Honest question (as in not trying to start an argument):
The second one, where does that right come from?
And, just because that word "right" is so vague to me, and these thoughts keep coming through my head, I'll list the thoughts so you know where I'm coming from in asking:
-- The only place I've seen men think out what a right was and then applied it to their agenda was the Declaration of Independence. (American document, just in case any nonamericans don't know which declaration I'm talking about. Our founding fathers drafted it to send to George III of England, which, of course, started our revolutionary war.) They really did think it out though, and called them inalienable rights from God, and yet changed their minds on one of those rights -- "pursuit of happiness" was originally about owning property. So, yeah, I really don't get where we have rights from. I don't see rights mentioned in the Bible... or I have seen them but don't remember them. (It's possible with me. lol)
-- Kind of keep remembering two things with that whole "outward evidence" thingy. The first is my life in Christ. I was saved at 16, three months before Mom died and made me promise to raise up my little brother (who was 5 then) as a good Catholic (I already agreed to being his godmother, so it really was my duty to worry about his religious upbringing. I simply had no idea what that meant either since I tought I promised to raise him up to be Catholic, but then became Christian... and that goes round and round, but it was a serious problem), plus daddy issues and I was stuck going home with Dad, which... well all collapsed me into a druggie by the time I was halfway through my first year of college, so there wasn't much -- if any fruit -- from me until I gave up on my way my senior year to go back to pursue God's way. I was saved though.
And second, those two good friends I keep talking about. For all I can tell they truly were saved. To best describe their personalities and enthusiasm for God, you (JIA) remind me of one of the guys -- all interested in getting to the depths of understanding God's word, but not as light and quick at a joke as Sirk is. (Not to say "not funny" but just to say "serious more often.") The other one was somewhere between a cross between Sirk and Marc, if you can imagine such a crossover. It felt like he had studied the Word nonstop all his life, which he did, but he was the son of missionaries, a lawyer and in his 20s, so I never could figure out how he got it so fast and so right. But despite that serious sounding background, he was quick with the jokes too and passionate like Sirk.
But both of them walked away after 30 years. To me this is as confusing and heartbreaking as it would be if I found out you or Sirk walked away 10 years from now.
So I'm really stuck on do we have this right? AND, if we do, what are we supposed to do with it? You really couldn't tell I was a Christian at all for two years, and I really wouldn't know what to make of it if you and Sirk walked 10 years from now. (BTW, to be clear -- DON'T DO THAT! Do NOT ever walk away. Seems obvious, but it seemed like it should have been obvious to them too.)