Writing Thread

[BugHunter]

NO! THATS A LIE!!! *sniff* thats not true, take it back! *runs away crying*

[Abishai]

*LMAO* Sorry, I was just reiterating what a known author wrote years ago.

[copyKatt]

oh, i love shel silverstein, he wrote the bioks that i first learned to read on. him and Dr Seuss ;D

[Abishai]

They were masters of the craft, I'll give you that. ;D

[BugHunter]

Hey guys, I got this from my church. This is one heck of a declaration, I love it!

My Commitment As A Christian
Written by a young African pastor and tacked on the wall of his house.

"I have Holy Spirit power. The decision has been made. I must go till He comes. And work till He stops me.

I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spirit power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure. I'm finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes for His own, He will have no problems recognizing me - my banner will be clear!"


Now that my friends, is Christianity.

[BugHunter]

Check it out. This is surprisingly a very great series of email lessons that I'm recieving. Guess where I got it -- From one of those ads at the top of the screen.



The Seven Great Lies of Organized Religion

~~~

Lie #1:

   'If you live a moral life, deny yourself pleasure,
follow the prescribed rituals and give us enough money,
you'll have a decent shot at being accepted by God.'

~~~

Francis,

   Remember that scene near the end of the Wizard of Oz,
when Toto is pulling back the curtain?  The sound system
is bellowing, 'Pay no attention to that man behind the
curtain.  THE GREAT AND POWERFUL OZ HAS SPOKEN!' 
And There's a little man behind the controls, talking into
a microphone. 

   Kind of reminds you of certain religious institutions,
doesn't it?  Short little insecure men, hiding behind
names and titles, sending everyone on Mission Impossible
while they themselves indulge in secret sin.  The
preacher stands in front of thousands and shakes his
finger.  Nobody else knows that he had a stripper
in his hotel room last night.

   Somebody tells you, 'Here, follow all these rules and be
the best person you possibly can, and you might have a shot
at being accepted by God someday.'  Then they string you along
and get you under their thumb.

   No wonder people are cynical.

   Well it's no accident that Jesus' own biggest enemies 2000
years ago were precisely those same self-righteous hypocrites. 
When Jesus showed up, they were terrified of losing their cushy
jobs and political clout.  Eventually they murdered him for
exposing their racket.

   True spirituality had been buried in a big pile of bureaucracy,
and the religious establishment used it to gain leverage.  To have
power over people, to get priority seating in expensive restaurants,
and to line their pockets with cash. 

   They had everyone thinking that pleasing God was a never-ending
performance marathon.

  Well Jesus painted a totally different picture.  He told this
story:

   'Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a holy man and
the other a tax collector.

   The holy man stood and prayed, 'God, I thank you that I am not
like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like
this lousy tax collector.  I fast twice a week, I give tithes
of all that I get.'

   But the tax collector, standing far away, would not even lift
up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be
merciful to me a sinner!'

   Jesus explains: 'I tell you, this tax collector went home
forgiven, rather than the holy man; for every one who praises
himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be praised.'

   Beware of the proud holy man who hangs a bunch of rules
around your neck.

   That humble tax collector had it right.  He was doing the only
thing you and I can do to be accepted by God.  He just asked, with
humility.

   Tomorrow I'm going to attack Lie #2:

'God is huge and unapproachable, and He wants you to labor, struggle
and live in guilt.'

   Thanks for reading!

   Respectfully Submitted,

   Perry Marshall
   www.CoffeeHouseTheology.com

[Abishai]

That's pretty cool. . .leave it to you to post more religous material though .

[BugHunter]

And thats a bad thing?

[Abishai]

Not bad, interesting.

[BugHunter]

Well, better to be surrounded by this stuff than porn ads and racial slurrs.

[Abishai]

To each their own, I'm sure there are others out there who would disagree. I assure you, I'm not one of them, but the point remains.

[Cobra5]

I love racial slurs and porn!




Just kidding. For real.

...No really. I am. Stop looking at me like that. STOP IT!! I CAN FEEL YOUR STARES!!!

[BugHunter]

You're gonna burn in hell! Kyahhahahahahhahaha!!!!!







wut?




;D

[BugHunter]

Brilliant, this is exactly what I was trying to say when I was talking about us straying and needing to go back. Day #2 of this emailed lessons series.



The Seven Great Lies of Organized Religion

~~~

Lie #2:

   'God is huge and unapproachable, and He wants you to labor,
struggle and live in guilt.'

~~~

Francis,

   2000 years ago, they wouldn't even dare say the word
'God.'  God was distant, remote, and terrible.

   But Jesus had his own words for God, and he used them freely. 
They were controversial, even scandalous.

   His words for God: 

  'Daddy.'
 
   And 'Your heavenly father.'

   So when the Religious Gestapo condemned him for hanging out
with ruffians and women of ill-repute, he told an even more
scandalous story:

   'There was a man who had two sons.  The younger one said to
his father, 'Dad, I wish you were dead.  Why don't we pretend you
are dead, and give me my share of the family estate.'  So the
father divided his property between them.

   A few days later, the disrespectful son packed his bags and
headed for a distant land.  He squandered his inheritance on wine,
women and song.  And when he had spent everything, a great famine
arose in that country, and he got hungry.

   So he got a job feeding pigs.  (Jews considered pigs to be
repulsive.)

   This young man would gladly have eaten the pods that the swine
ate; but no one gave him anything.

   But when he came to his senses, he said to himself, `How many
of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare, but
I'm here starving!  He went back to his father. But while he was
still far away, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and
embraced him and kissed him.

   The son said, `Father, I have sinned against heaven and before
you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'

   But the father said to his servants, `Go get the best robe,
and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his
feet; and bring the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and
have a huge party; for this my son was dead, and is alive again;
he was lost, and is found.'

   Jesus sums it all up like this:  'I tell you, there will be
more joy in heaven over one sinner who comes back than over
ninety-nine people who are already good.'

   The father in the Prodigal Son story was not concerned with
his dignity.  He was not concerned with what was 'fair.'  When
his son wanted to go his own way, he let him go.  But he was
watching out the window the whole time, hoping he would come back.

   That's Jesus' picture of God – just like the father in this
story.  Loving.  Forgiving.  Approachable.  Not distant and
condemning.

   Tomorrow I'm going to attack Lie #3:

   'You are not smart enough or good enough to think for
yourself.  We will do your thinking for you.'

   Thanks for reading!

   Respectfully Submitted,

   Perry Marshall
  
   Put a link to the 7 Lies on your website:
   www.CoffeehouseTheology.com

[Tassatul]

The only thing I dont like is this:

Jesus sums it all up like this: 'I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who comes back than over ninety-nine people who are already good.'

I mean, I get the point, its very important for people to 'come back' to good. But isnt it unfair to those who already are good? Its kinda like how one kid might do a certain chore everyday, without recognition, while a second kid does nothing. One day, the second kid decides to mow the lawn because he felt like helping out. The parents automattically are openly gratful to him, while the first child is like "wtf?"