Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire God will protect the congreation from corona

Christianity is the only religion I'm aware of that guarantees pain and suffering.

But it also says the suffering doesn't have to be in vain.

It worked out great. Catholics were the only ones tending to the sick.

To say that God will protect you from disease is one of the most foolhardy things I've heard. He may, He may not. To say that He will as a fact implies that through all the plagues, epidemics and pandemics no Christians died. That would be a foolish belief.

What God does is encourage you through the ordeal. Faith implies lack of fear. That does not mean you take foolish risks but act wisely. It does not mean you fail to prepare, it means you don't act out of fear and panic as you do so. Who panics, yes, it's someone racked with fear.

I make wise choices because I am saved and am not oppressed and overwhelmed by fear. That also means that if I die, or a loved one dies, I don't fear it. I don't fear death. "Oh death, where is thy sting?" Do I feel sorrow that they are out of my life? Of course, but I know that is sorrow for myself.

God does not provide a detour most times, he provides an escort.

You can say what you will about the foolishness of this sort of bravado but those who are attacking his sincerity I think have it all wrong.

I applaud his courage of conviction. He is right there in the assembly taking as much risk as anyone else.

Anyone who is of this “word of faith” persuasion and isn’t continuing to meet should reassess what they claim to believe IMO.

These folks, misguided as they are, are matching their practice with their confession. Gotta admire that.

"All of Israel will be saved"

Yep but it wasn’t because they believed God granted them immunity it was because their faith allowed them to se that there is something beyond physical death that can give a person strength to serve in these sorts of circumstances.

We could learn a lot from them on that point.

Yes, they died in droves. They knew their likely fate too but helped others anyway. That some miracles may/may not have happened was beside their point.

Never admired stupidity. The aforementioned preacher is daring his flock to come together and share a potentially lethal pathogen. One which they will then spread to the community at large.

At least Jim Jones and David Koresh kept the death toll within the congregation.

Hey, if the whole congregation wants to lock itself inside their church until they all die of starvation or pestilence, I have no problem with it. It is when they bring it out on the street that I have an issue.

The fact that they take their minor children in with them is a different topic.

Creflo needs his dollars

Wrote this last week. I give my permission for all to use where needed..........



My friends - as best I can tell, this virus crisis is real. It is true that there have been fraudulent finger pointing and scare mongering, but the threat to our health and our economy is real. The 1918 pandemic with an estimated one third of the world population contracting the virus and 10% of those ending in a very *miserable* death should be on our minds. I don't mean to suggest that it will be that bad this time, but it is bad enough that we should do what we reasonably can.

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-pandemic-h1n1.html

What we currently know is that there is no stopping this virus from spreading. But what we can do, and what it appears our government is trying to get us to help doing, is to slow the infection to a manageable level. If we do not do our part, it is a given that our medical facilities and supplies will be overwhelmed. What that means is not only will there not be enough care for those with the covid19 virus, but other unrelated illnesses and injuries will be neglected by necessity through triage.

I'm going to try to say this as gently and respectfully as I can. These times we face are sure to show who among us are the loving members of our communities and who are the selfish. Those who are saying "not my problem" for whatever reason are being selfish and short sighted.

I find it distressing that so many are willing to risk the lives and fortunes of others rather than participate in a temporary change of habits. No one is asking anyone to change what they're doing forever (well, okay - except better hygiene in general). If we can't pause or modify for a few weeks or months our usual elective activities to slow the spread while the health care system gets ahead of it, what kind of people are we? Even if we don't believe it's real, what harm is there in acting as if it is - minus the panic? How can we have the total disregard for the well-being of others that would lead us to roll the dice on the possibility that every news source and every health care professional is lying to us?

This is not about you and it's not about me. It's about all of us and all whom we love....and others we may never meet. We are sure to learn more about what we should and should not be doing as time progresses, but for right now, we need to keep to ourselves as much as possible. Yeah - that means avoiding all non-essential large group activities. And we must make extra effort to practice good hygiene. (I know *I* can do better )

Now, I know I'm maybe going to ruffle some feathers, but I'm going to insist that this includes religious gatherings. Before anyone brings up analogies of forces that keep people from worshiping in groups indefinitely, let me just say - these are all bad analogies and don't have any relevance. This is a temporary thing that is reasonable and prudent *for the good of others*. My fellow Christians, I do not believe that the Lord is going to punish you for not attending church services so as to slow the progress of this pandemic. If that is *your* belief, I urge you to start fresh your Biblical studies. Do not let your heart be imprisoned by dogma or legalism.

I am open to any real discussion of why I may be wrong, but you better come prepared with iron-clad argument. "God will protect us" won't fly. Besides the fact that it is not about you or "us"; it's about everyone you don't know....there is this from Luke 4....

9 The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. 10 For it is written:

“‘He will command his angels concerning you
to guard you carefully;
11 they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”

12 Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

I will contend that insisting on gathering at this time compares pretty reasonably with throwing yourself (or your brother) off a high place. It is neither necessary, nor wise. No one can stop you from worshiping your God on your own. Besides - this isn't China and it isn't more than temporary.

I want to stress again.....this too shall pass. It's not about a vain attempt to "stop" the virus (common misstatements aside). It's about slowing it and spreading it over time to make it manageable. Odds are, about half of us are going to get it - maybe more. Let's not all do it at once. Let's think about others.

Feel free to share, or copy and post.

Peace be with you all.

Except hiding prevents herd immunity from developing.

Everyone in low risk groups who do not regularly contact high risk persons should contract this to build herd immunity. That will save lives.

Well, Sour, it sure as heck wont be those progressive lieberal dimocraps.

Apparently some people do choose to not use their given intelligence to best advantage (brain farts don't count) , choosing to exercise an IQ of 70 out of 100 available, but....

"Foolish" should have been the word used and meant in the strictest sense. Assuming the good pastor and his minions are of reasonable intelligence of course.

One wonders.

This guy and his cheering congregation reminds me of a former Darwin Award winner.

Out on a lake in an aluminum boat when a storm came up, he stood up in the bow, stretched his arms out wide and shouted "Lord, take me!"

The guy running the motor survived the lightening strike.

Herd immunity is as effective when acquired over six months as when acquired over two months.

The buses and trains are still running here. Got to get the cleaning lady over to dust you know.
We went to church last Sunday, the turn out is so low we can sit 10+ ft away from each other. I think its worth the risk. Our preacher has no problem with politics in the pulpit and that alone can make my heart sing. I can take the physical church or leave it however my wife needs it, so as long as we can we will attend. They are working on live streaming so folks that can't go or are scared to can watch from home.
No serpent lickers but they sure love to glad hand at every opportunity, I point my elbow at them.
Life will go on for most but some will die. Just like every other day that rolls around, sometimes it just speeds up a bit.

The point is to not all get it at once. It will spread through the herd without your help.

My idea is to keep the country from going bankrupt.

I’m your guardian angel and I’m here to tell you if you don’t step away from the computer and get some fresh air you’re going to have a heart attack. Stop your sodium intake. You have high blood pressure,

Love,

ENSO 💕

Attending church is going to bankrupt the country?

When you consider the report that one man in New York infected 137 others (IIRC) with the virus, it is something to consider strongly.

But I think Tyrone is one who wishes for us all to carry on as usual. Damn the torpedoes, or the death toll, full speed ahead.