tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post6159491278387114199..comments2023-11-05T20:19:44.812+13:00Comments on Ambassador Watch: UCG's Great Leap BackwardGavinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03060097218905523899noreply@blogger.comBlogger68125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-69427792367107063512007-12-20T17:45:00.000+13:002007-12-20T17:45:00.000+13:00http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/19/btsc.tuchman.road...http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/19/btsc.tuchman.roadsideprayer/index.html<BR/><BR/>Some see connection between the Bible and Interstate 35<BR/><BR/>The New UCG headquarters is right off I-35 in Denton and PCG is a mile or 2 off I-35 in Edmond.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-43255974410993404872007-12-17T19:23:00.000+13:002007-12-17T19:23:00.000+13:00Anonymous said... "I don't ever recall the word...<I>Anonymous said...<BR/><BR/> "I don't ever recall the word "Noahide" being used in sermons by WCG ministers. </I><BR/><BR/><BR/>They often mistook the term for Naugahyde.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-29705352058958002322007-12-16T09:37:00.000+13:002007-12-16T09:37:00.000+13:00The latest word on the street is that five UCG cou...The latest word on the street is that five UCG council members submitted to the secretary recently a resolution to be placed on the GCE 2008 May ballot to rescind this relocation vote taken in May of 2007. So will the move happen? Remains to be seen. Apparently it was not a unanimous vote from the council to relocate as stated.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-68564538422295544372007-12-16T05:06:00.000+13:002007-12-16T05:06:00.000+13:00Krum/Denton, TX...this is a good place for United....Krum/Denton, TX...this is a good place for United...the Meth-Ice capital of Texas! Why was there a need to move? There are serious problems in UCG and the Dallas United Church of God congration of poor leadership, etc...and yet nothing is done about personnel issues...everyone's afraid of stepping on one anothers toes instead of dealing with the real issues! Correct the problems at hand and then get on with spreading the gospel...UCG Dallas congration, there are more and more people that are upset about the lack of direction and being activitied to death! What ever happened to the scripture that went, 'it is those that are sick that need a physician'?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-45251918373635788732007-12-15T14:01:00.000+13:002007-12-15T14:01:00.000+13:00Anonymous: Yes! I've been discovering that for t...Anonymous: Yes! I've been discovering that for the past 5 years. It is just astounding what we were not taught in AC Bible classes! Or the error that we were taught as truth!<BR/><BR/>I'm glad about one aspect of my WCG/AC involvement. It did act as a stimulus towards asking some of the deep philosophical questions basic to life. Even though the spoonfed answers were unsatisfying, manipulative, and just plain ignorant, I'm thankful that witnessing what was wrong, and what always produced bad results, finally provided the motivation to be a seeker of the truth. <BR/><BR/>BBAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-40161695203904926232007-12-15T08:04:00.000+13:002007-12-15T08:04:00.000+13:00"I don't ever recall the word "Noahide" being used..."I don't ever recall the word "Noahide" being used in sermons by WCG ministers. I only got through three years of Bible class at AC, but don't recall that word being used in any of the supposedly in depth studies in which we were indulged there, either."<BR/><BR/>Nothing against you BB, but Biblical studies at AC weren't worth a crap.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-5352756189882025232007-12-15T07:34:00.000+13:002007-12-15T07:34:00.000+13:00Ah yes, the old BI thing rears its head again...BB...Ah yes, the old BI thing rears its head again...<BR/><BR/>BB: Be on the lookout for a post from Saint Tom asking you where your proof is that BI is unprovable. He has a big skip in his record on that subject.<BR/><BR/>I'm part German, does that make me an Assyrian??? Or is that outdone by my English, Irish, and Italian ancestry? What about my kids? They have ancestry from all parts of Europe and parts of western Russia??? There isn't any French that we know of (Thank God for that) :)<BR/><BR/>I've often wondered what the WCG said to any church member in Germany? I can imagine sitting there and thinking that if I don't go to the place of safety, at least I'm on the "Giving" side of the tribulation versus "Get". >Chuckle<<BR/><BR/>Dennis, do you know?