newcomer

[ElizabethAnna]

Hello everyone. I'm 22 and God willing will be going to University this september to study Practical Theology. I am a born again christian, yet I was not born again in a big bath of water with many people watching, I was born again when Christ baptised me with his Holy Spirit after I laid down all earthly things to follow him. I gain wisdom from God through reading the bible and listening to the Spirit and praying for answers to the questions raised in this dream of life. My advise to all men is to always listen to the Holy Spirit of Love inside of you and let it teach you and guide you in actions and prayer to happy life now and after death's illusion.

[Zzyzx]

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Hi ElizabethAnna,

Welcome to the forum.

Hello everyone. I'm 22 and God willing will be going to University this september to study Practical Theology. I am a born again christian, yet I was not born again in a big bath of water with many people watching, I was born again when Christ baptised me with his Holy Spirit after I laid down all earthly things to follow him. I gain wisdom from God through reading the bible and listening to the Spirit and praying for answers to the questions raised in this dream of life. My advise to all men is to always listen to the Holy Spirit of Love inside of you and let it teach you and guide you in actions and prayer to happy life now and after death's illusion.

If you are not already aware, this is not a Christian forum in the usual sense of the term, but is a debate forum in which many opposing views are expressed -- without favoritism or partiality shown to any particular viewpoint.

Some religionists, particularly Christian Fundamentalists / Literalists seem uncomfortable in the Christianity and Apologetics sub-forum, for example, wherein Christian claims and stories are challenged by some well informed, capable and experienced debaters, and wherein bible is NOT accepted as any more authoritative than any other book.

Other sub-forums, such as Holy Huddle, are intended for Christian discussions without opposition views (and thus more comfortable for those who are unaccustomed to encountering strong opposing voices).

If you don't mind saying, are you a member of a religious group that you are willing to identify?


Z

[Lux]

Hello ElizabethAnna, welcome to the forum I do hope you enjoy it here, and keep in mind Zzyzx observations: not all subforums of this forum accept the Bible as conclusive evidence.

Have you always been a christian, or did you convert from a different religion/atheism/etc?

[ElizabethAnna]

Thanks for the info Z, I could see this was a forum for debate and exploration which is what drew me to it. The first post I made was in the Random Ramblings thread as I really didn't know where to put it , it uses both scientific and biblical evidence to draw my conclusion but I hadn't put a question in it so it wasn't really a debate. I'm happy to debate as it is a worthy activity. I expect much of my life will be put to use debating on the side of christianity.

Greetings Lucia and thanks for the warm welcome. I was raised a roman catholic, turned pentecostal at around the age of 12 and then jumped from that into witchcraft/occultism at 14 (I had prayed to God for him to talk to me but didn't yet understand how he does this, hence the lack of reply lead me to go my own way). I was a practising witch till about 17 when I lost interest due to un-desirable results coupled with laziness. After that I had no faith and really didn't think much about God although I knew that astrology and numerology somehow tapped into unchanging truths. At the age of 22 I finally took a leap of faith and prayed to Jesus Christ when I needed his help and he gave me it, though not in the way I had prayed for(further confirming my need for him to lead me). Since up to only a few days ago I struggled with my personal demons and after finally letting them all go with Jesus's help I am now so excited and looking forward to my journey with Christ to find lost sheep and help bring them back as well as protect the sheep already his. The lost sheep I seek are very intelligent and the devil has used among other things their intelligence against them to mislead them, which is why it is important for me to use not only biblical but physical evidence for my belief.

I don't belong to any denomination as I believe this goes against the teachings of Christ. Only the Holy Spirit can tell a person what they must do to be clear of conscience and free of sin, in many cases denominations are a tool of the devil to create conflict within the christian church. However if I had to I would probably most closely associate myself with Pentecostals as the Holy Spirit is one of the foundations of my faith, along with bible study and observations of the world and patterns found there in. Yet the most appropriate label would probably be Christian Mystic.

[Lux]

That's very interesting, that you are a christian yet you have (or had) an interest in witchcraft. How do you reconcile that with the anti-witch teachings of the Bible and the historical actions of christian churches against witches, if you don't mind me asking?

I have some interest in Astrology myself, although I'm very far from considering it a reliable source of information. I've heard that Bible tales can be read in a certain way that makes them seem as metaphorical astrology rather than actual events on Earth. Do you know anything about that?

