This is how it works. Paul: I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago--whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know, God knows--such a man was caught up to the third heaven. And I know how such a man--whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows-- was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak. – 2Co 12:2-4 NASB95 Me: Amazing that Paul knew people that these things happened to! Preacher/Pastor/Commentaries: Paul was just being humble. Paul was writing about himself. Me: So Paul really didn't write exactly what he meant? Did he do that elsewhere? Can I trust anything in the bible? I'm so thankful to have professional Christians who can correct the scriptures for me!

Well bless your heart, BillyBob. I reckon the horse done left the barn on that ol' Internet thingy seein' how this there post has been bookmarked over fifty times, a personal record, so I must have struck a nerve with someone, or maybe even helped someone understand something, or clarify something, or done somethin' good somewhere, ya think? Come to think of it, "this post" (meanin' the one you replied to) has more bookmarks than a lot of churches have members in these parts where I live, "bibically" sound or not. And the last time I used an 8" sized roller to paint anything, it was on the entire main floor of a house that I sold for enough money to retire! So me and them 8" rollers are good, good, friends. It got the job done back then, and it got the job done now! Maybe I'm a paint rollin' Rembrandt! 8" roller on a car? They must do that where you're from 'cause I never would have thought of that. I figure that if I ever wanted to paint a car, I'd just get me a bunch of them rattle cans and spray the heck outta it!

Is it OK for Christians to play the new Star Trek version of Magic the Gathering? The release date is November 13th. Asking for a friend, of course. 😎

Every church I know of is dishonest about money. Tithing is not Christian. It never was. Jesus told the Pharisees that they should take care of justice, mercy, and faithfulness along with tithing mint, dill, and cumin. That is not a command for Christians to tithe and it never was. It did not follow through into the epistles at all. The pre-Nicene church fathers did not teach tithing to Christians. They knew it was a Law of Moses thing. I had Grok do a summary, but it just summarized what I already learned from self-study years ago. ---------------------------------------------------------- Early Christian giving was real and often generous—supporting clergy, the poor, widows, orphans, and travelers—but it was framed as freewill, proportional to ability and willingness (echoing passages like 1 Corinthians 16:2 and 2 Corinthians 8–9), not as a fixed legal percentage carried over from the Mosaic covenant. The idea of a required tithe as church law develops later, becoming more formal in the West especially from the late 4th–6th centuries onward. In short, the pre-Nicene record does not contain any Father teaching that Christians are obligated to tithe. ------------------------------------------------------------ The real Law of Moses tithe was not paid in money. It was paid in plants and animals from landowners. People whose livelihood consisted in trade or manufacturing did not tithe in ancient Israel. There were three tithes. One was for the poor. One was for the Levites. One was a "self tithe" where the individual was commanded to save on their own so they could have a good time at the yearly commanded festivals. That tithe could be converted to money and spent on fun stuff. But the most important thing is that the tithe is a Law of Moses thing, and the Law of Moses is not binding on Christians. The book of Hebrews explains that well. Also, the 1st Century Christian church, at the first council, in Acts 15, could have bound anything on the Gentile Christians, and they did not bind tithing. Finally, there are a few churches, like Stone-Campbell Churches of Christ, who twist the scriptures a different way. They teach that 1 Corinthians 16:2 teaches giving to the church every Sunday. As it says "On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside..." Of course, you're not supposed to study that for yourself and find out they were saving for a one-time gift to help poor Christains. Do I think many of these church leaders might actually know what I've written above? I'd hope they're at least biblically literate to know this stuff, but they don't teach it! What I've said above isn't weirdo fringe teaching. It's bible and documented history, which is easy to get to. But it doesn't matter to church Christians, because they outsourced their faith to professional talkers and liturgy administrators and they believe what they're told to believe. The only honesty about money related to bible stuff I've encountered was from a Rabbi. I emailed him many years ago. I asked if Jews tithe. He said "no" because in order to tithe they'd have to know who the Levites are, and of course that's been lost a long, long time ago. Scripture and history mean nothing to most Christians I've found. Repeat a slogan? You bet! Genuine work to learn? Nope. Their weekly Christian hypnotherapy, thankfully followed by a football game during those colder months, are what's important. In my history, Church leaders are vastly more interested in my money than in me, and they'll say anything other than what's actually in the bible to get it. If a church leader ever just said something like, "We can't compel you to give from scripture because that's not in there, but if you want all this stuff you need to pay for it" and they were actually reaching new people for Christ and I saw baptisms happening and that church growing, I'd likely want to give! But I've never seen or heard that. This is why I gave up on "church" as an essential to my faith a long time ago. Nice to have? Sure! Essential? No. If a person or organization is honest about everything except how they want to get money from me, they are not honest.

I did this myself.

I'm not going to pounce all over stuff like this because it never ends. People think that all the argumentation that's been going on for so long is because a huge proportion of the Christian population cannot see the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost all in scripture? Maybe if you can so easily solve an argument that's been going on for centuries between learned people, that you don't understand the argument in the first place? Is that possible? Believing in the "Trinity" isn't about believing is what is explicitly written in scripture about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It's about believing a certain take on the stuff, essence, ousios (Greek), substance, that they are "made of" if even that makes sense for humans to think about. And it's about what God is and how the word "God" is used. It's about going beyond what is obvious in scripture and then forcing others to go beyond with you.

