Posts by Cold Steel

28

Revelation, It's Grand Climax at Hand

by Cold Steel in

it's a rather large red book.. if i wanted to purchase one from a pioneer, how much would it cost?.

i'm reading a borrowed copy now.. thanks!.

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Cold Steel

It's a rather large red book.

If I wanted to purchase one from a Pioneer, how much would it cost?

I'm reading a borrowed copy now.

Thanks!

25

should christains own cats?

by unstopableravens in

is it appropriate for a christian to own a cat, in light of their past pagan religious affiliation and the medical information that is now coming to light?

it would be misleading to answer this question with either a simple yes or a no.

the scriptural answer of necessity must be a qualified one, and it is easy to see why.

Most other domesticated animals instinctively like cats...especially kittens. When mothers of kittens die, or vanish, it usually doesn't take a kitten long to find a new "mom" and worm their ways into a family (animal or human). Dogs like kittens, horses like them, monkeys and apes like them. Even Governing Body members reputably like them (invisibly, of course).

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25

should christains own cats?

by unstopableravens in

is it appropriate for a christian to own a cat, in light of their past pagan religious affiliation and the medical information that is now coming to light?

it would be misleading to answer this question with either a simple yes or a no.

the scriptural answer of necessity must be a qualified one, and it is easy to see why.

Cold Steel

32

Raised On the Third Day?

by TTATTelder in

i have some potentially controversial questions.. i have always wondered about these things in the back of my mind, but i would immediately dismiss them.

now i am giving myself permission to explore them further.... a lot of attention is given to how big the sacrifice was on the part of jesus and god when jesus laid down his life.

as the story goes, jesus gave his life for our sins and then was miraculously raised back to life a couple of days later.. consider this.

Cold Steel

The tragedy behind the Savior's suffering is that he, being perfect, was subjected to what no other man could have suffered, or endured. Certainly, there were many in Jesus' day who died a horrible death on the cross; however, Jesus' most severe suffering began in the Garden. Both the fall of man and his redemption began in a garden. And though no one knows the extent of what he suffered, he had to take upon himself the sins of this entire world. This means that in some way we don't understand, he experienced everything...every sickness, every infirmity, every emotional and physical woe suffered by every man, woman and child since the Earth began; thus, no one can ever say they suffered more because he suffered your afflictions.

He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. (Isaiah 53)

As many see it, the Lord took upon himself the ills of mankind to such an extent that his suffering was more than any mortal could have withstood. By the time he was arrested, he had gone through much of his suffering; a suffering that caused him to shake with pain and bleed from every pore. In the Discourse on the Abbaton, a very old work, we see just how bad the suffering was said to have been:

And [the Father] heaved sighs over [Messiah], saying, 'If I put breath into this [man], he must suffer many pains.’ And I said unto My Father, ‘Put breath into him; I will be an advocate for him.’ And My Father said unto Me, ‘If I put breath into him, My beloved Son, Thou wilt be obliged to go down into the world, and to suffer many pains for him before Thou shalt have redeemed him, and made him to come back to his primal state.’ And I said unto My Father, ‘Put breath into him; I will be his advocate, and I will go down into the world, and will fulfil Thy command.’” (Ernest A. Wallis Budge, Coptic Martyrdoms (London: British Museum, 1914))

According to this text, the Messiah's mission will be one of extreme anguish:

There are souls that have been put away with thee under My throne, and it is their sins which will bend thee down under a yoke of iron and make thee like a calf whose eyes grow dim with suffering, and will choke thy spirit as with a yoke; because of the sins of these souls thy tongue will cleave to the roof of my mouth. Art thou willing to endure such things?

The Messiah will ask the Holy One, blessed be He: Will my suffering last many years?

The Holy One, blessed be He, will reply: Upon thy life and the life of My head, it is a period of seven years which I have decreed for thee. But if thy soul is sad at the prospect of thy suffering, I shall at this moment banish these sinful souls.

