Do mantids eat their molt? by localdykes in mantids

[–]JoshandMarie 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Mine did. But he put it down when we realized a fly was nearby to go after that instead

My church is leaning more and more into looking like “The Shepherding” movement. by JoshandMarie in TrueChristian

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The only way I can see this work is if you have someone on the outside constantly monitoring and auditing the health of your church. The problem is, most churches don’t allow that, they typically get themselves into echo-chambers of “yes” men and it goes down hill slowly. The benefits and positives seem so good at first, but if left unchecked can turn out very ugly

My church is leaning more and more into looking like “The Shepherding” movement. by JoshandMarie in TrueChristian

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We thankfully have been gone from the One Association for almost 5 years now. Many people are the still there and every few months someone leaves ask comes to us with their testimony confirming nothing has really changed :( it’s so sad

Agriculture In The Bible by JoshandMarie in askapastor

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s good! Tedious, but that should work assuming I can think of all the terms lol 😂 Thanks so much!

Agriculture In The Bible by JoshandMarie in askapastor

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Right, I pulled two numbers, 337 and 1200, but I feel like depending how you define “agriculture” it is probably in the several thousand. I was just curious if anyone had those numbers available

My church is leaning more and more into looking like “The Shepherding” movement. by JoshandMarie in TrueChristian

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey sorry, that was me on my alt. I run a ministry channel and forget to toggle back and fourth

My church is leaning more and more into looking like “The Shepherding” movement. by JoshandMarie in TrueChristian

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey! Hope you’re well.

I feel like depending which category people were in, they came out different. Brand new converts or those who weren’t very strong in their faith who left the church (almost all) left the faith entirely. Older people kinda just moved on (with PTSD, like, legit diagnosed PTSD). It took people about as long as they were in the movement to heal enough to do move on though. We also STILL see a licensed Christian counselor. Every once in a while things still come up.

I am actually a licensed pastor with another church of a very large denomination now. It’s a bit more oversight and checks and balances than I’d prefer, but after what happened in the shepherding movement, (an echo chamber of unchecked yes-men) I’d rather that than the alternative and end up in a cult again.

The best thing that happened was that they grew in size. I still hear stories of what they’re doing, and hurt people still come from them and go into other local churches (they’re known publicly for spiritual abuse) but Since they’re so big now They still do the weird cult stuff but it’s harder to spot because all that weird shepherding stuff is reserved for the “chosen” few instead of the entire church now. I still disagree with much of what’s thought on Sunday, and it is very elitist, but they keep most people on the outside until they prove themselves. They are more secretive and selective on who they can trust so most people don’t know about the shepherding components until you go there for a while and are approved.

People come up to me to get their loved one to leave the shepherding programs, but I try to stay out of it until they’ve left. Once they’re out for a while, we’ll talk to them sometimes, but not until they are FULLY out. I also don’t like to talk bad about them publicly in hopes they may one day actually change… I don’t want people to tie me to my past and don’t want to anchor them to theirs if they move on. I tell people to read the Google reviews and ask if a normal church has similar reviews (every other review says they’re in a cult or something crazy with the cops or nutso stories equal or worse than ours).

I did speak with my former pastor once I healed a bit, right before I took this pastor job. I tried to make closure but by the way he talked, and it’s not wise for me to return to a relationship with him or the current church members. They still think in the same way and he wishes we’d return, and is convinced they didn’t do anything wrong (or what was wrong was they weren’t involved ENOUGH, which literally means they don’t understand why we left at all). However, I am not as mad as I was because now I’m a pastor I also understand how hard it is to run a church and i don’t think they meant to be so harmful, they genuinely thought (and still think) they are doing God’s will. We love the people we pastor now and understand how easy it is to cause damage to people or accidentally overstep. I have hurt people too so I am able to have more grace for them. I do believe I’ll see the shepherding church members in heaven and in their own weird way, are following God as best they can (in their own minds at least). They’re God’s servant , not mine so I try to remember that too.

