WordWolf

In NY (state and city), almost everyone left SPECIFICALLY when lcm sent out his loy-alty letter early 1989. That was a form letter that said "We fired the following people in your state (names of almost all the leaders in NY State) because they refused to serve God." Having taken the opportunity to evaluate PERSONALLY THEIR performance, and lcm's performance, I had few misgivings about leaving WITH them, along with almost everyone in the state. It sounds like sending the same form letter to Californians (differing only in the names of the fired people) had much the same result it had in NY. Since he fired all of them TOGETHER, he did us all the favor of giving us an entire communications framework already in place to operate among the people who were fired.

As for a PRO-active approach, yes, beginning with HEALTHIER "diets" for your mind are better. Watching television? Some channels will depress you, some can educate you while holding your attention. Going online? The same applies. Start with what's good for you- same as a healthy FOOD diet. Then, if you want to add a "dessert", you can add one- IN MODERATION. If you have no idea where to start, you're just a mouse-click away from hundreds of daily devotionals online. Here's a few links. http://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/ http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb.shtml http://www.upperroom.org/Devotional/ http://www.harvest.org/devotional/ http://www.myutmost.org/ http://www.bible.com/daily-devotional.php http://www.devotions.net/ http://www.lhm.org/dailydevotions.asp http://www.backtothebible.org/index.php/Bi...-Devotions.html http://www.blogcatalog.com/blogs/online-da...ible-study.html http://www.forwardmovement.org/todaysreading.cfm http://www.dailydevotional.org/ http://netministries.org/webdev.html If nothing else, I doubt they could hurt.....