The Messiah will say: Master of the universe, with joy in my soul and gladness in my heart I take this suffering upon myself, provided that not one person in Israel perish; that not only those who are alive be saved in my days, but that also those who are dead, who died from the days of Adam up to the time of redemption; and that not only these be saved in my days, but also those who died as abortions; and that not only these be saved in my days, but all those whom Thou thoughtest to create [evidently as mortals] but were not created. Such are the things I desire, and for these I am ready to take upon myself [whatever Thou decreest].

The suffering and death of the Messiah was required for our salvation, and even God himself could not change that (despite what the Muslims think). The reason is that God must balance Justice with Compassion. His compassion brought about the redemption, but it was not an easy measure for either the Father or Son because of the suffering that was required, which had to be a power of a God, perfect in every way. So it wasn't the death that they drew back from, but the intense suffering that was of concern.

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1

I Want Money $$$

by Cold Steel in

something unique from 1979.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gzjm-6yuqc .

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Cold Steel

Something unique from 1979.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gzjm-6yUQc

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139

Ever consider joining The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

by rawe in

has anyone here left jehovah's witnesses to join the churuch of jesus christ of latter-day saints?

what was your motivation for doing so and how has it worked out?.

if you haven't joined the lds or considered it, as an ex-jw, what is your general view of the lds faith?.

Cold Steel

Randy: The terms "ministerial servant" and "elder" are drawn from NT Greek. Jehovah's Witnesses sincerely believe they are following 1st century Biblical patterns in how they are organized. Even how local congregations are named, such as the naming of "Union Hills" in Phoenix, where I was an elder, reflect upon patterns of congregation naming in Revelation and Paul's NT writings.

The question is whether the ancient church can be established with only a Bible? Alexander Campbell and Charles T. Russell thought so. But their churches have completely different doctrines. In fact, most churches think the Bible is the source of their authority, but the problem is, Campbell’s followers think Russell’s followers are going to burn in an eternal hell while Russell’s followers think Campbell’s followers will be annihilated at Armageddon. It doesn’t matter whether the people are good or evil, or what they’ve done for their fellow man, one God is pitted against another and that the losers are bruisers!

Is the Bible supposed to be a source of authority? Of course not. Papyrus scrolls cannot be a source of divine authority any more than a ministerial certificate bought off the Internet can. The Bible is neither complete nor inerrant. It doesn’t tell us how to baptize, who can baptize, what to say during the baptism or whether sprinkling will do when circumstances render it impossible to do otherwise. Also, can women baptize if no one else is available? How about the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost? Is that still necessary? (The LDS are the only Christians that I know of that still does it.) Again, if so, who can do it? How is it done? What are the words said and, again, can women do it? How about ordinations? Does baptism confer priesthood? If so, what kind of priesthood? What are the duties of bishops? Elders? Priests? Deacons?

These are only a few examples of things the Bible is silent on. Campbell’s church operates on the adage: “Where the Bible speaks, we speak; where the Bible is silent, we are silent.” Since the Bible says nothing of musical instruments in church ceremonies, the Campbellites have no pianos or organs. And even though the Bible doesn’t authorize church hymnals, they let that slide and include them.

There’s only one source of authority in the Bible, and that’s God. And people have to be called and ordained by someone in authority. And if you belong to another church, there’s nothing in the scriptures that say you’ll be annihilated or condemned to hell. Elane Durham was a Catholic woman who had a near death experience (fully documented with medical records and statements of people who were there when she passed). She said that she asked her angelic guide which church on Earth was right:

This was in 1976. Her account was investigated by George G. Ritchie, whose own near death experience inspired Raymond Moody to dedicate his life to investigating these experiences. Ritchie said “[A] facet of her book that I feel is extremely important, is the fact that her death has been verified by both the medical profession and the Catholic Deacon who administered her the Last Rites. I say this because so many people are writing about their NDEs today who can produce no proof of their having been anywhere near death.”

