I am now an Associate Pastor

[Gren]

Congratulations Me and evangelical christianity don't get on very well, but anyway, I'm sure you're doing what is good for you and what you believe is the correct thing to do. I hope you preach God's love, not hate. And I wish that apart from preaching, you fight poverty, abuse and injustice and work to protect God's most precious creation, the nature.
 Good luck.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I'm offering kind words because I hope that an exposure to this Forum and the varied arguments, debates and personalities shows him even just a little, that certain people are not to be frightened of, threatened and more or less treated with indifference. He has the potential to be a good pastor...or just as predictable as all the others.

Methinks thou might hope in vain:

I'm not talking about the reach of Allah, I'm talking about YHWH (Yahweh), and no, they are not the same God.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

I'm offering kind words because I hope that an exposure to this Forum and the varied arguments, debates and personalities shows him even just a little, that certain people are not to be frightened of, threatened and more or less treated with indifference. He has the potential to be a good pastor...or just as predictable as all the others.

Methinks thou might hope in vain:

I'm not talking about the reach of Allah, I'm talking about YHWH (Yahweh), and no, they are not the same God.

yeah, rejecting the bible's explicit statements regarding Christ as the only way for us to be saved is usually a prerequisite in accepting other ideas that run contrary to the bible.  After all, in the bible, idolatry usually set the stage for all kinds of transgressions.

1 John 5:11-13 says: "And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life."

[J. J.]

Congratulations BushOklahoma!

Ignore most of the people here.

[RIP Robert H Bork]

How did I know from the start that this would be BushOklahoma?

Just kidding, good luck.

[Bo]

Even though I'm not big on religion, I hope you enjoy your new experience.

[Хahar 🤔]

Congratulations!

[Joe Biden 2020]

Thank you for your kind words!!  This is something that I am going to take very seriously.  I will still be on this forum in the same manner that I have been.  In case you're wondering, ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ can still have so much fun, its not funny (no pun intended!!)  In fact, as a Christian, I've had more fun than I did in my non-Christian life (which, I'll admit, was very brief).  This pastor will carry this title with the utmost seriousness, but will have so much fun in the process!!

Oh, and Joe, don't worry about "criticizing" or "making fun" of me or calling my beliefs misguided or whatever.  In fact, I appreciate your posts, as it makes me that much more firm in my beliefs and even more sure of the calling which God has placed on my life.  For the others of you getting on to Joe for making fun of me...  Lay off the man!!  I believe my Lord put his posts on this thread to strengthen my beliefs.

[useful idiot]

You don't have to have some kind of religious degree for ordination?

The "Reverend" Al Sharpton was ordained at the age of 9. He dropped out of college after two years, and he's pretty well respected within his constituency(the black faithful).

[JSojourner]

I am officially the Associate Pastor at the church where I've been going since the young age of 4 years old.  I've been studying under the Senior Pastor's wing for the past 14 months and am now beginning the process of Ordination.  The process, if everything goes smoothly, should only take about a month to two months.  Ordination, in the Southern Baptist Convention, is a four-step process.  The first step is for the Candidate and the Pastor to sit down and talk and pray together.  The second step is for the Pastor and the Deacons and other Ordained Ministers (Ordaining Council) within the local body to meet and discuss the Candidate's readiness.  The third step, if the Ordaining Council agrees, is for the OC and the Candidate to meet and discuss.  At that time, it will either be determined that the Candidate is ready to be Ordained, or needs to wait a period of time.  If the Candidate is ready to be ordained, then the papers will be signed at that meeting and a Ordination Ceremony will be scheduled for a Sunday morning a few weeks down the road so as to give the Candidate time to invite whom He would like.

While I'm going through the process of Ordination, I am taking on the role of Associate Pastor, assisting the Senior Pastor in delivering the messages on occasion, assisting in the Lord's Supper and Baptisms, and making visitations to the new visitors, shut-ins, and hospitalized, and any other member who can't make it on a regular basis to church.

I won't be paid for this role as my church can't take on another payroll member, but I will be the Associate Pastor anyway.

Seminary?

[dead0man]

Congrats.

[Psychic Octopus]

Good luck!

[Lunar]

You do realize that you're asking an apatheist

I keep forgetting that there's another apatheist out there.  

http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Apatheism

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[Joe Republic]

It's not like Bushie is taking up an illicit activity.