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-2964942294287633572007-12-15T05:55:00.000+13:002007-12-15T05:55:00.000+13:00Oh, and PS: Further muddying up the waters, Briti...Oh, and PS: Further muddying up the waters, British Israelism, an unprovable theory, would seem to attempt to place all of us with Anglo Saxon blood pumping through our veins into the Jewish camp. By Paul's definitions, this would mean that the stricter Jewish laws applied to all of us, as opposed to the Noahide laws which he taught to the gentiles.<BR/><BR/>Is there no end to the confusion?<BR/>Seems like there are three macro options: 1) Rely on the Torah. 2) Cut off the New Testament at the end of the gospel of John; or 3) Take the teachings of Paul, assuming that he offered the latest information, and the true interpretation of the meaning of Christ, and that all which came before was nailed to the cross at Calvary.<BR/><BR/>As Mick Jagger sang, "What can a poor boy do, except play in a rock n roll band?"<BR/><BR/>BBAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-69960719526343832422007-12-15T05:46:00.000+13:002007-12-15T05:46:00.000+13:00It's difficult to sift through the many things whi...It's difficult to sift through the many things which went on during the first century. There was the "church unto the Jews" (seemingly James was responsible for these folks), and the "church unto the Gentiles" (with Paul being the apostle to the gentiles)<BR/><BR/>As WCG members, we were blinded to the controversies between the apostles which were recorded as subtle undertones in the New Testament. HWA taught that Simon Magus was responsible for changing Christianity, and for starting the Catholic Church, when in reality the RCC sprang directly from the "church unto the Gentiles." HWA also made a ham fisted attempt to harmonize the teachings of Paul with those of James and some of the other Jerusalem apostles, but it never really made sense. You really had to distort the words of Paul, and to say that he meant the exact opposite of what he said in order to believe he was in agreement with the "church unto the Jews." <BR/><BR/>I don't ever recall the word "Noahide" being used in sermons by WCG ministers. I only got through three years of Bible class at AC, but don't recall that word being used in any of the supposedly in depth studies in which we were indulged there, either.<BR/><BR/>Based on this alone, we can certainly see why there are so many churches during our modern times. It all becomes so confusing, which is probably why some throw up their hands, take everything back to the very basic and the very beginnings, and place their trust exclusively in the Torah.<BR/><BR/>BBAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-41968454039909258252007-12-15T04:55:00.000+13:002007-12-15T04:55:00.000+13:00From Jews for Judaism:Da Vinca Code, A Jewish Pers...From Jews for Judaism:<BR/>Da Vinca Code, A Jewish Perspective by Michael Skobac.<BR/><BR/>http://www.jewsforjudaism.org/web/j4jlibrary/DaVinciCodeBook.pdf<BR/><BR/>THE MUTING OF JAMES<BR/><BR/>As the Gentile Church propagated by Paul quickly grew, it<BR/>overcame the original Jewish Jesus movement and became the<BR/>dominant voice of Christianity.<BR/><BR/>Torah observance was completely<BR/>jettisoned for doctrines about Jesus’ divinity and atoning death.<BR/>The chasm between the two groups widened to the point where<BR/>ultimately, the leaders of Paul’s new Christianity branded the<BR/>Jewish followers of Jesus as heretics and actively persecuted them.<BR/><BR/>The dominant voice of today’s Christian Bible is clearly Paul’s,<BR/>either through his letters and epistles or through the writings of others under his influence. <BR/><BR/>What a stunning example of history<BR/>being written by the victors! For all intents and purposes,<BR/>Christianity as we know it today is an invention of Paul. And all<BR/>this, despite the fact that Paul never even met Jesus!<BR/><BR/>No wonder the Epistle (Letter) of James is the most neglected<BR/>and marginalized book in the Christian Bible! It is rarely encountered in Church readings, and many Christians are unaware that it even exists. There was actually great controversy regarding the inclusion of James’ Epistle in the Christian canon while it was being assembled in the 3rd to 6th centuries. Martin Luther, architect of the Protestant Reformation, had a very low opinion of this Epistle.<BR/>He referred to it as “the straw Epistle” and preferred its exclusion from the canon.<BR/><BR/>When we examine James’ Letter, it is easy to understand why the historical Christian Church has been so uncomfortable with it.