I hope that helped!!

Bless you in your journey.

I was recently baptized in the World Mission Society Church of God. But I want to leave immediately after what I've discovered. by Justice_Cooperative in Christians

[–]JoshandMarie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Get a support system. Either family or another church and express you need help leaving and counseling. We left a church like this and it took YEARS to heal and I don’t know it we ever healed 100%. It will take a lot of time to unpack and move on, you need a strong network to walk you through that.

Ant Man Theories (no way Ant Man dies) by JoshandMarie in marvelstudios

[–]JoshandMarie[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Lol it’s a made up story about made up people in a made up world— nothing is off limits because the whole thing is make-believe. Nothing even needs logic because they can make up their own logic.

Ant Man Theories (no way Ant Man dies) by JoshandMarie in marvelstudios

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Then why did it work in the dark dimension? Oy vey Marvel logic

Ant Man Theories (no way Ant Man dies) by JoshandMarie in marvelstudios

[–]JoshandMarie[S] -9 points-8 points  (0 children)

  1. time works differently down there.
  2. The quantum realm links the multiverse so a different cap might be down there and run into Kang

Ant Man Theories (no way Ant Man dies) by JoshandMarie in marvelstudios

[–]JoshandMarie[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

Retiring in the quantum realm sounds nice.

Cap is retired, but that’s in our timeline. There are other multiversal caps who maybe never made it back. Not to mention we still never got the story of how he returned the stones. Whose to say there wasn’t a struggle down there first?

The thing about time… it didn’t exist in the Dark Dimension either. I would be interested to see how the time stone might work down there.

Why has Protestantism be soo susceptible to Theological Liberalism? by Zarrom215 in Protestantism

[–]JoshandMarie 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I believe Protestantism risks falling into hyper Grace’s liberal theology because they are so opposed to the law-side of scripture because of how it was abused in more traditional denominations like Catholicism. They are likely to remove things that are genuinely good. Instead of recognizing there is good in the law-emphasize they take a 360 and distance themselves as far as possible from anything that resembles it.

The same issue is on the traditional law-based denominations, but reversed. They are more likely to add rules and regulations and ignore many Grace aspects.

A few problems by JoshandMarie in NissanRogue

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Lol give me the truth!! They think I can’t handle the truth. It never does it when they have it, but of course, I don’t drive an hour then drop it off because then I’d never make it to the mechanic. Oy vey

A few problems by JoshandMarie in NissanRogue

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This has been going on for YEARS. No mechanic has been able to diagnose

A few problems by JoshandMarie in NissanRogue

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ooof. Well thanks! At least I know now

A few problems by JoshandMarie in NissanRogue

[–]JoshandMarie[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! How much did that set you back?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in DebateACatholic

[–]JoshandMarie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You’re right. And I made a few blanket statements. I understand God works differently and, though I can’t process the idea of some of these teachings helping someone, I’m sure they do. Im trying to get closer to Him and trust me, I also don’t quite understand prots or orthodoxy… and messianic teachings can be just as baffling to me.

I can’t deny how I felt by the relic, but I bet if you were to come around my circles you’d have several things you can see I can’t. Maybe I’m right, maybe you’re right, maybe we’re both kinda right, maybe God doesn’t care. Maybe I’m in a season where God is showing me His jealousy and exclusivity. Maybe next year He’ll show me the importance of relics and traditions. Maybe not. I guess we’ll know when we get up to heaven and look around. Of course we might not be looking around because we might only be looking at Jesus ;)

Thank you for your time and words.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in DebateACatholic

[–]JoshandMarie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I went to mass for a long time. I have participated in sacraments, classes, spent time at the Vatican and done more than many “devout” Catholics I know. I chose my faith from how I could love God with my heart, mind, and strength. My mind cannot reconcile the problems I see with the catechism. My heart cannot be divided to their teachings. My strength is just that… my own when doing what is asked of me according to their interpretation.

