rcd@opus.UUCP (Dick Dunn) (04/18/84)
<> In reply to Steven Crane (speaking about "surrender to God"): >I wish to address Dick Dunn`s remark, "did you really mean 'surrender' as in >'give oneself up to an enemy'?"... >In a nutshell, you bet your life that that`s what "surrender" means. God >is a terribly powerful enemy... OK, fine. It's been said more than once that one can be judged by one's enemies. I am deeply honored to have such a redoubtable foe... >...the war against God cannot be won... ...nor lost! >...Still, if we don`t let God have His will with us we >let Satan have his will with us... I'm glad it's so simple for some of you. >...bear in mind that Satan hasn`t the slightest >bit of respect for anyone except himself.. That's OK. I have not an iota of respect for Satan, either. >...In fact, he enjoys your >suffering, if it can be said that he enjoys anything. Will you folks pay attention?! I'm not suffering. >Yes, surrender means laying down your will and giving up. The good part >of it is that God won`t abandon you afterwards. He has plans for each and >every one of us... Great - a God who created me for his own purposes. Sorry, I've got my own plans for myself. >Set out on your own, and you won`t go very far without erring... Steven, this is dead wrong, but it's exactly where you've gotten yourself by trying to make do on faith a little too often. Set out on your own, and don't be so afraid of erring. With a little real experience, you won't err so often and you'll recognize your errors sooner. Acting as an independent being IS a little scary at first, but you can come to enjoy it. (I mean "enjoy" in the sense of fulfillment, not hedonism.) >Surrender, Mr. Dunn? You already have. The trouble is that the enemy >who holds you now holds you in contempt. He wants to see you squirm. >You are one of God`s creatures, and once you get that straight you will >realize that what you call surrender is really a call for help... No, I don't surrender. Nobody gets to see me squirm just right yet. And let's YOU get something straight - if I DID accept a God, it wouldn't be the demanding/dominant/arrogant God you have painted in your response. That's not Christ speaking through you, Steven...it's your ego, trying desperately to make me feel an outcast, or inferior, or misguided. -- ...Are you making this up as you go along? Dick Dunn {hao,ucbvax,allegra}!nbires!rcd (303) 444-5710 x3086