Jesus Christ

Originally posted by sgreen God bless all the dads out there and happy Father's Day tomorrow.

“I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am”
―John Newton

God bless everyone on Independence Day. Something that came to mind while thinking about this blessed country we live in...

1Chronicles 7:11-22
11 Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord, and the king's house: and all that came into Solomon's heart to make in the house of the Lord, and in his own house, he prosperously effected.
12 And the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice.
13 If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
15 Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place.
16 For now have I chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be there for ever: and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.

A lot of folks are familiar with this first part of the passage, especially verse 14, but the next part is also important.

17 And as for thee, if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded thee, and shalt observe my statutes and my judgments;
18 Then will I stablish the throne of thy kingdom, according as I have covenanted with David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man to be ruler in Israel.
19 But if ye turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments, which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and worship them;
20 Then will I pluck them up by the roots out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have sanctified for my name, will I cast out of my sight, and will make it to be a proverb and a byword among all nations.
21 And this house, which is high, shall be an astonishment to every one that passeth by it; so that he shall say, Why hath the Lord done thus unto this land, and unto this house?
22 And it shall be answered, Because they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath he brought all this evil upon them.

And, finally...

Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. Jeremiah 17:7

hey people, what's up? i haven't connected with you guys in a while. just wanted to share what God is doing in my life. 2 months ago, God blessed me with the opportunity to get involved with a business called Melaleuca: the wellness company. we sell eco friendly, 'green', chemical free, low cost, all natural products. we sell 350 items. it's truly an amazing business opportunity. i made $12.50 the first month for signing up one customer, and $80ish last month. this month there is an extra incentive to sign up 4 people and earn $500; 4 more earns $1000. Additionally, they have another promotion going to January in which i can earn $5000-10,000!(just a taste of our amazing benefits) now you may think that i'm trying to sell you right now, but i'm not. i'm just sharing how God has blessed me. i also feel that he is setting me up to go to the Marines as well. God is good...all the time!

I think God is telling you to join the Marines, too, as quickly as possible.

Originally posted by mech9t5 Originally posted by snowboardslider hey people, what's up? i haven't connected with you guys in a while. just wanted to share what God is doing in my life. 2 months ago, God blessed me with the opportunity to get involved with a business called Melaleuca: the wellness company. we sell eco friendly, 'green', chemical free, low cost, all natural products. we sell 350 items. it's truly an amazing business opportunity. i made $12.50 the first month for signing up one customer, and $80ish last month. this month there is an extra incentive to sign up 4 people and earn $500; 4 more earns $1000. Additionally, they have another promotion going to January in which i can earn $5000-10,000!(just a taste of our amazing benefits) now you may think that i'm trying to sell you right now, but i'm not. i'm just sharing how God has blessed me. i also feel that he is setting me up to go to the Marines as well. God is good...all the time! I hope you didn't pay money to get into this MLM.   Many MLMs are highly unethical because they prey on less fortunate people.

Actually, it's not a MLM, or a pyramid scam. it's the best thing since sliced bread, and i'll be earning a few thousand dollars a month from it. i would have to show it to you honestly, for you to believe me. if you only knew what the company was about, you wouldn't say that.

Originally posted by red_baron you guys don't believe in Pyramid scams?

can you guys do me a favor? before spouting off once more about what you THINK you know about my company, Melaleuca, i insist you go to the website, and watch any given video. watch a few videos for that matter. then tell me what you think. Frank Vandersloot founded Melaleuca with this motto, "that should say something about the company right their.

Originally posted by snowboardslider please just watch this video to understand where i'm coming from. im not trying to sell anyone on my company, i just want to clarify some misunderstandings.

Originally posted by mech9t5 I don't know what's worse, getting brainwashed by fundamentalist religions, getting brainwashed by MLMs, or both at the same time!

Depends on your world view.

Originally posted by sgreen [QUOTE=mech9t5]I don't know what's worse, getting brainwashed by fundamentalist religions, getting brainwashed by MLMs, or both at the same time!

Melaleuca is NOT an MLM company. true, we do have levels, but it isn't like a pyramid system at all. you think you know what this company is. and that's because of other companies that have messed up.

