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Is it a predominately male power type thingy to boast of numbers of achievements? Or do women show-off their achievements publicly as well to grab a laurel wreath for their heads? I've never been one who is fazed by quantity. I'm an idealist always on the look-out for quality.

"And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." Luke 2:52 Jesus was not the same when He was born on earth as He was prior to His incarnation... At what point did Jesus stop increasing in wisdom? At what point did Jesus cease to increase in his favour with God?

Going my way? LoL. Is that how you see posting here? What does it mean for a thread to go your way? I post to express my opinion and to hear others. Once I start a thread it's no longer mine. If 100 disagree or post hundreds of links I don't lose anything. You are projecting! Let me put it this way. Would you like to explain how you feel the increased deaths of police officers impacts what I see as the birth of a new civil rights movement? "Respond to the article for or against?" I'm not sure how one can be against the fact that more officers died last year. How about responding to the video Tom posted. Maybe the article was your response that was a way to slide around the content in the video. Did you watch it? Funny how you point fingers at me but they are actually the things you do. I'm sorry that you feel you are being trashed. Don't take things so personally. It's a discussion board.

As was clearly said, it was Obama's *father* who converted, at the age of 6. Obama was not raised Muslim. Apparently the truth is irrelevant as long as the slur can be made to stick.

Well, with his background, I assume that he can do much better.

After over 150 posts your asking "what is this thread about?". Who is the one who is avoiding?

Yup,you are right,but many politicians make horse manure smell like perfume Apologized to Castro “Dear President Castro,” Waters wrote on September 29, 1998, “I am writing to clarify my position on a resolution recently passed by the United States House of Representatives on September 14, 1998. I, and some of the Members of the Congressional Black Caucus, mistakenly voted for House Concurrent Resolution 254 which called on the Government of Cuba to extradite to the United States Joanne Chesimard and all other individuals who have fled the United States from political persecution and received political asylum in Cuba. Joanne Chesimard was the birth name of a political activist known to most Members of the Congressional Black Caucus as Assata Shakur. For the record, I am opposed to the resolution. I unequivocally stated that a mistake was made and I would have voted against the legislation”. The New Jersey police department explains Joanne Chesimard’s “political activism” here: On May 2, 1973 New Jersey State Troopers James Harper and Werner Foerster were patrolling the New Jersey Turnpike in the area of East Brunswick and stopped a car with three occupants. The Troopers were questioning the occupants when the driver and female passenger suddenly came up with semi-automatic pistols and opened fire. Trooper Foerster was struck twice Hands Off Assata: Protests Can Protect the Revolutionary Fugitive Again 12/22/2014 Truth Out: "But according to a former Black Panther Party leader, a protest movement that erupted in October 1998 organized by the Ad Hoc Coalition to Keep Assata Free forced two members of the Black Congressional Caucus, California Rep. Maxine Waters and Rep. Barbara Lee, to write a letter to Fidel Castro apologizing for their vote. The two congresswomen also traveled to Cuba in December 1998 to meet personally with Cuban officials and distance themselves from the resolution. "If it wasn't for the protests we organized in Washington, DC, that year, Assata may have been captured then," said JoNina Ervin, a former Black Panther Party leader, during an exclusive interview with Truthout on December 18. "We have to stand up and speak out now to protect Assata again.""

I guess I can see that whatever God does is done in love. Even Hell Fire. Heaven would be such a unpleasant place to the sinner, and if God did not destroy the sinner then the entire universe would be at risk of more pain and death. Those inside the City would never feel safe outside its walls. They would be prisoners. Of if sinners were quarantined and the righteous were allowed to roam freely, then the righteous would never be truly happy. Hell Fire will be one of those "strange acts" of God's love. Ok, thanks

How about this: "My beloved wife, thanks for your true love for me. We've been together for a couple of years now and seems like our love become stronger day by day. But wait a minute, honey, next year I simply have a plan to stop loving you. THIS WILL BE JUST TEMPORARY. So don't worry sweetheart. This only last for one year. I'll be back and start loving you again. I promise!" "You know that we love each other. But during my period of "ONE YEAR WITHOUT YOU" please don't make any call, don't pray for me, don't even thinking of me, and don't ask where I go. Stop bothering me or I will call police....oppss... I mean... ahh...never mind... but please.... " "Again, don't worry too much, honey. At the end of my "ONE YEAR WITHOUT YOU" timeline, surely I'll come back to you and loving you even more.... "" ~end~ Though within non SDA churches this joke seems to be a bit too much and been widely spreading everywhere, I think we must prevent this joke to stop spreading too much in our own SDA churches, especially among youth. While we shouln't disagree the fact that the (progressive) SDA members are too proud of too much investing in any grey area by mixing truth and error, many of the outsiders are seriously loving God and keep searching the Biblical Truth with all of their hearts and would rather to die. So please don't be surpised if those faithful non SDA christians are really offended by Ryan Bell's "A Year Withour God"

David Trimm is a denominational historian who is employed by the General Conference. If you watch Hope TV, you will likely see him. He will be visiting the Boulder SDA Church on September 26, 2015 You may want to plan to visit on that day.

