briar patch

[temporal1]

i read on this forum with interest about not voting for religious conviction.
it’s confusing here. lots of opinions. maybe the most confusing are those who seem opinionated+partisan, but claim to be neutral. i understand the temptation. but it’s not convincing.

Yes. As one of these people who doesn't vote, it is a challenge to know what to comment about, what to be neutral about, while being a true nonpartisian.

i admire you and others for sincere attempt to be consistent. i know it’s not always easy.
just as all temptations can be difficult, sometimes feeling impossible! the rewards are great.

thus we are instructed to “encourage one another.” Jesus knew it would not be easy.

1 Thess 4:18
https://biblehub.com/1_thessalonians/4-18.htm

17After that, we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord.

18Therefore encourage one another with these words.

[temporal1]

i read on this forum with interest about not voting for religious conviction.
it’s confusing here. lots of opinions. maybe the most confusing are those who seem opinionated+partisan, but claim to be neutral. i understand the temptation. but it’s not convincing.

Yes. As one of these people who doesn't vote, it is a challenge to know what to comment about, what to be neutral about, while being a true nonpartisian.

i admire you and others for sincere attempt to be consistent. i know it’s not always easy.
just as all temptations can be difficult, sometimes feeling impossible! the rewards are great.

thus we are instructed to “encourage one another.” Jesus knew it would not be easy.

1 Thess 4:18
https://biblehub.com/1_thessalonians/4-18.htm

17After that, we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord.

18Therefore encourage one another with these words.

briar patch. interesting choice.
now this will be an unapologetic “briar patch bunny trail” ..

RZehr, in my posts above, which were bunny trails of your OP, i tried my best to simply respond honestly to questions posed to me. altho not all “sweet,” my intent was not was not (hostility?)

i am stressed and irritable. i’m not sure why. i suspect it’s too much pandemic isolation and being so far and so harshly removed from my family. it may be something else. it may be a combination.
it seems worse right now. i wouldn’t know why. nothing is very different than it has been.

in any event, “everyone” is trying to cope, are they not? i don’t tell my family how hard it is. they have their own struggles with it, and not to be taken lightly. we talk often. my heart breaks missing them, i do not mention it. i want my voice to be a happy one for them.

today, i had the most unexpected bit of happiness.

my internet bill increased by 50%. it increases every year, this seemed radical.
i called. after much investigation i was told a promotion dropped. i had no recourse.
the rep looked into several options. nothing. i have only internet service, he said my bill is at the low end. i thanked him for his time. i told him i am happy with the service, and every tech call i’d made was helpful and effective. that was all.

then he surprised me by saying, “have a blessed year.”
i don’t frequently hear words like this. he sounded like a young black man. typically, these customer service folks are young females, of every description, often black or Asian. not always. he is in south carolina.

i replied, “sincerely .. you have a blessed year.”

at this, he engaged.
he left his stated job description and devoted .. upwards of 39 minutes (my phone says) to talking with me about his faith and the joy of faith. he told me about his pastor .. or, an online pastor he respects. i looked at the website and found this quote:

Todd was a drug addict and atheist for 22 years until 2004 when he was radically set free!
Todd believes that redemption and righteousness are the foundational keys for living life as a new creation in Christ.

Todd’s foremost desire is to see the Holy Spirit flowing through believers everywhere that they go–at work, school, grocery stores, malls, gas stations, and more.

Todd’s true joy is being able to reproduce a 24/7 kingdom lifestyle in every believer.
His heart is to activate people in the simplicity of who they really are and confront the barriers that hold them back from being who God created them to be.

i urged him that we must stop talking, his job might be threatened.
he assured me he “knew who was paying him,” and was not worried. he told me the world could be falling down around him and his faith would keep him at peace. i agreed 100%. i told him i was encouraged to hear a young person speak so positively, when the world is pressing lies on such a scale. he assured me he knows about the enemy.

i told him i was amazed at his insights, it had taken me a lifetime to get where he is. that i hoped there are many-many like him.

i would say this customer service rep took this quoted message ^^ literally and sincerely.
when he first engaged, my eyes teared. by the time we ended the call, i was happy and smiling.
no tears. i didn’t care about my bill.

anyway ..
questions on this forum repeat about “how to effectively evangelize?” .. well. he gets it.
i assured him i’m sure, in the course of his work with the public, he will touch many hearts.

