Email about Billie Grahams daughter

[Timothy]

I recieved this in my email box today. What do you all think. I find it concerning that people should tell others that the hurricanes are punishment from God. People tend to forget about all the good hearted people that were impacted by the hurricanes. Do you think God wanted to punish them? No.. Well here is the email anyways.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this Happen?" (regarding Katrina)

Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives.

And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?"

In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found recently) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK.

Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school . the Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said OK.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says

Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing.

Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing?


Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they WILL think of you for sending it. Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

[Church Punk]

Well clearly from a scientific stand point it was not God directly that caused the hurricanes, it was us.

For 200 hundred years we have been burning fossil fuels, and polluting the atmosphere with harmful CO2 & NOx and HC's and these people blame God for the mess of bad weather?

I blame us, we are the ones that would rather drive our SUVs instead of ride our bikes!

It is our responsiblity to take care of the planet. That is actually our job that God gave us. Not to sit here and whimpper and whine about the weather, blaming God for it.

Edited December 6, 2005 by Church Punk

[Sojourner]

I've gotten that same forward before about other disasters.

[Mrvoll]

I have read someything like that too.

[homeschoolmom]

[url="http://www.snopes.com/rumors/wheregod.htm"]Urband Legend read more here[/url]

[Era Might]

Disaster can strike anywhere. Pope John Paul II was almost shot to death, and he was maybe the holiest man alive. The rain falls upon the just and the unjust, like the Lord said; (ironic, in the context of Hurricane Katrina).

[Gal. 5:22,23]

So God does not punish nations anymore? Just wondering...

[Era Might]

[quote name='Gal. 5:22' date='23,Dec 6 2005, 04:31 PM']So God does not punish nations anymore? Just wondering...
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[/quote]

idk. If he decides to tell me, I'll let you know, though.

[Gal. 5:22,23]

Well, it would seem to me that He punished the nation of Israel by allowing the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D., which Jesus prophesied. Am I wrong?

Also, throughout the OT, God punished Israel when she committed idolatry and turned from His laws. When they repented, He would hear from heaven and bless them once more. Then they would rebel, He would allow foreign nations to occupy them, then they would pray, and on and on.

Anyway, maybe He's lost His patience with us? It's possible we might need to repent of some stuff...

[thessalonian]

[quote name='Timothy' date='Dec 6 2005, 10:41 AM']I recieved this in my email box today.  What do you all think.  I find it concerning that people should tell others that the hurricanes are punishment from God.  People tend to forget about all the good hearted people that were impacted by the hurricanes.  Do you think God wanted to punish them?  No..  Well here is the email anyways.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this Happen?" (regarding Katrina)

Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives.

And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?"

In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found recently) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK.

Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school . the Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said OK.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says

Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing.

Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace. 

Are you laughing?


Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they WILL think of you for sending it. Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.
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[/quote]

God does in fact punish nations. He also punishes sin (Heb 12). However that someone suffered a natural disaster does not mean that they were being punished themselves. It may well be their time was just up. There is the time in the Gospels where Jesus speaks of the 18 who died when a tower fell on them. He asks if they think that these people were worse sinners than the rest and affirms they were not. That we must just be ready for judgement.

[Paphnutius]

I think the best thing to do in such cases is to accept it is a moment for grace. One should not ask if God caused it or not, but rather should look at how one is being called closer to Christ through such a situation. Our world abounds with disasters and tragedy(human and natural), sorry to say, but it is a consequence of the Fall.

Does it really matter if God caused this lightning bolt to strike or not? I don't think so. I find the most important thing here would be to accept it as your cross in life and plow ahead with our Lord.

[Paphnutius]

[quote name='Gal. 5:22' date='23,Dec 6 2005, 03:44 PM']Anyway, maybe He's lost His patience with us? It's possible we might need to repent of some stuff...
[/quote]
Might need to repent? My dear friend, we are in constant need of conversion.

[Gal. 5:22,23]

[quote name='Paphnutius' date='Dec 6 2005, 03:46 PM']Might need to repent? My dear friend, we are in constant need of conversion.
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[/quote]

I guess I meant as a nation.

[Era Might]

[quote name='Gal. 5:22' date='23,Dec 6 2005, 04:44 PM']Well, it would seem to me that He punished the nation of Israel by allowing the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D., which Jesus prophesied. Am I wrong?

Also, throughout the OT, God punished Israel when she committed idolatry and turned from His laws. When they repented, He would hear from heaven and bless them once more. Then they would rebel, He would allow foreign nations to occupy them, then they would pray, and on and on.

Anyway, maybe He's lost His patience with us? It's possible we might need to repent of some stuff...
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[/quote]

Anything's possible. Maybe Martha Stewart's imprisonment was his judgement on America.

Who knows? Not us.

But whether this was a "judgment" from God or not, we still need to repent. We should repent in good times and bad, in blessing and judgement. What do we do in the great moment we receive Holy Communion? We repent. "Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed".

Edited December 6, 2005 by Era Might

[Gal. 5:22,23]

[quote name='Era Might' date='Dec 6 2005, 04:07 PM']But whether this was a "judgment" from God or not, we still need to repent. We should repent in good times and bad, in blessing and judgement. What do we do in the great moment we receive Holy Communion? We repent. "Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed".
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Amen.