ComeToLife

This post is for everyone, Christian, non-Christian, whoever. I'm curious what people would say, if asked, what they thought a Christian Minister should be like. Christian or non-Christian, what characteristics do you think should be required of someone who is in a position where they are "proclaiming the word of God?" I ask these as a Christian in full-time ministry, out of care and concern and love for everyone, Christian or not. I'm not looking for a debate on whether or not Christianity is the right religion, or for people to come back and say "just dont shove it down peoples' throats" cause I already know all this, I'm looking for sincere qualities that you'd respect of a Christian minister, even if you don't believe or agree with what he teaches.

For some reason I thought it was possible to have a url in the form of "../file.html" Meaning if you were at the page "https://www.salesforce.com/products/platform/overview/ and there was a link in main.html that said "../file.html" it would take you to https://www.salesforce.com/products/platform/overview/ Anyone know the proper syntax for this, or do I just need to put the full URL in place? It's a whole lot easier if I don't have to put the whole URL in place...because it makes ftping and editing from other locations SOOOO much more convenient.

The CPanel's I've used in the past had options to make certain areas of your website "Protected" I figured CPanel was basically the gui and build for online web-editing...

lol, It can be a tough place to be. Tell me somethin' bout yourself, if ya don't mind...where are you headin in life? Like what's kinda, your ultimate purpose/mission/goal depending on what you call it? I'm just curious...I'll be prayin' for ya hoping you find your answers!!

lol I feel like I'm the only Christian here...I kinda scrolled through the first few posts and they all seemed against, but that's ok. I'm going to start off by saying that I'm not replying to this post to condemn, offend, rebuke, or convince anyone they're right or wrong. Uiop, I agree with you about religion these days, and I also am willing to affirm the fact that I believe even "Christians" are going about the whole "religion" thing the wrong way. I'm a youth minister, just so you know, and I dedicate myself full-time to my youth. My goal isn't to convict people of their wrongs, nor to say hey Christianity is right. My goal is to share with them a gift I believe I have recieved, and am called to share with others. Now as for the Bible, I believe it's accurate for a number of reasons. There are a few key things to look at regarding the...authenticity, of the Bible. Mainly, uniqueness, preparation, confirmation through history, archeology, and prophecy. These are how the vast majority of scholars in this area judge different writings, texts, books, etc., Bible or other. First off...uniqueness. Webster's dictionary by the way defines the Bible as "different from all others; having no like or equal." The Bible is unique from all other human writings in its continuity, circulation, and survival. The Bible is amazingly unified, despite factors that would lead to great disharmony in ordinary writings. Here are a few key things to know about the Bible: 1. It was written over a 1,600-year span 2. Written by more than 40 authors in every walk of life, king, peasant, philosopher, fishermen. 3. Written in many different places, ie...desert, wilderness, palace, dungeon. 4. Written throughout different era, war and peace, etc. 5. Written with author's different moods, from happiness to depression, excitement to anxiety. 6. Written on 3 continents, Asia, Africa, and Europe 7. Written in 3 language, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. 8. Written concerning HUNDREDS of controversial issues. (Part of the reason normal writings would fall apart over time as different kings and leaders rebuke them.) Even with all this diversity, the whole Bible, and all it's authors, speak with a unified focus, "God's redemption of man." F.F. Bruce, a professor of Biblical Criticism at the University of Manchester, wrote: Next we look at circulation. The Bible has been read by more people and published in more languages than any other work. United Bible Societies reported in 1993 that 2,062 languages had access to at least one book of the Bible, and I know personally that the number is now above 2,800, and most with complete Gospels. Next we look at the Bible's survival throughout history. It was written before the printing press, and copied by hand on materials like papyrus and parchment. It was copied and recopied by hand for hundreds of years. Even throughout this, the Bible has more manuscript evidence than any other piece of classical literature. The accuracy of the old testament manuscripts is the result of an uncomparable Jewish system of preservation...Bernard Ramm explains it as: The Bible has alos withstood constant persecution and discrimination. John W. Lea, author of The Greatest Book in the World, cited H.L. Hasting's explanation: Now I'm gonna move on into the bibliographical test. This is basically affirming it by historical testing. Josh McDowell describes this testing as "an examination of the textual transmission by which documents reach us." Basically, we do this by examining the number of manuscripts and the amount of time between the original and existing copy. The manuscript evidence of the New Testament is incredible. There are more than 5,000 manuscript copies of portions of the NT in Greek and at least 15,000 more in other languages. No other ancient writing has NEAR this much existing manuscript evidence. Also, the interval of time between when the NT books were originally written and when they were actually documented and copied for preservation, is the shortest of any ancient work ever. Another important thing to look at is the witness of Archeology to the Bible. Currently, there are more than 25,000 sites that have already been discovered showing connections to the Old Testament period, witnessing to stories of the OT. There have been many archeological finds that support names, dates, and cities referred to in the OT, which for much time, critics argued those cities never existed, and were only myth in the Bible. One example is the discovery of the Ebla tablets in 1974. For centuries the Genesis 14 account of the victory Abraham had over Chedorlaomer and the Mesopotamian kings has been held to be fiction, and the cities of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoar were thought to be mere legend. The Ebla tablets referred to all five of these cities and in one document even lists them in the same order as Genesis 14. The New Testament has even more archeological evidence, supporting all of Luke's accounts regarding such things as the Roman census every 14 years, initiated under Augustus, an inscription in Antioch names Quirinius as governor of Syria in 7 B.C. and 6 A.D., and many other historical and archological facts that Luke attested to. I can go into all the evidence the Bible shows internally, as in the fulfilling in the New Testament, written after 0 A.D., of the prophecies written in the Old Testament, hundreds of years earlier, but I'll leave that for now. Basically, the Bible has remained unified in it's purpose, direction, and and has remained more accurate over a longer period of time than any other writing. I don't see what could possibly attest to all this, unless it is truly to word of God. Nothing man has ever written outside of the Bible has stood and lived the way the Bible has through so many generations, and nor does any other "historical document" yield the same evidence and support for itself...outside of itself...than the Bible. People are always looking for proof, but I don't see how they can't feel the proof when they know that one day they're just going to die and that's that. If that's the case...what's the point? Isn't there a desire that we're always trying to fill, that we never seem to be able to? We have money, cars, relationships, homes, etc...but yet we're always searching for something more. I think it's because there's a desire there for what we were originally intended for, which is a relationship with our creator, God. C.S. Lewis once wrote something along the lines of "The fact that there's a desire that cannot be satisfied by anything in this world only shows that we were created for another world." And I completely agree. Hopefully I can just help you understand a little bit more about where we come from, or where I come from anyhow. I recognize the many Christians who don't even read the Bible or know how they're called to live as Christians. I apologize for those who have not respected you and talked to you where you are, rather than stood above you and condemned you. Too often Christians make the mistake of thinking they're better, but we are all just as deserving of the same things. I write only with love, hoping to share the truth I believe in. In Christ, Jeremy

