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mhaley4

Guest
#21
#21
Holding On...,
I believe there was a man named Jesus. I believe he was a wise man over 2 millennia ago. I believe his words have credence today. I have a respect for that. Some seem to think that this person is/was God. There can only be 1 God to my thinking. I believe Jesus lived as he felt God wanted him to live, as do I. Afterlife; I have no idea about that... I'm here, in the here & now. I cannot live with the burden of the past nor put too much faith in my petty plans & designs for the future. Here, & now; That's what we have. What actually happens when we stop breathing does not concern me. I love God & I believe if there is something more than just returning to the earth from whence we came, He will treat me as any other God loving human being. I guess if I were pressed into description, I believe that the part of us that so many call 'soul', is a piece of God. I don't believe God would/will destroy that, no matter what. Thank you for letting me express my views in an intelligent, considerate & tolerant forum. This is GREAT!
Mike
 
HoldingOn2013

HoldingOn2013

Banned
#22
Dec 25, 2012
419
5
0
#22
This is a great forum to express yourself. There are people who are very....passionate... about things and can get heated. Specially in the chat rooms, but I believe respect is very important and I don't believe God would be pleased to see us fighting nasty in hopes of converting people. Welcome Mike and I pray people speak to your heart at CC.
 
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mhaley4

Guest
#23
#23
That's very kind of you sir - Thank you very much. God is GREAT! I will not become emotionally upset with another's views. That's what free will is all about - You get to choose for yourself :eek:). For me, this is a means for all of us to grow closer to the Great & Good Spirit of This Place. That can't happen the moment anger crops up. I hope the very same for you my friend - God works through people most powerfully.
Mike
 
K

kenisyes

Guest
#24
#24
mhaley4 said:
Ken,
Thank you for your kind words. I appreciate that very much sir. I will describe the best I can what it used to be like, what happened & what it's like now, & articulate to the best of my ability how I feel. I was raised on a farm far out in the country of middle to southern Ohio. I learned very early how to drink, use drugs, lie, cheat, curse, womanize, etc..., from the very best of the 'good ol' boys' there. It seemed great to be carrying on at such an early age, 11-13 years old, with much older boys. I simply could not wait to grow up & be just like them. I got just what I wanted, despite weekly trips to the Baptist Church in town with my grandmother. I have a fundamental foundation of christianity. By the time I was 20 probably I was a full-blown, chronic alcoholic & drug addict, functioning to the best of my ability in a grown-up world with 2 children & a wife that I got pregnant out of wedlock. Our behavior combined doomed the marriage & sent my 2 daughters down the path to substance abuse & chemical dependency as well. I've been divorced for nearly 20 years now & my daughters & I have happily reconciled, (this was one of the 1st miracles of finding a God of my understanding). I had been to rehab for the dope & booze twice before but the 3rd time, in 2000, something was different & something changed, God willing, permanently. For the very 1st time in my life I was desperate as only the drowning/dying can understand. I simply asked for help & God removed the insidious phenomena of 'craving' drugs & alcohol. I've not looked back, God is still with me & I have never, never ever been so content, happy, joyous & free. My children love me, I've re-earned the respect, trust & love of my parents & am an active member of Alcoholic's Anonymous. During my 2nd year of sobriety I attended university & procured an Associate's Degree in Social Science. I was hired as a clinician at the very treatment facility that provided me service in 2000. I was a drug & alcohol counselor there for nearly 5 years. I pray daily. I do a morning meditation & thank God constantly, just for being allowed to breath. I should not even be alive. I feel sometimes that if I really got what I deserved in this life I would either be dead from drink or still in prison for all the drugs I peddled. But God has another notion, apparently. I'm still kickin' & love God for letting me live. My thoughts have become a constant prayer of thanks to God for His divine provenance. Not all the time; But much of it as I live alone & spend a lot of time with myself only to converse, (I keep very bad company that way :). So, truly, I don't know about life after death, Jesus or any religious dogma. I only know that God saved me, my life has changed in countless ways, miracles of human relationships have occurred & continue to occur, & I don't know how to be more happy. Sometimes, still, nearly 14 years into sobriety, I wake up giddy. I'll laugh out loud I'm not just 'coming to' & that I'm actually well rested & ready to take on another day. Whatever makes the grasses grow & the winds blow - That's God. For me it's just that simple. I don't feel that I really need to know anything else & cannot complicate it with any religion. It was a sort of 'Spiritual Awakening' of an educational variety that happened to me I believe. I am grateful.
Thank you for taking the time to write to me Ken,
Mike
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I have heard the first part of that story countless times, the main change being in the name of the denomination that was part of childhood. Sadly, I have only heard the second part a few times. But when I have heard it, it seems like it is much the same story you tell. A church takes the Gospel, turns it into bad news, and rams it down peoples' throats. The lack of good news keep the people from Jesus, and their lives go down the toilet. Then God reaches out to people who have been hurt time and again with love, just because that's who He is. Often, the people can't accept what He is trying to give. Sometimes, He gets a breakthrough, and we get someone like you, who by grace of God gets a new life, and spends His time rejoicing in what God has done, and showing it by a life of commitment to enjoying each little bit of grace to the fullest and sharing what God has taught him with any who will listen.