[RZehr]

LOL. I didn't mind the thread bunny trailing. I didn't get this moved to briar patch either. Hope you don't stay stressed and irritated.

[temporal1]

LOL. I didn't mind the thread bunny trailing. I didn't get this moved to briar patch either. Hope you don't stay stressed and irritated.

o. thank you.
i did not sense you minded, nor that the move was at your request.
i hope i did not imply that. (writing is hard!)

the mods have a hard job right now.

your OP in that particular thread seemed “open” - altho i never dreamed it would go where it did. either in content or transport.

i wanted to share about this phone call. decided this was as good place as any.
the young man reminded me of how i approached my work with the public when i was younger.
i enjoyed my work, and was joyous about my faith. i kept a Bible on the corner of my desk.
i often invited folks to come to church with us. i offered to pick up children to go with ours to Sunday school, etc.

not obsessively, not intrusively. i hope! but when the timing seemed right .. i warmly invited.
relaying warmth was important. a few accepted. this young man offered warmth.
it was touching.

we had one very funny, memorable experience with a family newly arrived from Hawaii.
maybe i’ll try to add it here.

[Judas Maccabeus]

i do not appreciate how boot evidently wallows in the most disgusting items then splashes them here, for whatever purpose motivates him. boot: could you take a break?

Here's what the video shows: Christian nationalists praying during the insurrection. My point: this is not biblical Christianity, certainly not as Mennonites understand it.

Here's what motivates me: we need to return to a Christianity that looks like Jesus.

See my post on the other thread.....

[temporal1]

i do not appreciate how boot evidently wallows in the most disgusting items then splashes them here, for whatever purpose motivates him. boot: could you take a break?

Here's what the video shows: Christian nationalists praying during the insurrection. My point: this is not biblical Christianity, certainly not as Mennonites understand it.

Here's what motivates me: we need to return to a Christianity that looks like Jesus.

See my post on the other thread.....

i believe i located it on Page 4. i would have ignored. but, here goes.
http://forum.mennonet.com/viewtopic.php ... 1&start=30
i find it in very poor form to talk about people you do not like, do not respect, do not want to join dialogue here, with no representation. there is something slimy about it. (this is not a sweet thing to say, but i’m not speaking behind your backs.)

that is not to say i identify any more than you+boot do.
i’m “just sayin’” i don’t sense Jesus Christ in these types of attacks/“counter”-attacks.
Jesus demands final judgment is His.

Romans 14:4
https://biblehub.com/romans/14-4.htm

3The one who eats everything must not belittle the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted him.

4Who are you to judge someone else’s servant?

To his own master he stands or falls.
And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

5One person regards a certain day above the others, while someone else considers every day alike.
Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.…

Elsewhere, Wade shared a passage, i think also from Romans, that specifically outlined how Christians are to respond to enemies .. it involves offering food and drink. Any takers?

Wade’s quote was better. but, this part:

Romans 12:20
https://biblehub.com/romans/12-20.htm

19Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath.
For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.”

20On the contrary, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink.
For in so doing, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.…

Anabaptists are happy, even prideful, to be known for offering mercy and kindness in response to ugly and evil. It’s impressive and effective. i get a bit confused at inconsistencies. if there’s a code, i have not broken it.

Jesus is consistent. humans struggle. all of us. no exceptions.

2 wrongs do not make 1 right.

The end does not justify the means.

[temporal1]

Dr. Levine disregards the science behind gender and touts gender reassignments in children. Rand Paul was accused of being trans-phobic for the questions he posed for Dr. Levine, even though he never addressed Dr. Levine's gender. Questions Dr. Levine did not answer.

[m //www.youtube.com/watch?v=Krf0Cm

I definitely agree with Rand Paul on this.
The idea of minors permanently changing their bodies during the confusing period of puberty scares me. Especially when parents are overruled.

from what you have said, you have repeatedly voted for these policies - over decades. this did not just appear out of thin blue air. neither have Dems “tricked” anyone about their wayward policies.

