TP (this person) I’ve never been an overly religious person, which is to say that I do not believe in organized religion. I think that the relationship one has with his/her diety should be personal, not choreographed. And even though I’m not a bible beater, I do believe in a Christian god, and I try to do my best in living a life that follows the rules.
Last night, it was proven to me beyond any doubt that God has his protective hand over my family and me.

In short, God’s protective hand was over my family and my house last night. There is no reason other than that that our house still stands, that no one was hurt, and that all we need to get this morning is a new dryer plug and electric box. (NB: I deleted some of the detail)

My comment: Jim Driskell Praise God, maybe He is using this to show how much He loves and protects you and wants to build a relationship with you and your family. You expect God to be on call for you, but otherwise live your life regardless of Him. How would you feel if that was your relationship with your parents, children, husband? God wants your relationship to grow with Him and that is what His church is about.

TP (this person’s reply): And responses like that are exactly why I left organized religion in favor of building a more personalized relationship with God.

AP (another person’s) And to add to that, TP leads a better Christian life than many judgemental, bible thumping so called Christians I know.

Ah, wow, Jesus died for these person’s but hey it’s my way, we’ll do it our way. We have no idea who this god is, or how we get to know him. Don’t try to tell us about Him “ESV James 2:19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe- and shudder!” OK, you know there’s a god, and….? Just as strange is someone piping in, who doesn’t know me, and doesn’t let that get in the way and passes judgment on me and that’s OK? You can “believe”, but that doesn’t put you in a saving relationship with Him.

OK, you disagree with me, you think that being part of the Body of Christ is somehow a negative, or at least not for you. OK (?) Can this person even begin to articulate what it’s all about? The answer is kind of obvious, I’m not interested, it’s going to work out the way I want it to, I don’t need to know, it’s all about me and my opinion no matter how uninformed that opinion is is all that matters because I know all I want to know.

Kind of a dangerous game to play: “Sure there’s a god, but despite my lack of knowledge I’m going to assume that he will play it out the way I want.” How does that kind of world view really play out? Is that something God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) should honor and reward?

Our all holy, just Father wanted to be in relationship with the people who He created and who then subsequently told to Him to shove off. In order for Him to restore that relationship, in His justice, at His sacrifice He gave up His Son as the payment for all the wrong that we did, that He told us not to do. Believe me I know plenty about wrong (of course sin) and because of what He did for me, in order to restore me to Him, He chose to put my sin on His Son who died in order to pay the penalty for that sin and bring me to Him as His new creation in Jesus. I sure don’t have a way to know God or be in relationship with Him, He has to do it all and guide me to Jesus as my Savior, which He did for me.

For all those who chose to reject all that, how do you know? Is God some sort of indulgent parent who really doesn’t care what his children are in to? He’s just going to make everything all right regardless? I’m sure the response would be, I don’t need all that Jesus stuff, I’m a good person (because I say so), I do good things (if I think they should be done and will benefit me) and I deserve everything to be about me and work out for me.

That’s the world’s logic, not just TP’s. I have never heard anyone really justify that logic, it’s just that’s the way it is and stop trying to confuse me. And of course we get the other person, who decides to jump in and uses the standard adolescent response “judgmental”. Please stop that! Whenever I see that I know that person doesn’t know what they’re talking about, especially in terms of the Bible. It’s just a typical adolescent ploy to try to shut people up so that the adolescent isn’t forced to consider other points. They’re right everyone should know it, shut up and just listen to them. Seriously, if you can’t discuss beyond “judgmental” you need to keep it to yourself and listen. When you say “judgmental”, anyone with a level of intellect knows that you’re just trying to bully, that you don’t know what you’re talking about and you, frankly, don’t care.

Yea I know, again, being a little too caustic and sarcastic. But we as Christians can’t leave that kind of rationalizing unanswered. Look I truly pray that God is using this little casualty as a wake up call to someone who obviously needs it and I pray for the rest of TP’s family. As a Christian I’m certainly called to pray for TP and other TPs and pray that they will come to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior: “I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me.”  (John 14:6) But to look me in the face and expect me to accept their personal vacuousness and the various vacuousnesses of the world, that’s just not having any kind of critical thinking. That’s living in a world where you think everything is your way and for your convenience. That’s not the world and people who think this way are going to end up in a very sad and difficult place, bitter and angry and alone. I pray that won’t happen to anyone who God guides me to witness to. That’s just to miserable for me to contemplate. So certainly I keep TP and others like them in prayer, that God softens their heart and brings them to true knowledge in their Savior.