In the early 90s, Elane joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, after searching various churches throughout Christianity. Her account proves nothing, however, and I realize that; but I find it significant in that I’ve read of no other near-death account where someone has even asked about churches during such an experience. And while her guide answered her, he didn’t name the LDS church, but simply explained that one should look for a church based on the same precepts as the ancient Christian church. In other accounts by other people, I don’t know of one person who was asked which church they belonged to. Instead, they were asked, “What have you done for your fellow man?” That doesn’t mean it’s not important; however, it does indicate that the Savior is more interested in what is in your heart. And people who belong to religions that exclude others from salvation will, I think, find their own salvation in jeopardy.

Cofty: Ex-Mormons.org

If you’ve ever studied anti-Christian writings, you’ll see the same techniques used to discredit it. I’ll put all these things in the believe it or don’t category. I had an early Philosophy professor who used similar charges against the Christian faith. Satan is said to be an “accuser,” and I would take your accusations more seriously if you didn’t cut and paste them from questionable sources. I suggest you spend more time at FairMormon.org and Jeff Lindsay’s website before pasting the railing accusations.

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139

Ever consider joining The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

by rawe in

has anyone here left jehovah's witnesses to join the churuch of jesus christ of latter-day saints?

what was your motivation for doing so and how has it worked out?.

if you haven't joined the lds or considered it, as an ex-jw, what is your general view of the lds faith?.

Cold Steel

Randy: [Did] they remain Witnesses? This thread confirms...[that] few Ex-JWs become LDS members. And likewise few LDS members become Witnesses. ... I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "dropped like hot potatoes," but it sounds like other LDS members were wishing to blame your family for this change?

Nope. They dropped the whole family. You’re also correct that Jehovah’s Witnesses rarely become Mormons, whether they’re active or ex-. And I understand why. Any person leaving any church in bitterness feels that they’ve been manipulated, deceived, and that they’ve wasted a lot of time for nothing. That’s why many become atheists. But at the same time it’s foolish to put the Mormons in the same category as the WTBTS. There’s no ritual shunning, Latter-day Saints can visit any church they want or read any religious materials they wish. They can ask any question they wish in the various classes, they’re not forced into doing missionary work, they’re actually encouraged to seek the highest education they can, and our scholars are known also for the work they do outside of the church and are recognized for the work they do in ancient scripture, apocryphal works, archeology, geology, anthropology and many other areas. The Latter-day Saints are completely different, but there’s no convincing some people.

Randy: Witnesses are fond of quoting Ezekiel 18:4 to show the soul is not immortal and can die and Ecclesiastes 9:5 that the dead are unconscious. Annihilation at death is one thing the Witnesses have been consistent about, since their start as International Bible Students. It seems to have stemmed from a general dislike of the hell-fire doctrine by Charles Russell (founder of the Bible Students). In reality it is obvious that death ends animated life.

Yes, the soul that sinneth shall die, according to Ezekiel. But what is death? It’s a separation. Spiritual death is a separation of man and God. Physical death is the separation of the body and spirit. As for Ecclesiastes, it’s clearly a philosophic book and not an eschatological book. If written by Solomon, we have to remember that he was seduced by women of other cultures, and that he allowed them to erect altars to their gods. His life was largely a disappointment. The author of Ecclesiastes was a bitter man who saw human knowledge and progress as insignificant. He also said that “And the dust returneth to the earth as it was, And the spirit returneth to God who gave it. Vanity of vanities, said the preacher, the whole is vanity.” (12:7) In other words, man comes to the earth, lives his life, then returns to God, and what does he accomplish? Jeremiah was told that he was known by the Lord before he came to the earth (Jer. 1:5). And the apostles asked Jesus, “Master, who did sin, this man or his parents that he was born blind?” (John 9:2) How could that man sin before his birth if he did not exist? Jesus made no attempt to correct them. Peter also tells us that Jesus, while he was gone from his body, “preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.” (1 Pet. 4:6) How could he preach to the dead if they were not aware? As we’ve discussed on this board, if people are not eternal, those who are resurrected would be merely exact duplicates of the original person. They would not be the original. Once you blink out of existence, God can only bring you back by creating a duplicate being with all of your thoughts and memories. That person wouldn’t know any different, because he would have all your thoughts and memories, but the you that now exists would be gone forever.

