tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post1651963228543644838..comments2024-03-25T09:01:20.997-07:00Comments on Diary of an Autodidact: Cancer and the Quest for a Guarantee Diary of an Autodidacthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11849157548643091986noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-86016805240829001292013-11-08T14:08:49.306-08:002013-11-08T14:08:49.306-08:00I attended a vineyard church in Asia. It will like...I attended a vineyard church in Asia. It will likely always remain the best church I've attended. I'm not saying it was perfect; I just think the people were looking in the right place. I remember this teaching of Gothard's now that you brought it up. Thanks for sharing this post. I tweeted it. Lanahttp://www.wideopenground.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-53705482422480446212013-08-20T22:39:26.759-07:002013-08-20T22:39:26.759-07:00As one who has suffered the deaths of two parents ...As one who has suffered the deaths of two parents - both from cancer - I have opinions on this subject. I have avoided your article so far for a myriad of reasons, one of which is becasue it hits close to come.<br /><br />When a close relative of yours dies, you will find people saying the stupidest things. And you realize then that what it all boils down to is that Christ is sovereign, He is Lord, He is the only One worth putting your trust in (and yes, He can be trusted). He is always working all things together for our own good and for His glory. Correct theology matters a great deal.<br /><br />People will believe any variety of things and they can be well-meaning and very misguided and still be Christians. I don't hate anyone who said something stupid to me after my dad died or my mother-in-law died. We just know that we must cling tighter to the promises in scripture and trust God. He is faithful, He is good. Our statement on the subject is quite short. It also includes no bitterness, though it does include great pain as we mourn the loss of our parents and our children's grandparents. The pain is there, but so is God. And I don't think much more needs to be said on the topic other than that.Carriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08772667430500306088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-64994937292320803872013-08-11T12:09:47.585-07:002013-08-11T12:09:47.585-07:00Thank you for your candid yet lucid comments. I h...Thank you for your candid yet lucid comments. I have give much thought this week to the loss of Karen and how we deal with illness, death, and dying. Thank you for your insight.<br /> Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04587486351424310960noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-65813415217539822832013-08-09T12:45:13.933-07:002013-08-09T12:45:13.933-07:00I like how you put that. Our bodies are what they ...I like how you put that. Our bodies are what they are. I didn't win the genetic lottery either. I was sickly as a child, and have the dubious distinction of being allergic to something wherever I go. <br /><br />My health is better than it was, but I know that every couple of years, I'm going to have a bad run. No magic diet or supplement, no spiritual epiphany is going to change that. As you said, we endure, and do the best we can with the time and limitations we are given. Diary of an Autodidacthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11849157548643091986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-26075089730501968692013-08-08T17:41:27.457-07:002013-08-08T17:41:27.457-07:00It's a great book...It's a great book...MrsLoomishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15391433296896865032noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-47158251695957802312013-08-08T16:51:40.112-07:002013-08-08T16:51:40.112-07:00Well said. My family still believes some of this. ...Well said. My family still believes some of this. Yet for me, I left it behind years ago. Thank you for validating all the points that sickened my spirit a little. <br /><br />I refuse to look at my illness-Fibro-in their light. My body is what it is. It has genetic markers that work and don't work. My responsibility is to do the best I can with the time I'm given.froginparishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00595938392821045803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-86998661737865235122013-08-08T14:18:30.637-07:002013-08-08T14:18:30.637-07:00Thanks! I will put it on my list. (Now, if my list...Thanks! I will put it on my list. (Now, if my list would stop growing faster than I can read!) Diary of an Autodidacthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11849157548643091986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-56700571068379029582013-08-08T13:43:02.455-07:002013-08-08T13:43:02.455-07:00Thanks for writing this. When you get a chance, re...Thanks for writing this. When you get a chance, read The Fault in Our Stars. I found it to be cathartic and beautiful. I'm so sorry for the loss of your friends, and I admire your candor and courage. I'm glad we're family. :-)Jennifer Pusthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02436934953542930308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-74609104839409941792013-08-08T12:32:14.671-07:002013-08-08T12:32:14.671-07:00I didn't even begin to get into the issues of ...I didn't even begin to get into the issues of less visible illness, physical and mental. <br /><br />It is amazing the callous disregard for real pain when it doesn't fit into the neat little worldview package. Diary of an Autodidacthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11849157548643091986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-41256839009376674852013-08-08T11:04:11.899-07:002013-08-08T11:04:11.899-07:00You are right that my kids will have their own stu...You are right that my kids will have their own stuff to work through, as every generation does. If I have learned anything from being a parent, it is that it is impossible to figure out with any degree of certainty. I hope that I can avoid as much damage as possible. <br /><br />I will say in response to the claim about Christian beliefs that (in my experience) most would say that a child who has not reached the age of moral responsibility (whenever that is) would not be punished in the afterlife. <br /><br />The number of those child deaths that are preventable kills me, I must say. Fortunately, the numbers are declining, but there is so much more to do. Diary of an Autodidacthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11849157548643091986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-19352957457755161922013-08-08T10:02:34.968-07:002013-08-08T10:02:34.968-07:00Thank you for your well-written feelings and your ...Thank you for your well-written feelings and your "so-far" found truths about religion, raising kids, excepting sickness and death, and getting through life. We all do the best we can with what brain-washing we can cast aside. Believe it or not, your kids will have to cast aside some brain-washing too, just like mine have. Being almost twice your age, it's no wonder that I'm dealing with friends and family deaths quite often This year, more than any, has been atrocious. Karen's loss is greatly felt in our home. I have a friend from high school I love like a brother. He's dealing with his third battle with a cancerous brain tumor. When he sees me he always tells me he's an "answered prayer." I say nothing but inside I feel that is the most arrogant statement I've ever heard. Unfortunately,I hear that attitude far too often. My prayers are bigger than your prayers. The fact is 17 children who have not reached the age of 5, will die before I finish this one sentence...1000 every hour, 24,000 every day and over 11 million a year. The majority of their parents are praying for them to live. All of their prayers will go unanswered. Another fact...according to most Christian religions, a large group of those kids will burn in hell for all eternity because their parents were praying to the WRONG God. We just haven't evolved enough to think about how crazy some of our beliefs are.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4051826042602269061.post-30887945389466859592013-08-08T08:20:32.717-07:002013-08-08T08:20:32.717-07:00There is truth leaking out of this fabulous essay ...There is truth leaking out of this fabulous essay from every paragraph. I, too, have been deeply wounded by the belief that enough faith can cure what ails me. Of all the psychological wounds I've endured, the deepest were inflicted by Christians. Some of the roots from this evil tree can be seen in the book of Job. From him we learn how to rightly divide the Word of God and His promises from the advice of man. Thanks for this tremendous and soul-baring blog.wolfqueen927https://www.blogger.com/profile/07760603445548489081noreply@blogger.com