Many are the thoughts of the flesh

A little somethings extra is often I think just because many can think only of what they know, that that is al there is to know. So and so is so smart he knows everything. Everything is only what they know. We only know what God wants us to know. It is called an epiphany, a sudden awareness of a truth no one ever heard tell of before. It inspires a strong sudden unquestioned belief. 

Peter walked on water as long as
he believed as Jesus believed

It is so compelling that it is not questioned. They will even risk their lives against the majority and are eventually often martyred as prophets. A prophet is someone who knows the future and predicts the future. Correctly it is later recognized. If they were not correct then they are a called false prophets, over taken by the seen world. My key word here is epiphany which first arose surrounded by the appearance of Jesus, known as the Christ. 

Belief Both Great & Small

Only Way to Obtain Greater Faith

Agreeing with an emotional subjective sermon does not quite make any great faith in my sense of things. Sometimes the name of Jesus nor anyone else is ever even mentioned as I noted earlier.

But emotion is power even so, when abused in one/s views just the same. This thread is "maybe" finished when a headline is fixed. 

The only way to gain greater faith or even faith at all. is to read the Bible. This is said clearly and simply in the Bible itself. I would only add that one should read often and to reread a list of one's favorite verses over and over, studying them and meditating on them, taking them in, and enjoying them emotionally. 

stumbling blocks to faith

I am dealing lately with several chestnuts that occupy those who cannot bridge their gap to a belief in God. Chestnuts like the problem with suffering, the problem with stupidity and many other similar arenas where atheists stumble and cannot believe in God. The reason, in my view, is that they define God, this most commonly undefined in virtually every case, as being a God totally in charge, as being totally in control and therefore being responsible as the creator of evil in all of evil's manifestations.

I am taking a different tack in my approach to the definition of God. For instance, as I read Genesis it never occurred to me that it differed with views on evolution. In fact. I thought it merely the same view couched in more beautiful very poetical language. Later it occurred to me that the untechnical approach of the time was spiritual in that it did not follow the letter of the story but rather the spirit of the story.

Now we all, mostly all I think, know that we cannot express an opinion about someone or anything else, without revealing a great deal about ourselves in the exercise. Expressing process cannot help but do reveal as much or even more about ourselves than about the subject we are talking about. The same is true as well about myself.

My approach is from an individualist view and I recognize an entirely different approach from opposing views, all from a group orientation to existence, therefore to God, and almost entirely a collectivist approach to the entire issue.

All my life, from a very early age, I saw this over and over again. I would say something to the effect that the differing person did not understand or address the basic premise of what I was talking about. 'Oh no' they would argue, I understand perfectly. But if I then asked the most simple of questions they would bungle the subject up into such a ball of various strings all tied together that I gave up.
And so I return in my final all too brief years to leave my view for a final consideration for those who can handle it not so intuitively and emotionally.  Thread will be edited and expanded in the Memorist.

faith the most vital

Believing is not so easy as just saying one believes and the only way to please God is through faith. The only way to gain faith found in the Bible is to diligently reread the word constantly until it is down deep in your spirit. By the same token, listening to the recorded word I find even more startling effective. The method can be used for any message whether evil or good. It does not matter. So I have to be sharply aware of time and what may be clogging up my spiritual arteries. Specific Theory of Existence