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Those who don't share my beliefs....
are not enemies. Granted we all have a tendency to want to help others to see what we see, and sometimes we offer a little too much help
If a person of a different persuasion is a murderer, we might have to work extra hard to treat them well if we hate murder. If they are someone who for example believes in the One who is the subject of so much controversy here, and are someone who respects and loves Him as we, they may not outwardly appear to treat people well, but we who love God are able to comprehend how the renewed heart of love is still existing in this mortal body with a mortal mind that is at enmity with God and has to be renewed to get it to follow this new heart, as it has been trained to follow another master. Thus, Christians, if they are truly such, possess a spirit or heart after God, but can be like children, if they are young in spirit, who have not yet fully trained their minds to yeild to their hearts. In other words, a seasoned spirit that is God's has a greater revelation of his love....and one example is that they "see" God's love for even an Atheist, and they can see a person through the eyes of God, while a child might easily become hurt and respond quickly out of that hurt with defense or retaliation or anger, but when he is older and wiser, he isn't offended so easily, and can look beyond a person's words or deeds and "see" that it's just the old nature of man rising up again, and one that we all had too at one time, and furthermore he has learned that things are not accomplished by his own mortal power but by God's Spirit.
It's true that many "Christians" have not yet walked into the deeper water where the power is realized that enables a person to love their enemies and turn the other cheek. Comparably, there are also younger and wiser people of disbelief that are similar in ways...you can look at nonbelievers and see some who judge people swiftly by the visible lines, and those who have the ability to read between the lines where the heart or spirit of the sayer or doer are revealed. It's very obvious that people of any persuasion can say things out of emotion and have their true motives and heart misunderstood. It's obvious to some that some "Christians" are just not well grown, just as some nonChristians aren't as far as effective or loving communication. Also true that some Christians don't "see" yet beyond denominational walls to comprehend that there are many perspectives in the world, many different people and cultures etc... that may truly know God by different means than they do.
For the most part people will stand strong for something they greatly believe in. The idea of accepting people into your personal space or not standing against their agenda when it's something AntiGod in general, when you are a follower, to me is not a lack of respect or fairness, but hypocracy, because God doesn't tell us to blend in with Satan or the world and accept him or the world, but to come out and away, and even to rebuke and reprove on some points. Whether that seems fair or not, if God says it's fair, we believe him above man. Still though, there is much to say about when this is called for and when it's not, and about having mercy and patience and love, and understanding for people instead of judgement and hatred.
So many scenarios can be viewed and discussed. There are those who call themselves Christians that display a heart and words and deeds that just don't seem to match this God of Love. Some are not true, some are and again, are just not well grown, which can mean their heart is good but they just havn't yet seen some things or learned to surrender their mind and emotions to the ways of God's spirit. Again, there are non-believers who are tactful, thoughtful, considerate, and lovingly intuitive, and there are those who see only the obvious and have no depth perseption.
We all might notice, and that includes me, that when we point that index finger at someone, there are 3 pointing back at us...Check it out. Whoever is without sin gets to cast the first stone. I know I am not perfect and never have been so I have to include myself in all that I say....I don't think any of us is so good that we can point the finer at anyone else and not have a finger rightly pointed at us. So our job is not to recognize faults in anyone else, but God shows us that a good job is to see the good in someone else..
posted by
Kimlynn
on June 11, 2006 at 9:06 PM
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Those who don't share my beliefs....
are not enemies. Granted we all have a tendency to want to help others to see what we see, and sometimes we offer a little too much help If a person of a different persuasion is a murderer, we might have to work extra hard to treat them well if we hate murder. If they are someone who for example believes in the One who is the subject of so much controversy here, and are someone who respects and loves Him as we, they may not outwardly appear to treat people well, but we who love God are able to comprehend how the renewed heart of love is still existing in this mortal body with a mortal mind that is at enmity with God and has to be renewed to get it to follow this new heart, as it has been trained to follow another master. Thus, Christians, if they are truly such, possess a spirit or heart after God, but can be like children, if they are young in spirit, who have not yet fully trained their minds to yeild to their hearts. In other words, a seasoned spirit that is God's has a greater revelation of his love....and one example is that they "see" God's love for even an Atheist, and they can see a person through the eyes of God, while a child might easily become hurt and respond quickly out of that hurt with defense or retaliation or anger, but when he is older and wiser, he isn't offended so easily, and can look beyond a person's words or deeds and "see" that it's just the old nature of man rising up again, and one that we all had too at one time, and furthermore he has learned that things are not accomplished by his own mortal power but by God's Spirit.
