confused calling

da_blissmachine: God started talking to me again this week... I know all the televangelists make it out that this "calling" or wahtever is something great it is actually quite stressful and distressing.

Any Advice?

If he asks for money, hang up.

H8Monga: Where does He want to lead you?

da_blissmachine: She told me the time has come for petty religious differences to be set aside so that all the world's people can instead focus on their energies on those who oppose truth "both from within and without" and that I would be a part of this.

H8Monga: How is that confusing?

da_blissmachine: it requires thinking on a level not even known to most... and feelings of "who am I to quesiton the authorities of our culture?"

H8Monga: I see... well all it takes is one person to make the difference. If you want to follow through, of course you'll be doing it for life, but it doesn't hurt to try, you may be successful.

jackinman: [quote author=da_blissmachine link=board=meetgreet;num=1067660979;start=0#3 date=10/31/03 at 2238]She told me the time has come for petty religious differences to be set aside so that all the world's people can instead focus on their energies on those who oppose truth "both from within and without" and that I would be a part of this.[/quote]


SHE told you??????? Hmmm very interesting.

da_blissmachine: Yes? Does it shock you that God came to me as a woman?

H8Monga: Well if you've seen Joan of Arcadia (which is an excellent show 8PM Eastern CBS), God appears to her as many people at different times.

da_blissmachine: God has also done this to me at different times in my life... sometimes as other people I would later meet.

jackinman: [quote author=da_blissmachine link=board=meetgreet;num=1067660979;start=0#8 date=10/31/03 at 22:21:49]Yes? Does it shock you that God came to me as a woman?[/quote]

Yes, it does shock me because I've been worshipping a man all my life and.....um...ok let me refrase that. I was told that god was a male. So I would like clarification b4 my time is up.

da_blissmachine: God revelas itself as whatever it wants to be at the time.

prepstudinsc: *****NOTE: Skip over this if you don't want to get into a theological debate.*****

Western society tends to portray God as being an old white man, wearing a long white robe, with white hair and a beard, sitting in a big golden throne, with angels playing harps all around. Well, it makes for a pretty picture, but it's not the way it is.

God defies any kind of explanation known to humankind.
God has the attributes of both father and mother. In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus calls God "Abba", meaning father, because in His day, that was the most intimate title one could use to address a person. And also, in Jesus' case, God did impregnate Mary through the Holy Spirit, so technically, God is "father" to Jesus.

While I'm not into "politicaly correct" theology, for the most part, I do sort of get worked up when God is always addressed as a male. God is neutral, neither male or female. God is not a being in human form.
God can take human form, and did, through the person of Jesus. That's why I choose to address God as "God," not Him, He, etc. When God is addressed as He in hymns or psalms, it doesn't bother me too much, because they are usually older works, and I understand that for those writers, God was He or Father. I just mean in everyday usage, I prefer God to be genderless, since God is Supreme Creator. The only personage of the Trinity who had a gender was/is Jesus, who physically was a male.

I think our western way of making God an old man stems from our minds being conditioned in a patriarchal system. Other cultures don't see God like Western Chrisitians do. The ancient Jews don't view God as this old white haired man. They don't even write out the name for God, because it is too holy for humans to speak or write.

God is too big to be squeezed into a little box for us to imagine. God is just so beyond any comprehension and even when we get to heaven, I don't know that we'll even then fully comprehend the magnitude and magnificence of God.

Wow, who would ever think that on LPSG we'd be having conversations about God. lol

awellhungboi: Nicely put, Prepstud. I imagine in your line of work having a familiarity with many faiths and traditions must be necessary.