matter what a person believes about that. There is a fact independant of one's beliefs. If someone believes we came from monkeys, it doesn't mean we came from monkeys. That person probably is having wishful thinking about the future judgement of God. They don't want there to be a God to judge them for their sins. But that doesn't Change the fact.

Also, if someone didn't believe Jesus rose from the dead, would that meant Jesus didn't rise from the dead? Of course not. Jesus rose, irrelevant of one's beliefs.

That prepares a way for me to reveal that our government is incredibly wicked in America. A little more prefacing here... our government has conspired together with other evil people (our officials and the others are most likely posessed by demons and working to bring about a one world government, that the Bible says will be ruled by 1 man, called the Anti-Christ.)

The dictionary says that conspire means "to join in a secret agreement to do an unlawful or wrongful act or an act which becomes unlawful as a result of the secret agreement." Our government has conspired to do so many things. Some would call these statements as "conspiracy theories" which demeans the statement to that which is from a crazy person. But one person on a documentary theory said that "these are not theories. They are fact." Some of these facts are that America was completely behind the planning and carrying out of 9-11. Why would they do that? So they could continue to take away our freedoms through things like the Patriot Act. There really is so much evil... but our churchets are restricted from talking about it because they sign this agreement, the 501c3. And why do churches do that? Because they love money more than obeying the word of God.

You may ask, what part of the word are they not obeying? Ephesians 5:11 says "Have nothing to do with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them."

Since every church signs the 501c3, how could I lisen to a pastor preach? If the pastor would rather keep his tax money than obey one verse, I cann't listen to that person preach to me. That person has no godly character. I said all of this to say that I will not go to church in this country. Every pastor is promoting at best, a luke-warm gospel. And that is the state of Christianity worldwide. Even me I am ashamed to say. I just cannot walk in complete obedience alone, and alone I am, and I cannot keep from being alone when we are all lukewarm. I want to feel the love of Jesus, but I will not find it. Not until the tribulation starts. That will be when we see who is a true Christian. When they say that unless we deny Christ we will die, how many will chose Christ?

Thanks for the words of encouragement to all.

 

[nimbus3852]

There is some dark thinking in the post above.

The separation of church and state was made law in the United States by Everson v. Board of Education (1947)

501c3 was made at the request of the church.

9/11 dragged us into war, which was the primary consequence.

Most of the world is FOR Jesus, any movement AGAINST Jesus is discouraged, if not outlawed.

 

[LoveAnna]

So then your statement below that christians do not love with the love of god, is wrong. Because you knew at least one
person. I would like it, if you would count yourself in aswell, if you would say that you are such a person too.
But i would guess, that your current bitterness, stops you from beeing that. I am very glad, if that assuption is wrong !
Because it is the love for god and then the love for ones neighbors that holds us completly in christ.




That is wonderfull for you. And a very good experiance.



So, nobody said that the life of us believers would be easy.
And everyone makes mistakes, even big ones like dispoiting someone who needs to feel valued.
A pastor is not perfect, noone here on earth is. If someone can not fullfill the role, we want them to,
then sometimes they are not the right fit, for that position. Like that pastor who might not have been
the right fit to be close friend to you.

Sometimes we assume, that people would react the same way we do and that they would show their love
the same way as we would in that situation. But people are differnent, and sometimes we see too late
where indiffernce and/or bitterness has coused a lot of harm.




We are human.



i do not know, how to answer that, but if i had glossed over that sentence, it would confirm to you, that o did not care.

Sometimes it helps to try to see oneself as an other person. How would you respond to you, if you were a neighbor.

As for caring, is it not enough that you care ?!?
You did something good, so you were happy and god was happy, who cares about others.



Yea that is a blessing, just like it is a blessing to talk (or write) to and with other believers, because to be together in the
name of our lord, means that jesus is among us, and that (!) makes for the warm emotions.



because you wont believe them.

But love can not be proven to an unbeliever. One could do a lot of nice things, and spend imense time with someone,
or giving him the free space, he seems to need. If the other person is not receptive, his mind makes up alternate
reasons. and may ask for more and more to feel it again, because so much of the love present gets rejected at a border
of bitterness, that he/she has build around oneself.