This is a very touchy subject. It's ESPECIALLY touchy HERE because everyone HERE was exposed to some very BAD and CONTRADICTORY material on the subject. Responses can vary from "I embrace what was taught in twi without reservation" to "I fled all conventional positions for New Age positions" to "I embrace the orthodox positions" or any of dozens and dozens of other positions. When it comes to sin, the most basic information is actually pretty simple. (This should not be a surprise- there are a handful of notes that represent all music, and a limited number of sounds or letters for an entire language.) (As always, I'm taking a Sola Scriptura approach. Those of you who don't care for it, feel free to scroll past my post.) 1 John 2:15-17 (King James Version) 15Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 17And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. =============================== 1 John 2:15-17 (New American Standard Bible) 15Do not love the world nor the things in the world If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. =========================== I've heard people give numbers for sins, "Seven Deadly Sins" (or Seven Deadly Enemies of Man), and so on. However, Biblically, I see 3 categories. I expect they can overlap, but fundamentally, this is how sin works. There's the Lust of the Flesh, the Lust of the Eyes, and the Pride of Life. Let's look at each for a moment. A) Little needs to be explained about the lusts of the flesh. We all want affection, we all like food and drink-which we need!- but what is HEALTHY can easily be EXCEEDED into a gluttony of any sense. Moreover, they can become ends in themselves. Some people find they put too much importance into affection of some form or other (the modern world gives us new, innovative ways to do this), a few live for a good meal, and many people end up addicted to alcohol or drugs. Anything can become addictive, becoming an end to itself- stopping for a drink to relax after work becomes stopping for a drink because it's done, which becomes stopping for a drink because you HAVE to stop for a drink. Just about any behavior can become addictive that way. (Even exercise- but it's pretty rare someone over-exercises compared to people who overindulge any other lust.) Anyone, I'm sure, who lives in the US, has already received an education in the lusts of the flesh. (If not, and you're reading this, you have internest access and probably WILL get an education in this very soon.) Moderation in all things, care to keep them in their place- or non-existent- make these less of an issue. Each such lust, ultimately, means the person has a problem which the sin is COVERING. Address what the person feels they need or are missing, and it's easier to remove the "dysfunctional behavior." The lustful action is a COPING MECHANISM. B) The Lusts of the Eyes are also easy to understand. It's not wrong to have nice things, although dependence upon them can be a problem. And wanting what you don't need and can't have can be unhealthy. "Hannibal Lecter: No, he covets. That's his nature. And how do we begin to covet, Clarice? Do we seek out things to covet? Make an effort to answer. Clarice Starling: No. We just-- Hannibal Lecter: No. Precisely. We begin by coveting what we see every day. Don't you feel eyes moving over your body, Clarice? I hardly see how you couldn't. And don't your eyes move over the things you want?" It's almost a virtue, in our society, to have something, and to immediately want something "bigger and better", whether it's a car, computer, house, television, "home theater system".... "I want the world. I want the whole world. I want to lock it all up in my pocket, It's my bar of chocolate. Give it to me, now! I want today. I want tomorrow. I want to wear 'em like braids in my hair And I don't want to share 'em! I want a party with room fulls of laughter. Ten thousand tons of ice cream. And if I don't get the things I am after, I'm going to scream! I want the works. I want the whole works. Presents and prizes and sweets and surprises Of all shapes and sizes And now Don't care how I want it now! Don't care how I want it now!" Again, it's easy to see this one operate. If one can keep a sense of perspective, and actually care about others, this fades as a concern. If you care about others, what they own is of lesser importance. C) The Pride of Life. This one, actually, is harder for the modern Christian to catch. Every time you hear the words "who do you think you're talking to?", you're probably hearing someone under its effect. We all would like special treatment, preferential treatment. However, we all take our turns as necessary. Again, other people MATTER. If other people are insignificant insects, it becomes easy to justify feeling more important than others. When you pass a homeless person, do you ever feel superior to them? WHY? Didn't this person have a job, nice clothes, a loving family? Didn't something happen to change that? Couldn't that happen to you? I'm not saying you're not important- your family, your loved ones, may consider you their whole world- but, ultimately, there are many people less fortunate than you- which doesn't make them LESS WORTHY than you. There are people who don't own shoes, who walk miles to get to a school that may close tomorrow- because it's their only hope to get an education. How well do you think you'd survive in THEIR world? They are people, just as you are. It's harder to see that when you're faced with people who grew up IN a modern society like the US and wasted their chance at an education and use words like "conversate" and think they know how things work when they don't have a clue. But, after all, they're people as well. Even STUPID people are human beings. It's the INability to see that other matter, the INability to see anything other than themselves as the center of the universe, that allows people like Bernard Madoff to cheat thousands of people out of their life savings, and religious charities of their money. ================================ So, there's RIGHT ways and WRONG ways to deal with TEMPTATION. James 1:14-15 (New American Standard Bible) 14But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. 15Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. If the temptation is overcome, the sin is overcome-the sin doesn't have a chance to become an issue. Genesis 3:1-6. 1Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, "Indeed, has God said, 'You shall not eat from any tree of the garden'?" 2The woman said to the serpent, "From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.'" 4The serpent said to the woman, "You surely will not die! 5"For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." 6When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. Let's look at that last verse again. "When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate." "Good for food"- lust of the flesh. "Delight to the eyes"- lust of the eyes "desirable to make one wise"- pride of life Eve was tempted-in each category- and made the decision to sin. ===================== Luke 4:1-13 (New American Standard Bible) 1Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness 2for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry. 3And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread." 4And Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE.'" 5And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6And the devil said to Him, "I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7"Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours." 8Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD AND SERVE HIM ONLY.'" 9And he led Him to Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here; 10for it is written, 'HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU TO GUARD YOU,' 11and, 'ON their HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.'" 12And Jesus answered and said to him, "It is said, 'YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.'" 13When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time. Let's look at this a bit more closely. "And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry. 3And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread." 4And Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE.'" Jesus was tempted with the lusts of the flesh. Jesus overcame that lust- "It is Written." "And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6And the devil said to Him, "I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7"Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours." 8Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD AND SERVE HIM ONLY.'" Jesus was tempted with the lusts of the eyes. Jesus overcame that lust- "It is Written." "And he led Him to Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here; 10for it is written, 'HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU TO GUARD YOU,' 11and, 'ON their HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.'" 12And Jesus answered and said to him, "It is said, 'YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.'" Jesus was tempted with the pride of life. Jesus overcame that lust- "It is Written." ============== Sin does "easily beset us." If we are not careful, we INVITE sin into our lives- but we can find the underlying problems, fix them, and UNinvite sin from our lives, too. This is a lifelong process- I didn't see it as automatic for JESUS even-but he did show us how it's done. Ok, what was the question again?

