[gone fishin]

Originally Posted by Flaptail

I do know Jesus. I was touched by the hand of God in 1993. I was 37 and in very big trouble health wise. Being told I would need a heart transplant to survive. On the morning of my 37th birthday while alone in my ICU room with oxygen and various intraveanous needles in my arms and machine whirring I asked God to help me and through the voice of my brother, who was KIA in VietNam in 69' I was told that I would recover, fully, which I did. I was surrounded by a haze of light and serene calm at 3 in the morning and I was given an understanding,a message I believe by God of what he truly wants from us and in it's simplicity I live my life. I know him better than you do my friend and each day thank him for everything he gives us. For years I thought I must have been saved for a purpose but really it was quite simple.

His message to me, and it is a simple one, is to take care of each other, respect each other and live a good life. That's all he wants. He doesn't want us to grovel before him or to make every move on his behalf or force his worship on anyone, just to be good to each other and let each and every person be in peace.

He knows we all falter and he knows we go astray but he loves us all and just wants us to know he is there when we need. I have my demons too, it's part of life and he is okay with that. The experience drew me toward what is truly, what you would call his grace. The sun rising over he sea, the shade of a tree on a sunny day and the clarity of a newborn baby's eyes, these are the things he wants us to share that he made for us.

The bible holds no real meaning, it's words are those of men through the ages who have corrupted the meaning in words for their own sake and control of others, his true church surrounds you each day as you go about your life, nothing he made is perfect thus we get sick, we succumb to addiction or desease and we make the wrong choices sometimes. He understands but doesn't want or need us to prostrate ourselves and center our life around what some men have done to convince us of his presence. He is simply there and knowing we know that and living simply in respect and caring for one another is enough to him. Trust me I know.

Flap WELL SAID the voice of a reasonable man.