God's Plan

Agent Z · Jul 14, 2008

No Ticket said:
And all because of something bad that happened years ago. If it hadn't happened, he might actually be worse off, as this snapped some sense into him and "saved" him.

Or, he may have gone a different route, met different people, and still have been just as successful in another avenue of life.

Conversely, he could have stayed in a shell and not opened himself up to the same people and same opportunities that did present themselves to him along the way.....and he may have ended up in a worse situation presently.

So many variables, and so many degrees of outcomes.

It could be argued that he saved himself, by taking advantage of the positives that entered his life along the way.

It's more about personal attitude than divine dayplanners.

Having said that, many people's attitudes are shaped by a faith in a higher power, and a feeling that their life already has an inherently higher purpose already attached to it. I say good on ya....whatever gets you through the day can't be discredited.

No Ticket · Jul 14, 2008

Agent Z said:
Or, he may have gone a different route, met different people, and still have been just as successful in another avenue of life.

Conversely, he could have stayed in a shell and not opened himself up to the same people and same opportunities that did present themselves to him along the way.....and he may have ended up in a worse situation presently.

So many variables, and so many degrees of outcomes.

It could be argued that he saved himself, by taking advantage of the positives that entered his life along the way.

It's more about personal attitude than divine dayplanners.

Having said that, many people's attitudes are shaped by a faith in a higher power, and a feeling that their life already has an inherently higher purpose already attached to it. I say good on ya....whatever gets you through the day can't be discredited.

And tomorrow you could get hit by a truck, or win the lottery. But my point was he is thankful that bad things happened that led him to where he is... because what he has is all he knows and it's something he loves.

I'd tell you the story more in-depth but it's kind of personal and I don't want to get into the details of what happened... but trust me, he probably would have been worse off, it's almost a sure thing. He got lucky he got out of that predicament at all.

... regardless of whether God's plan was responsible... where those events led him was to a better place than he could have imagined. And so what if we all want to dream a little. If God doesn't exist and there is no plan, it's not going to change a thing except that all those non-believers get to be right and we can expect nothingness after death.

Whatever.

And no I don't want to discuss religion in this thread lol.

Agent Z · Jul 14, 2008

No Ticket said:
And tomorrow you could get hit by a truck, or win the lottery. But my point was he is thankful that bad things happened that led him to where he is... because what he has is all he knows and it's something he loves.

I'd tell you the story more in-depth but it's kind of personal and I don't want to get into the details of what happened... but trust me, he probably would have been worse off, it's almost a sure thing. He got lucky he got out of that predicament at all.

... regardless of whether God's plan was responsible... where those events led him was to a better place than he could have imagined. And so what if we all want to dream a little. If God doesn't exist and there is no plan, it's not going to change a thing except that all those non-believers get to be right and we can expect nothingness after death.

Whatever.

And no I don't want to discuss religion in this thread lol.

Well, you are basically echoing my post: it's all about attitude.

"Religion" is an attitude, and vice versa.

Of course, some will say that he was predestined to go from point A to point B to point C and on and on ...and that no amount of free will would have changed the course of his life that was already planned and mapped out for him.

I say that's another discussion for another day....and that I will be absent from said discussion, so as to save my sanity.

The Drifter · Jul 14, 2008

Attila the Professor said:
Yes, but the problem this leaves is that of how to know how He would want you to live.

Read the gospel of Jesus Christ in the books of the New Testement to see how Jesus wants us to live.

AngieAki · Jul 14, 2008

Nurhachi1991 said:
I wish everyone would stop trying to analyze God and Christianity........... Just believe in Jesus as your Lord and Saviour live as he would want you to live and thats it. Stop questioning everything somethings can not be explained.

Lol yeah it is a lot easier to believe when you don't think about it.
Sorry couldn't resist.
I am a little bitter. =/

The Drifter · Jul 14, 2008

AngieAki said:
Lol yeah it is a lot easier to believe when you don't think about it.
Sorry couldn't resist.
I am a little bitter. =/

Nothing wrong with asking questions.
My wife asks them alot, and I try to answer them the best to my knowledge. How can we learn anything without asking?

Attila the Professor · Jul 14, 2008

Lonsome_Drifter said:
Read the gospel of Jesus Christ in the books of the New Testement to see how Jesus wants us to live.

But, clearly, neither the Gospels nor the Tanakh can account for all situations. There are different goods valued primarily at different times, and by different authors, or vessels of God, if you so please. Interpretation is necessary, of course, but even that can only get you so far. The old Voice from the Whirlwind argument about how we shouldn't ask such questions just doesn't cut it - life demands that we ask them, even if there aren't answers.

Nurhachi1991 · Jul 14, 2008

AngieAki said:
Lol yeah it is a lot easier to believe when you don't think about it.
Sorry couldn't resist.
I am a little bitter. =/

Its a lot easier to question everything about religion it seems everyone is doing that nowadays................