I just finished as a volunteer working for a pastor with almost the identical story as you have. The man runs a recovery home and four thrift stores to support his ministry. My wife made five hundred phone calls for him, I helped him design an expanded recovery program, and we took over his church so he could have time off, and staffed a biweekly early morning prayer meeting for over a year. Then one day out of the blue, he called an screamed at my wife for twenty minutes "how dare you..." and never told her what it was about. He told her he never wanted to see our faces again, and never gave a reason. That's been almost two years now. My wife wrote to him apologizing, and he and his wife promised us they would tell us what they were angry about as soon as they could deal with it. They never said anything. The man cannot keep a board of directors for his 501C3, he has lost many pastors that tried to help him.

I'm telling everyone this because I want people to understand that there is much more to successfully recovering from this kind of upbringing than people might think. It is absolutely vital that you follow whatever God has given you, and not go too fast to try to get ahead of God and His healing plan. Mike, you are clearly doing this, and I applaud you for it, and I pray that you do not ever go off the path, as has this pastor. If we are right in what we believe about Jesus, and you have been falsely taught wrongly about Him, then the God you are serving so carefully and joyfully, is perfectly capable of presenting Jesus to you as He did at the Jordan in John's day, or to Paul on his way to Damascus. And He is perfectly capable of delivering you to where He wants you after you die. But it will be in His time, and in a way that is specifically reserved for you.
 
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mhaley4

Guest
#25
#25
Ken,
Man, you have made my day - What kind & insighful words - Thank you sir. I'm really sorry about the pastor. It seems some people are just plain nutz when emotionally perturbed. Who knows what's up with this fellow. I feel, as you have prescribed for me, you just stay the path my good friend. It seems you are doing what/living as God intends for you too, & that makes me happy. Do you mind terribly if I inquire, where are you & where is this church & recovery home?
Mike
 
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kenisyes

Guest
#26
#26
At this point, it would amount to gossip if I post it in public, since I have said bad things (though true) about it. I am e-mailing you as soon as I post this, and can get you a proper link.
 
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PopClick

PopClick

Senior Member
#27
Aug 12, 2011
4,056
138
63
#27
mhaley4 said:
Hello Folks :eek:) My name is Mike. I have some questions I'm hoping someone might be interested in discussing with me.
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mhaley4 said:
Whatever makes the grasses grow & the winds blow - That's God. For me it's just that simple. I don't feel that I really need to know anything else & cannot complicate it with any religion.
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^^ Okay, I'm a little confused about what you're looking for here, but it sounds like your mind has been made up. God bless you.
 
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mhaley4

Guest
#28
#28
Thank you - God Bless...
Mike
 
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