I am now so excited and looking forward to my journey with Christ to find lost sheep and help bring them back as well as protect the sheep already his. The lost sheep I seek are very intelligent and the devil has used among other things their intelligence against them to mislead them, which is why it is important for me to use not only biblical but physical evidence for my belief.

If you allow me to give you a piece of advice: If you're here to convert people, be aware that it will be extremely difficult for you to achieve that here. I'm not saying you shouldn't try if that's what you want, just that most people here will require you to present an awful lot of evidence before even considering the idea that god might exist, let alone join a certain religion. Even those who already believe in god will be hard to catch.

[ElizabethAnna]

I didn't reconcile it with bible teaching at all, the bible teaches us to turn to God for help and place our worries and needs in its hands. At the time I practiced witchcraft I had completely abandoned christianity and went my own way, being heavily influenced by Wicca. I'm one of those people who unfortunately has to learn things the hard way as being told to stay away from stuff is never enough of a deterrent unless I'm convinced its for my own good. I eventually learnt that the problems with witchcraft is that A) you get exactly what you ask for, meaning that if you ask for something that is bad for you you will receive it and potentially ruin your life and B) it is an illusion if you think you are in control, as it is actually the Devil making you think you are. Witches in the end will only ever harm themselves if anyone. The way the church acted in the past towards witches was evil and showed no use of reason or faith in God's protection, it was the devil at work making a mockery of Christ's teachings. The people who massacred those accused people were not true christians. You can sit in a garage for as long as you want and it wont make you a car, you can sit in a church for as long as you want and it wont necessarily make you a christian, its how you act that counts.

Actually I have never heard that theory before. I don't see the stars as reliable sources of information either and I stay away from horoscopes as whilst using Tarot cards I eventually learnt that only the information God reveals can be of any good to us and that if we start trying to uncover the future for ourselves it can cause trouble. However the 12 astrological signs are very good at describing the people born under them, though they are only really of limited value and become dangerous when people start excusing behavior as a symptom of a star sign. The planets primary role are there to protect the earth, shielding us from meteoroids and I'll leave it at that.

I'm always open to advise so thanks but I'm not here to convert people although it would be wonderful if I did. The thing is no one can convince someone to be a christian and it is only God that can reveal itself to a persons heart. But before it can call anyone they have to be given a good example of what it is to be christian, before that they will never even consider it, and who can blame them? I just hope I can remove at least some of the blocks in the way of people's faith and I leave it to God to do the rest. I'm mainly here to exercise my debating abilities and get a grasp on other peoples point of view.

[McCulloch]

Hello everyone.

Hello ElizabethAnna.

I'm 22

I used to be 22.

and God willing will be going to University this september to study Practical Theology.

How is it that Practical Theology is not an oxymoron?

I am a born again christian, yet I was not born again in a big bath of water with many people watching, I was born again when Christ baptized me with his Holy Spirit after I laid down all earthly things to follow him.

How are you going to pay for your schooling?

[ElizabethAnna]

haha, well all I know is that there is a course called Practical Theology (Mission and Ministry) so it teaches you Theology as well as ways you can put what you learn to practice in your life and in the world, its an evangelical college.

I go by the principal that God will provide for me when I need it, and I applied for a student loan (':lol:') by laying down all earthly things I mean that I laid them down from my heart so that God is always my priority, and as God is love so this means that love for love's sake motivates and guides me in all things. When God is your master it multiplies wealth so that you can distribute it for God's glory. I have faith in God to get me where I'm going, not money.

[Lux]

I'm 22

I used to be 22.

I'll be 22 soon Hopefully...

Thanks for the reply, ElizabethAnna. Again, I hope you enjoy it here!

[WinePusher]

haha, well all I know is that there is a course called Practical Theology (Mission and Ministry) so it teaches you Theology as well as ways you can put what you learn to practice in your life and in the world, its an evangelical college.

I go by the principal that God will provide for me when I need it, and I applied for a student loan (':lol:') by laying down all earthly things I mean that I laid them down from my heart so that God is always my priority, and as God is love so this means that love for love's sake motivates and guides me in all things. When God is your master it multiplies wealth so that you can distribute it for God's glory. I have faith in God to get me where I'm going, not money.

What do you plan to do with a degree in theology?