This is "men without degrees" thing is getting overdone and is silly. ------------------------------------------------------- Grok: Universities existed and awarded degrees, but they trained clergy, lawyers, physicians, and scholars in the liberal arts and theology. Building trades were a separate professional path regulated by guilds, with their own ranks, oaths, and standards. In that sense the meme “men without degrees built this” is literally true about university credentials and reductive about the actual training. The builders had extensive, formalized vocational education and certification; they simply did not have (and did not need) the academic degrees of the medieval university system.

I asked Grok to analyze my account posts and replies and decide which Star Fleet ship I am from the Star Trek universe. I'm the Voyager. Resourceful and independent under constraint: Voyager was cut off, had to operate for years with limited resources, improvise, and prioritize practical problem-solving and science over grand gestures. That lines up with your frugality and DIY practicality (unused dishwasher for years, low-cost cooking experiments that “totally worked,” preference for personal scripture study over live professional performances). You’re the “Lone Grazer” who visits churches but isn’t dependent on any one of them or their stage-show model. Logic, self-control, and measured exploration: You credit Trek with teaching that logic produces self-control. Voyager’s long-range science mission and command style (more research-oriented and deliberate than pure swashbuckling) fit better than a Constitution-class flagship under a charismatic risk-taker. You want to go places you haven’t been, not necessarily “where no one has gone before” in a dramatic way. Resilience from a hard start: Your posts about a dysfunctional childhood (schizophrenic mother, verbally abusive father), raising an autistic son, and building layers of self-control mirror Voyager’s story of a crew far from home that has to keep functioning, learning, and finding a way back using intelligence and discipline rather than sheer force or institutional backup. Voyager was the smaller, specialized long-range explorer, not the prestige flagship—efficient, science-focused, and purpose-built rather than ceremonial. Classic Trek DNA without the Kirk persona: Your anniversary-related posts highlight TOS memories (Corbomite Maneuver, Susan Oliver, Forbidden Planet influences) and the hope/logic it gave you as a kid. Voyager carries that exploratory spirit into a later era while remaining grounded and practical.

I asked Grok to make my account into an espresso beverage menu.

Some say there are "no Lone Ranger Christians." But there is the Lone Grazer. Ridin' from town to town. Visiting from church to church. Doctrine doesn't matter; attendance does Hebrews 10:25, the first part, must be served.

Anyone ever heard a sermon on this? Anyone know of this being tried anywhere? I sure haven't. Seems some scriptures just don't get preached about much, if at all. Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. – Jas 5:13-15 ESV

This totally worked! 1. Heat up Chef Boyardee beef ravioli in microwave. 2. Stir in a high-end can of clams; in this case Crown Prince Smoked Baby Clams in olive oil. Drain can first. Seafood pasta fusion! Another take on Surf 'n' Turf! Almost no brains and very little money, likely under $6. The clams get a sort of Manhattan clam chowder treatment. The entire meal gets a huge protein and iron boost! Slightly bland but tweaking with seasoning is the logical next step.

Paul: But when God, who had set me apart [even] from my mother's womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus. – Gal 1:15-17 NASB95 Today's Christian: Once I got saved, I did what the religious authorities told me to do! I stayed right where I was and attended "worship service" every single Sunday until I grew old and died, unless I moved and found another "local church" where I could do the same thing, and now there's a half eaten sheet cake in the lobby with my name on it...or what's left of my name...and young folks who never heard of me are wolfing it down! Edit after coffee: Is there an "in-between?" There's only one Apostle Paul, but is being a Christian just following orders and rules made by professional Christians for one's entire life and then dying in obscurity? I'm very sure the professional Christian speakers' guild (pastors/preachers) has no problem with that. Is it OK to want to make a bit of history for Jesus anymore? Below is the likely "best case" scenario for me if I joined a "local church" right now and faithfully did everything I was told.

I really think that attention span will be an important superpower for anyone to have, soon if not now. I'm actively taking steps to getting my attention span back from watching too much stock market stuff and too much scrolling through X during the day. Getting it back is starting to amaze me and it's just getting better. Things may be way different for me a year from now. Don't dopamine your life away.

I've got it! The cure for being an ignored visitor! James had it all along! Maybe all I have to do is make a display of wealth! Then maybe a pastor, or one of his underlings, would notice me! James says this might work! Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, "Here's a good seat for you," but say to the poor man, "You stand there" or "Sit on the floor by my feet..." – Jas 2:2-3 NIV What do you think?

So much of "church" is humans getting paid to control people by creating the illusion that they control God. But it's really just about control. Elite professionals controlling the natural by claiming directly or indirectly that they control the supernatural, as if that's possible. We don't and can't control God. All we can do is ask. That's what prayer, among other things, is for.

Stupid church memories: Attending a traditional Church of Christ on Sunday morning where musical instruments were banned because they are unbiblical in worship. Walking out of that church on a sunny Sunday morning and hearing Love Shack by the B-52s being cranked loudly by an attractive young woman's car audio system so it's heard across the parking lot.

The Lone Grazer rides! Ridin' on the range Grazin' on it too Churchin' when it interests him Skip a week or two Bible on his brain Fellowsheep to find Wolves are always chasin' him for bleatin' his mind