Originally posted by mech9t5 Originally posted by snowboardslider Originally posted by sgreen [QUOTE=mech9t5]I don't know what's worse, getting brainwashed by fundamentalist religions, getting brainwashed by MLMs, or both at the same time! Melaleuca is NOT an MLM company. true, we do have levels, but it isn't like a pyramid system at all. you think you know what this company is. and that's because of other companies that have messed up. You are a "sales/marketing" person selling the company products and there are multiple levels (you get residuals from your downline).   I'd say it is a classic definition of MLM. From wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-level_marketing Here's a few more questions: 1. Are you also encouraged to "market" to your friends/family/etc? 2. Do you have to buy the products you're selling up front? 3. Is there a minimum purchase you have to make to maintain your status? 4. Is there an initiation/enrollment fee? 5. Do you get bonuses for recruiting? Answer yes to any of these, chances are you are involved in an MLM.  Answer yes to ALL of these, then it is for sure an MLM. Seriously, you should go get a real job that does not prey on the weak minded looking for get rich quick schemes.  Most MLMs are unethical and it is likely jesus would not approve.

Not sure what definition of 'real job' or 'ethics' you're using, but by any definition I'm aware of, working in a MLM is a real job. And since, according to you, "most MLM's are unethical", some are not. So, isn't the important question whether or not the company Slider works for (Melaleuca) is ethical?

By the way, where do your ethics come from? 

Originally posted by sgreen Not sure what definition of 'real job' or 'ethics' you're using, but by any definition I'm aware of, working in a MLM is a real job. And since, according to you, "most MLM's are unethical", some are not. So, isn't the important question whether or not the company Slider works for (Melaleuca) is ethical? By the way, where do your ethics come from?

Originally posted by sgreen Originally posted by VermontRider Originally posted by red_baron you guys don't believe in Pyramid scams? Of course they do, organized religion is one big pyramid scheme. Who's at the top?

Have you seen the Vatican? Maybe some pictures on the internet of the vast priceless treasures they have there? Maybe google it. Looks like the top to me.

I got baptized in water 4 days ago. Praise God for watching over me for 19 years of my life. :)

Here is a link to a video that I think some might find interesting, maybe even helpful...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6474278760369344626

It's an interview by Richard Dawkins of Alister McGrath, a Christian theologian, for a TV documentary Dawkins filmed several years ago. I found it interesting, anyway.


God bless you.

Good on ya for your obedience and continued walk with Jesus.  Best of luck to you with life in the military, and may God bless you in that pursuit. 

Remember my fellow brother that the 10% number in and of itself is nowhere to be found in the New Testament.  God is not concerned with holding us to the standard of a certain percentage.  Give sacrificially, regularly, and humbly are the only commands.  I can look up scripture references if you'd like, but my point is that to be obedient in giving, it's not achieving a certain percentage that makes you obedient.  It has more to do with the realization that 1. everything you do should be for God's glory and to advance his kingdom, and 2. that all your possessions, money, etc belong to God since he has empowered you in the first place with the ability to make that money.  Plus, earthly possessions are fleeting and will not matter when you die.

Sometimes they are the same thing, but too often they are not.  Even among churches of different theologies there are disagreements on these things.  For instance, a topic that I've had to deal with recently is infant baptism:  do we baptize our son, or is baptism meant for people who have made a concious decision to follow Jesus?

Originally posted by mech9t5 as rob says, make sure you are doing what god wants you to do and not what the church wants you to do.  cause they aren't the same thing.

Please, explain.

Maybe He should send you the Marines brochure and application, I think that would be as much direction as you need.

Originally posted by robnezz23   Mech, I give you props.  For not being a Christian, you have a profound understanding of how the faith works, and/or should work.

Originally posted by mech9t5 Originally posted by sgreen Originally posted by mech9t5 as rob says, make sure you are doing what god wants you to do and not what the church wants you to do.  cause they aren't the same thing. Please, explain. the church does not equal god.  the church is run by MAN.  they are flawed.  Listening to what a MAN says is not the same as listening to what GOD says.   Speak to god directly through prayer.

Sometimes God doesn't hear me. It's really nice when He does, though. Maybe when I feel He doesn't hear me, it's because He's trying to teach/show me something. Maybe it's because He's busy doing more important things.

^^Have you had a change of heart? It wasn't too long ago that you accused God of being petty and evil.

Originally posted by kikko the church is petty and evil

Why do you say this? this is a pretty broad statement

Originally posted by kikko the church is petty and evil

What do you think of Jesus Christ?