samie’s blog

How well does your name Google? Who are you up against? (Celebrities, etc.)
Submitted by Matt Blank.

Sam Upham was one of the late 19th century's best known counterfeiters! Often known as Honest Sam Upham.

I have just spent ages posting comments that all roughly say the same thing, so I decided that the easiest thing was to stop doing that and do this instead.

Why am I getting all steamed up?

Because there are lots of comments appearing that claim to be an investigation into whether the sayings of Jesus really were from Jesus, and others in a similar vein.

Now don't get me wrong, i'm all for debate - that's why I joined VOX in the first place. But I'm getting steamed up because debate has to take place on a level playing field and these aren't.

I am happy to enter into conversation with anyone about the inerrancy of our Bible. But that conversation has to be based on what is in front of us, not what we think is in front of us.

When we debate anything Biblical, we need to make sure that what we are debating is actually in the Bible. I have spent too long already today arguing with fundamental Biblical errors. For example, its not a real debate when one party in that debate claims that its 'obvious' that Jesus disagreed with John the Baptist's teaching of 'repent for the Day of Judgement is near' and split with him to form his own group, when

a) John the Baptist did not preach that the Day of Judgement was near

b) Jesus DID (although he used the words Kingdom of God/heaven not day of judgement), and so obviously didn't disagree with him

c) Jesus did not split with John

d) Jesus did not form 'his own group'.

These points are not matters of opinion, they are what the Bible says. I agree that you could argue that the Bible might be wrong, and that's fine, but the person concerned is arguing these points apparently from the Bible.

If you are going to debate Bibical accuracy, please do the Bible the courtesy of quoting it correctly. In doing so, you will have to read the Bible and maybe will discover what is so truly amazing about it.

(I have also had someone edit their original post so that my question to them is no longer relevant - this is not a level playing field)

The reason that I get so steamed up about this is that I am in love with the Bible. I don't read it as often as I should I admit, but it is, as the song goes, 'the air I breathe'.

The fact that thousands of years ago, God spoke to a selection of fallible humans and trusted them with His word is amazing. The fact that those words still speak to me today, every day, is amazing. The fact that there is always something new for me to learn, some new comfort, new lesson, new encouragement is amazing. The fact that I have been given the privilege of showing others the wonders within the pages of Scripture is truly astounding.

The Bible is the most enduring love story ever.

My prayer that Christians will regain the sense of awe and wonder that comes when you first realised that God is talking to you. If you have never had that feeling, go and get a Bible. NOW. And start to read. Your life will never be the same again.

If you have felt that wonder, pray that God will relight the fire. Fall in love with His word - and you will fall in love with Him.

Don't worry about whether its 100% historically accurate, don't get tied in knots over the differences between the gospels. Just allow the still, small voice to whisper to you through the pages of this bestseller. Ask God to reveal Himself to you as you read, and learn the peace that comes from relationship with the Almighty Creator God.

And if you get to the end, and don't feel anything, let me know!!!

07 Breathe

Various Artists

When was the last time you interacted with any sort of wildlife?
Submitted by warpedreality.

I speak to my kids every day!

If you could pick a cartoon world to live in, which would it be?  Why?
Submitted by Scio, Scio.

Chorlton and the Wheelies - I guess you will need to be from UK and about 35 to remember them though.

Chorlton was a dinosaur type thing who talked with a Lancashire accent and he lived in Wheelie-world (i forget how he got there). The Wheelies were..well, wheels. They were like big heads with wheels on each side.

There was also a Welsh Witch called Frenella who was very funny.

Now i describe it, it sounds kinda lame but as a kid i loved it, and so do mine now.

Hi, my name's Sam.

I'm in the UK and i'm a ministry apprentice working in the Church of England.

I stumbled across VOX while searching for ideas for our midweek service and some of the posts i read really excited me. It's great to find groups of Christians sharing thoughts and struggles together.

I love the Bible, and really want to inspire others to see the richness that is in it.

I'm looking forward to joining in with some challenging debate and hopefully be able to offer some support to others too.

I've got two kids (one of each) aged 9 and 6 and I've been married for nearly 11 years (how time flies when you're having fun!!)