<BR/>There is no mention of any of the doctrines that are so central to<BR/>Paul’s teaching, such as Jesus’ divinity or atoning death. Whereas<BR/>James stresses the ethical teachings and message of Jesus, Paul’s emphasis is on Jesus as the message. Whereas Paul negates the importance of observing the Torah and maintains that salvation is exclusively through faith, James has a very Torah-positive message and insists that “faith without works is dead!” and that “man is<BR/>justified by works, and not by faith alone” (2:17, 24).41Robert https://www.blogger.com/profile/12120572010028667586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-11021218671850887652007-12-15T04:37:00.000+13:002007-12-15T04:37:00.000+13:00Dennis,Hope you're feeling better today. Colds can...Dennis,<BR/><BR/>Hope you're feeling better today. Colds can be soooo miserable.<BR/><BR/>Whoever wrote the account of Paul's conversion in Acts evidently had not read Paul's own account of it in Galations. If the writer of Acts was Luke, Paul's companion, he would not have made that mistake.<BR/><BR/>I doubt that Paul ever said that he was a Pharisee. That part in his letter to the Philippians is probably a forgery. He could not have been a student of Gamaliel because he disobeyed Gamaliel's words in Acts by persecuting Christians.<BR/><BR/>I think that Paul of Tarsus, who is unknown to history, was really Apollonius of Tyana - who is known to history.<BR/><BR/>http://www.hwarmstrong.com/jesus-in-history-3.htmCorkyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15894537940881776504noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-78082164468659684962007-12-15T02:27:00.000+13:002007-12-15T02:27:00.000+13:00PSPaul was recorded as allowing himself to give an...PS<BR/><BR/>Paul was recorded as allowing himself to give an outward impression of adherence to James views on Torah etc. There were rumours of Paul's duplicity to the Church as headed by James.<BR/><BR/>Apparently James was concerned about what the “thousands” of zealous Jewish Christians might perceive of Paul if he spoke out against the observance of the Law. James orders Paul to “Go with them to the Temple and join them in the purification ceremony, and pay for them to have their heads shaved. Then everyone will know that the RUMORS are all FALSE and that you yourself OBSERVE THE JEWISH LAWS” (New Living Translation, Acts 21:24). <BR/><BR/>Although Paul submits to James' requirements in the book of Acts, he vehemently opposes all Torah restrictions in Galatians, calling the Law “bondage,” a “curse” and “nailed to the cross.” <BR/><BR/>Thus Paul's hypocrisy is manifested in his apparent allegiance to the Mosaic laws by action and subsequent renunciation of them by words. <BR/><BR/>It's a huge topic and I can't recommend Freudman's book, Anti-Semitism in the NT enough. She takes Paul's terrible view of Judaism apart and his misuse of Jewish scripture to promote his view of Jesus and all the consequences.DennisDiehlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05069884969156562133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-16930029358079889102007-12-15T02:15:00.000+13:002007-12-15T02:15:00.000+13:00"Dennis, I can't imagine why you think Paul reject..."Dennis, I can't imagine why you think Paul rejected or ignored the Noahide laws. When you find a moment, would you please elaborate?"<BR/><BR/>I was to general in that comment. I was thinking specifically of staying away from food offered to idols which he clearly told the Corinthians was not necessary and "in all men is not that knowledge" referring no doubt to the Jerusalem prohibition and such. Paul had to live with the realities of gentile practices so seems to have struck a balance.<BR/>I Cor 8<BR/><BR/>Paul is such an enigma to many. So many contradictions about his being an apostle, his calling, the way of his calling, how called, how he 'saw' Jesus and even the fact that he was not a pharisee at all but a gentile as he seems to admit in the slip in Galatians.<BR/><BR/>"Christ redeemed US from the curse of the law, having become a curse for US – for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who hangs on a tree.” – that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come upon the GENTILES, that WE might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. (Galatians 3:13,14).<BR/><BR/>The "we" may be telling and a <BR/><BR/><BR/>I don't refer to the obvious things in the Noahide rules. Sorry for the overstatement. It's in the context of many of Paul's questionable habits.DennisDiehlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05069884969156562133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-22273882726744627232007-12-14T20:58:00.000+13:002007-12-14T20:58:00.000+13:00Dennis Diehl said, "Paul lied about what was said ...Dennis Diehl said, "Paul lied about what was said at the Acts 15 Conference. He had no intention of enforcing most Noahide rules on the Corinithians and didn't. Luke made him look compliant but Paul's writings tell another story."<BR/><BR/>That's a stunner for me.