Well, regarding your "news flash" about the Bible being written by men...a couple of things. First off, all scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness. (2 Timothy 3:16 talks about that.) You can go ahead and say "man" wrote that too, but don't forget that Jesus Christ Himself quoted over 400 different old testament scriptures during His lifetime, and affirmed the Bible and His teachings (which are commin in the New Testament) as BEING the living Word of God. Second off, if I were to rebuke you it would be in love. I recognize the so-called "Christians" who spend their time practicing condemnation, and they judge others. I will be the first to tell you I'm a sinner, I am no man to judge anyone else, and I believe I deserve every bit of punishment first, blessing second, that anyone else deserves. I try to live my life according to what God has commanded through His word, and in love, I would go to someone to try and show them God's will. I will never hold anything against anyone, because I am in no position to do so. My own lustful desires towards women places me in the same category of adultery (I believe) as a bisexual or homosexual person. My calling as a youth minister is to guide others into truth, that they can experience the blessings and fulfillment God wants them to have, and intended for them to have from the beginning. I know personally that God won't bless a relationship living in sin against Him. This applies to straight people as well! I hope not to offend anyone or condemn anyone, my only goal is to show and share the gift I've been given, and be a messenger for Christ. I believe He tells us in His word the things He does because they teach us to live a life in relationship and communion with Him, which therefore He in turn will provide and protect for each of us in such amazingly abundant ways we can not even imagine. I hope this may bring you a blessing in one way or another, and I speak only in love and care and hopes that you may live a life in close relationship with God, recieving the things He has in store for you. In Christ, Jeremy

Do you happen to know if that works alongside the CPanel Authentification? I'm really not sure how CPanel checks it's passwords. That actually might be somethin' good to know, but I haven't found any info on CPanel's Authenification System. Thanks for the suggestion, I'm definitely going to look into that!!

