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Is it simply good news? Or a complex riddle to be solved in order to be saved? Why do I get the impression from many discussions of the Gospel that God is playing a cruel "gotcha" game with our eternal destiny? "Ha ha ha! So sorry you misunderstood the subtle intricacies of ancient words, symbols, object lessons, and metaphors. You lose!" How many people just give up in the confusion, thinking they are just too dumb to be saved?

Emotional Intelligence - Are We Too Emotional These Days? Worth reading...

I see it as the opposite. We have traditions that make it a complex riddle. We want to prove theory of church history. We want to fit the Bible into the presuppositions of the fundamentalists. When people learn that there are two possible translations for the battle where the sun stood still, we want the exciting possibility. (either the sun did not move, or the sun was "still" for a day by not shining due to being covered with a thick hail cloud). As we get away from these traditions and get a better understanding of the language, poetry forms, geography and culture we learn a much simpler message. Our problem is digging through the piles of traditions and granted our lack of knowledge of the original context.

we are advertising in a couple of union papers for 6 months... re clubadventist.com

Man on his own cannot do otherwise. That's why we need grace and a Savior. God doesn't hold His people (those who have put their faith in Christ) accountable because Christ has already been held accountable on their behalf. Only those who put their faith and trust in Christ have His Power to overcome evil. No one is able to do this under his own power - only in the power of Christ can we overcome.

Disagree....."How God saved us "in Christ" is a bit more complex,..."! That is the issue of the question TW asked! Humans wish, for whatever reason, to make it complex. Time and time again the NT, words of Christ and the Gospel Writers, say "Believe and be saved". Not everyone has the need for calculus or degrees in order to be successful in life. If one wishes to earn more the opportunity is there, but not a requirement.

There are those that think everything in the Bible is salvational; or if they think it's salvational; then everyone who disagrees with their position is going to hell. Two examples are Sabbath keeping and the papacy being the antichrist. To me, Sabbath keeping is inseparably intertwined with my relationship to Jesus. Sabbath is "goog news"! Does that mean that everyone who doesn't keep "my" seventh-day Sabbath is doomed to condemnation? I personally don't think so. I (for one) almost totally dismiss the possibility of the Pope being the end-time AntiChrist (although I don't dismiss the papacy's probable starring role in end-time events). Does this mean I might lose my salvation because I have taken my eyes off of he that EGW has proclaimed to be the antichrist? I personally don't think so. We are all different people with different histories and baggage. God may have a "customized" salvation plan for each of us. Maybe the plan of salvation He has set up for me has a different set of priorities than it has for someone else. What is "good news" to me might be "scary stuff" for someone else; and vice-versa.

the hospital doesn't tell the patients or their families a lot of what happens to the patients... I recall a patient with a hip fx went to surgery for a hip pinning. The procedure was done successfully, and the patient was being moved back onto a stretcher, when someone let the stretcher slip away from the surgery table. The patient fell onto the floor, we did another xray, and found that the patient's other hip had been fractured. So the ortho doc had to do another hip pinning. All that the family was told was that we had found that the other hip was also fractured. And always, ALWAYS, when you have a chest xray in the hospital where you need to stand up against the chest board, ask the technologist to disinfect the board, including the top where people breathe on it.. It's supposed to be done, but seldom is. It just takes less than a minute to do, and you'll be saved from being in contact with germs left by hacking, coughing patients. I saw lots of behind-the-scenes disasters, but not so much "go-the-extra-mile" behavior, though what there was, usually came from the same individuals. Sometimes technologists, nurses, and physicians can get "burned out" — they listen to the same comments, questions, concerns, and/or complaints day after day after day. They can become jaded, perhaps, but in a self-protective way. You can't let your caring become too emotional, otherwise you'll be no good to anyone. That's not to say they shouldn't be kind to their patients.

Does everyone agree on what is a salvational issue and what is not? (just asking — not sure if all agree, or not) Because if the issue is salvational, then it's not likely to be debatable. It's the side stuff that could be debated/discussed, but that's also the stuff that makes people most hot under the collar if others don't agree with someone's set opinions. And it's the side stuff that makes people leave the church.

Jesus has already encoded the encrypted password into the log in box and had hit the <Enter> key. Now, am I going to properly use His laptop?

Soon enough, people without a lot of money will just have to die when they get really sick. Prevention of illness would be a good plan if one could get that to work all of the time. I heard recently that healthcare is in third place for cause of death in the USA, so going to doctors and hospitals can be quite hazardous to your health due to medical errors.

I guess, Christ did not do away with self-love when He referred to the Father's command to "Love your neighbor as yourself" as being like the greatest commandment, did He? Even Paul and James referred to that statement.

Yes, it is about how they are paid. Hence, "Wealth Care." The SNF that last "cared" for my grandmother kept her an extra week once they found out she could pay an extra $161 per day out of pocket. She was kept an 11 extra days AFTER the therapists gave her an "all clear" because social workers were not able to get all their ducks in a row at the same time. (But billing was sure on top of it! Got the bill for her last 7 days the first business day.) Now... My best friend of 28 years is an RN. She just finished her NP coursework and will be sitting for that exam in August. I do believe she has a heart for the work and the parients. But even she sees the lack of concern for patients among her coworkers. Her mother in law is someone I cared for after the stroke. When her MIL went through all the various aspects of health care it became obvious to my friend that very, very few of the healthcare workers actually cared for/about their patients. She decided to go back to school so she might be better equipped to DO something to improve the system. Do I think that EVERYONE in healthcare is only concerned about their paycheck? No. But I think it is fair to say that nearly everyone my grandmother and I came into contact with was primarily concerned about the $$$. Patient care was hastily performed and full of errors at every turn. I'm sorry if I am offending anyone in the healthcare field. I am sharing my perspective. It is valuable to those who want to know what it's like on the "other side."

"Nearly 90 per cent of Fort McMurray still intact; 2,400 structures lost" Incredible job of fire fighters. Some went with under 1 hour sleep in the first 48 hours, until relief came.

#albertastrong One of the Fort Mac firefighters.