You’re also correct that death ends animated life. If you’ve ever lost a family member or friend, or if you’ve ever had an animal as a pet, once dead, the body looks different. It’s clearly a shell in which the spirit, an eternal being, resides.

Randy: When we see injustice, we want to see it dealt with. ... When a child is born into poverty and dies before the age of 5, it reeks of injustice. How can this be solved?

Injustice? How? The Lord has stated that children who die return to the Lord and will inherit eternal life, without the necessity of going through the pain and suffering of human life. I wish I could have died that young, though if I had, I don’t think I would have appreciated death and a return to God as much. Most righteous people who suffer death recount that it’s like having a tremendous burden lifted from their shoulders. On the other hand, many of those who live selfish, hedonistic lifestyles or reject the existence of God experience fear and for that reason refuse to move on. Many remain in the land of the living, being neither seen nor heard, fearful that if they move on, that they will suffer punishment.

Randy:Jehovah's Witnesses believe they are ordained ministers.

Indeed they do. But from whence do they get their authority? They certainly aren’t ordained. They also don’t have the opportunity of baptizing their friends or children. I was actually ordained, and I have a lineage of my priesthood. I also baptized my father a few years ago shortly before his death, and it was a tremendous thrill and honor to do so. But if Jehovah’s Witnesses are ordained, how does it happen? Hands on head? No, by baptism, and that is completely unscriptural.

Randy:Believing Witnesses would likely say "how dare they..." in regards to the claims of made by the LDS leaders, "see, our leaders are much more humble" they would claim. Pragmatically, though, it works out to be about the same.

They may surmise such, but do the JW Governing Body members see visions, have angelic ministrations? In the early days of the LDS church, after Joseph and Hyrum Smith were murdered, many of the apostles were spread all over the U.S. and I think one or two may have been in Europe. Many of the apostles who were closest to Nauvoo, the home of the saints, received revelations telling them to return immediately and not to reorganize until a majority of the Twelve was present. Turning to Jerusalem, John writes in Revelation 11 that two prophets will be raised up by the Lord to defend Judah during Armageddon. Both will have the power of the ancient prophets and will keep the Beast and the False Prophet from progressing from the valley into the city. But after 42 months, the enemy will break through and kill them. How can they be prophets if they aren’t called and ordained? How can the Jews build their temple and sanctify it, and offer sacrifices, if the Jewish Cohens (priests) aren’t taught how to do it?

Barry: Have any artifacts been found mentioned in the Book of Mormon that are found in the Americas? Things like arrow heads, coins or art works? Have any of the numerous cities been found also mentioned in the Book of Mormon? The flora and fauna in the Book of Mormon is also false isn't it?

Oh, yes. The Book of Mormon talks about a son of King Zedekiah who was led to the Americas and thus escaped the destruction of Jerusalem. His name was Mulek, and he and those he came with settled in the land; however, because Mulek and his family did not have a copy of the Hebrew scriptures with them, they lost their identities, their language, and they assimilated into other peoples. When the Nephites discovered them years later, they couldn’t even communicate with them, but because the Nephites had a copy of the scriptures on brass plates, they were able to tell the Mulekites about their origins.

Critics say that Joseph Smith erred in adding that part to the Book of Mormon because all of Zedekiah’s sons were killed in front of the king, and then he was blinded, so this was the last thing he saw before losing his sight. In recent years, however, archeologists have uncovered evidence that Zedekiah did have a son named MLK. Since the vowels were removed, we have only the consonants, but they have recovered his royal seal. If Joseph Smith invented the story, how could he have known all about the Arabian deserts, how could he have provided perfect directions in the Old World without a single error, and why does the Book of Mormon text contain chiasms and other Hebraisms? Even when Isaiah is quoted in the Book of Mormon, it’s almost entirely what scholars have termed “First Isaiah” (on the theory that there were at least four writers who contributed to the book). The other two references were from “Second Isaiah.” This would indicate that these Isaiah passages were all originals and written by Isaiah.