Hey all, Jeremy here. Just thought I'd drop in a lil note about myself since it seems open...So yea, I'm really just some guy out in Illinois who does youth ministry work. I currently serve Morning Star Community Church, in Aurora, and am really excited about some of the things I've seen God doing lately through our congregation and youth. My life as well He's been greatly evidencing Himself in.I'm full time in ministry, working with different college groups in the area, as well as serving in youth ministry, junior and senior high mainly.If anyone has any questions concering life in general, Christianity, or dealing with people, I'd love to help out. Feel free to send me a private message or IM me on AIM: Jeremy4Christ. I'd be glad to help out in any way that I can, and if I don't feel I'm the right person for the topic, I'd be glad to point ya in the direction I believe is in your best interest. Hopefully I can bring blessings upon this forum, each individual here, and the websites that find benefit from this forum.Take care, God bless, and trust me...God loves you!! lol.Yours in Christ,Jeremy

So I'm not quite ready to spend $1500 on a Boss BR-1600 Digital Recording Studio package...and I know there are many options for recording music through the computer...my biggest concern is compatibility, quality, and actually I guess...ease of use? I've heard of things like the Tascam US-122 which works through the USB port, and you can plug guitars and mics directly into this thing, but for the most part, everything else is done software-wise...on the computer. Anyone have an idea of the quality of these kind of products? I also know there's a new similar item called Inspire...I believe, which works through the FireWire port. I'm a little hesitant to use a software-based music recorder/editor, unless I've got some good feedback first.

Ok so I'm trying to integrate a website-wide search engine into my site, and rather than going through the million different options, I figured the best feedback I can get would be from actual people who have previously done this. What's the best option, and/or is there a recommended script I can use rather than build my own? The website's pretty expansive, and will be continually growing and expanding, with new pages added at least weekly, if not daily. Plus current pages will be updated on a weekly basis. Any thoughts? Thanks!

lol...I dunno about which Christians believe this is the mark of the beast. Biblically I know that the mark of the beast isn't gonna be something we're born with or have no control over. So coming from the Bible, and as a Christian Minister, I think the "Christians" who believe it's the mark of the beast aren't quite accurate. My best guess would be a birth defect/gene thing. There are some pretty interesting...occurrences that happen as a result of the wrong genes being dominant in a body. As a Christian I have my beliefs on why things like this happen specifically, being that as sin entered the world through man, so did mishaps and chance and "negative" occurrences. Disease wasn't here until man sinned, because the world was without fault. I believe that same general principle applies to all aspects of life where fault may be found. Notice from BuffaloHELP: Fixed QUOTE tag. When QUOTE startes, make sure it ends with /QUOTE.

Ya know there're some key things I think you hit there. A very important part in relationships is being on the same level as your partner. Now, through my experience in relationships, I think that there's a whole other way of maintaining healthy relationships, that are forward moving towards the goal of what relationships are ultimately intended for.I've never quite understood why someone would get involved with a person they already know they won't end up with. It just leads to hurt and loss down the road...especially when it comes time to finally actually end it.Some of the things I think are relevant to the issue of relationships are timing, trusting, loving, and committment.There's really no reason to say you love someone but aren't ready for a committment. All you're trying to do is temporarily have a piece of that person's heart, when you aren't even sure if you wanna be responsible for taking it. I don't think people should "love" or "fall in love" if they aren't ready for a committment, because what happens once you "fall out" or "stop" loving that person? It just creates scars on both ends.Another thing is what is love really? I mean, we all say it, and most of us think we feel it...but is it really an emotion? I believe that true love is signified with action. If I say I love you, but know in my heart you aren't the one I wanna be with for the rest of my life, but still figure you can make me happy now, so I stay with you knowing you're falling in love with me...is that true love? Or is that the word I choose to describe what is ultimately temporary satisfaction?Now if I say I love you, and I'm ready to take the responsibility that comes along with what happens to someone when you tell them that, there's a good chance I really do. And if I'm willing to do my best to guard and protect you from pain, even if that means KEEPING the "I love you" TO MYSELF...and not telling you because I know it's best for you to not know yet...for whatever reason...then I probably love you. True love I believe is the thing that ALWAYS looks out for what's in the best interest of the OTHER person. Sometimes your best interest is loss for me, but if I love you, I should do that. It's an action...how we choose to make our decisions around and regarding that person.I think if more people could figure that out...and decide to stay away from the "i love you" before they're ready to commit to the actions of truly loving someone, it'd be a whole lot easier to find right relationships and live our lives accordingly.

Ok soo....I have different authentification required areas of a website I'm currently working on, and I'd like to find a way to link to one pass. protected area from another, after someone's already logged in...but each time the Popup window comes up asking for the username and password...anyone know a way around this other than programming a php a java password protection script? I'd really prefer to use the server's method, as it's much more concrete. I've seen some information about a syntax along the lines of: https://www.salesforce.com/products/platform/overview/ But it doesn't seem to work, and I believe that's really only applicable for ftp use. Maybe I just have the wrong syntax, either way, I'm not sure and could use some help. Thanks a lot!!

Ya know....what I'm really trying to find is an old rpg game called Earthbound lol. Some of you might remember...it's back from the SNES days, but I heard it was ported to PC somewhere at sometime, but I've never seen it. lol it was prolly the most addictive game ever, but it rocked. Any ideas or anyone know where I might be able to find a copy? Heck I'll even take an SNES and the original if I could find it again lol.