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KingdomBuilder wrote:Caesar decided to remove the statues. It's our job to respect that, is it not?

It's awfully easy for me to respect removing statues of heinous folks... Why are so many Christians struggling with respecting authorities when it comes to their decision to remove some old hunks of metal??

people are bothered about setting legal precedent in which ideologues will be enabled to tear through whatever they choose, without bothering to comply with existing rule of law.

as far as i know (which isn't very far) "all this" began with obama simply stating, in response to Dylann Roof, that he wanted to see C flags removed. this does not make law! not federal law, certainly not state law. now we see statues coming down, and demands for more of these types of emotional, and, emotion-driving measures.

not all Christians are CO's. not all CO's are responding identically to it.
the purpose is to fuel discord. discord is where we are.

not sure where this will end.
honestly, i wondered if it was getting so much air time to distract from NK evidently backing away from threatening Guam.
the press and the DNC are so hate-filled toward Trump, they have zero tolerance for anything that might be construed as a Trump success.
it's not speculation, they make their stated position clear every day. in the U.S., and abroad.

when that's ^^^ where you're at, you have no credibility.

Hmmmm, I assume Temp hasn't seen this post yet. I'll start another thread.

Bootstrap wrote:Two requests:

1. Could we please not mention Obama, Trump, or other political leaders in this thread? If you need to do that, please start another thread.

2. Could we please avoid accusing other participants of anything in this thread? I would like this to be a safe place to consider our own responses, and that's usually hard with accusations flying around.

Bootstrap wrote:Hmmmm, I assume Temp hasn't seen this post yet. I'll start another thread.

Bootstrap wrote:Two requests:

1. Could we please not mention Obama, Trump, or other political leaders in this thread? If you need to do that, please start another thread.

2. Could we please avoid accusing other participants of anything in this thread? I would like this to be a safe place to consider our own responses, and that's usually hard with accusations flying around.

i noticed you posted as i did.
i will consider how well you respond to others' requests regarding thread posting requests, and, how, i believe, you were ok with Trump bashing in earlier posts. which does inspire "counter" opinions.
what is a political topic without mixed views. i have no problem with ken's comments. or Peter's or KB's. i tried to respond honestly. not sure which posts you refer to. no need to know.

a prayer request thread is another matter.

MaxPC wrote: Sudsy, I give those stats to clarify a specific administrative/logistical point facing our Church due to its size. Thank you for asking.

Thanks for your explanation.

Today there is a memorial service for Saturday's victim.
so far as i can tell, her distraught mother is dedicating her daughter's life to the cause of lib politics. tragic.

in comments there, i prayed to find words. i posted:
Dedicate your days to Jesus Christ,
this way, no matter how many days you have, they will not be in vain."

thankfully, a few people responded positively.
i feel even more sorry for this loss today than before.

i once had a friend with a beautiful young daughter.
she had just graduated with honors from high school, was about to attend PreMed.
she had what should have been a minor fender-bender, lost control of her car in rain, in town, midday, not speeding or other, hit a utility truck. it "should have been" minor!
her mother was devastated, lost.

one day, she came to our home on business.
we held each other and cried.
the most gut-wrenching part for me was how she looked deeply into my eyes, seaching, crying, "Where is she?!" "Where is she?!" "She was a good girl!"

it was then that i experienced what tragedy is for non-believers. they are lost.
it's devastating to remember.

don't wait for tragedy to seek Truth.
even if you're not convinced before, tragedy will send you seeking.
at least you will know where to begin to look.

Thank you for the reminder, Bootstrap.
Temp, I'm sorry. I'm afraid I was a bit too blunt. I don't want you to feel unwelcome.

temporal1 wrote:what is a political topic without mixed views.

This thread is not about politics, it is about our response as Christians.

I started another thread that addresses the politics of the issue. But I really would like to have a thread where we discuss our own response and understandings as Christians.

I think how I respond to these kind of demonstrations that can and sometimes do get violent has to do with how I understand my main purpose as a citizen of another country. My view is that as an ambassador I am to represent what my King and His Kingdom is about in word and deed but I don't think this requires me attempting to have the country I'm a stranger in to change their ways to be closer to the way my home country views and does things. It is not about me getting them to be better citizens of their worldly country.

Actually I am to be more of a recruiter explaining citizenship in the the Kingdom of God to build up that Kingdom. If I pursue this directive, those who become citizens of the Kingdom of God will add to the positive impact of what is right and good in their worldly country. But the focus first and foremost is about building the Kingdom of God with more citizens and training them in Kingdom ways.

So, joining in with many of the other religions of this world and even non-religious groups to make this world a better place yet not through being reconciled to God through Jesus Christ is not what I think the NT is about. While the world strives to create peaceful settings without Christ changing their hearts, I don't see where Christianity should join in this seemingly good cause. Sadly, imo, too many Christian groups have joined in this social gospel approach and often Jesus is not in the picture. Our good deeds and words are to point folks to the Saviour, the Prince of Peace, the Truth, the Life and the Way.

This view is what is most puzzling to me about some Anabaptist groups. Yes, some Evangelicals do this poorly but I think some of them see their mission more clearly than Anabaptists. I'm hoping the Anabaptist church I attend pursues more of this outreach focus to bring the lost from all colours and races and ethnicities into the Kingdom. I love looking around at our divers congregation as it gives me a sense of what heaven will be like.

Just for the purpose of clarity (or further confusion) on how things went down, here is a link to Chicago Tribune's compilation of eyewitness accounts from that day.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nati ... y,amp.html

This is the kind of thing I could participate in:

What it looks like in Charlottesville, site of a massive vigil and march:

Hundreds of people gathered at the University of Virginia in Charlottsville and in other cities throughout the country for an impromptu vigil at the scene of Saturday’s violence and to pay tribute to Heather Heyer, the 32-year-old woman killed when a man allegedly linked to neo-Nazi beliefs reportedly drove his car into a crowd of counterprotesters.

Twitter buzzed with photos of the event Wednesday evening as the crowd swelled. Preston Willett, a reporter with the local CBS affiliate WCAV, tweeted a video of the crowd singing “Good Old Song,” the university’s alma mater anthem.

Moments of silence were also held for Heyer and two Virginia state troopers who died when their helicopter crashed as they monitored the white nationalist rally, the Associated Press reported.