X-Organization: University of Prince Edward Island
X-VMS-To: IN%"CHRISTIA@ASUACAD.BITNET"
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.christia
Date:         Fri, 10 Apr 1992 08:54:00 -0400
From:         Lora Harris <LHARRIS@UPEI.CA>
Subject:      Becky, Scott

Hello all;  As you may have gathered, I"m on NOMAIL and reading the back files
every couple of days - hence the delays in my replies.  Please pardon me if I
am covering things that have already been 'done to death'.

***"The Orthodox Church does not use the Apostle's Creed because of the
`filioque' clause. It has used the Nicene Creed since 325 AD. It's recited at
every Orthodox liturgy." Steve Hoell           seh@neutron.physics.arizona.edu

        Are you SURE you don't have those backwards?  The Filoque is part of
the Nicene Creed (...the Holy Ghost, the Lord, the Giver of Life, WHo proceedeth
from the Father and the SOn, who with the Father and the Son together is
worshipped and glorified, Who spake by the Prophets).  The Apostles' Creed is
the older one, not dealing so specifically with the Trinity.  It has "...the
Holy Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church, the Forgiveness of sins, the resurrection
of the body, and the life everlasting..."  - no specific references to the
relation between the Holy Spirit and the Father and Son.

***Becky - thank you so very much for posting your children's essays.  You have
good kids there - and you are a good mother to realize that making them think
it through for themselves is going to do much more good than any amount of
preaching at them.  I respect your son's honesty - I think we all know what it
is like to know how great the Lord is, and still put basketball, our work, our
earthly loves ahead of him.  I have some comments for each of them that you may
or may not want to take to them - your discretion entirely, since you know them
and I don't.

Hello Rachel,

        I'm Lora Harris, one of the people on a Christian Living computer list.
Your mother let us read your essays on the prodigal son - and I was impressed.

        You're right - the size of the Bible can be really scary - the thought
of reading that much.  But you probably know already that it isn't one book,
but a collection of many.  May I make a suggestion?  Don't treat it as one book
when you go to read it.  For instance, the life of Christ is all there is
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.  Of them all, I'd suggest reading John first -
it's the one written by someone who knew Jesus very well ( every time it says
'the beloved disciple' or 'the disciple the Lord loved' he means himself!).
And then Luke - the first paragraph is written so formally that it's hard to
understand, but basically Luke tells you 'I've worked very hard to interview
everyone who was there at the time, to find out who this Jesus was from
eye-witnesses, and I've made a report for you to read.'.  Then Acts is also
written by Luke - it's the sequel ("Jesus, Pt II - The (Roman) Empire Strikes
Back"  :^) !)   The letters (epistles) that were written by Paul and Peter are
the next easiest to read, and are very practical and full of the love of Jesus.

                                        Lora

Hi Matt,

        I'm Lora Harris, and I read the Christian Living list that your mother
subscribes to.  She let us read your essay, for which I am grateful.  I am very
glad to see your honesty: you know there is no use in trying to disguise
your doubts and your interests from God, and it is dangerous to try to hide
your nature from yourself.

        There is nothing wrong with your joy in basketball, as long as that joy
keeps its place.  God has given you your body, and the ability which you have.
It is perfectly right to be happy in a good shot.  The problem comes if it
becomes more important to you than it should be - if you make it your god.  If
it keeps its place in your life, then it is only to the good.  Through
basketball, you can learn about discipline, which you will need as a Christian
- for following Christ, and doing His will instead of your own will require
every ounce of the discipline that a sports training program can give you.  St.
Paul himself talked about how being a Christian is similar to being an athlete.
He reminded us that athletes train very hard to win a prize, and reminded us
that we should try even harder to follow Christ, for the eternal life with God
that is an eternal prize.  But if, as you say, your life revolves around
basketball and not God, you have some real decisions to make about what is
truly important.

" I think if you learn to love god there will be little or no problems that
arise, life will be easier and simpler and your life will have focus."

        I don't want you to be mislead.  Following God, and loving Him, means
joy, and if you simply trust Him and follow His will all things _will_ be made
plain.  However, there are always problems that arise.  Do you every swim in a
river, or the ocean, where there is a strong current?  When do you feel the
current most, when you drift with it, or when you fight it?  In the same way,
when we fight against our own sinful nature, and try to do God's will,
sometimes we seem to have worse problems than when we were drifting.  Jesus
himself said "Follow me, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light" for those
of us who feel like life has us hitched to a very heavy cart.  But he also said
"Take up your cross and follow me" - in other words, in following Him, we must
be prepared to die for Him, literally, and in the constant death of sin and of
our own wilfullness.  Following Jesus _always_ means taking part in His
sufferings in some way.

