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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1hOjyQkgao
don;t blame the skeleton......
- Thread starter aleshanee
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I've always loved your humor and wisdom through what you have survived. You should be helping others which is what my prayer is for you...I'm so glad you joined the forum also..... no skeletons here.............
aleshanee said:
Ahh, but God especially uses broken things! Have you ever thought about pursuing a counseling degree/career?
M
myeyesareopen
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Don't let a careless, misguided comment, inadvertantly dropped, seep into your subconscious and sully your spirit. Let it go. It is not your reality.
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aleshanee said:i know God uses broken things.. . and He doesn;t
even have to restore them to their original condition to do it... ..
master archers know how to do that to... ... .but in my experience
many christian seem to believe broken things must be made
completely whole again to be of any use to God. .. and if they
cannot be made whole, then they should be thrown away... . .
War of the Arrows / pursuit
an example of a master archer using a broken arrow from one of my favorite movies...
sorry... . there are no english subtitles.. . but the action speaks for itself.......
What you've said above is good, aleshanee. I have been speaking with a young lady who was concerned about her past and really concerned about perhaps having missed God's perfect will. She asked me how does one know if they have missed it and are just settling for God's good or acceptable will.
I pointed out that good is mentioned before either acceptable or perfect in Rom. 12. Certainly, some sins may disqualify some from particular ministry service, but God will still use the one who is willing to be used in the area he can be used. No, an adulterous man may never pastor again even if "restored", but he can still do many other things for the Lord.
When God "shoots a broken, restored, but not perfect" arrow, it can still hit its mark and is doing God's perfect will for its life right then.
None of us have ever been "perfect" anyway.
Just what I believe. I'm sure there will be some who will pointedly disagree.
E
Evelyn
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.aleshanee said:i know God uses broken things.. . and He doesn;t
even have to restore them to their original condition to do it... ..
master archers know how to do that to... ... .but in my experience
many christian seem to believe broken things must be made
completely whole again to be of any use to God. .. and if they
cannot be made whole, then they should be thrown away... . .
War of the Arrows / pursuit
an example of a master archer using a broken arrow from one of my favorite movies...
sorry... . there are no english subtitles.. . but the action speaks for itself....
Al, the older I get and the more people I come to know, the more I find they are each broken in some way. It is the rare human that has escaped it. The growth comes in recognizing it and moving on anyway. Those who are stubborn souls simply haven't realized their brokenness yet. More's the pity, because they haven't yet begun to grow.
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Evelyn, Those are words that are so true......there are so many hurting people that we can reach out to that need us. Sometimes we are waiting for the ones that could care less about us. We need to move on and love the ones that need our love and friendship. I learned that important lesson this week.........
M
myeyesareopen
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Aleshanee, you say it so well, it would be hard for anyone to NOT understand. I think we struggle with how to respond to you but you beautifully, eloquently and clearly express yourself.
patriotic said:
I have to say that this post bothers me. I grew up with the teaching that you could miss God's "perfect" will for your life and have come to realize that that is an erroneous concept. God's perfect will for all of us is that we be conformed to the image of Christ. He uses every circumstance in a believer's life (Romans 8:28) to accomplish that. To frame it otherwise is to saddle people with guilt and questions for something over which they have no control and no way of knowing anyway.
As a very wise Bible teacher once told me; "if you want to know God's will for your life, look at your life. That is what God is using to transform you." Otherwise you'll end up beating yourself up over the past for no good reason.
M
myeyesareopen
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Reminds me of a sermon I heard, Paul Nyquist from Moody....it was on the topic of Esther. He laid the foundation, with the story of how Esther made choices. Her choices were in direct violation of the Jewish law -- she hid the fact the was Jewish, she did not keep the dietary laws, and she married a non-Jewish king, after first becoming his concubine. (I know you all know the story!) All of these choices were...shall we say 'questionable' at best.
But Esther lived at a confusing time and made the best choices she knew how, plus she followed the leading of her authority. (Mordecai) God blessed her choices and the outcome was wildly successful.
Do the ends justify the means?
Is Esther a hero? A role model?
God is silent on that. He tells us the story and neither lifts her up nor puts her down.
But the point of it all, so nicely summed up by Nyquist, was this:
>God can use our choices, right or wrong, made in the midst of complicated situations, to accomplish His sovereign will.
>God is not frustrated by flawed people who make flawed decisions. God will move his plan forward in spite of us!
>Our failures do not frustrate God, just like our successes do not enable God.
I'd never heard the book of Esther taught this way. It was pretty eye-opening, and seemed to fit the direction this discussion is headed on this topic.
E
Evelyn
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samspade said:
Much wisdom in your words, SS.
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I believe that you don't accidentally miss 'God's will for your life'. Like Jonah's example, you are confronted with what you know to be God's will, and then you say 'no'.
But that doesn't end it. God chastens you, until you yield, that his will may be accopmlished.
You, in reflection on your life, should see this. You should also determine to 'learn your lesson' faster next time.
Anishinabe
But that doesn't end it. God chastens you, until you yield, that his will may be accopmlished.
You, in reflection on your life, should see this. You should also determine to 'learn your lesson' faster next time.
Anishinabe
T
Torrent v.3
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samspade said:
It took me a while to figure out what you were saying. But like Evelyn said "wise words."
You have to believe that God is sovereign over both good and evil to look at your life and believe that God is using it all to conform you.
In that Romans 12 passage, the words Good and acceptable and perfect are a string of 3 concurrent terms describing the one will of God.
T
Torrent v.3
Guest
aleshanee said:i know God uses broken things.. . and He doesn;t
even have to restore them to their original condition to do it... ..
master archers know how to do that to... ... .but in my experience
many christian seem to believe broken things must be made
completely whole again to be of any use to God. .. and if they
cannot be made whole, then they should be thrown away... . .
War of the Arrows / pursuit
an example of a master archer using a broken arrow from one of my favorite movies...
sorry... . there are no english subtitles.. . but the action speaks for itself....
The things you just said there in the first part of your post are full of wisdom. God uses broken things in their brokenness, and in a way that maximizes his greatness because of their brokenness.
C
christundivided
Guest
samspade said:
That is about the dumbest thing I've ever read in my life.
It totally ignores the FACT that mankind and yes.... Christians... constantly resist the will of God and that the Devil can lead people in the wrong paths (Acts 7:51, Romans 13:2, James 4:7 and 1 Peter 5:9.)
You're "wise" Bible teacher is obviously nothing more than a child with the horrible attitude of "every thing I do is ultimately the will of God".
Yes, there is no reason to beating yourself up over the past. You can't change it, YET, this is not a reason to believe that everything that happens at our choosing is God's perfect will.
Luk 13:34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!
Eph 6:18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,
All things work together but not all things are good. Not all things edify. Not all things are to chosen or even to be entertained in our imaginations. Prayer and fasting must mean nothing to you. Service to you must be God dragging you kicking and screaming across the finish line right before you collapse and fall into the loving arms of death.
The vast majority of my suffering and pain has been caused by only foolish actions. Only God can turn bad into to good in our lives. Yet, we can certainly avoid many hurtful things that have long lasting effects on ourselves and the people we love.