<BR/><BR/>Late in the Acts account Paul still insists not only that he is a Pharisee, but also a Roman. Later still he says he has never done anything contrary to the "customs of our fathers." To have ignored teaching the Noahide lifestyle, insofar as it had been developed and taught in his time, would have been blatant rejection of Pharisee teaching.<BR/><BR/>Noahide Laws are considered natural, and discernable to people of good will in any decent society. "For when the Gentiles, which have not the law (Torah), do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves."<BR/><BR/>In the context of Paul's work, knowing his Gentile followers expected from him teachings commensurate with the Jesus movement, he could have been seen as teaching against the empire itself if he had taught against the Noahide laws. Most of these laws must have naturally been part and parcel with Roman society: no theft, no murder, no eating the limbs of living animals, no sexual immorality, the requirement of a judicial system, no idolatry, no blasphemy. I seriously doubt that Paul required less of his Gentile followers than what we now refer to as Noahide laws.<BR/><BR/>Indeed, it seems fairly obvious that Paul's ministry to Gentiles was based upon the Pharisaical teachings of the House of Hillel (Gamaliel was Hillel's grandson) who flatly rejected the House of Shammai's ruling that no Gentile could enter the world-to-come. Paul had to constantly argue against representatives of the Shammai party who insisted that in order to enter the world-to-come Gentiles had to become Jewish (circumcised).<BR/><BR/>The Hillel position was, and still is, that any non-Jew who accepts and lives by the Noahide laws is considered a "righteous Gentile," completely acceptable for the world-to-come -- and completely equal in acceptability to the righteous Jew.<BR/><BR/>Remember, in those days Christianity was still a movement within Judaism.<BR/><BR/>Dennis, I can't imagine why you think Paul rejected or ignored the Noahide laws. When you find a moment, would you please elaborate?SmilinJackSprathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03946857548277008936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-24809024904550143262007-12-14T20:20:00.000+13:002007-12-14T20:20:00.000+13:00This comment has been removed by the author.SmilinJackSprathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03946857548277008936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-58777848733000144702007-12-14T18:19:00.000+13:002007-12-14T18:19:00.000+13:00Jordan Potter said... god (sic) assisted slaughter...Jordan Potter said... <BR/>god (sic) assisted slaughter of innocent (sic) civilizations who happened to have a different (sic) religion than the Isrealites (sic)<BR/><BR/>You mean the "innocent" civilizations that sacrificed their children to idols, that practiced infanticide, abortion, sexual immorality, temple prostitution, bestiality, and every imaginable vice and crime as well as others difficult and unpleasant to imagine? That treated violence as a form of entertainment? Yeah, that sounds "innocent" to me. (Sounds rather like the world we live in today.)<BR/><BR/>Gods best prophets practiced human sacrifice. The abortion you mention was commanded by god. He said to slaughter the women with child and to rip their babies out of their arms and murder them. <BR/><BR/>Just read about the best of gods followers if you want a description of child sacrifice, sexual immorality and every vile act imaginable. Even god practiced child sacrifice, the hipocrite. Most of gods victims were not as you described, most were civilized humans who loved their families and built civlizations that the isrealites could never duplicate, only destroy.<BR/><BR/>They were innocent in that they were no worse than gods chosen ones, and usually better. But god insisted on their genocide anyway. You would have thought he would have tried speaking to them first, but no, just a simple kill them all!! No pity, no mercy. If any of his followers showed pity then god plagues his followers until he removed all pity from them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-76956125203181219812007-12-14T16:43:00.000+13:002007-12-14T16:43:00.000+13:00I'm glad that Tom is taking a breather in order to...I'm glad that Tom is taking a breather in order to enturbulate his body thetans.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-39925277558194148822007-12-14T16:36:00.000+13:002007-12-14T16:36:00.000+13:00god (sic) assisted slaughter of innocent (sic) civ...<I>god (sic) assisted slaughter of innocent (sic) civilizations who happened to have a different (sic) religion than the Isrealites (sic)</I><BR/><BR/>You mean the "innocent" civilizations that sacrificed their children to idols, that practiced infanticide, abortion, sexual immorality, temple prostitution, bestiality, and every imaginable vice and crime as well as others difficult and unpleasant to imagine? That treated violence as a form of entertainment? Yeah, that sounds "innocent" to me. (Sounds rather like the world we live in today.