"It seems strange to me that I know most of God's miricles, but I don't
find joy in them.  I always thought once you learn what unimaginable
things the Lord can do you would immediately want to go to church, love
the Lord, and always want to read the Bible.  But this has not happened
to me."

        Boy do I know what you mean!  There are days I really wonder what's
wrong with me, to ignore the wonderful things He is and Has done!  But you
can't love a miracle.  You can't love God simply for his power and "magic".
You can only truly love a person - knowing his power is empty without knowing
His Love.  Get to know Jesus - not just for the miracles, there were only there
to show us who he really was, and that He heals the whole world in His death -
but for who He is, for what He has done for you.  Listen to him - you've
already found how much there is in His words once you read them for yourself
and are paying attention.  Listen to how he deals with hecklers - "Give us a
sign to show you are really the Messiah!" one punk yells.  He grins, looks
over, and says "tear down the temple, and I will rebuild it in three days".
Yeah right.  Burn down the White House, and I'll build it for you in three
days.  But even back of his fun, there is real meaning, - they did tear down
the real temple - the body of Jesus, the Son of God, dead from the cross.  He
really did rebuild it in three days.

"People say that if you find the Lord it's the most amazing feeling you'll
ever find."

        Well, yes, but be careful here.  God is not a drug!  If you try to come
to Him for a rush - even a spiritual rush, you're not likely to get it.  God
knows your heart.  How would you react to a girl who only wanted to go out with
you because she thought it would make her seem cool?  How do you think God will
react to you coming to Him for anything less than what He offers - eternal life
in the Presence of all goddness, all truth, all light.  You can follow Him
without that feeling.  We're human - all human feelings come and go.  The girl
who seems to be nearly a goddess when you're infatuated with her, seems pretty
ordinary when you get to know her.  And so it is with all our feelings.  Look
at good, longlasting marriages - do the couple seem as passionate about each
other as your friends are about their girlfriends?  They've realized that there
is more to marriage and living with another person than just the feelings.
Following God is like that - you can't rely on your feelings alone, because
they change.  The wonderful thing is that God never changes, he is the same
yesterday and today and tomorrow, and He is there with you whether you feel it
or not.

" Some of us said read the bible, when we occasionly read a few chapters in the
morning or at night as a family I would listen.  But after we finished the Lord
had not become any more important than before.  So I don't see how the bible
can help me love the Lord."

        Well, are you likely to love your mother more of less if you never
spend time with her, or talk to her, or listen to her?  How would your
friendship with your best buddy be if you never tried to get to know him? The
Bible contains all the things that God has told us about Himself.  Anything
else is just what _we_ think about Him.   The Bible isn't majic, it won't
suddenly make you a super-Christian to read it.  But it introduces you to the
Creater of the Universe, and His plan for all of Mankind, and HIs work of
teaching us through history about Himself until finally He is INcarnate ( made
man) in Jesus.  And to read about Jesus is to see God in a form we can see and
touch and understand.  And to read how this same Jesus Christ died on a cross
for every person - for Lora Harris and Becky Harris and Matt Harris - can help
bring you to know Him, and to want to serve Him.  There is really no middle
ground, you can decide to serve Him, to give your life to Him, or you can
decide to follow your own advice and will, and give your life away.  But you
have to think about what is being said, not just listen out of duty.  Think
about what is said, and what that's got to do with you.  Imagine yourself
there.  Imagine HIm saying things directly to you, and what you would feel, and
what you'd say to Him.

"So I want to love the Lord, but I don't know how."

        May God richly bless you, Matt, and make it all plain to you.  I
understand - there are many times when I say the same thing.  Start by getting
to know Him, and by trying to obey Him, and by thinking seriously about whether
you want to control your own life your way, or whether you are willing to give
it to the Holy God to be part of all the richness and goodness and truth that
is only in Him.  He's not trying to take things away from you, He's trying to
give you "life, and life abundantly" in HIs love - and He knows so much better
than us what is good for us.  I know that you are at a time when you will be
rejecting those words - you're an adult now, you'll say, and can think for
yourself.  Well, when it comes to your mother, you may be right (sorry Becky!),
because she is an adult human, and you are a nearly adult human.  But when it
comes to God, we cannot know better than Him.

                                                Lora
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU