tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2722447614945782871.post6071409476517367504..comments2023-09-12T11:31:20.729-05:00Comments on Straight-Friendly: The VerdictTimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01271248501086241494noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2722447614945782871.post-23689770424162543462008-12-26T17:36:00.000-06:002008-12-26T17:36:00.000-06:00Hi, John. Hope you had a terrific Christmas.In my ...Hi, John. Hope you had a terrific Christmas.<BR/><BR/>In my daily reading I too have been giving a lot of thought to the line that separates what God wants me to see from what I want to read into it. Most of the time it's fairly plain, but not always. And when I'm not so sure I'm not projecting my personal opinions into it, I try to re-read it through Christ's eyes. More often than not, the "Gotcha!" I found in the first reading fades away.<BR/><BR/>This human obsession to pull at straws to prove we're correct and others aren't is a tough thing to master. But I'm finding increasds awareness of it helps me in two ways. <BR/><BR/>First, it stops me from dousing the light and missing what God wants me to see because it forces me to look at the Word straight-on, rather than from a predisposed view. <BR/><BR/>Second, it has greatly increased my empathy for those who haven't yet grasped why reading the Bible without a personal filter is so essential. I understand their compulsion all too well. And that's a big coup, because it permits me to forgive them on this level without getting hung up in the error of their argument.<BR/><BR/>Although this may come off as condescending or simplistic, it's not intended as such. But the best comparison I have to this is our four-month-old kitten, Cody. He's at his most ornery, trouble-prone stage of development right now--always getting into trouble because his curious nature drives him to do things he'll eventually learn aren't smart or tolerable. My partner, who's never raised a kitten so young, gets all worked up when, for instance, Cody climbs behind the TV cabinet and starts playing with the wires. Because I've seen this in other kittens, however, it's not nearly as upsetting; I understand it and know if he takes our correction to heart, he'll outgrow it. <BR/><BR/>Soapbox Christians are a lot like Cody, I guess. And if we understand them better, we can forgive them more easily.<BR/><BR/>Just a thought.<BR/><BR/>Good to see you, as always!Timhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01271248501086241494noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2722447614945782871.post-75248162072405433512008-12-26T12:29:00.000-06:002008-12-26T12:29:00.000-06:00This is another great post. I read the Bible daily...This is another great post. I read the Bible daily and many times I need to think about what I have read. Sometimes I wonder how literal some of the readings are and I can see how people can use them to launch soapbox standing speeches.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com