Those are just words you know? You need to prove it. How easy is it to say I love you, say a brief prayer, and hit send?
I guess you may pray for me and that is loving, but it is not really a sacrificial love is it? No not really.

of cause not. Not all love needs sarifice, most love does not.



well, why do you only see that kind of love and have you understood, that other people may feel different.



thereby falling into your own trap, of not showing love.
And you reject love with that view, because the love shown too you, is small (ok, that is true), you take it and instead of
feeling joy at those rays of love, you twist them and reject them as unproven and use that ditorted view
to fuel the bitterness in saying, they are bound to be false.
The more that hedge of bitterness grows, the larger the rays of love have to be to shine through, untill
perhaps only gods love comes through.
Please ask god to remove that hedge (wall of bitterness), or for a way to disolve it, because that bitterness not
only makes you feel unconected from the love of your neighbors in christ, it also makes it very difficult for your
love to shine into other hearts.

Bitterness is a very strong poision to once mind and emotional wellbeing, and an effective way to block out love and hope.



Yes, you have, Jesus gave your life !!! That is enough sacrifice for all of us.
At least it is for me, noone has to earn my love.



Go on, find a way with gods help to be able to see the love again, because it is there !
Not always, and not always, where we are searching, but the love is there and very much alive.



There is something that stopped me, from turning my heard to stone in anger and hurt last year.
I was so devasted, I did not want to feel anymore, I wanted to close my heart and I felt it changing, and
then I had the awfull knolledge, god lives in my heart, and I am turning a living place over to be solid
stone. I cried for a long time, but with gods help I was able to keep my heart as it is, a little to mushie, to easy to
show forgiveness, and never able to say all that is within. ...
But I degress
What i want to say, if you give your heart over to a bad feeling (like bitterness, like hate) that is the same heart,
that you gave over to the lord to come to live within you. And do we not want to give god our best, instead of
our selfindulgence in feeling bad.

The other thing is what do you want to define yourself. Do you want bitterness to be the feeling that defines you,
or do you want it to be the love (love for yourself and love for other people). Because people will be discuraged and hurt by your bitterness and only the very brave will reply it with the love you crave. If you radiate love the return percentage will be higher, but it may never be more than lets say 20%.

So, go with god too. And God bless you (my heart alows me to feel that wish for you).

Why do Christians feel they have a right to excuse their loveless attitude by saying we are human? Didn't Jesus say they know you are christians by your love for each other? Love is a command for Christians not an option.

 

[LoveAnna]

You are wrong. Lyndon B. Johnson was the one who initiated the 501c3 not the church.

Are you serious? Most of the world is for Jesus? Then why did Jesus say the road to heaven was narrow and few would find it?

It is a fact that America was completely behing 9-11. Why did building 7 fall? No plane hit it. The towers went down like a demolition because there were bombs planted in the building in the stair wells. You can see bomb after bomb going off as the building collapsed.

People have a right to an opinion, but there is a truth and a lie. Let's allow people decide for themselves. The evidence against America is overwhelming.

 

[LoveAnna]

Go to this website to see the proof of the letter from Thomas Jefferson to the church of Danbury Baptists.

Jefferson's Letter to the Danbury Baptists (June 1998) - Library of Congress Information Bulletin

Notice that it is a .gov website. I have proof of what I am saying. Do you Nimbus3852? Even if it was made law in 1947, it originated in Jefferson's letter. In this country there is this term called precedence. Look it up.

What are you going to gain by spreading your lies Nimbus? Like I said, it is a fact that Ameica was completely involved in the planning and carring out of 9-11. Just one small piece of logic. Who really believes the lie that the planes were hijacked with box cutters? They really think we are stupid. I promise you Nimbus. I am not stupid. I am exposing the fruitless works of darkness. It kind of looks like you are trying to help hide their works.

 

[Ugly]

Wow. Thank you. It creates a much better feeling when someone says they have had the same experiences. It makes me feel that that I am not being judged and singled out as the reject that I so often feel. Maybe we can be friends.

I met a girl on a chat about 15 years ago. I think wanted more, but that is not an issue any longer.