Let's just be happy for him.....

Not illicit, no.  But I certainly see no reason to be happy for someone who will now semi-deliberately spread misinformation and fantasies from a supposed position of authority.

[Joe Republic]

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You do realize that you're asking an apatheist to compare details of your delusions with passages from an outdated work of (largely) fiction?  What exactly is the purpose of that, may I ask?

You may as well ask me to find an inconsistency between the entire mythos created by J.R.R. Tolkien, and a wonderful dream you had once.

Sorry, was I asking too much of your advanced knowledge?  Well, let me help you out; for, you see, when I object to what someone is saying, I can build point upon of point and make an argument, which helps to "moderate" my remarks and keeps it from becoming pure heckling, which in your case, would be quite unbecoming in your position as "Moderator".
 
So, by comparing my very detailed testimony with the remarks of scripture, we certainly can create a test in order to determine who is, and who is not, delusional.  If the details of my testimony don't align with scripture, then we can safely conclude I was delusional.  Conversely, if the details of my testimony do align with scripture, then we can conclude that you're being delusional in your dismissiveness...perhaps in an attempt to shield yourself from your inner fears concerning eternity.

So, without further ado, please demonstrate for us how my testimony did not align to scripture and therefore was merely delusional....
[/quote]

Apparently my analogy was entirely lost on you.  Not surprised.

I don't see the need to indulge your request, especially since it goes against the recommended treatment of people with your symptoms.

Nice try attempting to deflect this discussion onto me, by the way.  But given your irrelevance to the points at hand, I see no need to continue with you.  Also, I'm a little perturbed by your repeated claims of my "advanced knowledge".  I'll leave that assessment up to more qualified individuals, but you evidently misunderstood my usage of that term, as it was in relation to BushOK's new position.

[Joe Republic]

Ignore most of the people here.

Yes, I expect you're getting tired of being the only one this happens to.

[Joe Republic]

For the others of you getting on to Joe for making fun of me...  Lay off the man!!  I believe my Lord put his posts on this thread to strengthen my beliefs.

Thank you for implying that I'm some kind of puppet.  I govern my own actions, actually.

And this is mainly why I find your new position so disturbing.  You're going to be employing your faulty logic and fantastical beliefs to reinforce the intellectual inferiority of your followers.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

You do realize that you're asking an apatheist to compare details of your delusions with passages from an outdated work of (largely) fiction?  What exactly is the purpose of that, may I ask?

You may as well ask me to find an inconsistency between the entire mythos created by J.R.R. Tolkien, and a wonderful dream you had once.

Sorry, was I asking too much of your advanced knowledge?  Well, let me help you out; for, you see, when I object to what someone is saying, I can build point upon of point and make an argument, which helps to "moderate" my remarks and keeps it from becoming pure heckling, which in your case, would be quite unbecoming in your position as "Moderator".
 
So, by comparing my very detailed testimony with the remarks of scripture, we certainly can create a test in order to determine who is, and who is not, delusional.  If the details of my testimony don't align with scripture, then we can safely conclude I was delusional.  Conversely, if the details of my testimony do align with scripture, then we can conclude that you're being delusional in your dismissiveness...perhaps in an attempt to shield yourself from your inner fears concerning eternity.

So, without further ado, please demonstrate for us how my testimony did not align to scripture and therefore was merely delusional....

Apparently my analogy was entirely lost on you.  Not surprised.

I don't see the need to indulge your request, especially since it goes against the recommended treatment of people with your symptoms.

Nice try attempting to deflect this discussion onto me, by the way.  But given your irrelevance to the points at hand, I see no need to continue with you.  Also, I'm a little perturbed by your repeated claims of my "advanced knowledge".  I'll leave that assessment up to more qualified individuals, but you evidently misunderstood my usage of that term, as it was in relation to BushOK's new position.
[/quote]

i didn't misunderstand anything.  you mocked BushOK's lack of training, I pointed out that that was never God's criteria....then you attempted to provide a diagnosis to explain away my testimony, and I provided a clear test of that diagnosis, and you refuse to apply the test and now are deferring to more qualified individuals.

the point many of us in this thread are trying to make to you is that you're trollishly heckling without an argument.

[The Mikado]

Congratulations.  Good people taking community leadership positions is always a good thing.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

For the others of you getting on to Joe for making fun of me...  Lay off the man!!  I believe my Lord put his posts on this thread to strengthen my beliefs.

