General Chat

No need to apologise Rose......rambling is the nature of your name ;-)

God will always believe in you........it's those who deliberately turn from him who 'distance' themselves.........not Him from them.

In the Christian faith, hell is often described as 'separation from God - the eternal fate of unrepentant sinners'. The important word being 'unrepentant'.


Hope that helps.

Re 'judgement' of someone, as per mention on the other thread. The weighing of the soul as it were....

It is no doubt ( understatement!) not doctrinally based, but to to me the 'hell' that people go to is made by them in this world and their 'punishment' will be to actually understand the wrongs they have done, with the emphasis on the "understand" , to feel it, to fully comprehend every action and to feel the hurt of those affected by those actions. After all, here when we hurt someone most of us feel sorry don't we? we can empathise with the hurt to an extent...I imagine to feel it, multiplied by the number of times you have hurt people, done wrong, would be 'hellish'.

But then I don't believe in a 'hell' as such, not as a separate place somewhere 'down' but maybe separation from God ( who I sometimes don't believe in lol I am counting on that if God is there, he will still be believing in me at those times!) .... would those people always be separate? I don't know, I suspect some would be, at their own choosing, because the alternative really would be 'hell'..to know what it was you had done and 'feel' it.

Sorry for the ramble, it is not my intention to offend anyone with different views, I was just pondering on man and God's judgement :-)

John, you speak so eloquently of 'living' the faith on this thread and yet, on others you are almost denying it.

Look at your last sentence above........."and how loving and powerful and merciful He is".

None of us are perfect and it can be a struggle to follow His example, but I seem to have lost sight of YOUR mercy in your recent comments and have been disappointed. :-(

It was certainly Low Sunday where I was leading today. Five of them and one of me.

Holidays, illness, probably me leading all kept the masses away. But we sang for 100 and I think all felt the presence of the Holy Spirit.

My least congregation was in Northants a decade ago. Two elderly ladies and a dog. And when I asked for a response to my prayers, the dog wagged his tail. One lady was stone deaf and the other was in teh fairly advanced stages of dementia.

It was when I was planned there for about the sixth time in a year that I got very down about a congregation of two and a dog. I had to go, and always spent as much time planning a service there for two as I did for 200 in the big chapel in Bicester. But it was very difficult to motivate myself this particular Sunday, and I did pray for guidance ie should I throw a "sickie", should I feign a puncture?

I dragged myself along and there was a congregation of over 20 waiting for me. I had only met about 6 of them before. Some were visiting relatives, some were passing through the village and saw the doors open.

I still underestimate how much God loves us. And how loving and powerful and merciful He is. :-)

Today is traditionally known as Low Sunday within both the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches.

It seems that this first Sunday after Easter is also known as Close Sunday, and Quasimodo Sunday.

"Low" probably comes from the fact that it is a relatively unimportant Sunday after all the festivities of Easter. It is interesting that there is usually a low attendance on this day. We weren't too bad - all things considered.

I found out that the name 'Quasimodo' Sunday comes from the Introit of the mass which is said on this day. In Latin it begins with the phrase Quasi modo geniti infantes...... "As newborn babes...."

The famous character Quasimodo in Victor Hugo's novel, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, is said to have been found abandoned on this day, which marks the close of Easter week.


One learns something everyday!

Amen indeed!

Amen!

These next few weeks continue to be central to Christian belief.

The sword plunged into the side of Jesus when he was lowered from the scaffold proved his death. As Doctor Lloyd Jones (a preacher and former Surgeon to the Queen Mother in 1930's) proved in his famous sermon "The Blood of Christ". The blood woud have been cool or cold to have separated in the way it did, hence his legs did not need to be broken to hasten death.

Now we have weeks of proof that death had been defeated. As Luke wrote in Acts "he showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs"

What is amazing to me is that every proof that death has been defeated that happened in this period leading up to Pentecost and the Ascension back to heaven is witnessed by more than one person. It is legally sound at every point.

Jesus lives! Thy terrors now
Can, O death, no more appal us;
Jesus lives! By this we know
Thou, O grave, canst not enthral us;
Alleluia!

thank you John - appreciated

I hope AnnC won't mind me posting this

http://www.veengle.com/s/Pendyrus%20Male%20Voice%20Choir.html

Husband Lawrence sang with the famous Pendyrus Male Voice Choir. Could not find a pre-2000 video, but these will give an idea of how talented a singer he must have been. :-) :-)

I'm OK 99% of the time but music always does it for me - thanks all!! <3 <3

God bless Ann, <3
It must be very hard to have your love of your life taken away from you, dare I say it's like like having your heart taken out.

(((Hugs ))) <3

Hello Ann....it's never too late to wish anyone a Happy Easter, so thank you :-)

I don't think life can ever be the same again after a loved one dies. People have told me that they never forget, they simply have to try and adapt to life without that special someone. A very, very hard thing to face for so many. I think you may deserve a ((hug)) too.......... :-)


Sandie, I guess I must be like your mum in a way. I love flowers but I haven't been to my parent's resting place for years - they are thought of every day and that works for me. I do realise, however, that a lot of people get great comfort from visiting the graves of loved ones. :-)


My......it's been a long day. Goodnight everyone.... <3

Happy and sad Sylvia - sadly Lawrence died just over ten years ago - life is not the same any more :-(

crikey, Sandie ....................


you just made me wonder how long my parents would have been married, were they still alive


85 years in August!!! :-0


Unfortunately, Mum died in 1961, at the early age of 58.

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE



very late ....... but then I am 8 hours behind you all!!


AnnC ............... that must have brought back many happy memories xxxx



Sandie .......(((hugs)))

bit late I realise, but Happy Easter to all - been busy cooking Sunday lunch for family, haven't cooked a large meal for so many for a long time - I love Easter - I was married on Easter Saturday 1959 - Easter was early that year and the weather was great - the weather has been stunning here today - had to have the conservatory doors open all afternoon

Ann X

Thank you Cynthia ,

I always went with my dad on the Sat before Palm Sunday to lay flowers on family graves ( sometimes it was Sun morning thinking about it but usually the Sat ).

Strange !
Mum was the one who went to chapel ( 3 times on a Sunday as a youngster ) and sis more than I did , but dad and I always went to the cemetery to lay flowers ...
Not just at Christian times, birth dates, dates of of death..what ever.....
I think mum didn't like to go but always wanted flowers laid most time of the year, not just when peeps thought it had to be done,just when she wanted to.

Mum loved flowers, and I often visit parents grave to 'speak to them' and put on flowers.
She for some reason couldn't do that. !!

Sandie.x

Dear Sandie......((hug)) xx

We had a lovely service today. And we do tend to belt out "he is risen indeed" Cynthia. No English reserve in the Welsh valleys:-)

Only a few there (about 20) which was disappointing. But three were missing because they couldn't get their lift. They are elderly and one of the stewards picks them up in his car. But someone had parked across his garage and he couldn't locate the person. So he had to walk to chapel and had the job of phoning the 3 elderly ladies to tell them why they couldn't be picked up. So disappointing for them - and for us.

Service ended at 3.30 and four of us were still chatting at 4.15. About predestination, of all things. Makes a change from chatting about the weather, which has been absolutely perfect today. Quite cold (about 6C) but bright sunshine all day :-D :-D

Think our 50 days of Eastertide may be very special this year. Said a little prayer for a friend who is having a major operation next week - feel sure she will be ok.