Emptied Himself?

[vernecarty]

This playground spat, while entertaining for a day, underscores why a bulletin board is a very poor medium for discussion and helping ex-Assembly folks come to grips with their past.

A bulletin board is essentially an open mike.  The microphone can be used to encourage, debate, lift up, put down or draw a crowd.  To assume that everyone is going to use the microphone fairly is naïve.  To trust that everyone cares about the context of another’s thoughts and is not simply trying to score one better is absurd.

An open mike does nothing to restrain our sinful nature or our natural propensity towards one-upmanship.  One of the best essays I have ever read is in Bonhoffer’s Life Together on the theme “there was reasoning among them as to who was the greatest”.  This plays out to its fullest here.

If the Assembly is Orwell’s Animal Farm, then I think the bulletin board has become Golding’s Lord of the Flies.

Dave is right on the money.
I am am therefore making an unqualified apology to Ms. Sondra
Jamison for calling her an adulteress. I am also apologising for anything uncharitable I have implied about her morality and for any unkind and or unChristian things I have said about her personally. If there is any other specific way in which I have offended her that she is willing to identify, I would be willing to address it.  
Verne

[Joe Sperling]

Verne---

Thanks for your post. You and I had one long discussion regarding election and predestination, with both of us on opposite sides of the court, and were able to "joust" a bit without it ever becoming personal.

I've always enjoyed your posts, and enjoyed your opinions here. As for the recent set of posts on this thread and Ruth's comments and their importance I
would just add this:

How 'bout those Patriots? I was really pulling for the Eagles, but the Patriots pulled it off once more. They truly are one heck of a team.

--Joe

[Joe Sperling]

Sondra---

Sorry if you misunderstood. I didn't mean to infer that
it was like a competition. What I was doing was the
old change of subject: "how bout them Patriots?"

When a subject gets uncomfortable, or a bit stretched
beyond where it should be, to quickly change the subject someone might say "How bout them Yankees?"(or whatever team they like). What I meant is "this subject has gone about as far as it needs to go--how bout them Patriots?"  So again, my apologies if you misread it.

sincerely, Joe

[outdeep]

Sondra---

Sorry if you misunderstood. I didn't mean to infer that
it was like a competition. What I was doing was the
old change of subject: "how bout them Patriots?"

When a subject gets uncomfortable, or a bit stretched
beyond where it should be, to quickly change the subject someone might say "How bout them Yankees?"(or whatever team they like). What I meant is "this subject has gone about as far as it needs to go--how bout them Patriots?"  So again, my apologies if you misread it.

sincerely, Joe

Your intended meaning came through for me, Joe.  I had a good laugh out loud, a needed relief from the sancitified mud wrestling.  Thanks.

-Dave

[M2]

Dave is right on the money.
I am am therefore making an unqualified apology to Ms. Sondra Jamison for calling her an adulteress. I am also apologising for anything uncharitable I have implied about her morality and for any unkind and or unChristian things I have said about her personally. If there is any other specific way in which I have offended her that she is willing to identify, I would be willing to address it.  
Verne

Verne,

Thank you for making that public apology to Sondra.

I look forward to your POV on further discussions on this BB.
We need someone to keep us in line from becoming Campbellites or Tr0ckmandites or even Madduxites eh?? (insert smilie face here)

Blessings,
Marcia

[editor]

Dave is right on the money.
I am am therefore making an unqualified apology to Ms. Sondra Jamison for calling her an adulteress. I am also apologising for anything uncharitable I have implied about her morality and for any unkind and or unChristian things I have said about her personally. If there is any other specific way in which I have offended her that she is willing to identify, I would be willing to address it.  
Verne

Verne,

Thank you for making that public apology to Sondra.

I look forward to your POV on further discussions on this BB.
We need someone to keep us in line from becoming Campbellites or Tr0ckmandites or even Madduxites eh?? (insert smilie face here)

Blessings,
Marcia

Dittos here Verne.

Marcia, we are Tr0ckmaneers, are we not?

Also, the Madduxeans have never appreciated being called Madduxites.

[M2]

Dittos here Verne.

Marcia, we are Tr0ckmaneers, are we not?

Also, the Madduxeans have never appreciated being called Madduxites.

hehehe

We are the champions, my friend!

(The smilies are still not working)

It's onward, forward.

Marcia

[sfortescue]

Dittos here Verne.

Marcia, we are Tr0ckmaneers, are we not?

