It could have been for the reassurance it also may have been because the Lord felt you weren't walking closely enough with him and had you under conviction for that.

That's certainly possible. I can think of certain things that I was doing then that I shouldn't have been doing.

Thanks for all of this.

What is homoperversion? Is it a synonym for homosexuality? How can homosexuality in and of itself be made into a criminal offense, even if it is a sin? How could such a thing be enforced?

Even before that particular day of being drawn to the alter, I thought that I was, in fact, a Christian. Even before the drawing I had confessed my sins, and I believe I felt the Holy Ghost from time to time. Now if I wasn't saved before I went to the alter, why would I have felt the Holy Ghost (I'm pretty sure I did)? If I was saved before I went to the alter, then why would God have drawn me at all? When I went to the alter, my preacher said that he believed that I was already saved, and that the Devil may try to confuse me into thinking I'm not saved. But if I was saved, why did God draw me? Perhaps he drew me just so the preacher could reassure me? That is the one and only time I can ever remember feeling that drawing. It was something powerful. Also, what would have caused me to feel uneasy after I had just went to the altar? Was it Satan?

The game that I have the biggest problem with is "Shadow the Hedgehog". In the past, Sonic the Hedgehog games have been relatively innocent. There has been no cursing and no blood. However, Shadow the Hedgehog completely changed that. Although I haven't played the game personally, one reviewer said that Shadow curses "every 5 seconds". You can see why I'm disgruntled.

Mat 6:25  Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

I figured that this verse was speaking of our needs. That it was telling us not to worry about what you will eat because God will provide food, and not to worry about what you will wear because God will provide clothes. It doesn't seem to speak of eating or drinking certain things, though I may be mistaken. Also, if our body is the Temple of God, then we shouldn't consume things that defile or degrade it.

Let me see if I can think of more examples that you might be aware of. Aladdin has a magic genie. Cinderella has a fairy godmother that can cast spells. Shrek has magic potions (not exactly a cartoon, but anyways...). Mickey Mouse has been portrayed as a wizard before.

Let me lay it out on the table. The main reason I made this thread is because of certain video games. My brother and I like the Sonic the Hedgehog series and the Mega Man X series. However, Sega and Capcom (the companies that made them) have been taking these games in a direction which we do not like. There are new characters that we do not like. The general feel of the games is not what we like. So we tend to complain to one-another about how these games are failing to live up to what the olden years have brought us. Is that wrong?

Doubt in yourself, doubt in the Lord's promises, doubt in the word of God, and now doubt in your own Salvation.

I can't recall ever saying that I doubted God Himself, or doubting what He says in His Word. The reason I made this thread is so that I can have the apparent contradiction between the verses resolved (I have faith that they do not actually contradict, but I want to understand how they fit together).

And yes, I do tend to post issues on here that I'm struggling with.

Does the word aspartame ring a bell? How about Splenda? Those are the names of two artificial sweetners that are used in drinks. By putting these sweetners in drinks, people can consume less calories than would be present if sugar was used. Thus, you have diet drinks.

However, there have been controversies over the use of artificial sweetners. Not only have aspartame and Splenda been accused of causing health problems, but other artificial sweetners have too. For aspartame, the results of various studies over the sweetner have ended up in contradictions. Some studies claim to have found no adverse effects from its consumption. Others say it causes brain problems.

Now enter the Christian into the equation. Even though we are not yet sure, there is a possibility that aspartame-containing diet drinks are harmful to our health. Should we Christians be drinking such drinks if they are even potentially hurtful to us? Let me say this: I have been drinking diet drinks for a long time now, and I seem to have no obvious side effects from them (perhaps they are just sneaking up on me?). I am willing to take the risk. But is God willing that I should take the risk? Would He want me to stop drinking such things?

We know that the Bible condemns all forms of magic. Magic, as it is present in the real world, is an occult practice and comes from the Devil.

Several cartoons feature magic in some form or another. A couple of well known examples are The Fairly Oddparents and The Grimm Adventures of Billy and Mandy. No doubt some of you here have heard of these cartoons, and you may even watch them.

So let us consider the following question: are all of the current-day, cartoon-based forms of magic evil?

The definition of magic has expanded greatly over the years. The term "magic" has been used to describe a larger number of things than it was originally created for. While magic can still be used to describe occult practices, modern culture has expanded the meaning to encompass pretty much any fictional energy or force. Take the Fairly Oddparents for instance. The fairies don't say any magic words, nor do they perform rituals. They just raise their wand and "poof" something bizarre happens. Their magic is an intrinsic part of being fairies. In the Grimm Adventures of Billy and Mandy, you have the Grim Reaper (Death personified). It goes without saying that he has supernatural powers. He uses his scythe to open portals to the underworld, to give other people super-powers, and of course, to end people's lives (though I don't think that's ever shown on screen).