It's just that I long for with a strong desire to have a relationship with people like the Bible talks about. Like in Acts 4 I think it was. People would bring their money to the church and they would distribute where there was need. I wish we could have that again. Well, in God's kingdom we will be so one the love will make this memory disappear.

It says you are banned by ADmin Team verified fraud. Why does it say that?

Banned. As in not allowed to be a member. So they can't respond. The claim is that this person, and another teenage girl were both one man pretending to be two different teen girls. Hence the ban for fraud.

 

[LoveAnna]

So I started reading a book called What's So Amazing About Grace? by Philip Yancy. In it there was a story of a prostitute who was addicted to drugs and would rent out her 2 year old daughter to men interested in kinky sex. She said she could make more renting her daughter for 2 hours than she could make in a whole night. This person (who was a friend (I never had one of those even in the church)) asked the woman why she didn't go to a church. "Church?" She said in mixture of horror and disgust. "I already feel bad about myself. They would only make me feel worse." Because church is not where the hurting go. It is where the holier than thou go to be with those like themselves.

I have rarely if ever felt loved. I cannot remember a time. Maybe when in the Word of God. Maybe when worshipping.

In my opening post I asked people not to say they love me. I want people to show it. It is so easy to say it, but love is not a feeling. It is an action. Off the top of my head I cannot think of one verse in 1 Corinthians 13 that talks about feelings. If I am wrong please let me know. Love is easy to say. It has never been done to me though.

 

[Angela53510]

I don't agree that love is a feeling, nor is it action.

In fact, God is love! 1 John 4:8, 16.

You are looking at people, instead of God. We need to realize that doing God's will is what counts. That means that if we are truly loving people, we are obeying the call of God, who is love.

As for us,

"God demonstrates his own love in this, that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

If you do good works (actions) and no one knows, God will account it to you as righteous. Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, says this:

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.[SUP]2 [/SUP]“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. [SUP]3 [/SUP]But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, [SUP]4 [/SUP]so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." Matt 6:1-4

But remember, if you are doing good works for the purpose of being saved, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

"For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Matt. 5:20

Yet that does not mean we should not be showing our love in practical ways, because in fact we are created to do good works.

"Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified." Gal 2:16

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." James 1:27

My opinion after reading your posts, is that you are depressed right now. You look at others, and do not see them as God sees them. You see them through a bitter and gloomy lens. People are imperfect, but on a journey, however slow to transform us into the image of Christ. You seem to have hit a wall. But God still loves you and cares!

"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." Romans 12:2

"And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." 2 Cor. 3:18

I am sorry you feel like no one cares for you, or helps you. Sadly, that is the way of the world, and not of Christ. But keep your eyes on Jesus, and do not judge others. God wants us to change. And you never know who is watching, when you extend love to others. It may not be seen by the person you thought you were doing it for, but someone else maybe touched by your gracious love, and God also knows for sure that you are doing his will.

I really urge you to find a church where people care for one another. And I agree a small church may be the better place to find this. I never felt so ignored and unnecessary as a Christian, than when I was going to big churches. No matter how I served, or what was going on in my life, a big church never noticed. Small churches are the places to make friends with people who truly will love you, in thought, word and deed.

 

[nimbus3852]

You are wrong. Lyndon B. Johnson was the one who initiated the 501c3 not the church.

The first recorded tax exemption for churches was during the Roman Empire, when Constantine, Emperor of Rome from 306-337, granted the Christian church a complete exemption from all forms of taxation

The tax-exempt church has a long history, which has continued since that time.

Are you serious? Most of the world is for Jesus? Then why did Jesus say the road to heaven was narrow and few would find it?

Google it. What percentage of the world is Christian? And what is the second most popular religion?

It is a fact that America was completely behing 9-11. Why did building 7 fall? No plane hit it. The towers went down like a demolition because there were bombs planted in the building in the stair wells. You can see bomb after bomb going off as the building collapsed.

Whether or not I agree with you was not relevant to my response. I said, the most disturbing consequence was the war that followed.

People have a right to an opinion, but there is a truth and a lie. Let's allow people decide for themselves. The evidence against America is overwhelming.

May the Holy Spirit guide you in to all truth, and fill you with His Light.