Yes- We mentioned this technique earlier- it's called "hot reading." We demonstrated it, but we didn't give an example specifically from Karen like you did. http://skepdic.com/hotreading.html "Hot reading is a technique used by psychics, mediums, palm readers, and the like that involves surreptitiously gaining information from clients. For example, a medium who claims to get messages from the dead will chat up the audience members before a performance and gather information from them. Later, when the psychic does a reading and seems to make contact with a young man's mother, even the young man won't remember that he told the psychic before the show that he wanted to connect with his mother." "At least one faith healer, Peter Popoff, has pretended to get messages from God when he was really getting messages from his wife via an earpiece (Randi 1989: ch. 9; "Secrets of the Psychics"). Mrs. Popoff got her information from cards that the believers fill out when they attend the faith healing exhibition." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_reading http://skepticwiki.org/index.php/Hot_Reading http://www.lostaddress.org/2009/01/13/what-is-hot-reading/ "This is used to best effect by faith healers. In a very well known episode, noted sceptic James Randi put a small team together to work out how famous faith healer Peter Popoff did what he did. By chance, one of the team happened to tune into the same frequency that was being used by Popoff’s wife to transmit details of the audiences ailments. You can view the action here on YouTube. What Popoff did was reprehensible, he took people, many of whom were terminally ill, and he convinced them that he had the power of God flowing through him and with this could diagnose and cure their illnesses. Many of these people stopped their regular medications and treatments and subsequently died. When someone asks “What’s the harm in doing these fake sessions?” remind them of Popoff. In the meantime, Popoff and similar fraudsters have moved onto another town or city and never have to be confronted with the harm they have caused. This is harder to defend against than cold reading as gaining prior knowledge can be done in many ways: they can question you directly, they can ask your friends and family in “normal” conversation or other sessions, they may see inside your home and get an idea of your tastes, likes and dislikes, or if you are famous enough just hit you up on Google. However, you are now aware of more of the tools of the trade and you should be able to notice when these things are being used against you - particularly if their investigations throws up incorrect information."

SUPPOSING THOSE NUMBERS ARE ACCURATE- and twi was always fond of stacking numbers of people who NEVER EXISTED- it doesn't mean "that many people were corps on-site there." It means "that many people were on-site either as STAFF or AS STUDENTS." "STUDENTS" doesn't mean "corps". It also includes anyone who visited the site for a long weekend, for the Advanced class, etc. The same site says "Many accelerated biblical research seminars and advanced classes were held at the campus from 1979-1996," which is NOT the same as saying "corps." The main corps training facility started as hq, then as the Emporia location. The Rome City location was never the PRIMARY corps facility. (In each case, all sites hosted different events, not just corps.)

Bingo.

Hello. Now, with "similarities" between BG Leonard's class and pfal, here's what happened. The first iteration of pfal was "Receiving the Holy Spirit Today", and WAS a complete copy of Leonard's class without Leonard's name. That's why grads of Leonard's class were automatically considered grads of "vpw's" class. Why was it the same class? vpw planned it that way. He talked his way into one of Leonard's classes, took it again the next time it was offered, then, 3 months later, asked Leonard for permission to run "LEONARD's" class locally on a onetime basis. Leonard approved of it, giving vpw the benefit of the doubt. So, vpw took Leonard's class, said "this is my class", ran it, charged money for it, and send Leonard a class photo for his collection. After that, vpw kept teaching Leonard's class with vpw's name on it. Later, he added JE Stiles' and Bullinger's books on the Holy Spirit, and Bullinger's stuff on "how the Bible interprets itself." Later classes included some Aramaic distractions courtesy of Lamsa-but few. Oh, and Kenyon, where this Word-Faith business of the supposed "LAW" of believing is inserted. The later classes looked less like Leonard clones because of the new material- and how they were stretched into 3 levels of class after that.

Many, many congratulations! Including being able to log in long enough to actually post in the middle of all that. Now, of course, you realize YOU don't have the baby-the baby has YOU. ;) I'm sure you'll be very happy about this in the long term, despite individual moments of frustration here and there. At least, with his complexion, nobody's trying to convince you he has jaundice. When I was born, before I got a few minutes of real sunlight, people were trying to scare my parents like that. My pediatrician took one look at me and laughed that off. Sure enough, all I needed was a few minutes of sunlight to tan a little.