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-70019881788607109402007-12-14T16:32:00.000+13:002007-12-14T16:32:00.000+13:00Dennis, have you considered having a minister anno...Dennis, have you considered having a minister annoint you for your cold? While God has a 100% failure rate for healing amputees, his cold/flu healing abilities are remarkable. <BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/>PaulAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-14190709016864735192007-12-14T14:24:00.000+13:002007-12-14T14:24:00.000+13:00That's a good summary of it Bob. When we consider ...That's a good summary of it Bob. When we consider the miniscule slice of time human adults have to "get it right or else" with hundreds of millions of years in the past and eternity ahead, it's pretty laughable to think of it all. <BR/><BR/>I can't imagine eternity with fundamentalists...that would be hell.DennisDiehlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05069884969156562133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-9005656354871383802007-12-14T14:17:00.000+13:002007-12-14T14:17:00.000+13:00Dennis,It was good of you to elaborate on your jou...Dennis,<BR/><BR/>It was good of you to elaborate on your journey and beliefs. Also, I hope you get over your cold or flu quickly and completely.<BR/><BR/>I mentioned your diving suit because I always thought it was a very effective tool in illustrating the nature of the soul, and what happens at the time of death.<BR/><BR/>One book which I'm currently reading compares death with leaving one room which contains a number of friends, and going up the hall to another room containing a different group of friends. The writer of the book relates that prior to the widespread usage of sedatives, it was not unusual for a person who was breathing his last gasps of air on planet Earth to begin conversing with people whom he/she was beginning to see. These people were sometimes known by the listeners in the room to be friends or family members who had preceded this individual in death.<BR/><BR/>Also, for those who have never studied Edgar Cayce, it may be surprising, but the fact is that one can still be of the Christian faith and believe in reincarnation, or successive lives. Edgar Cayce taught that as long as one accepted Jesus Christ during one of the sequential lives, that person would make it into the kingdom. Reincarnation was seen by Cayce as being a gradual process of education and perfection, with a judgement or evaluation by God following each life. Then the memory would be blanked, the soul would be sent back to live again, and to correct any remaining deficiencies, often on the buddy system with the same group of individuals as in the previous lives.<BR/><BR/>There was even a creative, and somewhat speculative collection of scriptures put together to support the concept of successive lives.<BR/><BR/>BBAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-21935090570560465482007-12-14T12:47:00.000+13:002007-12-14T12:47:00.000+13:00PS Actually I was one step away from Paramedic du...PS Actually I was one step away from Paramedic during the last few years of my ministry. I got my brown belt in Karate as well before having to move just prior to a black belt.<BR/><BR/>But I was able to tell the last church I pastored that I was qualified to marry them, bury them, fix them and kick their ass if need be...oh well, I thought it was funnyDennisDiehlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05069884969156562133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-38269079890965826342007-12-14T12:45:00.000+13:002007-12-14T12:45:00.000+13:00"Why in the world would you want to come back and ..."Why in the world would you want to come back and do this all over again?"<BR/><BR/>Well, I would be hoping for a better go at it..ha. The idea is that we agree prior to our own incarnation to have the experiences we have. How could I possibly know that was true? I can't. I do know I must have been drinking when I wrote the current script!<BR/><BR/>There are fascinating accounts of children's past life memories before they loose it to the current life. Near death experiences are interesting as well as well as transplant patient/donor memory accounts. who knows? <BR/><BR/>Actually, I have no idea what can be or not be. I have hope but if we are conscious hairless apes...so be it. <BR/><BR/>I got into therapeutic massage because it's another way I tend to caretake. My meyers/briggs is ENFP which is Extrovert, Intuitive, Feeling and Perceptive, and which Ihave known is my type for decades. This is about 2% of the population and people with this profile migrate towards counseling, negotiators because they see both sides of issues, pastors, priests and of all things, I just saw this on a new list, massage therapists! I haven't strayed far from who I am I suppose. <BR/><BR/>I recommended to Joe Jr. years ago that all ministers and ministers to be take such a profile to see if they are ministry compatible. No dice! The rest is history.