biting my tongue (or nails)

Thanks.

[Barry]

Wiley,
While I know your post was not about the women's issue in particular, I find the elder's remark rather amusing: "women help on the serving the Lord's Supper---that will never happen!!!!" I suppose the men of your church prepare the Lord's supper?   I guess the anti-women-club doesn't have a problem with the women doing the preparation, just the serving. Have you ever wondered why they don't have any problem with women serving food at church dinners?

IHS,
Barry

[janine]

I doooooo bite my tongue. Often.  I said something on another thread re: me, a Christian woman, having a pierced tongue because of all this restraint.  (Who says godly women don't have piercings?  I have some of the best brandings and piercings you've ever seen, some of them self-inflicted, due to the Christian life trying to work itself out in me.)

Sometimes I manage to fry people despite trying not to.  Imagine how sizzled everyone around me would be if I did not try to hold back.

The Lord has helped me tremendously with my tongue.  May I get out of His way & let Him continue... :p

[Beverly Nuckols (hocndoc)]

My father in law said during a conversation about women serving the supper and praying in the church meeting, "I hope I'm dead before it changes."
I warned him to watch what he prays for, since God works in mysterious ways!

[spurly]

I read something interesting in a book by John Eldredge that I had never thought of before.  He pointed out that Adam was with Even when Eve was tempted.  THe word used for was with her" in the Hebrew points that out.

And the first sin may not have been Eve's, it may have also been Adam's.  Adam was to protect Eve from the evil one and his attacks.  He was to be the spiritual leader of his house, yet he failed to protect her from this ploy of Satan's.

I though it was interesting anyway.

Kevin

[susieface]

Very true about Adam not protecting her, but yes we are responsible for our own actions.  But isn't the husband (band around the house) supposed to be the spiritual leader and protector?

We just discussed this very thing in our Bible class taught by our minister.  He feels Adam blew it for not leading her.

He also pointed out in scripture it says Adam was created outside the garden (in the outback, so to speak) and Eve was created in the garden.  This may account for the differences in women and men.  Men were created with 3 desires, battle to fight, risk taking,  beauty to rescue (a wife).  Women want to be fought for (this is why divorce is so hard for women, the person who rescued her and made her feel safe has now spurred her), share the adventures(not in charge), a beauty to unveil (the whole dress up thing and looking nice for men).  Eve was created in the garden which was beautiful, safe, secure, nesting place.  Adam blew it by not fighting for her and protecting her.  He also hid and God went after him because he knew he blew it.  He acted passively.  He let his passions get the best of him.

susie

[WileyClarkson]

Janine, Susiface, and all.

I look at it this way: (this is going to be a long post----but since we are on the subject!)

1)  Adam & Eve were both there with the serpent when the serpent started working on Eve.  Both Adam & Eve obviously knew it was wrong to do what they were listening to the serpent tempting them to do.

Gen 3:2  The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; 3but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.'

[WileyClarkson]

How many of us have a tendency to speak when we shouldn't?  I know I sure do--being a somewhat outspoken individual who doesn't mind speaking about what I "think" I know something about :0

Thursday I was sitting in our church office pondering on how to fix one of these lovely contraptions that I seem to have inherited the upkeep and repair of when one of the women present said to one of the elders "did you know that the women in the ladies bible class spent the last 10 minutes of the class discussing the fact that it's wrong not to allow them to help serve the Lord's Supper?"  Of course it was said loud enough for everyone to hear, and since I am egalitarian in my views, my extreme desire to comment almost got the best of me!  However, before I could comment, I heard (also meant to be heard by everyone) from the elder present a comment which went basically "women help on the serving the Lord's Supper---that will never happen!!!!"  I really wanted to jump up and make some comments.  However, I bit my tongue and kept working on that silly machine which I still haven't gotten working right.  Talk about something that was really tough to do!!!  Ten years of personal study on a subject and I couldn't say anything with out offending someone at that particular time!

OK--now what's the point of what I just said above?   Well, really it has nothing to do with the subject of women.  The real point is this:  remember that sometimes when we are posting, it's best to bite our tongues (biting our fingernails maybe---just don't type) and wait for a better time to answer when our adrenaline lowers a little.  Before pushing the post button, review what you have written and put yourself in front of the monitor screen of the person/s it's being sent to.  If it's written in a way that is inflammatory or personally offensive to someone, please delete or change it before posting.  If the post is made without showing love and compassion for the individual/s it's being made to, then it really shouldn't be made at all, regardless of how important a person feels his information may be.

This forum has become, IMO, one of the best around.  It's a place where the participants can feel each other's love for each other and for God, and enjoy fellowship that many of us cannot find elsewhere at the present time.  The forum is picking up new members on a regular basis because of the openness and loving attitudes exhibited here.  We don't want to let this attitude ever escape us.

I have been involved with a number of forums/lists over the last several years in various capacities and this one has required the least amount of moderator action or work of all of them.  It is a real joy for me to have a forum with members who show such loving attitudes toward each other!!!!!!!

Grace to you all and peace.

Wiley

[pdwblw]

Wiley,
Excellent post!  Thank you.

[Bill]

Very good thoughts, Wiley.

Barry, I've had those very same thoughts about my church.

Bill

[WileyClarkson]

Barry,

[!--QuoteBegin--][/span][table border=\"0\" align=\"center\" width=\"95%\" cellpadding=\"3\" cellspacing=\"1\"][tr][td]Quote [/td][/tr][tr][td id=\"QUOTE\"][!--QuoteEBegin--]I guess the anti-women-club doesn't have a problem with the women doing the preparation, just the serving. Have you ever wondered why they don't have any problem with women serving food at church dinners[/quote]

That very thought has indeed crossed my mind more than once or twice :D   Of course, I can't say anything right now to that elder because I bit my tongue so hard, I almost bit it off (saying this with tongue in cheek ;)).  Oh the pain!!!!! :D

Wiley

[janine]

I wonder did he say that because he saw it as a worldly unscriptural thing that would mark his congregation as apostate?

...Or because he knows particular women who will "take over" because of talent or gifts or personality, and he's not looking forward to that?

[Beverly Nuckols (hocndoc)]

Well, Janine, we didn't go there that day, because we've already had that discussion. He believes that women are like Eve, who was deceived in the Garden and brought sin into the world.  He agrees that what God has cleansed shouldn't be called unclean, but.....

My own daddy has said that women who want to be preachers should go to those churches who let homosexuals preach. I think he and my father in law do like I do most of the time and try very hard not to "go there." (Because we do love each other.)

Somehow many of these people read only select verses of the Bible  in select ways. They are unable to hear Paul in Galations and Romans and make what seems to them the giant leap from Jews and Gentiles to the more easily seen physical differences of race and gender.

God Bless them always and forever, because I consider the lack of willingness to learn  a much more serious defect than genitalia, chromosomes or ancestry. Some days I can muster the love and thanksgiving to God to deal with them and sometimes enough to like them as well as love them as a co-heir with Christ. And sometimes my faith  is not that strong.

May the Lord help me, too.

[Bill]

spurly, you might want to talk with Patricaredstone on this thought.  She has a little different slant than what you've stated.  

Adam was there but that doesn't give Eve an excuse.  Male or female we are responsible for our actions, IMO.

Bill

[janine]

I always figured, as far as types of sin goes, that Eve might've been deceived into agreeing to sin... but Adam knew what was up & deliberately rebelliously walked right into it.

My mom-in-law says Adam was made out of dirt but Eve was made from prime rib.

That's why women have better taste. (groan)