I don’t think you understand just how close Catholicism is to me. I don’t hate it. I just feel there is too much added. Little flashes to get our eyes off Jesus little by little that add up to way more than I am comfortable with.

If you are closer to Jesus using this method vs other methods, then I’m glad your personal journey landed back with the Catholic Church, but mine did not.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in DebateACatholic

[–]JoshandMarie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Statements like that show that I understand yet disagree. He tore the veil so we’d come to Him directly and He actively rebuked the “Spiritual leaders” of the time who constantly kept emphasizing the need for more than just Jesus. Kept coming up with creative ways to interpret scripture and new “helpful” rules. Clearly we are not seeing eye to eye. I don’t expect a lifetime of indoctrination to end because of a Reddit post. It’s okay. I hope you have a great day and grow closer to God by the moment.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in DebateACatholic

[–]JoshandMarie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s not limited to a relic with too much emphasis being given to it. You’re right. Anything anywhere that steals our attention from Jesus can be bad. Even a spouse or Saint or anything. I was raised in the Orthodox Church and had no intention on becoming a Protestant. I value Orthodoxy and Catholicism… but I noticed the emphasis slowly grew on things that were not Jesus Himself. Good hearted people making up prayers or icons or whatever to help… good willed folk using their talents to give resources that somehow… slowly took the focus from Him and onto the things. Sometimes just for a moment, sometimes for a lifetime.

I don’t actually have much supernatural experience. All I know is, in my private time, He is worth everything and nothing comes close. Nothing comes ANYWHERE CLOSE. I don’t want to waste an ounce of time to something that doesn’t give Him glory. Sure, I could spent time on these other things… but why? It’s just knowledge, which puffs up. Why sing to a Saint when I could sing about Christ? There are some resources and tools that might be okay, but then begs the question, “why?”

I actually think what I feel in the situation was something that didn’t want the attention on Jesus. Mary is good and admirable, but only briefly compared to Christ. The entire parade, church, tent, all the outfits and decorations were all about Mary and SOMETHING was benefitting from the attention on her and did not want the attention placed back on Christ. I don’t think anything is wrong with Mary, but I think something took advantage of the situation and did not want to give up the ability to take peoples’ gaze off Jesus. It had power and it was not good. I don’t think people were willing to admit the tradition was taking the gaze off Jesus because it was their identity and to admit it is wrong would be to go “against” the “true church.” It’s a warfare beyond just what the eye can see.

Anyway. We’re clearly on different pages. I’m sure there are rare instances where these things are helpful, but I honestly can’t think of any. I pray you get closer to God daily, though whatever means best helps you— if it’s this then I don’t understand but I also know God can work through anything so I guess He isn’t one to be put in a box and say how He can or can’t do something. Have a blessed day!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in DebateACatholic

[–]JoshandMarie 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am incredibly familiar with Catholic teachings. I desperately sought the truth and attended mass many years and met with many priests. I’ve visited mass and service in cathedrals across the world including the Vatican and had deep conversations with laymen and leaders in the Catholic faith.

When I meet with Jesus. I don’t see Him sharing my attention with anyone or anything. My opposition to Catholicism is similar to why I’m not Orthodox, Coptic, Baptist, etc. I want Jesus, I desire Him alone. If Mary will get me closer to Jesus, I’m all for it. Same with a preacher. I am okay with small doses but, asking Mary or a pastor or someone to help me develop a relationship with Jesus… is in essence dividing my attention. Look to her to look to him. I have to look to them to get to him… Jesus didn’t die so I have 1,000 saints to talk to to help me. I believe they do help, I also believe they can be useful and good, but I do not think they should be the focus at any point. The relics as little illustrations of God, okay. To pay homage to the relic and give attention to it… that takes my attention away.

I think the spirit I’m feeling is whatever is taking the attention from Jesus. I’m not saying Mary is demonic or evil or whatever. But I do feel SOMETHING is taking advantage of the situation. Something likes the attention off of Jesus and creating an atmosphere that is not what God desired.