There are many other evidences that the Book of Mormon is a genuine history. Going back to Mulek, he most likely came to the New World with some Phoenicians. Three reasons. First, Zedekiah had trading treaties with the Phoenicians. Two, the Phoenicians were outstanding sailors and were really the only ones with the technology to make the trip. Finally, the primary river in the Book of Mormon lands is called “Sidon.” Why would Jews name a river after a Phoenician city? Yet the Book of Mormon is silent on why the river was called Sidon.

This seal dates to the time of the reign of king Zedekiah. The
actual stamp or ‘seal’ has the surface size of smaller coin
though its thickness is greater. The stone stamp or seal is
at the right first column and the second column contains a
clay impression left by the stamp and a detailed artist’s
reproduction of the actual Hebrew characters. The one half
of the seal ‘spells’ out in Hebrew the name which would be
pronounced as (lemalkiyahu) or “to Malkiyahu” meaning
‘belonging to Malkiyahu’. And the other half of the seal
registry reads “ben hamelek” which translates
‘ben - son of’ ‘ha - the’ and ‘melek - king’.

Source

More Information

20

Guns

by Brother Mike in

does anyone know why people say as jws you can't have guns.

i've asked people at the hall and they say jws aren't supposed to have guns.

i asked them why, and they all say just because we're not supposed to.

Cold Steel

The JWs believe the Bible is a handbook. It's not. Under the law of Moses, self defense was looked upon as completely allowable. There were certain restrictions, such if an intruder entered your home at night, the homeowner could assume the intruder was willing to take a life if discovered. If caught during the day, however, killing him would be manslaughter unless some disability on the part of the homeowner was a mitigating factor. An old man could probably mitigate taking the life of a younger and much stronger man.

The New Testament was primarily written to the churches and religious leaders. Self defense can certainly be shown to be allowable in the sense of, if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. Back then, your cloak was essential to your survival against the elements, and most people only had one, while the wealthy had several. Still, there's no specific prohibition that I'm aware of where one is forbidden to defend one's self and family. In fact, any man who wouldn't defend himself and his family is a coward, and any woman who wouldn't defend her children is equally as detestible.

In one case in the mid-west, a man was advancing on a woman with a handgun. She couldn't bring herself to shoot and the intruder knew it. So as she stood there shaking, he advanced on her, grinning. Then things changed. Her young 4-year old son came into the room and the intruder turned to grab him. Before he could take a step, she emptied the six-shot revolver into him, killing him on the spot. She couldn't shoot to save herself, but her child was different.

I've often thought about that woman and what happened in her future. I just know the intruder should have left as soon as the child came into the room.

As a journalist, a number of years ago I interviewed a former burgler turned security consultant. When I asked him what caused him to give up his life of crime, he told me he was in someone's home one evening, a heavy cloth bag at his side in which he was putting various goodies. "I didn't think anyone was home," he told me. "I was a burgler. If I'd wanted to meet people," he added, smiling, "I would have been a mugger." As he was dropping things into his bag, he said, he heard the scariest sound a burglar could hear. "It was the sound of an automatic pistol chambering a round." He couldn't tell exactly where the sound had come from, but it was enough to cause him to flee, leaving his bag in the person's living room. "I never burgled after that," he said. Like anyone else, intruders can be scared. "It's not like it is in the movies, where the bad guy is all but invincible." The homeowner might have been frightened, he said, but for him it was a "lifechanging event."

Guns? I pity those people in the U.K., Australia and Canada. I was surprised to learn that many people in the U.K. were buying deactivated handguns and rifles and paying more for them than we Americans are paying for the real guns. It's a right we cherish and we certainly don't want to go down the path of Australia. Forty-five years ago, one could go into a store, buy a gun, box of ammo and a cleaning kit, take it home and no one batted an eye. The last time I bought a handgun, I was treated like a criminal. It took me hours to fill out the paperwork, and when I returned a week later after a background check, the clerk wrapped it up like it was a bomb and stapled up the paper bags the gun was encased in. Then they escorted me to the door and told me to put it in the trunk. They also wouldn't sell me ammo at the same time as the gun. This wouldn't have happened in the South, but in my state, if it weren't for the U.S. Constitution, I think guns would be illegal.

