Hey all, could you react to the following common statement about God's "treatment" of His people?

God loves you as you are.  But He loves you too much to leave you that way.

Let's suppose that we are all created, called, to reveal God's imageness to everyone around us.  So one person commits herself to that proposition.  How will she fare in adulthood?  At the workplace?  In marriage?  As a parent?  Assume that her commitment means 2 things:  she works at her spirituality.  2  she loves others unconditionally.  How do you think she'll fare in life?

OK, here's part two to last night's entry. 

The key to strengthening any strained relationship is for both parties to commit to becoming better communicators, and worse sinners.  By "worse" I mean that they get less and less willing or able to sin against the other partner.

It is important to note that relationship is usually abandoned because of pain, frustration, confusion, and such. I see students abandon relationships all the time, because they feel that the hurt of the relationship is too much to bear.  Sadly, I also see adults, who should know better by now, do the same.  I suspect that such adults "learned" the practice as kids, with a difficult adult, and the practice gave them a measure of relief, so they now use it as adults, hoping for the same relief.

The biggest "challenge" to either party in relationship failure is to commit oneself to the health of the relationship, even if the other party is apparently not doing so.  How does a parent continue to love a child that is hurting him/her badly?  How does a teenager commit to honor and love parents who are fools?  How does God commit to loving all of us when we are such a mess?  The most difficult position in the world is to be committed to love someone who is not committed to loving back.  And that is the position God calls us to put ourselves in repeatedly in scripture, whether we are slaves, masters, children, parents, leaders, followers, husbands, or wives.

If you can find God's peace in such times, and your anxiety gets minimized, it will help you greatly to expend needed effort to minimize miscommunication with another person, and make it much less likely that you would justify sinning against him. Thus, you would/could minimize your contribution to the dissolving pressures on the relationship. And that is all you can do.  You can never "get" another to do more than he or she wants to do toward the health of your relationship.  This is where you must trust God.  His instructions to you are for your good, even if they seem to bring heartache, confusion, or pain.

These are not easy ideas.  They embody the biblical notion of "I die daily" in that continuing to love one who does not love back is tantamount to slow emotional death.  But God desires to pour His life into you as you pour yours into another.  This is an idea that is often lost in today's modern "feel good" church, but it is solidly biblical.

Here are some things that God has been teaching me along the way lately.  I have become convinced that there are two major factors that cause relationships to dissolve, and that the factors usually work together.

The first factor is miscommunication. Things are said that are heard differently. Things are heard that were meant differently. Silence is interpreted to mean things never intended. Another's actions, and inactions, are seen as evidence of motive, intent, or direction, none of  which were intended by the other. Any two people (mom & daughter, man & boss, husband & wife, etc.) can miscommunicate very easily. In fact, it has been often said that it's a miracle when two people actually understand one another most of the time.

The second factor is sin.  I'm not suggesting adultery, drunkenness, theft, assault, or such "blatant" sins, though they play a role in some relationship failure.  I'm suggesting the "core" sin of demanding that my circumstances ought to be better, and since they aren't, I am released from continuing to obey God in my treatment of that other person.  I am not responsible to obey God any longer.

How these two factors work together is, unfortunately, not complicated. Factor one occurs:  You say "X" to me, but I interpret it to mean "Y," then I might be offended when you meant no offense.  If I then think to myself, "Joe Schmoe offended me, and he shouldn't do that," then I'm set up for factor two:  "I deserve better than that sort of treatment from Joe," and "I shouldn't have to put up with that," then finally, "If that's how he's going to treat me, then FINE!!!  I'm going to show him."  I have then completed the mental gymnastics that will allow me to stop trying to love, respect, bear with, forgive, and minister to Joe.  And I have, in a sense, just taken the foundation out from under the relationship.

All for now.  Have an AWESOME week xangaites!!!

Man, it's been a week since xanga update.  Jeez, time flew.

Went to the prayer retreat:  Awesome time of reflection, connection.  God continues to draw me out of discontentment toward quiet peace and joy.  Not there yet, so still have sucky attitudes, whiney days, and anxiety enough to crash a 767.  Grrrr.

Someday, I hope to allow Him to lead me to "trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding."  Someday.

The scriptures teach that in the last days, men would not "put up with sound doctrine (NIV)" but that they would "gather around themselves" teachers who teach what they want to hear.

So, hear's  a question that bubbles up in me:  How do I keep from getting stuck in an "eddy" of doctrine, where I've come to conclusion "A" and have all the affirmation I need from authors and others, and where I naturally push away opposing views?  More concisely, how do I make sure that I've not just "surrounded [myself] with a great many teachers" who tell me what I already believe?

Reframed, how do I make sure that Truth can get into my thinking in any situation where I believe a lie or half-truth, but I'm convinced that it's all truth?

Edit:  Tuesday, I head up to Mountain Lakes for a prayer summit with some 16 or so pastors from the Klamath Basin.  I hope to have a time to gather strength for the spiritual battles ahead that God alone sees and knows are coming.  Pray for us that our unity might grow, and our commitment to be what God wants us to be, no matter the cost.

Hmmm, here's one of those "intelligence" tests, with only one question:

Put the following words in the proper, logical, order:

argue, banter, discuss, debate, converse, fight, ignore.

You have 30 seconds.  Good luck!!!

Ok, here are two questions, for two sorts of people:

The first two questions are for folks who have tried Christianity, and found it lacking.

#1  When you tried Christianity, what were you hoping/expecting to get/feel/experience/etc?

#2 When you decided that Christianity didn't "work for you,"  in what way(s) did it fail your hopes/expectations?

The next two questions are similar, but phrased more for folks who consider themselves Christian, but are struggling with staying that way, or with "keeping the faith:"

#1  As a Christian, what do you hope/expect to  get/feel/experience/etc?

#2 Right now, in what ways is Christianity failing to deliver on your hopes/expectations?

For clarity, if you don't mind, start your comment with which "sort" of the two people you most are like.  Thanks so much for your input.

Edit:  Let's keep the comments as responses to the questions, and not have anyone criticizing anothers perspectives, K?  Thanks

ok all,  here goes the question.  As best as you can, give me one or two principles that could be "universal" etiquette points for me to follow in blogging.  We could have two catagories.  How do I blog on my own site, and how do I comment on another's blog site.

For kenostyle and karaboohaha, my first suggestion is that I should not comment on a site if they tell me "STAY THE F*** off!!!" or something like that.

Note:  These suggestions you are making are not so I can build a "code" by which to judge others.  No, you're helping me think about how I should judge my own blogging/commenting.  Sort of a WWJB thing.

Woah.  Chreck out this tale of adventure.  Its a quick, worthy read, methinks.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/24/sports/othersports/24outdoors.html

Has anyone ever seen, or seen reference to, a "bloggers etiquette" sort of guide?

As I  interact with others, I am surprised sometiimes by the
complaints I read about others posts/comments, and by the ways I am
sometimes taken aback by the ferocity or such of folks blogging. 
I'm not so much looking for a basis to judge others as I'm looking for
a guide for myself.