It's true that many "Christians" have not yet walked into the deeper water where the power is realized that enables a person to love their enemies and turn the other cheek. Comparably, there are also younger and wiser people of disbelief that are similar in ways...you can look at nonbelievers and see some who judge people swiftly by the visible lines, and those who have the ability to read between the lines where the heart or spirit of the sayer or doer are revealed. It's very obvious that people of any persuasion can say things out of emotion and have their true motives and heart misunderstood. It's obvious to some that some "Christians" are just not well grown, just as some nonChristians aren't as far as effective or loving communication. Also true that some Christians don't "see" yet beyond denominational walls to comprehend that there are many perspectives in the world, many different people and cultures etc... that may truly know God by different means than they do.
For the most part people will stand strong for something they greatly believe in. The idea of accepting people into your personal space or not standing against their agenda when it's something AntiGod in general, when you are a follower, to me is not a lack of respect or fairness, but hypocracy, because God doesn't tell us to blend in with Satan or the world and accept him or the world, but to come out and away, and even to rebuke and reprove on some points. Whether that seems fair or not, if God says it's fair, we believe him above man. Still though, there is much to say about when this is called for and when it's not, and about having mercy and patience and love, and understanding for people instead of judgement and hatred.
So many scenarios can be viewed and discussed. There are those who call themselves Christians that display a heart and words and deeds that just don't seem to match this God of Love. Some are not true, some are and again, are just not well grown, which can mean their heart is good but they just havn't yet seen some things or learned to surrender their mind and emotions to the ways of God's spirit. Again, there are non-believers who are tactful, thoughtful, considerate, and lovingly intuitive, and there are those who see only the obvious and have no depth perseption.
We all might notice, and that includes me, that when we point that index finger at someone, there are 3 pointing back at us...Check it out. Whoever is without sin gets to cast the first stone. I know I am not perfect and never have been so I have to include myself in all that I say....I don't think any of us is so good that we can point the finer at anyone else and not have a finger rightly pointed at us. So our job is not to recognize faults in anyone else, but God shows us that a good job is to see the good in someone else..
posted by
Kimlynn
on June 11, 2006 at 9:06 PM
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I try to treat everyone the same.
Of course, like everyone, I feel closer to those who may share some of the beliefs that I have.
In the big picture, I don't believe that one's beliefs or lack of them change anything, accept maybe their happiness in this life. In other words, if you're finding happiness in your life, you're doing what's right for you.
Of course if I feel my beliefs are being attacked, I'm not as gracious.
I know that no one is perfect. But it tends to irk me when people talk about how their beliefs are so good, and just, and they tell you all about how, and then you find them acting out of character for those beliefs.
posted by
Afzal_Sunny7
on June 11, 2006 at 9:05 PM
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Of course, it doesn't allow their opinion to be right.
posted by
Kiddo75
on June 11, 2006 at 6:52 PM
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Kiddo
I agree and that is how I generally am. But there are a lot of people out there who do not wish to be like that.
posted by
kooka_lives
on June 11, 2006 at 6:47 PM
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I personally do not hold anyone's beliefs against them or change
how I would treat them because of it. Now, the way they ACT about it, that can determine my attitude towards them. And , truthfully, if the way they act contradicts the way they believe.. then it really irritates me. I think the way you handle people isn't so much based on their beliefs as it is the way they practice their beliefs. A holy roller up in my face judging me (and it happens ALOT in the south) gets under my skin more than anything. Respect and acceptance. Practice practice.
posted by
Kiddo75
on June 11, 2006 at 6:43 PM
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