Some of the quotes were noteworthy. "I'll never understand the humanoid need to......couple... " "You've never... coupled?" "Choose not to. Too many compromises. You want to watch a Karo-Net tournament, she wants to listen to music. So you compromise. You listen to music. You like Earth Jazz, she prefers Klingon opera... so you compromise. You listen to Klingon opera. So here you were ready to have a nice evening watching the Karo-Net match and you wind up spending an agonizing night listening to Klingon opera..." Quark, when Odo explains "relationships." "If you'd listen to me, you'd be eating steamed Azna too... " "Dax, did I ever tell you about the meals my father used to cook for us when we were kids...?" "All the time..." "Every night at my house, my dad insisted that we have supper together as a family. He would try out his new recipes on us... he used to call us his "test tasters." "Steamed Azna will put years on your life." "I don't want years on my life. Not if I can only eat steamed Azna... sauteed... rolloped... fricasseed -- fine. But not steamed... " Dax, back during her "steamed azna" episodes (before the spot-counting episodes), and Sisko explaining his father-who owned a restaurant- made a point of coming home for dinner with his family all the time. Admirable, if unusual for a restaurant owner. (Then again, maybe the family came to the restaurant and ate in an anteroom or something. Maybe their home was a block from the restaurant.) "I don't want you on this station." "That's too bad. I have every right to be here." "I decide who has rights and who doesn't on this Promenade." "Better ask your Federation superiors about that." "I don't have to ask anyone." "You have twenty-six hours to get off this station." Odo and Ibudan. "And they were just looking for trouble... those kids have no reason to be hanging around the Promenade..." "It's about the only place they have to go... you can't keep them locked in their rooms..." "It's not like a starship, Miles... the kind of freedom that children have on the Enterprise just won't work on a space station... there are too many ways to get into serious trouble here..." Miles and Keiko discussing the station and children. "I know I'll have to come up with an innovative program... But I can't imagine any parent not welcoming the news of a school opening here. Thank you again, Commander." Keiko to Sisko.

CORRECT! This is the episode. "A Man Alone" was one of the early DS9 episodes. Ibudan wasn't a Vedek... Odo: "His name is Ibudan... he used to run black market goods through here to the surface during the Cardassian occupation... gouging his fellow man who needed medical supplies and so forth... some Bajorans actually considered him a hero. But I saw him let a child die when the parents couldn't afford the drug that would've saved her life. A few years back, he killed a Cardassian officer who wanted a payoff to look the other way. He went to prison for murder. I sent him there......The provisional government let him go. Killing a Cardassian isn't considered much of a crime nowadays." Ibudan tried to frame Odo for his own murder, a "locked room mystery." Instead, Ibudan killed his own clone and hid. When the game was up, he went to jail- killing your clone is still considered murder. Keiko felt useless on the station, and there really IS nothing for children to do on the station, so opening a school is a good idea. Later episodes showed her claim that she'd be "innovative" didn't count for much when she wanted to claim ONE point of view was THE correct one and others were WRONG.

"How did you know it was me?" "There are different ways to recognize someone... the rhythm of their steps, for example." "You're... remarkable." "I'll never understand the humanoid need to......couple... " "You've never... coupled?" "Choose not to. Too many compromises. You want to watch a Karo-Net tournament, she wants to listen to music. So you compromise. You listen to music. You like Earth Jazz, she prefers Klingon opera... so you compromise. You listen to Klingon opera. So here you were ready to have a nice evening watching the Karo-Net match and you wind up spending an agonizing night listening to Klingon opera..." "If you'd listen to me, you'd be eating steamed Azna too... " "Dax, did I ever tell you about the meals my father used to cook for us when we were kids...?" "All the time..." "Every night at my house, my dad insisted that we have supper together as a family. He would try out his new recipes on us... he used to call us his "test tasters." "Steamed Azna will put years on your life." "I don't want years on my life. Not if I can only eat steamed Azna... sauteed... rolloped... fricasseed -- fine. But not steamed... " "I don't want you on this station." "That's too bad. I have every right to be here." "I decide who has rights and who doesn't on this Promenade." "Better ask your Federation superiors about that." "I don't have to ask anyone." "You have twenty-six hours to get off this station." "And they were just looking for trouble... those kids have no reason to be hanging around the Promenade..." "It's about the only place they have to go... you can't keep them locked in their rooms..." "It's not like a starship, Miles... the kind of freedom that children have on the Enterprise just won't work on a space station... there are too many ways to get into serious trouble here..." "Cause of death is no mystery. The knife was thrust directly between the left and right thoracic vertebrae... perforating the lower ventricle of the heart. The murderer apparently had a decent knowledge of Bajoran anatomy." "Doctor, I want you to look for evidence that could establish someone was in here with him..." "I'll do a sweep for hair follicles, any skin or cellular remnants, and DNA fragments... " "I know I'll have to come up with an innovative program... But I can't imagine any parent not welcoming the news of a school opening here. Thank you again, Commander." "Wait a minute. Ibudan goes in the holosuite alone, locks the door... nobody transports in... a few minutes later he's murdered... how is that possible?"