Also, the Madduxeans have never appreciated being called Madduxites.

hehehe

We are the champions, my friend!

(The smilies are still not working)

It's onward, forward.

Marcia

What I remember is that Tom used to go by the name "Patos Locos", which is Spanish for "Mad Ducks".

[Oscar]

Nowadays they just call me "Mad Dog".  

Thomas Maddux

[al Hartman]

OK, folks, I've experienced one of those mystical leadings:

First, Joe Sperling strongly urged me to post this.  I still had my doubts until Tom changed the thread heading to: "emptied himself."  So here it is:


Recent rumor has it that the once vaunted assembly use of coffee has been replaced by a concoction brewed from dill weed (yeah, the stuff that makes kosher pickles taste sour).  Making the treatment even more exotic is the fact that it is administered through a funnel constructed of goat horns.

So if you're ever back in that area, better not let BG hear that you're feeling unwell, or you could end up...


                           (drum roll, please)


               ...on the horns of a dill enema!


al

[sfortescue]

OK, folks, I've experienced one of those mystical leadings:

First, Joe Sperling strongly urged me to post this.  I still had my doubts until Tom changed the thread heading to: "emptied himself."

Beware of false prophets!  It wasn't Tom who changed the thread title; it was Brent.

From the 1st post of thread - Last Edit: Today at 02:25:00pm by Brent A. Tr0ckman
(Pacific Standard Time)

Not only that, the thread title is misquoted, and without thought for its context.

[sfortescue]

OK, folks, I've experienced one of those mystical leadings:

First, Joe Sperling strongly urged me to post this.  I still had my doubts until Tom changed the thread heading to: "emptied himself."

Beware of false prophets!  It wasn't Tom who changed the thread title; it was Brent.

From the 1st post of thread - Last Edit: Today at 02:25:00pm by Brent A. Tr0ckman
(Pacific Standard Time)

Not only that, the thread title is misquoted, and without thought for its context.

I can't figure out why Brent renamed it to "emptied himself?"
Is it referring to Verne's apology?

Another thing I can't figure out is why Bob Smith called Al Alvin.  I PMed and emailed Al and discovered that his full name is Allan Gary Hartman.  Puzzling eh??

Marcia

To answer the easier question first, Alvin was the name of a cartoon singing chipmunk of many years ago, so Bob Smith was using that name to show disrespect for Al by implying that he was someone insignificant.


The thread title comes from the subject matter that Verne was criticizing Sondra about.  Her choice of wording when expressing herself is often rather sloppy.  Verne takes her words literally and deduces that she is teaching heresy, when actually she doesn't really mean what it sounds like she is saying.  I think she mostly just gets her words mixed up and confused and says things wrong.

The expression "emptied himself" refers to a way that some people translate the beginning of Phil. 2:7.

Phillipians 2:7
But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

Of course, it does not mean that Jesus emptied himself of divinity.  After all, he did say, "Before Abraham was, I AM".  Jesus chose to demonstrate a life dependant on the Father.  He would have violated his purpose here on earth if he had followed the tempter's advice and turned the stones into bread.  Obviously that was something that he was fully able to do, otherwise it wouldn't have been a temptation.


Since people might misunderstand a poorly worded post, it's a good idea to write a post using Notepad, and save the file, then later after relaxing and thinking about it, come back and carefully proofread it to verify that there aren't any ambiguous or confusing things that need to be smoothed out.  To err is human.

[sfortescue]

...  Bob was just trying to be funny, I think.  Alvin is funny if you are older than 40.

Sondra

 

You're right, it is funny.  I was just reading the history on the Chipmunks' web site.

http://www.chipmunks.com/


P.S.  I hadn't realized that the creator of the Chipmunks was Armenian.
Years ago, I used to work with someone with the same last name.

[M2]

OK, folks, I've experienced one of those mystical leadings:

First, Joe Sperling strongly urged me to post this.  I still had my doubts until Tom changed the thread heading to: "emptied himself."

Beware of false prophets!  It wasn't Tom who changed the thread title; it was Brent.

From the 1st post of thread - Last Edit: Today at 02:25:00pm by Brent A. Tr0ckman
(Pacific Standard Time)

Not only that, the thread title is misquoted, and without thought for its context.

I can't figure out why Brent renamed it to "emptied himself?"
Is it referring to Verne's apology?

