Here is an email I received from a dear brother.
Dear Craig
I don’t often go to the Forum “letters” …..don’t get anywhere near the time that I would like to have . As I explained to Kathy Horton - to whom I sent transcriptions from the 2009 Conference, I do not have much time to fellowship by becoming involved in the Forum at present. My wife has terminal breast cancer; I am almost 73 and with the need to assist her plus the tidying of the yard,house etc I will have to wait until such time as I can spend the time at the computer as I desire. I will then contact you again in regard to what I need to do to participate in the Forum. I did contact you years ago, but knew that I wasn’t ready and had not studied anywhere near as much as I have now of Ray’s material. Thank you for referring the first transcript I had done to Kathy.
Although as I said, I don’t visit the Forum letters very much, I was “led” to take a peek only a day or so ago and discovered the following…..I include an extract below…… it was exactly what I needed, to go with some personal circumstances which I have been through recently. As you say, you never know who is visiting the Forum letters and what benefit they gain from it. Maybe just the shortest, but necessary and timely information and comments from people which God inspires, is all that it takes…..and then He can inspire the one needing it to visit the site to read it.
Here is the posting which drew my attention - and I kept reading it until I reached your summation. You may care to pass my appreciation on to the Forum on my behalf.
Just wanted to contact you and let you know - and to say thanks again.
Colin Bay Australia.
From
http://forums.bible-truths.com/index.php/topic,11476.0.htmlGod has taught me a very good lesson this week by opening my eyes to see myself, to see the plank in my eye as I was looking at the plank in others’ eyes.
I’ll explain this by first saying that many times I have thought I was going to leave the forum due to one word that stirred negative thoughts and emotions. The word is Expectations.
Has anyone ever considered this word, and of how it affects us in a bad way?
It’s the word that causes us to see only the surface of people, but subsequently is a reflection of our own carnal mind, the plank in our own eye.
What is it that causes offence? Is it the person that offended you, or was it your expectation of what or how you wanted something to be? Did you expect them to be always polite according to your expectation? Did they say something seemingly bad about your post? Did you not get as many replies as you expected? Was your post deleted or corrected. Did you feel like you were attacked from every direction? I could list many negative questions and thoughts that some of us get from being here. Everyone knows for themselves what they are, and what negative emotions they stir in us.
I am going to speak for myself that any and all negative thoughts I have ever had about anyone or anything on this forum, and throughout my entire life wasn’t caused by anything but expectations that I have placed on people and myself; yes self…. as in, I expected that I was right about something.
Expectations are what cause offence, and disappointment. It’s what causes people to be led astray, or leave the forum, or to never post again. An expectation causes fear and animosity. It can, and will keep one from seeing, and loving people as God does. It causes us to see only the surface of a person rather than a person that God is doing a work in. It causes us to see the plank in their eye rather than seeing our own.
I’m almost willing to bet that most of the people that leave here did it based on expectations. Of course we all know that all is of God, and there is a reason for everything. Its negative expectations that I have placed on people here that God has used to make me look in the mirror, and o my, what a big plank I had in my eye.
Hardened hearts, bitter hearts, annoyance, frustration, disappointment, anger, malice, envy, and strife. I’m sure that all of us can add to this list that seems endless of which all comes from expectations.
These are all negative expectations and the consequences. There is however a positive side of expectation. Example: I can expect people to have issues that God is working out in them. I can expect people to be infallible. I can expect them to be weak. I can’t expect them to be like me, or think like me, or act like me. I can’t expect anyone to always be kind and patient. I can’t expect them to be at my level of understanding. I can’t expect myself to be at their level of understanding or spiritual wisdom. As anyone can see that it goes on and on, and it’s in every one of us. I have seen it with my own eyes. I have seen both sides of expectations, and it was the negative side that opened my eyes to see myself in the mirror. It was God that made me look at myself. Now I can have compassion and understanding of the negative side of expectations.
Negative expectations that we place on people and ourselves is the core of carnality.
This is my testimony of the week. I have been extremely blessed to have my eyes opened to this just two days ago. I hope that others will consider the expectations they have placed on others and themselves. It’s definitely something that will make one look at himself or herself. Hopefully you will be saying to yourself, O my!!
Nothing can offend me except for my own negative expectations. This post can be deleted and I would not be offended because there would be a reason for it. A few days ago it would have offended me, but today is a new day with opened eyes, and God gets the glory.
God has a reason for negative and positive expectations to run parallel with each other, but when we use them together then you can definitely expect conflict with the Spirit just like touching negative and positive battery posts together.
In my case, God literally made me apply them together to open my eyes. It was a shock but a good and humble shock.
In Christ
Roy
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Did you not get as many replies as you expected?
A thread may get only one soul whom God has prepared to be blessed or edified and that one person could be a guest or a lurker. God cares and speaks to them too so for that reason, the topic may get little or no responses at all. I don’t hope that anyone should be offended or even disappointed based on the number of replies they get to a post or a thread that is entered into the Forum.
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Charles,
As you've found out, it is not the number of replies, it is the quality of replies. If God is giving an answer or speaking through the forum, would He need to do it by having 100 people respond? Or would He look down upon a few saints and inspire them with a Godly answer?
Craig
Author
Topic: Never know who your words will touch (Read 3245 times)