I'm not Shaz, but I found the post easily enough. pg-12, post 224, "ONLY Rule..." thread.

"How did you know it was me?" "There are different ways to recognize someone... the rhythm of their steps, for example." "You're... remarkable." "I'll never understand the humanoid need to......couple... " "You've never... coupled?" "Choose not to. Too many compromises. You want to watch a Karo-Net tournament, she wants to listen to music. So you compromise. You listen to music. You like Earth Jazz, she prefers Klingon opera... so you compromise. You listen to Klingon opera. So here you were ready to have a nice evening watching the Karo-Net match and you wind up spending an agonizing night listening to Klingon opera..." "If you'd listen to me, you'd be eating steamed Azna too... " "Dax, did I ever tell you about the meals my father used to cook for us when we were kids...?" "All the time..." "Every night at my house, my dad insisted that we have supper together as a family. He would try out his new recipes on us... he used to call us his "test tasters." "Steamed Azna will put years on your life." "I don't want years on my life. Not if I can only eat steamed Azna... sauteed... rolloped... fricasseed -- fine. But not steamed... " "I don't want you on this station." "That's too bad. I have every right to be here." "I decide who has rights and who doesn't on this Promenade." "Better ask your Federation superiors about that." "I don't have to ask anyone." "You have twenty-six hours to get off this station." "And they were just looking for trouble... those kids have no reason to be hanging around the Promenade..." "It's about the only place they have to go... you can't keep them locked in their rooms..." "It's not like a starship, Miles... the kind of freedom that children have on the Enterprise just won't work on a space station... there are too many ways to get into serious trouble here..." "Cause of death is no mystery. The knife was thrust directly between the left and right thoracic vertebrae... perforating the lower ventricle of the heart."

That includes his "Uriah" fallacy- despite the fact that I disproved it, predicted he'd post it in six months, and then reposted my answer 6 months later almost to the day, since he posted it again in six months.

Stop and think really hard. During all the famous yelling, face-meltings, and purging, were all the people in the room (not the yeller, the regular people) gleefully observing the whole process? Or were they uncomfortable, and only relieved that it wasn't THEM that was the target? Even in the most twisted fellowships, I hear people reporting that they regretted never speaking up, and let others be verbally abused, or others never spoke up for them that knew better. Or, are you saying that you were THRILLED during each face-melting you attended, without ever a thought that it might have been misplaced?

It's easy to just label someone's questions and presuppose they're "designed" for something other than actually "getting answers". With several people trying to get answers- and lots of posts from someone like Mike going on for PARAGRAPHS of "I only have limited time" (and spending a lot of it saying he's not going to answer most questions), it looks like he's trying to duck most of them. Besides, he can answer questions at any pace he sees fit. Since many of these are still the same questions from 2003 that STILL haven't been answered, it should be easy TO answer them now.

It's struck me more that splinter groups have been "AIRLOCKS" for twi survivors. That is, when leaving twi, it's easier to spend some time in a splinter group, then to eventually look around and realize there's a great big world out there- a world with all sorts of Christians with happy lives. Then the twi survivor can leave the splinter and rejoin the rest of humanity.

