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We must never forget Satan’s oldest tool - plain, pure, unadulterated fear. I think people are afraid of BEING fearful, and that they won’t “pass the test” (even though God is the one who gives us the strength when the time comes - we COULDN’T do it alone). I think some worry about falling into the “trap” of believing because it will cause them to “take the red pill” and realize that they can’t pick and choose what to believe and NOT believe. I think it shakes many people out of their comfort zone to even CONSIDER any of us could be even CLOSE to the truth because it would take away their control of EVERYTHING! (Those of us who already know that GOD controls everything, and try to remember that — well, this doesn’t bother us as much).

This also incidentally ties in somewhat to the discussion you were having with another about fearmongering... I’m having trouble relating this to my family as well — these things DON’T SCARE ME!!! It’s not making me want to dig a hole, build a shelter, and hide-out. Believing these things WILL happen someday SHOULDN’T automatically mean you change everything you are doing right now.

The other interesting thing is that some people seem to think that fear is the way Christians bring people into understanding their beliefs — what a crock that is! While I admit that there are some preachers around who DO preach of fire, brimstone, hell and damnation in the classic sense (picture those poor pilgrims! LOL), I think most realize that fear, threats, etc... will NOT “bring someone around” in any real effective way. It is only through understanding truth and feeling it as it strikes a familiar note inside you — something that you recognize as a belief, or a knowledge within you — that people come to truly know God. How can one even FIND God when consumed with fear??? I’d think that would be the QUICKEST way to hitch a ride on the wrong train with your prayers! LOL

[This post didn’t turn out like I expected - I wanted to write about one thing, but these comments came up instead so I’ll just leave them! LOL Still reading through the posts and clicking links now — thanks again for the ping to the thread, it was perfect timing for me! It also occurs to me that there are clearly some here that are all thinking on that same wave-length, even to the point of this discussion calling up specific stories and examples as others are posting them (Quix & I’s exchange, and then Mary mentioned the bridesmaids in a post up-thread I hadn’t seen and I was going to mention that same story in THIS response before my comment went in another direction!)... Now, I don’t personally believe in “coincidence” really. When things start lining up in rows I start looking for some intelligent reason behind it... (The whole premise of a Coincidence doesn’t lend itself to patterns, or times of extreme concentration, but the knowledge that GOD is working behind the scenes fit MUCH better!) New-Ager’s, and philosophers, and psychologists (like Jung) speak of a “collective consciousness”, and also speak to things such as premonitions (prophecies), and they usually chalk up “coincidences” to some force in nature or the universe that is telling them to “take notice”. Christians DO believe the same thing - although we KNOW the name for that “force” - it is the HOLY SPIRIT, and that “Collective Conscious” is a part of it as well. When you truly come into communion with GOD within your heart and soul it CAN seem as though the answers to EVERY question you’ve ever had are RIGHT THERE (what some Edgar Cayce people term the “Akashic Records” - which incidentally coincides with the stories of God’s halls of records, and “Book of Life”, and the history of EVERYTHING that has or will happen...). HAH! I was trying to explain my tangential posting and ended up on another tangent! Lots of thoughts in my mind tonight on this subject! LOL]