Topics

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General Discussion / Sanctification

« on: May 03, 2023, 08:44:53 AM »

Sanctification seems almost inevitable regardless of what my worldly body actually wants to do. I spent a few days last week relapsing into old unhealthy habits and was living very materialistically and not giving myself to studying God's word. I think a lot of it stemmed from feelings of pride and thinking that I could partake in some of the worldly distractions around me, like there was something that I was missing out on. After just a few days of living like this I felt lower than I ever had in the past. I was left with no choice but to sanctify myself from this way of living since I felt so low. It was hard to even pray sometimes because I felt like such a hypocrite. I just thought I would post this because I believe the only thing which brought me out of this was having a repentant heart throughout the whole ordeal. I kept praying for more repentance and I believe it was given to me. I just wanted to say that this teaching on repentance being Godly sorrow has been absolutely monumental in how I tackle my life. I had repentance even before I learned about it's true meaning but to have it clearly explained has really allowed me to make sense of what I knew to be true vs what I was being told in bible study. Thanks

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General Discussion / Helping people after suicide attempt

« on: April 17, 2023, 02:59:05 PM »

I just had someone very close to me attempt suicide. I have been praying but I also know from my own experience that these are sometimes the things that people go through that bring them low and humble them enough to find God and be brought to repentance. If anyone in the the church has experience with these situations and has any scripture I may be able to use to help them through this it would be appreciated. I understand from my own experience that these suicidal tendencies come from a selfish place, and I want to be able to provide them with the message that they need to hear, not necessarily the one that is easiest to hear because I love this person and I want to help them.

Thanks

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General Discussion / Dietary laws and parasites

« on: April 16, 2023, 11:19:25 PM »

Having gotten into naturopathy prior to ever reading the bible, I couldn't help but to notice the correlation between the dietary laws of the bible and the dietary laws that I had already been abiding by through practicing naturopathy. Specifically the idea of avoiding foods high in toxins and parasites.

The physiology of some birds, animals and fish is such that their flesh is not fit for consumption. This includes carnivorous birds without a crop, animals which don't chew cud or have a cloven (split) hoof, and fish without fins or scales. All animals which eat other animals are unclean. Camels have a high level of toxins in their bloodstream, caused by retaining their body fluids rather than sweating. Rodents have a poor thermo-regulator and their enzymes are unstable, resulting in intestinal fermentation, as well as high parasitic load. Their meat is very acidic, predisposing to disease. Rabbits are coprophagous, meaning that they eat their own feces, and the levels of toxins and parasites in their bodies are much higher than acceptable for human consumption. All rodents and the horse are the same. Pigs have very high histamine levels and sulfur content. Pigs also have a high level of bacterial contamination of salmonella, other harmful bacteria and parasites. These are just a couple of brief points. Fish without fins and scales are either scavengers or carnivores and have a high level of toxins and parasites in their bodies. Urea in sharks and other fish gives these creatures a distinctive flavor but the flesh is not healthful in the diet.

I can only speak for my own experiences with parasitism and toxins, but when I began to eliminate foods such as pork and shellfish, it was a night and day difference in terms of my "mental health." Coupled with frequent antiparasitic protocols such turpentine cleanses and fasting, I was able to completely eliminate what doctors had labeled as schizoaffective disorder, which I honestly could only describe as feeling like I had a demon in me. I have some lofty ideas about parasitism and it's role in the bible but I also don't have anything concrete to back them up besides my own experiences. I know of some people that believe parasites are a physical manifestation of demons. I have had people tell me that they treated conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar, and homosexuality through treating parasites.

I also couldn't help but to remember the story in Matthew where Jesus cast the demons out of the men into the pigs, which then ran down the hill and drowned themselves. This also stuck out to me when I first read it because there have been parasites which will cause animals to drown themselves to infect the water supply and complete their life cycle.

It would make sense that God would put so much emphasis on cleanliness in the bible because humans are the only mammals which don't produce vitamin C naturally which leads us extremely susceptible to parasitic and bacterial infection. Even things like drinking alcohol can lead people susceptible to parasites.

Obviously God has the utmost authority to heal and healing from my ailments would not have been possible without his mercy. I also don't want to push this into conspiracy territories and these are not ideas that I am married to because salvation is not dependent upon figuring out why parasites exist. Maybe this is me just being an overly curious new Christian, I'm not sure, but it just seems to me that parasites are unlike anything else in God's creation, and from what I have seen in my own life, they were capable of influencing my past behavior just like a demon possessed person the bible would have been described. If anyone has ever heard of anything like this before or ever thought of these things before, let me know. If anyone thinks this is way off the mark, also let me know. I have more ideas about this from the testimonies I have seen from others but at the risk of getting too out there with it I'll just leave it at that.
Thanks

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General Discussion / Effects of your faith on personal and professional life

« on: April 13, 2023, 04:25:37 PM »

What did the very beginning (roughly 1-2 years) of the members born again journey look like?  What were some of the biggest struggles you experienced when trying to evangilize to people with christian backgrounds vs people with no knowledge of the bible? What effects did your faith have on your personal and professional life? No one has to answer all of these but I ask out of curiosity because my personal and professional life have been shifted extensively since I was born again. This is especially true in the last 4 months.

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Introduce Yourself / What a journey

« on: April 04, 2023, 11:21:31 PM »

After lurking for the last week or so I decided that introducing myself couldn't hurt.

I was raised in the church but was never really armed with any tools past Sunday school defenses for my faith. I really don't know if I could call it faith as much as it was appeasing my family. At the age of 9 I was put on addictive medications which was the kicking off point of 16 year struggle with addiction. My early to mid 20's became a constant cycle of homelessness, jail, and halfway houses, sprinkled with every form of degeneracy imaginable. at my absolute worst in 2021 I was living on the streets of LA in a tent city, making company with the lowest of the lows, myself no better than those I associated with.

Eventually I got clean in a state insurance rehab in Riverside county. For the first time I decided to do it without the "assistance" of the typical mental health medication cocktail. However upon leaving I immediately relapsed and was ran over by a car in the street.

My severe injuries left me mostly bed ridden. Luckily my parents agreed to allow me to live with them in Baltimore while I healed, under the agreement that I would be out as soon as I was better. However, without mental health medications I felt more alive than I ever had. This led to a slow but steady sparking interest into naturopathic health remedies (ie. proper diet). With all the time in the world I spiraled off into 4chan "redpilled" ideologies and let it take me in all kinds of wild direction. I feel like any conspiracy journey taken to its natural conclusion can only end in tragedy or a faith in Christ. I was fortunate enough to fall into the later. One night sitting in a basement, the evidence for Christ had tipped the scale in my brain and I came to believe and repented for my sins. It was the an immediate white light experience followed by the sensation as if I was being filled up with water, no description could do it justice.

My familiarity with scripture at the time was flimsy at best, and early on I ran with a lot of incorrect beliefs about what it meant to be a Christian. I began to devour information within scripture as well as online resources to help guide me in my journey. I still make many mistakes and I constantly have to readjust my stances on issues and repent as God continues to reveal things to me through scripture and experience. Now when I fall to sin however, I don't roll around in it till I am forced to change by outside forces. I can identify where I went wrong, repent, and continue to recommit myself to life in the lord.

While life now presents a new set of struggles, they are beautiful and rewarding. I have the chance to help those in my life as well as show up and be of value to those who need me.

Thank you for the website and the information you provide Christopher, you don't see many sites like these around now adays.

God Bless,
Luke