Another thing I can't figure out is why Bob Smith called Al Alvin.  I PMed and emailed Al and discovered that his full name is Allan Gary Hartman.  Puzzling eh??

Marcia

To answer the easier question first, Alvin was the name of a cartoon singing chipmunk of many years ago, so Bob Smith was using that name to show disrespect for Al by implying that he was someone insignificant.


The thread title comes from the subject matter that Verne was criticizing Sondra about.  Her choice of wording when expressing herself is often rather sloppy.  Verne takes her words literally and deduces that she is teaching heresy, when actually she doesn't really mean what it sounds like she is saying.  I think she mostly just gets her words mixed up and confused and says things wrong.

The expression "emptied himself" refers to a way that some people translate the beginning of Phil. 2:7.

Phillipians 2:7
But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

Of course, it does not mean that Jesus emptied himself of divinity.  After all, he did say, "Before Abraham was, I AM".  Jesus chose to demonstrate a life dependant on the Father.  He would have violated his purpose here on earth if he had followed the tempter's advice and turned the stones into bread.  Obviously that was something that he was fully able to do, otherwise it wouldn't have been a temptation.


Since people might misunderstand a poorly worded post, it's a good idea to write a post using Notepad, and save the file, then later after relaxing and thinking about it, come back and carefully proofread it to verify that there aren't any ambiguous or confusing things that need to be smoothed out.  To err is human.

I often use Notepad to compose my responses.  I have discovered t helps for another reason, that being that sometimes the connection drops while I am typing up a long response in the message window and I end up losing all my work.  Cut and paste works well.

Re. Alvin, here is Bob's original post. Which part is funny and which part isn't?  Which part is erring and which part isn't?

General Category / General Topics / Re:What or Who Is A Believer & How Do You Recognize One?  on: February 15, 2005, 06:35:17 pm  
Quote from: al Hartman on February 15, 2005, 05:30:13 pm
Moreover, in all her posts on this thread Sonja has mentioned Christ by name once, and the name of Jesus not at all.  All that blather about "knowing God" and "the spirit" can be commonly heard among unbelievers and apostates.  And their being interspersed with such taunting, badgering, unlovely drivel (whether or not she believes it is deserved) makes their source all the more suspect.  Beware of anyone who is ashamed of the name of Jesus Christ.


Before anyone takes seriously anything you have to say, Sondra, it is reasonable to request that you post:

1. Who do you say that Jesus is?

2. What is the "good news" which the Bible calls the Gospel?

Because of Jesus Christ,
al Hartman


Mr. Alvin,

What is that supposed to mean. Are you implying Sondra isn’t saved? That she is an unbeliever? That is isn’t a child of God? That she is a heretic? That she is the unfruitful works of darkness? You see, that is what Verne calls her.

Now lets suppose that all of that were true. What difference does that make? Does that mean Verne is justified in his verbal slander? Being saved is not a prerequisite to being treated with respect, is it?

If your supposition were true then you should be ministering the gospel to her. You should be showing the love and compassion that the Lord Jesus showed and lead her to the place where she can drink freely of living waters.

But you know what Mr. Alvin, it isn’t true. I am also a bit surprised at your implication. If you need to know about Sondra, that is S O N D R A, just like it sounds, then read SWTE. You may be encouraged by some of her spiritual insights.

Marcia

[outdeep]

I often use Notepad to compose my responses.  I have discovered t helps for another reason, that being that sometimes the connection drops while I am typing up a long response in the message window and I end up losing all my work.  Cut and paste works well.

This is good advice and the wise will take it to heart.  Books on writing say that editing is a major key to good writing and one should make at least a minimal attempt to edit everything – memos, e-mails, and notes – to communicate clearly and avoid embarrassment.

Editing is thinking of others, a service to your reader.  Since all you have is your words to help your reader understand what you are thinking, taking the time (even a few moments) to make sure that your words are accurately reflecting your thoughts is a good practice.  One doesn’t have to be an English major or labor over the text for hours.  One just has to understand that writing is more about your reader’s comprehension than about your right to speak.

Those who, as a practice, blow off editing because they don’t have time to do so are committing a disservice to their reader.  They run a greater chance of miscommunication, rambling, and coming across as if there is no gate between the brain and the fingers.  

There are only a handful of writers who ever lived who could write well without a need to go back and edit.  It probably is not you.  It definitely is not me.

As our former prophet used to say, "A word to the wise is sufficient" (Wink here)