It is harder to just believe and accept that all things can't be explained

Agent Z · Jul 14, 2008

Nurhachi1991 said:
It is harder to just believe and accept that all things can't be explained

Well, by believing, you are accepting that things don't necessarily have to be explained per se. There is a comfort in "knowing" your place and purpose in the universe, yes? If you believe in a higher power and an afterlife, well, that seems much, much easier to accept actually. There's comfort in your own certainty.

I don't think that I need to know everything. I deal with what I do know and the reality around me. I'm open to any and all possibilities, and I'm not going to apologize for not quite settling on just one answer quite yet.

Gear · Jul 15, 2008

Why would you just accept everything someone tells you as fact [in regards to religion; a personal, spiritual aspect] without exploring for your own truth?

Pale Horse · Jul 15, 2008

Moedred said:
... Like in Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken," life's opportunities branch out before us "as way leads on to way." There is no single correct path, but there are certainly wrong ones. ....

FINALLY! Someone who realizes that the paths are both the same in that poem, it's only the hindsight that Frost has that makes all the difference in that work!

Well read.

Nurhachi1991 said:
It is harder to just believe and accept that all things can't be explained

Didn't Walter Donovan rhetoric Indy by saying "It's to you ask yourself, what you believe"

The Drifter · Jul 15, 2008

Attila the Professor said:
But, clearly, neither the Gospels nor the Tanakh can account for all situations. There are different goods valued primarily at different times, and by different authors, or vessels of God, if you so please. Interpretation is necessary, of course, but even that can only get you so far. The old Voice from the Whirlwind argument about how we shouldn't ask such questions just doesn't cut it - life demands that we ask them, even if there aren't answers.

Jesus gave a guide-line in his sermons on how we should live. If a christian ever encounters a situiation that they question; they should pray that God guides them to do the right thing in his eyes.

Yes, the gospels were written by different authors, but of you find the main theme of the New Testement; you will see the golden rule of being a christian.

A christian must strive to be Christ-like. That does not mean one will be great as Christ. It just means that you should strive to be like him in every situation.

The way I believe prayer to God for the answers I seek is my way of coming to terms with my unanswered questions.
It is hard for me to put into words how I believe. Sorry if I m not coming across clear.

AngieAki · Jul 15, 2008

Nurhachi1991 said:
Its a lot easier to question everything about religion it seems everyone is doing that nowadays................

It is harder to just believe and accept that all things can't be explained

I have my spiritual beliefs and some of those can't be explained.
But the core of my beliefs can be, at least to me.
I can't just blindly follow something because someone says to.
I am not a follower.
I never have been and never will be.
There is nothing wrong with questioning everything.
If we did we wouldn't learn and we wouldn't grow as people.

RaideroftheArk · Jul 15, 2008

Perhaps there is no plan...perhaps you're not suppose to believe...perhaps you're just suppose to exist?

When you really break down life, what do we all do from day to day?

In the most simplistic form, we survive. Just like all other living things on this planet. We grow, we gain knowledge, we work, we retire and we die. In between all that are choices and beliefs and people trying to grasp for explanations of why they do what they do.

It still comes down to we survive living by providing the best life we are capable of until we die. If you are lucky, you pass on all the knowledge, skills and experience you have learned throughout your lifetime to another person.

Nurhachi1991 · Jul 15, 2008

AngieAki said:
I have my spiritual beliefs and some of those can't be explained.
But the core of my beliefs can be, at least to me.
I can't just blindly follow something because someone says to.
I am not a follower.
I never have been and never will be.
There is nothing wrong with questioning everything.
If we did we wouldn't learn and we wouldn't grow as people.

Yes but for me it works its nothing out of the ordinary God sent his only son to die for our sins and redeem man kind. Sounds believalble to me

RaideroftheArk · Jul 15, 2008

AngieAki said:
I have my spiritual beliefs and some of those can't be explained.
But the core of my beliefs can be, at least to me.
I can't just blindly follow something because someone says to.
I am not a follower.
I never have been and never will be.
There is nothing wrong with questioning everything.
If we did we wouldn't learn and we wouldn't grow as people.

...and there is absolutely nothing wrong with your way of thinking.

Pale Horse · Jul 15, 2008

AngieAki said:
II am not a follower
Never have been and never will be.
There is nothing wrong with questioning everything.

Makes me wonder why the Bible refers to mankind as sheep.

RaideroftheArk · Jul 15, 2008

Pale Horse said:
Makes me wonder why the Bible refers to mankind as sheep.

I have always wondered that too? But I would say it is a very convenient statement considering the conditions we live in.

Pale Horse · Jul 15, 2008

RaideroftheArk said:
I have always wondered that too? But I would say it is a very convenient statement considering the conditions we live in.

Yes, but it was noted almost 6000 years ago.

The Drifter · Jul 15, 2008

I have seen in the bible where it mentions Jesus' followers as his flock, and Jesus as the shepard guiding them. It also calls him the lamb, but where does it say we are sheep?

God's Plan

Active member

New member

Active member

New member

New member

New member

Moderator

Well-known member

Active member

New member

Moderator

New member

New member

New member

Well-known member

New member

Moderator

New member

Moderator

New member