Posted on 11/16/2001 1:14:39 PM PST by notyourregularhandle
Finally, The Truth on National TV...
Billy Graham's daughter was being interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this happen?" And Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response.
She said "I believe that God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman that He is, I believe that He has calmly backed out.
How can we expect God to Give us His blessing and His protection if we demand that He leave us alone?"
I know there's been a lot of an email going around in regard to 9/11/01, but this really makes you think. If you don't have time, at least skim through it, but the bottom line is something to think about....
In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings, etc.
Let's see, I think it started when Madeline Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body was found recently) complained she didn't want any prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then, someone said you better not read the Bible in school... the Bible that says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said, OK.
Then, Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide) and we said, an expert should know what he's talking about so we said OK.
Then, someone said teachers and principals better not discipline our children when they misbehave. And the school administrators said no faculty member in this school better touch a student when they misbehave because we don't want any bad publicity, and we surely don't want to be sued (There's big difference between disciplining and touching, beating, smacking, humiliating, kicking, etc.) And we said, OK.
Then someone said, let's let our daughters have abortions if they want, and they won't even have to tell their parents. And we said, OK.
Then some wise school board member said, since boys will be boys and they're going to do it anyway, let's give our sons all the condoms they want, so they can have all the fun they desire, and we won't have to tell their parents they got them at school. And we said, OK.
Then some of our top elected officials said it doesn't matter what we do in private as long as we do our jobs. And agreeing with them, we said it doesn't matter to me what anyone, including the President, does in private as long as I have a job and the economy is good. And then someone said let's print magazines with pictures of nude women and call it wholesome, down-to-earth appreciation for the beauty of the female body. And we said, OK.
And then someone else took that appreciation a step further and published pictures of nude children and then stepped further still by making them available on the Internet. And we said OK; they're entitled to their free speech.
And then the entertainment industry said, let's make TV shows and movies that promote profanity, violence, and illicit sex. And let's record music that encourages rape, drugs, murder, suicide, and satanic themes. And we said it's just entertainment, it has no adverse effect, and nobody takes it seriously anyway, so go right ahead.
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.
Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."
"Dear God, Why didn't you save the little girl killed in her classroom? " Sincerely, Concerned Student... AND THE REPLY "Dear Concerned Student, I am not allowed in schools". Sincerely, God.
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says.
Funny how everyone wants to go to heaven provided they do not have to believe, think, say, or do anything the Bible says.
Funny how someone can say "I believe in God" but still follow Satan who, by the way, also "believes" in God.
Funny how we are quick to judge but not to be judged.
Funny how you can send a thousand 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing.
Funny how the lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but the public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.
Funny how someone can be so fired up for Christ on Sunday, but be an invisible Christian the rest of the week.
Are you laughing?
Funny how when you go to forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it to them. Funny how I can be more worried about what other people think of me than what God thinks of me.
Are you thinking?
Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it....no one will know that you did. But, if you discard this thought process, then don't sit back and complain about what a bad shape the world is in!
12: Do not say, "Because of the Lord I left the right way"; for he will not do what he hates.
12: Do not say, "It was he who led me astray"; for he had no need of a sinful man.
13: The Lord hates all abominations, and they are not loved by those who fear him.
14: It was he who created man in the beginning, and he left him in the power of his own inclination.
15: If you will, you can keep the commandments, and to act faithfully is a matter of your own choice.
16: He has placed before you fire and water: stretch out your hand for whichever you wish.
17: Before a man are life and death, and whichever he chooses will be given to him.
God is not the author of evil actions.
No, the email insinuated that it's our fault for turning away from God, and that God is letting us know he's not pleased with us.
Thanks.....
WE allowed the attacks to take place, and WE will see to it that they are not repeated.
Much better question! Maybe it is because man has a narrow, superstitious, illogical concept of the Creative Force behind existence - as displayed by most of the posts in this thread.
We ALWAYS fall short; even you. ALWAYS, as in EVERY time. Your pride says you can be "good" enough; you can't. We all fall short of the glory of God; even you. God knows that, apparently you don't. Man can walk in ways he thinks are righteous, but will be left behind when God calls. Why? "I am good enough and can make it on my own"? YOU are not the ALPHA and the OMEGA; He is. He makes the rules and you don't like it so you have a snit.
Are you going to pitch a fit when He begins to separate the wheat from the chaff? What are you going to tell HIM? Assuming you can stop trembling, something like, "I was pretty good". Or maybe "Uh, I didn't know; nobody told me about your Son, and that all I had to do was ACCEPT Him as your generous offer to save a slug like me"? Too late; you've been put on notice. No man comes to the Father except through Jesus the Christ.
So what if you don't like it? You want to make the rules? Do you think you're wise enough? So go ahead and live by the golden rule; it's better than nothing, but remember that's the way YOU want to do it.
Peace,
FGS
That makes NO sense.
FGS
God acts in mysterious ways? Mysterious only to us. I would submit to you that God acts with PERFECT reason; absolute logic. We can't, so we don't understand. Not a problem. He only asks that we accept the offer of His Son. That's NOT confusing. You want simple? Go for it!
FGS
Says you. Fact is, with the security He HAS offerd us, it doesn't really matter does it? What does a believer have to fear? Dying? Most of us aren't interested in advancing the timetable to be sure, but for a believer, that's going home. See you there some day?
FGS
And you know that for a certainty?
FGS
It doesn't, and can't answer the original question, but if you were Him; would you be?
FGS
You can clear that up for us, right?
FGS
Clinton was....DRUNK? I'm convinced that fool will say ANYTHING to get attention, whether he believes it or not; mostly not. Wonder what he knows about God anyway?
FGS
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