Thank you for implying that I'm some kind of puppet.  I govern my own actions, actually.

And this is mainly why I find your new position so disturbing.  You're going to be employing your faulty logic and fantastical beliefs to reinforce the intellectual inferiority of your followers.

Now I'm sure I had it right before my earlier post was summarily deleted.

[Joe Biden 2020]

For the others of you getting on to Joe for making fun of me...  Lay off the man!!  I believe my Lord put his posts on this thread to strengthen my beliefs.

Thank you for implying that I'm some kind of puppet.  I govern my own actions, actually.

And this is mainly why I find your new position so disturbing.  You're going to be employing your faulty logic and fantastical beliefs to reinforce the intellectual inferiority of your followers.

I wasn't implying you were a puppet.  Rather, I believe God works everything into His plans, but as humans, we have free will.  You used your free will to post what you did, and I believe that God merely used those posts to refine my beliefs and my calling.  Think of it as a parent using the words of another person to teach his child something.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

For the others of you getting on to Joe for making fun of me...  Lay off the man!!  I believe my Lord put his posts on this thread to strengthen my beliefs.

Thank you for implying that I'm some kind of puppet.  I govern my own actions, actually.

And this is mainly why I find your new position so disturbing.  You're going to be employing your faulty logic and fantastical beliefs to reinforce the intellectual inferiority of your followers.

I wasn't implying you were a puppet.  Rather, I believe God works everything into His plans, but as humans, we have free will.  You used your free will to post what you did, and I believe that God merely used those posts to refine my beliefs and my calling.  Think of it as a parent using the words of another person to teach his child something.

let me see if I have this straight...you're going to give God the glory for using the words of every jerk that comes along on an internet forum to strengthen your calling...as if wasting your time on an internet forum dovetails with the will of God for your training?

not sure that I would put much stock into that one unless you receive an explicit and direct revelation from God telling you that...in fact, truth be told, I would think you should reign in your imagination and that a better form of training (for all of us, pastors and laity alike) would be to drop the habit of this forum altogether for it certainly isnt productive.

[Joe Biden 2020]

For the others of you getting on to Joe for making fun of me...  Lay off the man!!  I believe my Lord put his posts on this thread to strengthen my beliefs.

Thank you for implying that I'm some kind of puppet.  I govern my own actions, actually.

And this is mainly why I find your new position so disturbing.  You're going to be employing your faulty logic and fantastical beliefs to reinforce the intellectual inferiority of your followers.

I wasn't implying you were a puppet.  Rather, I believe God works everything into His plans, but as humans, we have free will.  You used your free will to post what you did, and I believe that God merely used those posts to refine my beliefs and my calling.  Think of it as a parent using the words of another person to teach his child something.

let me see if I have this straight...you're going to give God the glory for using the words of every jerk that comes along on an internet forum to strengthen your calling...as if wasting your time on an internet forum dovetails with the will of God for your training?

not sure that I would put much stock into that one unless you receive an explicit and direct revelation from God telling you that...in fact, truth be told, I would think you should reign in your imagination and that a better form of training (for all of us, pastors and laity alike) would be to drop the habit of this forum altogether for it certainly isnt productive.

I don't take much stock in internet forum advice, but I also believe God can use whomever and whatever He wants, when He wants.

You're right, I probably shouldn't be on the forum, but I still love politics and thus I'll stick around!!  The challenge for me is going to be keeping politics away from the pulpit and not let it influence my sermons one way or the other.  I can relay facts, but not the opinions that are associated with politics.  I will disagree that this forum is not productive.  It has helped me further discover what I believe politically and get to know other opinions out there from all across the political spectrum and all over the globe.  This will help me relate current events and different cultures in my sermons, again without the opinions.  There is one thing I definitely cannot do behind the pulpit and that is urge my congregation to vote for a particular candidate or issue or question.  I can, and should, urge them to vote, because it is our Civil Duty as Christians, but I can't advocate a particular candidate or point of view.  If I do, I risk costing my church its tax-exempt status.

[Kaine for Senate '18]

Congratulations.  Good people taking community leadership positions is always a good thing.

Exactly.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

You're right, I probably shouldn't be on the forum.

Well, obviously my advice was hypocritical...this forum is addicting