[Bootstrap]

Dr. Levine disregards the science behind gender and touts gender reassignments in children. Rand Paul was accused of being trans-phobic for the questions he posed for Dr. Levine, even though he never addressed Dr. Levine's gender. Questions Dr. Levine did not answer.

[m //www.youtube.com/watch?v=Krf0Cm

I definitely agree with Rand Paul on this.
The idea of minors permanently changing their bodies during the confusing period of puberty scares me. Especially when parents are overruled.

from what you have said, you have repeatedly voted for these policies - over decades. this did not just appear out of thin blue air. neither have Dems “tricked” anyone about their wayward policies.

With respect, you don't know who or what I have voted for over the decades. And should I hold you accountable for the worst excesses of the right or of the politicians you defend?

I am not a straight-ticket voter, I will not join a party or contribute to a party or a candidate, I will not campaign for a candidate, I have never championed a candidate the way some people do here on MN. I consider both parties worldly, I think there is plenty of evil to go around. I normally keep my vote secret. MD and MN are about the only places that some of my votes have become public, mostly because people have been aggressive about asking me. I would much prefer to be able to be private about this - for precisely the same reasons that some people choose not to vote at all.

On MD and MN, there often seems to be a push to identify as Red-Team or Blue-Team, without middle ground. I don't think that's healthy. Our identity should be with the Kingdom of God, not partisan political factions.

Beyond that, I really would appreciate it if we could have a civil conversation here. The go-to partisan attacks get old. I don't think they are particularly Christian.

[temporal1]

With respect, you don't know who or what I have voted for over the decades. And should I hold you accountable for the worst excesses of the right or of the politicians you defend?

I am not a straight-ticket voter, I will not join a party or contribute to a party or a candidate, I will not campaign for a candidate, I have never championed a candidate the way some people do here on MN. I consider both parties worldly, I think there is plenty of evil to go around. I normally keep my vote secret. MD and MN are about the only places that some of my votes have become public, mostly because people have been aggressive about asking me. I would much prefer to be able to be private about this - for precisely the same reasons that some people choose not to vote at all.

Beyond that, I really would appreciate it if we could have a civil conversation here. The go-to partisan attacks get old. I don't think they are particularly Christian.

altho i often find you annoying, i did not intend any of the vitriol you describe here.
just an honest question/observation. no accusations or complaints. based on your statements over years, including prior to 2016.

you have said you do not vote by party ticket, i take you at your word.
however, from your words, your evident choices are with Dems with few exceptions. even after Dems became crystal-clear on abortion and all these various policies you now are criticizing on forum. you voted for it, not a secret, you were not tricked. now you .. want to claim distance.

i don’t understand it. but i don’t think it’s uncommon.

[temporal1]

With respect, you don't know who or what I have voted for over the decades. And should I hold you accountable for the worst excesses of the right or of the politicians you defend?

I am not a straight-ticket voter, I will not join a party or contribute to a party or a candidate, I will not campaign for a candidate, I have never championed a candidate the way some people do here on MN. I consider both parties worldly, I think there is plenty of evil to go around. I normally keep my vote secret. MD and MN are about the only places that some of my votes have become public, mostly because people have been aggressive about asking me. I would much prefer to be able to be private about this - for precisely the same reasons that some people choose not to vote at all.

Beyond that, I really would appreciate it if we could have a civil conversation here. The go-to partisan attacks get old. I don't think they are particularly Christian.

altho i often find you annoying, i did not intend any of the vitriol you describe here.
just an honest question/observation. no accusations or complaints. based on your statements over years, including prior to 2016.

you have said you do not vote by party ticket, i take you at your word.
however, from your words, your evident choices are with Dems with few exceptions. even after Dems became crystal-clear on abortion and all these various policies you now are criticizing on forum. you voted for it, not a secret, you were not tricked. now you .. want to claim distance.

i don’t understand it. but i don’t think it’s uncommon.

Looks like i threw everyone a real curve ball.
i guess when the briar patch is expected, the bp is what will happen.