<BR/><BR/>I love the work, the quiet, the talk and encouragement I can give and the eclectic types who even bother to take care with good therapeutic massage. I like being that trusted and providing a safe haven I suppose. I get more authentic "counseling" done with that table than ever with a suit and tie. Back then, people told me what they thought I needed to hear and I heard what I thought they needed to say. Not very genuine stuff in the long run. <BR/><BR/>I like it when someone calls with pain and leaves without it or a bit less. <BR/><BR/>I haven't changed a bit.<BR/><BR/>Besides, Joe Jr. joked to a friend that an ex minister could only get a job at Walmart, so I had to prove him wrong...:) I can do that later.DennisDiehlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05069884969156562133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-3160999716902012642007-12-14T12:27:00.000+13:002007-12-14T12:27:00.000+13:00Don't worry about sharing too much Dennis. I think...Don't worry about sharing too much Dennis. I think most of us here enjoy reading your thoughts (with the exception of an a.h. or two). I know I sure do. <BR/><BR/>I'm an anon. reader who doesn't post much (like many others I'm sure), and reading yours and others posts have helped me out a great deal. I just left the fleeced fold about a year ago, and it's been tough looking at life without Armstrong lenses on. So, thanks to you and guys like BB and Gavin of course for taking the time to share on this forum. It is time well spent, and it's appreciated. <BR/><BR/>Okay, a couple questions for you Dennis. You said:<BR/><BR/>"I may believe in reincarnation and past lives, but I can't prove that personally though the evidence is fascinating. Perhaps, like the K of G, I hope it is so."<BR/><BR/>Why in the world would you want to come back and do this all over again? Personally, I really hope there is no reincarnation. I want to get this physical portion of the journey over with so I can move on to something greater. What if the reincarnation process is totally random? What if you come back as a bottom of the food chain life form a million times over?!<BR/><BR/>Second question:<BR/><BR/>How did you migrate into the PT profession? Is it something you did before you became a minister?<BR/><BR/>Thanks, and get well soon!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28426681.post-23727302134594117632007-12-14T11:22:00.000+13:002007-12-14T11:22:00.000+13:00Thanks Corky..I have a miserable cold today which ...Thanks Corky..I have a miserable cold today which is why I am here more. One client this am, and I quit for the day to regroup and recover a bit. <BR/><BR/>I never felt compelled to apologize for the way I cared for the local folks in my congregations over the years. If it helps, I gave back so much 3'T to the members who got their courage up to ask that I got a warning letter from HQ..ha. Hey, it's your money I figured. <BR/><BR/>I have my regrets of course, both personal and corporate. Life does what it does and as I always say and is said to me when I get a bit blue over it all..."you had to be there, so you can be here." <BR/><BR/>I know my strengths, personality type and foibles very very well after years of exploring it and having it done for me with and without my permission. Everyone is who they are and the same experience can effect each very differently for sure. <BR/><BR/>During my tenure at the last congregation I ever pastored and during the transition years of Joe Tkach Sr. to Jr and all that followed, I was very depressed and searching for some kind way out at my age. I ended up spending a couple weeks in a nice get over depression place and replaced for a bit as local minister. Then I came back "good as new"..har har, and outgrew it all. <BR/><BR/>The compassionate HQ team accused me, while in counseling at the hospital, of hiding out. You gotta love em! <BR/><BR/>I deeply regret having a large amount of concern tempered with a very small sphere of influence.<BR/><BR/>At any rate, it all worked out and I lived hap...I lived. :)<BR/><BR/>Ok, my head hurts, my ears ache, I'm tired, drugged and woozy. I tend to share too much at times when tired. Or so I am told :)DennisDiehlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05069884969156562133noreply@blogger.com