davidstarfall
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davidstarfall reacted to a post in a topic:
Is it fair to ask a person to change?
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One clarification I would like to make.. is that just because good things come as a result of something does not automatically make the thing good in and of itself. But if God tells me to do something, then it must inherently be good (assuming that I am indeed following the spirit and not making stuff up).
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Fine.. we can go there... Lets say I attend this event. Exactly as you described. In fact.. I drove her there. I helped her get dressed. She enjoys it. I tell her that I am glad she is happy. I am there for my friend. I helped her with something that is important to her (similarly to driving my friend to pick up cigarettes). Why did I do this? Because I felt like it was the right thing to do. In fact I was prompted by the spirit to attend. This act of love strengthens our friendship and our bond. We grow closer. She comes upon hard times. She opens up to me. I am able to share my testimony. She is converted to the Gospel, gets sealed in the temple, and has a happy family. Or maybe.. while I'm there, someone in the audience attacks her and I am there to save her life, and she rethinks her life and joins the church. Apparently it was in God's plan that I be there for this person, so that eventually I could be a spiritual guide for them. My point is... relationships are an important of the gospel. So my relationship with my friend, and maybe even my attendance at their "sinful" event, may possibly end up being a turning point in their life, and helps them find the gospel, and return to God. Some of you may say that the spirit would never prompt you to do such a thing. And I would have to respectfully disagree with you. God works in mysterious ways. Therefore, I reject logic that says that attending such an event is inherently wrong and strictly always against God's will. Some might also argue that God being all powerful, would just make things such that I do not need to attend such an event. But I reject that notion as well.
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Then.. all I'm saying, is that if one can compare this act to attending a gay wedding, then by going, I am not inherently sinning. Are these exactly comparable? For me they are, for you they may not be. But that is the best way that I can illustrate my point.
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I'm not arguing about whether the event is sinful or not. I'm talking about whether me attending a social event that holds no validity in the eternities is sinful.
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I'm just going to respond to this with a question... Is it sinful of me to give my friend a lift to the store knowing full well that they are going to the store to buy cigarettes?
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Well... not going is not necessarily unloving... and going is not necessarily sinful... So as long as the spirit is with you, you are fine. And slightly off topic... I also cannot watch horror movies. I just can't.
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Not saying one "should go", just saying that I don't personally find it morally reprehensible to go. My main point is that just because you are helping someone does not mean you condone their actions.
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This is true.
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Also true. Just for clarity, I'm not trying to argue that one must go, or feel obligated to go, or that one should give in to peer pressure to go. I'm simply saying that I don't think it is inherently sinful to go.
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The church recently helped pass a law protecting gay rights with respect to housing and employment in Utah. Does that mean that they condone gay behavior? Does that mean the church is helping gays sin more? Love the sinner, not the sin.
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Being present at something does not automatically mean I condone it.
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Because at a wedding I am not actively sinning.
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Its a bit of a stretch for me to compare a wedding to pornography.. but I see what you are trying to say.
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I think some of this gay wedding stuff is a matter of the personal interpretation of why one attends weddings in general. If the reason you go is because you support your loved one's decision, then you would probably not attend a gay wedding. If you go because you love the person, then even at a heterosexual wedding, even if you hate their choice of spouse and are against the union, would you not go anyway?
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Family in trouble for kids walking home
davidstarfall replied to Backroads's topic in Current Events
Do any of us really know anything about the crime rates in Silver Springs, Maryland?