tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20184070.post5445693497019391340..comments2024-01-11T10:58:30.769-05:00Comments on Jesus community: life is a processTed M. Gossardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580691315315271791noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20184070.post-80855898697565076682007-04-25T19:41:00.000-04:002007-04-25T19:41:00.000-04:00ESI, The clincher to what you say is the reality t...ESI, The clincher to what you say is the reality that Jesus himself lamented. And when some wondered (or thought) that he may be Jeremiah, what does that say?<BR/><BR/>Yes, I think Christianity (along with Judaism) does have room for lament that other world religions lack, though I haven't studied or read up on that.<BR/><BR/>Thanks.Ted M. Gossardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10580691315315271791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20184070.post-43012918405355884412007-04-25T10:48:00.000-04:002007-04-25T10:48:00.000-04:00Lamenting before God is something special to the J...Lamenting before God is something special to the Judeo Christian faith, I think. It's based on our knowledge of a personal God, a God who cares and understands the pain we experience.<BR/><BR/>I don't think it's something that is found in other major world religions.<BR/><BR/>If those in the OT can lament, all the more for us on this side of the cross. For we know just how much God loves us and cares for us.Every Square Inchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11636924397725214300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20184070.post-49522960754821729182007-04-24T17:05:00.000-04:002007-04-24T17:05:00.000-04:00L.L., Glad you like the book too. I need to reread...L.L., Glad you like the book too. I need to reread it. I believe the language of lament is a strong Scriptural language and all too foreign to me. Though, as Michael points out, it really is just being who we are before God and in that process seeing him change us. <BR/><BR/>And you're so right: there are things to go through that we would gladly avoid if we could, but you can't.<BR/><BR/>Thanks.Ted M. Gossardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10580691315315271791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20184070.post-92135929382663958862007-04-24T17:01:00.000-04:002007-04-24T17:01:00.000-04:00OD, Thanks for your kind, encouraging words. And f...OD, Thanks for your kind, encouraging words. And for sharing that with us! I think you've seen or read the book! It's wonderful to see the grace given to our brothers and sisters in the midst of pressures and persecutions completely foreign to us. We need to be in prayer for them and I appreciate Michael Card's thoughts in that regard as well.<BR/><BR/>But we all face pressures. Richard Wurmbrand, himself in communist prison for 14 years because of his faith and witness in Christ said that for him living in America was more difficult than what he had gone through in Romania. The pressures we face here are subtle and potentially deadly. To drift or go with the flow of "the American dream", etc.<BR/><BR/>And we face temptations and certainly death. <BR/><BR/>I want to embrace life as a process of being conformed to Christ in becoming like him, by grace, even in his death (Php 3:10).Ted M. Gossardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10580691315315271791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20184070.post-12457262629276111292007-04-24T14:55:00.000-04:002007-04-24T14:55:00.000-04:00That's the thing about a process... it has such va...That's the thing about a process... it has such varying seasons and not all do we welcome. I like the idea that somehow it all works together in the end.<BR/><BR/>And, I love that Michael Card book. It's marvelous and comforting to be told <I>it's okay to mourn... even an act of worship</I>L.L. Barkathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13333960142447144678noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20184070.post-27494085147469995522007-04-24T11:09:00.000-04:002007-04-24T11:09:00.000-04:00Ted,As recently as yesterday I heard a conversatio...Ted,<BR/><BR/>As recently as yesterday I heard a conversation about the underground church in China. A person who had the honor of meeting some of our brothers and sisters there asked them about prayer. I will paraphrase the Q & A.<BR/><BR/>'Did you ever pray for the government? Did you ever ask God to deliver you from the oppression and persecution?'<BR/><BR/>'No. We never prayed for that. We asked God to help us not loose our faith and trust in him while we were going through the persecution.'<BR/><BR/>That was astounding to me. So many times I am at a loss of words for people who have the tough questions. This type of prayer by-passes that type of thought process. It shows us the need we truly must have. The need to be faithful to God in the midst of trial. That is what I see in each of the example given. Job, David, Jeremiah, and Jesus all struggled with 'why' or 'where' but the one thing that seemed consistent was 'Help me to be faithful. Help me not to loose my trust in you.'<BR/><BR/>How I desperately needed to hear that.<BR/><BR/>Thank you for sharing with us your own struggles and joys. You have been a blessing to my life and I'm sure to the lives of many people who drop by from time to time.<BR/><BR/>Peace be with you.<BR/><BR/>+ ODAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com