OT Excuse us Raymond _Gouda debate - Page 3

All things remain the same! to shelly stroll I understand you found Jesus ! was Jesus lost; Shelly? ! to Steve who does not hate christians now he would do things to me if we were face to face after my telling him what god has Said!   ! To steve now he will use the hand of God to shut me up! Steve I only told you the truth and now you want to phyisically smack me down.  all these replies to my post of debate between gouda have been most amusing because nothing has changed ! I mean no offense in this but  SS found Jesus some time back as she says! ( I never knew Jesus was lost) ( He came to find us who were lost)  He found me wallowing in my sin;  I did not find him! Shelly how long was Jesus lost? Where didi you find him? And to Steve who says he does not hate christians now he would love to smack my face if I understood his statement correctly. I only told you what God has told all of us Steve! Oh those evil christians they tell the truth and we do not want to hear it! You see Steve you wish to do to me what the jews did to all the prophets and what mankind did to Jesus. You do not want your wicked deeds brought to light!  Shelly understand that I am probably the worst of all sinners who ever lived but Jesus made me into a new creature! I only repeat what the scripture tells us.All have sinned and if you die in your transgressions you will endure eternal seperation from God in the lake of fire!

Red Sable - and you are a much needed  "calming voice" here  

Thank you Maggie,  many times I don't feel so calm.

oops double post.

I used to be a lot more mean-spirited. I used to cuss a lot too. Now, changing, little by little. I'm glad if I can even brighten somebody's day a little, help with dog advice, training suggestions, when I can. We are held here with a common thread. I'm sure that's His spirit working in me, chipping away, trying to mold me into something better than the raw material I came with. He's got his work cut out for him here. But He's really good at it, so there is hope for me yet. Is there such a thing as a dog ministry? Ha ha ha. Just kidding.

I do read the Bible. Never enough. I have several versions, but my favorite is my Study Bible because it is written in layman's English and I like the little boxes, the asides that explain things, and the maps, arranged chronologically in the back of my King James reference bible, given to me on April 28, 1988 by Don Gidcum. He inscibed it as "presented to Shelley Roecker, by the Will of Jesus Christ." It took me another ten years to be babtized and ten more to really embrace the faith. some of us are pretty stubborn. I usually have two versions open at the same time, go back and forth between them. It takes forever to get through a book, sometimes skipping around, looking up scriptures to suit occasions that come up in life, but hopefully I'll live long enough to get through the whole thing a few times and be able to turn right to a good scripture when I, or esle somebody needs it... like YR and a few of my Christian friends do for me.

I haven't seen Don in years. I am pretty sure he is still ministering to sinners like me, ever patient. I remember he told me about his life as a sinner, darned good example BTW. LOL He didn't smoke, drink or engage in debauchery anymore by then, lived by example. I also remember him telling me that church wasn't the place to make an impression on sinners that needed faith. That's not where he was needed he said. Neither did he recite a lot of scripture straight from the bible. He conveyed the messages in layman's terms. He said they stuck better that way for the first while. Definitely grass-roots preaching. I was kind of mean to him, told him he'd convert more people if he got his teeth fixed. He did, and thanked me. Go figure. Obviously, I am still impressed with his style of ministry. He's probably led a lot more sinners to the faith than most of the pastors I know. 

SS

Shelley -- you are a "pistol"  (told him to get his teeth fixed - hahahahaha)  

God works on people a little at a time and in his on good time - and it is not a human sinner that makes that call..


Happyday -- I agree w/that statement

No, Jesus was never lost, nor did He lose track of me. I was lost because I had not accepted Him into my heart, was a  non-believer. Please don't make a stand on terminology. I TOLD you I wasn't good at the lingo. That is why I don't discuss my faith with very many people places like this (till now.) That's why so many people didn't know I am a Christian. My closest friends know better, and now so do a few more. I am not that good at it yet, a beginner if you will. I will always think of myself as a Beginner Christian. It doesn't change what is in my heart. The good news is He knows that, and I know that, whether anyone else does or not. My dog can probably discuss the bible more accurately than I can at this point, even though he can't read. ;-) I am a slow learner sometimes when it comes to detail. I choose to think He only uses fire and brimstone as a last resort. Hard to get some folks' attention any other way. I do believe He prefers gentler means whenever possible. That's why He sent Jesus. None of us were up to the job. Now we don't have to be.  I also think He has a great sense of humor. If he didn't he could have scrapped us all and started over.
I could have been a pillar of salt!