John Acton went to to Rome hoping to persuade the Pope against the doctrine. As noted in history, the Pope decided not to even enter into discourse with John. That, in and of itself, is not corruption. Man has been endowed by God with the right to think and express thought through communication. Man has also been endowed with the free will to choose. Among those choices is the choice to receive another's communication, for whatever reason. God grants us the right to choose not give audience to any communication, as well as to express it. Just because someone has something to say does not obligate anyone to hear what has to be said. Refusal to listen does not equate to suppression of that right to communicate. This is something a great many Americans today need reminding of...continually. Just because John wanted to discuss in the First Vatican Council did not obligate his prospective audience to hear what he wanted to say, even if John was arguably justified in his cause. Their turf, their rules. Even though John was 100% justified, that justification in and of itself does not include the obligation to be heard if the intended audience does not wish to hear it. Likewise anywhere else - I may well want give to voice to a point that is justified (at least, to me). I am free to find those willing to give audience to my persuasion and arguments, but that does not obligate them to be forced to give audience on their turf should they decide not to. That the RCC decided not to hear John Acton at the Council was not, in and of itself, corruption. It was an exercise in a God-given right not to hear something they did not wish to hear. God extends that to mankind and includes Himself in that - He does not force others to hear His enlightened perspective on anything, even though He is God and very much desires His Gospel to be heard by all. Man, and his institutions, are free to listen, or not. Consistently, God in both Testaments declares His messages are for those "with ears to hear". He does not obligate people to listen, although He is 100% justified in what He has to say, even though it is to eternal peril for those choosing not to hear. As this thread is a spin-off of your other thread (with your current spat with Greg and Stan noted), it goes well to note that just because you have a point of view to express, and those moderating this site declare such manner of communication outside the boundaries of the image they wish to project, does not constitute an obligation on their part to entertain your discourse. Refusal does not constitute corruption, nor is it suppression of your right to voice your opinion. Like me, your are a guest here. Like me, you are a very long-time guest here at ClubAdventist. Like any guest, if my deportment in communication consistently and/or flagrantly goes beyond the standards set here I would expect to be shown the door. I have no right to call that corruption or suppression, however justified I might be. As for John's ending point - great men are not always bad men. John the Baptist (by Christ's declaration, the greatest of the prophets), Paul (arguably, the greatest of the Apostles), Enoch (pre-Flood great), Elijah (great prophet), and Moses were all great men. All were sinners made good by God, and in the same process were made great men. Blessings,

Our Lord promised to send those 12 disciples a Comforter as replacement for his absent presence. Not knowing what He meant but just winging it on faith they waited till Pentecost and experienced a full confrontation of Jesus’ Spirit filling them. They got baptized in the Spirit. His Holy Spirit is a person who reduces the intensity of our fears. Also He calms and pacifies, or commiserates with us when we have misfortune. But then thinking about it I see misfortune as a word looking like it comes from the area of superstition and occult. Like we are as Christians are delivered up to bad luck, harmful or unpleasant happenings, threatening bodily sicknesses, and such other gloomy experiences. All arbitrarily orchestrated by evil spirits flying around doing the dirty on people. All such randomness in life’s events stops for genuine Christians who seek to keep connected to the vine, who drink and eat from the body of Christ daily, and who speak with him in prayer without ceasing. Then His Spirit within bears with our spirit that we belong to the children of God. Therefore we are enveloped in the peace of God that passes all understanding. You’re absolutely right Gail, the Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts and you have experienced that for sure. What bothers me is that a demon assigned to me by the BigBoss-EvilOne talks to my heart from the outside and tries to plant in my mind all sorts of evil acts I ought to do, or give in to temptation on some anti-law of God. So I need really to be alert to what the will of God is on matters. Only then can I draw near to God and resist the demon so to overcome possibly sinning.

I’m one of those conflict free lovers. At best I am relaxed in a situation in which people are pleasant and do not cause trouble. Could that be a cowardly trait of mine? To avoid confrontation? I do so love quiet situations or environment. Especially when not being annoyed by noise of any decibel level, or noise from people. Peace to me can be any state I’m in when I have calm and don’t think on any worries. Jesus was very keen on telling us to cast all anxieties, worries and fears on Him. I think that is very loving of Him to say that often. Alright, I’ll admit that I am a harmony lover. Around me needs be a total lack of violence or conflicting behaviours from another. I can’t imagine a tension free household which isn’t free from the threat of aggression verbally or physically. There are so many marriage counselling programs on telly showing in conversation how hostility and retribution is an everyday occurrence. Peace suggests sincere attempts at reconciliation and reaching the existence of healthy healed interpersonal relationships. Peace to me is tranquillity of mind because there is an absence of hostility and mistrust. Peace I also see as freedom. I am relaxing in the freedom from fear..... freedom from guilt...... freedom from condemnation ...... freedom from loosing what I love. The Hebrew word shalom, according to Jewish theology, comes from a Hebrew verb meaning 'to restore'. Although 'peace' is the usual translation, however, it is an incomplete one. 'Shalom,' which is also cognate with the Arabic word 'salaam', has multiple other meanings. In addition to peace, the word includes justice, good health, safety, well-being, prosperity, security, good fortune, and friendliness. On a personal level among us in our church community, peaceful behaviors are when we show others kindness, being considerate and respectful. Others are expecting us to be just in any dealings and tolerant of their beliefs. I believe we all are tending to wish for manifested goodwill from others. I’m quite sure others are expecting we welcome them in peace and don’t jump all over them with critic and fault finding.