Harry Potter's magic is stated to be witchcraft. There is an obvious occult overtone to his stories. That is why I avoid Harry Potter. But are the other forms of cartoon "magic" like the ones described above evil as well? Should a cartoon, comic book, or movie be avoided if there is a mention of magic in it? Let me hear your thoughts.

When I look at the scripture, I seem to find different things said about salvation. For instance, look at these verses:

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." ~John 3:16

"He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." ~John 3:18

These verses seem to suggest that the only requirement for salvation is belief in Jesus. It offers no other specific conditions. Then I take a look at verses like these:

"No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day." ~John 6:44

"Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father." ~John 6:65

These verses seem to suggest that a person cannot be saved simply by believing in Jesus. It offers the condition that a person must be drawn by God in order to achieve salvation.

What can we make of this? Is it simply a belief in Jesus that saves, or is it required that we are drawn by God first, then we can be saved through this belief?

Now I don't mean to expose my preacher's business in a bad light, but he did tell us (the church) a story that is relevant to this issue. He said that before he was truly saved, he came to Jesus and asked for salvation. According to him, Jesus said no! Apparently, he was not yet drawn by God, or the Holy Spirit. Why would Jesus have rejected him? It might have been because he wasn't willing to completely surrender to God, but I can't remember the real reason (if he even told it to us).

He says that Jesus has to accept us before we are saved. Now I have been drawn by the Spirit, I did go to the alter, and I did confess my sins and ask for forgiveness. Even after all of this, how do I know that Jesus has accepted me? After I left church that day, it still felt like something was wrong. I don't know what exactly. Was it because Jesus didn't accept me? I don't feel the peace that I have heard others speak of. I sometimes feel like I'm going crazy because I constantly wonder whether I have been thinking a particular bad thought long enough for it to be considered a sin. I end up asking for forgiveness for everything 24/7. It's very stressful.

if your brother is smoking, giving your opinion of the bad things that happen from smoking is the truth. it's not complaining. btw, engourage him to quit. Tell him of the dangers of smoking. Pray for him.

Don't worry about it. He said that he stopped smoking last year. Now it's a matter of believing him.

In accordance with these websites, complaining is a sin:

http://www.obeygod.com/sinofcomplaining.htm
http://www.growingchristians.org/dfgc/complain.htm

Now for a few questions:

1) Is complaining always a sin, regardless of what it is about? If not, when is it a sin?

2) What would be considered to be the Bibical definition of complaining?

For example, if I were to watch a movie, and I saw things in it that I thought were cheesy, would it be considered complaining if I said "That's stupid"? What if I were to say "They could have done a better job" or "How could they make a movie like that"? Is it considered complaining if I critiqued a movie and pointed out the things that annoyed me in it?

Another thing, when I found out my brother was smoking, I thought to myself "How could he do that?! He should have known better!" Would that be considered complaining? Is it wrong to complain about sin?

Alright, I'm probably going to stop getting involved in it. So what do I do with the Dragon Ball merchandise? Store it away in the attic? Sell it? Burn it?

Before I go any further, I'll explain what Dragon Ball is to those who haven't heard of it: Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT are related cartoon shows where various characters, alien and otherwise, use powers that are based on "ki" or "chi", which is the supposed "life force" of a person. The heroes train physically in order to increase the power of their chi, so that they can be strong enough to defeat the villains, which also use chi. That's a greatly simplified view of it.

NOW FOR THE ISSUE AT STAKE:

Alright, I've gotten myself into a bit of a conundrum. You see, I've been a fan of the Dragon Ball series for quite some time now, but I'm beginning to question whether or not it is appropriate for me to be exposed to it. My main concern is the "chi" that is in it. Chi is an element in Buddhism, a non-Christian religion. The chi in Dragon Ball is similar in some ways and different in other ways, to the Buddhist chi. The chi in Dragon Ball is treated as if it were simple, normal energy that exists in a person's body. It's treated as if it were just a "super power", like Superman has, and has no blatant spiritual aspect. The chi can be raised to levels high enough to destroy planets, and the ki is usually visible as glowing balls or beams. In Buddhism, chi is taken to have a much deeper, spiritual aspect, and is much more limited than Dragon Ball chi in power and appearance. Despite these differences, the chi in Dragon Ball is still based on the Buddhist version of chi.

I've tried to justify it by saying that Dragon Ball chi isn't a realistic portrayal of what chi is supposed to be, and therefore is not pagan. That justification still seems lacking to me though. Also, Dragon Ball features reincarnation, another Buddhism attribute, as well as dragons (you could tell that from the title) that grant wishes like genies. I've read statements made by many Christians who were also fans of Dragon Ball, who said that it is ficitional and is therefore okay. That still doesn't sound quite right.

Now, I've purchased a lot of Dragon Ball merchandise, so I've spent quite a bit of money on this series. Therefore, I want to be certain that I should give it up before I start getting rid of the merchandise.

Comments?