But everyone has the right to self defense in my view.

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22

What's With INVISIBLE ??

by Cold Steel in

the 'dubs' came by today just as the wife and i were on the way out.

we chatted a few moments and the two guys wanted to know if i had any questions about the bible.

so i asked them to drop by in a day or two and they left me with two thin magazines and a book they jokingly referred to as "the gold nugget.".

Cold Steel

Bobcat: But I'm wondering, 'How you gonna take a seat beside the King of the universe, and only later be brought before him.' What, did you sneak in the room while he wasn't looking? If you were going to sit beside a high ranking official, wouldn't you first have to be brought before him to get permission or approval?

That’s a great point and I’m ashamed it went over my head. Thanks.

AbleBodied: If that is the case then Jesus Christ saying that; “I began to behold Satan already fallen like lightning from heaven” falls in line with how you responded to my inquiry.

Well, who saw Satan fall to Earth from Heaven in 1914 unless...oh, I get it. No one reported seeing it unless he...also was invisible, right. Tell me, guys: when are things going to begin becoming visible? We could already be in Paradise Earth, if it was invisible. Everyone could be having a great time and we might be missing out on it if no one can see it.

TD: Well yeah, I would agree that the LDS view of 1 Peter 3:19 makes much more sense, especially to the modern reader. The entire idea comes from 1 Enoch and Moffat even translates the ‘he’ parenthetically as ‘Enoch’ with a footnote explaining why.

The LDS view actually stems from the Apostles’ Creed, which states that Jesus was brought before Pontus Pilot, crucified, dead and buried. Then the creed states, “He descended into Hell.” But what the Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Catholics and Protestants don’t explain is why would Jesus “preach” to either the wicked angels or the wicked people who lived during the days of Noah? All we LDS do is point out that it must have had some purpose. Jesus certainly isn’t going to drop by and say, “Just wanted to tell you guys that you’re toast! But I have some new angles on some sermons I’m working on. Uh...would you like to hear them? It won’t affect your being thrown in the pit of fire, but you could let me know if I’m on the right track.”

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20

Who is the faithful and discreet slave?

by wearewatchingyouman in

when i discuss things with my father regarding whether a governing body is needed for christians one theme that is constant with him is "if it's not the gb who is the faithful and discreet slave - who else is giving food in these days to god's people?".

i've been working on a response to this for the last couple of months and am just curious as to who christians who are ex-witnesses interpret the faithful and discreet slave to be, and the parable in general.. .

i guess i'm just looking to round out my argument and have a few different angles.

Cold Steel

WAWYM: When I discuss things with my father regarding whether a governing body is needed for Christians one theme that is constant with him is "if it's not the GB who is the faithful and discreet slave - who else is giving food in these days to God's people?"

It depends on whether the Governing Body is who they say they are. The early Christians were governed by the apostles, who in turn were led by revelation. When the Romans came down on Jerusalem, all the Christians had left. Jesus had told them to "stand in holy places," which ordinarily would have been the temple; however, he also said the temple would be destroyed.

Where were the holy places? They were where the apostles said they were, and they received that information from God. One of the major places Christians gathered to was Pella, to the north of Jerusalem, in Peraea.

The question, of course, is whether the Governing Body would be an adequate "oracle" to lead the people to safety in a time of tribulation. Having read a considerable part of the WTBTS's history, the early claims to be the Lord's official mouthpiece are not tenable. But each person must decide for himself/herself. Given the track record of the Society, I would have grave doubts.

But more to the point, there are countless ministers, reverends, pastors and scholars of varying faiths who feel they have callings to lead others. Every church on Earth feels it is giving spiritual food to others. My grandmothers used to have daily devotional magazines with short stories or essays, a final thought and then a prayer. And every morning the family would read them. They weren't dogmatic in nature, but were aimed at making people better. In many after death experiences, people aren't asked, "What church did you belong to?" but "What did you do to help others?" The Lord, ultimately, wants to know how you've served your fellow man.

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