Re: [TruthTalk] More wisdom from Dallas Willard

[Caroline Wong]

Odd but my father never hit me. My mom only hit me on 2 occasions and it was one slap on the shoulder out of sheer frustration: once when I fired a nanny at age 5 and once at age 9? when I shoved my little brother into the toilet. Mostly, they were indulgent or negligent (easy with servants hanging around!). But love was not an issue and neither was obedience or discipline. We just were: loved, obedient and disciplined. I never got in trouble at school or with the law. Neither did my 3 brothers. My little brother just told me drugs were rampant in our high school and I said I was never offered any and neither were you. He said they just knew better.   So now we have 2 personal anecdotes of child rearing. For what it's worth, psych and social studies say physically punishing a child does more harm than good.   Love,   Caroline   ----- Original Message ----- From: Terry Clifton To: TruthTalk@mail.innglory.org Sent: Monday, April 18, 2005 10:19 AM Subject: Re: [TruthTalk] More wisdom from Dallas Willard Debbie Sawczak wrote: We are all in danger of mistaking something else for God and loving it instead; you could say that this is the definition of the fallen human condition. It is not only liberals (none of whom are on TT anyway, so I hope the below wasn't aimed at anybody) who are open to this. It often seems to me that many "conservatives" identify Christ with their Correct Theology: they ascribe salvation to their theology rather than to our God, exalt it, and are in love with it. It is immutable, because it is God. I guess I should be using the first person; I have been in this situation myself and thought that what I loved was God.    Rather than practise suspicion or self-righteousness, then, let's encourage one another. One test of whether we love God, after all, according to the Apostle John, is whether we love our brother and sister. A little phileo thrown in wouldn't hurt either. This of course sounds like mush to some people.   Debbie =============================================================== I can only speak for myself,Debbie, and I speak as a conservative.  Love is sometimes overlooking the faults of others, but just as often, it is attempting to correct the faults of others.  When I needed correcting as a child, my father blistered my butt.  He did it because he loved me.  I would have been a monster if he had not done so.  My dad also spent time with me, taught me to hunt and fish and do other important stuff. My heavenly Father is the same way.  You do not have to read far in the Bible to be aware of this.  Why you would expect me to be different is a mystery to me.  With examples like that, I want to be like that.  Neither of my examples were compromisers.  I will not be one either.  If a brother or sister needs correcting, I will try to correct them.  If they deserve praise, I will praise them.  Please do not expect me to agree with that which I find false in order to be part of the community.  That is not the way I am built. I will love you, and I will pray for you, but I may never agree with you. Terry