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Post by Catherine on Jul 24, 2006 12:25:52 GMT -5
Like I said earlier, God is a really important part of my life, especially lately. I recently finished reading a book that was from a religious point of view. This was the first time I had read anything like that. While the book was on one particular topic, there were some points that were made that impressed me and that could be applied to many other parts of life and religion. The two that really stood out were these: "God is not a kill-joy. If God wanted to ruin all our fun, the Bible would include the following commandments: 11. Thou shall not whitewater raft; 12. Thou shall not bungee junp; 13. Thou shall not ride a rollercoaster." "Most teenagers desire freedom from parental restrictions, Church guidelines, school rules, and even a book like this that might seem to tell them what to do......We can do whatever we like...We are free. Yet, although we are free to choose behaviors, we are not free from the consequences of those behaviors......If we choose to follow God's commands, then good consequences will naturally follow. Since God is love, everything He calls us to do is the most loving thing. His guidelines can be challenging at times, but they are always loving." I hate the idea that I might be sounding preach-y, so I hope I'm not and I apoligize if I am. I just really wanted to share these with you because they really hit me when I read them, and becuase they seemed to address exactly what you were talking about.
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Post by subtlecollision on Jul 24, 2006 13:58:58 GMT -5
From what book are those quotations? I really like them.
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Post by Catherine on Jul 24, 2006 14:17:30 GMT -5
Well...it's called A Case for Chastity. The reason I read it was that one of the co-authors, Heather Gallagher, works on a team that does retreats here where I live, and she talked about her book a little when our eigth-grade class went on a retreat. Then it turned out that I needed to buy the book for school this year, so I read it. It was a pretty cool book in general, but things that I really liked about it were the bits, like the ones above, that can apply to all of life.
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Post by subtlecollision on Jul 31, 2006 13:28:46 GMT -5
I've wanted to read 'The Purpose-Driven Life' but never got around to it. Has anyone here read it?
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Post by Catherine on Jul 31, 2006 16:51:03 GMT -5
No, I haven't, but I'd love to hear more about it. What can you tell me?
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Post by subtlecollision on Jul 31, 2006 17:07:08 GMT -5
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Post by Catherine on Jul 31, 2006 18:11:58 GMT -5
Thanks for that link; that looks really interesting. There are a couple other books that I'm thinking about reading that perhaps you've heard about: Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller, and Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis. Has anybody heard anything about either of those??
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Post by Katrina on Aug 2, 2006 9:49:58 GMT -5
I've heard of Mere Christianity. C. S. Lewis fascinates me, especially the way he can tie religion into his writing.
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Post by Catherine on Aug 2, 2006 12:06:13 GMT -5
I know, I love him. I really look forward to reading more of his work.
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jane
Experienced Writer
I want adventure in the great wide somewhere....
Posts: 77
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Post by jane on Aug 3, 2006 23:27:02 GMT -5
HEY CATHERINE I JOINED WOOT WOOT! ah, well, hello everyone I am Jane. I started writing recently, and I mainly plan my stories and don't get them down on paper, but I love writing letters and journaling is very fun also. and I love love love to read. Anyway, to respond to SublteCollision's post, I have never read The Purpose Driven Life, but my mom and sister have, and my mom's friend is in Rwanda right now with Rick Warren, the author. It's kind of a long story, but I have heard a lot about that book lately, and I am interested in reading it. Have you started it yet?
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Post by Catherine on Aug 3, 2006 23:34:26 GMT -5
YAY!
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Post by subtlecollision on Aug 9, 2006 16:39:20 GMT -5
I fear I have not started reading it. I am still deciding whether to buy it or not (or put it on my Christmas List, for I am nearly broke ) I am tired of wasting my money on hackneyed, commonplace books; it is such a shame that one cannot take a book from the book store, read it, and, if it is satisfactory, decide to buy it. Now that would be heaven!
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Post by Catherine on Aug 9, 2006 23:22:04 GMT -5
Heehee, yes it would be...but you can do just about the same thing by checking out books from the library. Of course I barely ever go to the library myself (It's something I plan to start doing-tomorrow, in fact) so I oughtn't be talking.
EDIT: Although perhaps that won't work for this particular book because maybe it is not well-known enough. I went to the library today, and neither my library or any other in the city seems to carry it. What disappointment. I was especially disappointed because there was only one copy of Mere Christianity, and it was checked out, and Blue Like Jazz was only at one library far away. How sad.
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Post by subtlecollision on Aug 13, 2006 20:38:27 GMT -5
There are hardly any books in my library. It quite difficult to find what one is looking for. I'm sorry you couldn't find it.
Back to religion, last year I helped teach Sunday School to third graders. It was really a rewarding experience. I have the chance to again this year, so I think I will. It's sort of scary to teach them, though, I'm afraid I'll say the wrong thing. There is an adult there teaching so it's not like it's just me, but still, it's rather frightening. Sunday School teachers can make a big impact on kids.
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Post by Catherine on Aug 13, 2006 21:11:57 GMT -5
Wow, that is such a great opportunity. I bet you don't say the wrong thing, either. What sort of things do you do??
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