From: Debbie Mann (deborahjmann@insightbb.com)
Date: Mon Jun 30 2003 - 12:12:08 EDT
That was NEVER my claim. I'll try again:
Our lives attract, repel or escape notice.
When Christians have the kind of life that other people want, such as Sondra
apparently has, wealth not withstanding, then non-Christians investigate.
Living a life of poverty and defeat is not going to attract anyone to Jesus.
Living a life of abundance will. Abundance is relative and can mean a lot of
different things. Abundance of joy is probably the greatest attraction.
Secondly, God is our father. Parents like to give to their children. Bad
parents frequently give too much. God isn't going to give us more than we
can handle - bad or good. What father among you will give his child a rock
instead of a loaf of bread? God WILL give us good gifts. If we are willing
to accept them. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. If we don't
believe that God is going to come through, and have faith in him - the thief
will take away that which we should have received.
There's a joke about a guy who was given a million dollars. When he got up
the next morning there were no taxis, no waitresses, no storekeepers.
Everyone had been given a million dollars. It wasn't good for anybody.
-----Original Message-----
From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu]On
Behalf Of Don Winterstein
Sent: Monday, June 30, 2003 4:38 AM
To: asa; JLR173rdNY@aol.com
Subject: Re: Prosperity
Perhaps even more to the point: How many "converts" has Hugh Heffner won
with his wealth and lifestyle? When it comes to holding out offers of
worldly attractions, Christians can't compete and shouldn't try.
When it comes to promoting Christianity, it should be made plain that, for
Christians, earthly benefits are gifts of God, dispensed or withheld at his
pleasure, and are to be enjoyed only because they are from God. To sell
Christianity on the basis of earthly benefits without strict qualification
would be gross misrepresentation.
Don
----- Original Message -----
From: JLR173rdNY@aol.com
To: asa@calvin.edu
Sent: Sunday, June 29, 2003 3:13 PM
Subject: Re: Prosperity
The "prosperity preachers" have always bothered me - it almost seems to
ask God to be some sort of magician - I say the right incantations -
prayers - and I get what I want. There is something worrisome in that
idea - I cannot make it work with seems to be a call to serve others.
Additionally, another question on to what extent prosperity can be
connected with faith - how does one explain the prosperity of people who are
not Christian - devout though they may be in their own traditions?
Prosperity is demonstrably not limited to Christians (Michael Dell is one or
our local gadzillionaires), which would seem to say to me that either the
Good Lord has his own ideas about who he blesses and/or that material
prosperity is not a good measure of the Lord's favor.
Janet Rice
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