"How did you know it was me?" "There are different ways to recognize someone... the rhythm of their steps, for example." "You're... remarkable." "You want to watch a Karo-Net tournament, she wants to listen to music. So you compromise. You listen to music. You like Earth Jazz, she prefers Klingon opera... so you compromise. You listen to Klingon opera. So here you were ready to have a nice evening watching the Karo-Net match and you wind up spending an agonizing night listening to Klingon opera..." "I don't want years on my life. Not if I can only eat steamed Azna... sauteed... rolloped... fricasseed -- fine. But not steamed... " "Cause of death is no mystery. The knife was thrust directly between the left and right thoracic vertebrae... perforating the lower ventricle of the heart."

"Why hasn't loy started his own splinter group?" http://www.greasespotcafe.com/ipb/index.php?showtopic=4649 My answer was Seriously? A) Towards the end, he wandered around campus, addled, and confused as to how the women in his life had set him up as the sole perpetrator of all the sins of the inner circle. B) He was successfully labelled as the Single Villain. Therefore, he can't build a base with ex-twi or CURRENT twi. Supposedly, one man claimed if he had even 7 totally loyal men, he could start a religion. lcm is short 7 men for even that much. C) lcm lacks the skills to build himself up as a religious leader to more than a boy scout troop. lcm was coccooned into twi at an early age, and only retains the skills he learned thru college (mostly athletics) and the skills he learned since then (mostly, how to bark orders and micromanage.) Like a career politician, he's out of touch with how real people live, how real Christians think, and what they care about. He'd be a missionary to a foreign country, whose customs are nearly incomprehensible. (Unless he's learned humility since then-if he has, he may understand, but understands he will only harm himself or others if he takes the big chair.) D) lcm doesn't have anything to offer people. His understanding of Scripture is sub-standard among average Christians, and his manner is abrasive. He can't get converts from people who just want him to shut up.

I remember this. It was when I was trying to keep track of the Mikean system's claims that I concluded Steve might be on to something in his line of questioning, and paid more attention. Mike's ACSFW spirit, obviously, is the thing that showed him JC descending from the clouds with the Orange Book in his hand "MANY TIMES". It's also how Mike was told "Jesus is very interested in pfal. He told me so himself." The lonely and the desperate- facing decades of wasted youth and the prime of their life- can be so desperate to make wasted time valued, can be so desperate for simple answers- that they can be victims in a spiritual "confidence game" and never realize it, thus wasting the REST of their lives worse than the early parts.

Frankly, there's lots of free daily devotionals online. I find it's a lot easier to deal with those than with paper booklets nowadays.

"How did you know it was me?" "There are different ways to recognize someone... the rhythm of their steps, for example." "You're... remarkable." "You want to watch a Karo-Net tournament, she wants to listen to music. So you compromise. You listen to music. You like Earth Jazz, she prefers Klingon opera... so you compromise. You listen to Klingon opera. So here you were ready to have a nice evening watching the Karo-Net match and you wind up spending an agonizing night listening to Klingon opera..."

It's very simple, you see. When vpw said it, it's sacrosanct, since it was an utterance of God and beyond question. When Steve L says it, it's to be vilified, since it's not what Mike wants to hear. So, first of all, reading what is written (the most basic vpw rule) goes out the window- what Mike WANTS IT TO SAY is now what it says. That's why Mike remembers himself as having won all sorts of debates here, never facing logic, and never facing reasonable questions. Mike rewrites the threads in his mind (or they're rewritten FOR him by his ACSFW spirit, I'm unclear which) and he ends up reading completely different threads than we do (or any stranger can.) So, all Mike HAS to offer is accusations, judgements, dodges, distractions, denials, non-informative questions, and so on.

You just confirmed his point- if the CRUCIAL part of the message was UTTERLY LOST, then the OVERALL MESSAGE was UTTERLY LOST. If all that's left of information is incidental and non-critical, it has been destroyed as a whole. How about an Amtrak train that had everything-except the ENGINE? Where's that going to take you? How about instructions for operating a device where how to turn it on and off, and troubleshoot, are missing? A flashlight missing batteries? An automobile with no engine, but all tricked out? If the CRUCIAL PART of something is lost, it is lost OVERALL. ============ In other words, what's inconvenient to you to be intact about God's Word- that's been irretrievably lost. The parts you don't care about- that can survive. Interesting how plenty of experts in the field have documented their findings, and come to the opposite conclusions as you. Obviously, you'll be smearing their character without learning anything about them- anything to try to discredit information that is inconvenient to you, or contradicts your claims.