Becky and I share the same birth-day. Happy belated birthday Becky.
I am 20 years old and always will be 20 years old...so, when you ask me, Josh, 50 years from now..my answer wil be that I am 20 years old.
You ask for a personal testimony?
Here is mine.
I grew up in a drunkan environment for about 14 years. I saw and expierenced much violence...the memories are still fresh in my mind. God saved my parents... then those bloody and violent experiences/acts vanished...because God replaced it with peace. I was converted INTO a church out of a dare. IT was not until much later that I really experienced God for myself in a personal way. I had many struggles throughout my "christian" experience". I backslid many times....
One day, someone I met told me that Mose's law was passed and we live in freedom and grace....we are and will be saved by grace..not by our own works. I then began, once believed this, to experience peace of mind for the first time.
But still one thing kept eating at me. Why does God create a world only to damn most of it? Isn't he totally omni? I began to study different views, I was raised pentecostal, and so came across Calvinism. Calvinism sounded more scriptural than arminianism. But it still bothered me that God was able to choose some (through Calvinism) even though mankind was deprave.
I then questioned...IF God is able to save some...the elect...through our depravity...then surely he is able to save all by that same power?
So..then I began to call Calvinist's/Spurgeonites 'partial' universalists..haha
So... that is what disturbed me about Calvinism... that is, the power of and ability and soveriegn election of God to save the elect. I understood, slighly, the reason for the elect... and then understood that the purpose was to reveal his GRACE in the Church. Simple as that.
This led me to accept 'universalism'...and I am still learning how to understand and explain it better to a world that doesn't understand the loving and merciful God...and yet passionate God who will judge in severity...whom we should respect and adore.
Now.. tell me about yourself.