sinker

I forgot to thank God! For my lovely wife, my three kids, two born, one inutero who is due in 4-5 weeks, for my friends on dz.com, for HH and his hard work, for my job and for a God who loves me. Personally. Individually. In spite of my shortcomings, of which there are many. -the artist formerly known as sinker

This is long, please be patient with me... I am SO totally bummed that I missed out on this thread!!! I am away on business and can only check the forums at night in the hotel and it's SLLOOOWWWW dial up... What a great thread. Thank you Rhino, for starting it. I was surprised to see so many people thanking God. Very interesting. To me, this is the REAL fruit, people talking about what DOES and DOES NOT matter the most in life. Yeah, skydiving is very important, but for me it is only a means to an end. I feel so close to God in freefall. It's a very strange thing. I can't explain it to others, they just have to experience it. For me, time completely slows down, especially on a solo dive. It's a "flow" experience after which I am extremely clear in the head and very peaceful. A word about suffering and that being proof that there either is not a God or that God doesn't care, otherwise He wouldn't let such suffering occur. Hold on a sec. Why is it that just BECAUSE suffering occurs, God is to blame? Free will is by far the greatest gift, I believe, given to us by God. If we didn't possess that ability, could we REALLY claim that God loves us? To NOT have free will would be for God to enslave us, hardly an act of unconditional love. I believe God says, "I love you so much that, in cooperation with your parents, I created you as a unique and unrepeatable human being to go and do what you will with your life, simply because it is GOOD to BE, good to exist. If you don't acknowledge me, if you don't love me back, I will not withdraw my love, my gift of free will." What does this have to do with suffering? Well, a lot of the suffering in life is CAUSED by people exercising their free will. Even if choices made by others were under the influence of drugs or alcohol and their ability to freely choose was mitigated, why should that impell God to usurp or suspend the greatest gift He's given humans. And, before the argument comes up, the God Christian's believe is omniscient and omnipresent is not less so simply because his creations (humans) "tied His hands" by doing evil nasty bad things to others. Because He allows it doesn't mean He likes it. And, in allowing it to happen, He gives others the gift of coming to the aid of those who suffer and alleviating, to the best of their ability, their suffering. That is, if they answer that call. Another thing about suffering: alot of suffering NOT caused by the bad choices of others comes naturally, such as through disease. I'm a walking living breathing example of this. My lovely wife has Rheumatoid Arthritis and is disabled. If you are not aware of this disease, it is not the sort of arthritis one gets after a sports injury or when one gets old. It is an intractable, inflammatory, life shortening, wasting disease that is excruciatingly painful. My wife is only 34 and contracted the disease when she was 30. She can no longer work. Her hands are hideously curled and knarled. She cannot open a bottle of apple juice or a carton of milk without assistance. She can hardly pick up our kids, let alone play rough with them. But you know what? She and I have found God in her suffering. In more ways than one. The most important thing is that for those who believe in Christ suffering is redemptive. It makes us better people. No, I'm not masochistic. But to non-Christians, this belief doesn't make much sense and it's easy to ridicule. But, that's the crux of Christianity, that suffering is redemptive. No, I can't "Save" myself through my suffering, BUT I can grow in virtue through the assistance of Grace by suffering well. I see that in my wife every day. She suffers well. She doesn't complain. She is humbled by it. And she's grateful it isn't worse and that it has made her a better person. It's kind of like the alcoholic who, once sober, thanks God for his alcoholism, without which he might not have met such a gracious God. My wife is thankful she is not wheelchair bound yet. As a result of her suffering, she's more loving to our children (and she was already a saint with them). She lets me love her more by me serving her more. And that is another way I see God in suffering. I become Christ to my wife by serving her, by helping to alleviate her suffering as much as I can. I become less selfish, less prideful, less arogant. I become softer and more loving. And in return I am abundantly blessed. Also, the pain my wife feels, and that I feel also, since she will never skydive, will never play softball again, will never..., has helped us reconcile some of our problems. It's like the family who finally healed their dysfunction after one of the members discovered he or she was dying with cancer. Suffering can serve as the balm to heal old wounds! That is how God makes sense out of suffering. I just re-read the thread before posting this... Raefordite did a great job explaining the Christian view of what happens to little kids who are not of the "age of reason" who die. And this applies too to those who are innocently ignorant of Christ. Sure, they can go to Heaven. I've always been of the belief, as is the Church I belong to, that only God knows the depths of each human soul. Only God knows if Jesus has truly been rejected from a person's soul. It isn't for me to judge. That doesn't mean that I shouldn't exhort my friends if I see them doing something contrary to natural or Divine law. To neglect that task would be wrong of me and wrong of them if they saw me doing something wrong also. That is not judging, that is love. Someone else earlier wrote that they don't think humans are any better than rats in the back yard and God wouldn't have chosen US for any grand design b/c of how "crappy" humans are or can be. It's far too easy to see life this way, but I can't help but disagree. When I was 17 I spent some time with Mother Theresa at a mission in Gallup New Mexico. Now, there is a woman who was not equal to a rat in the back yard. All 4 foot 11 inches of her was love. She loved everyone. And she didn't cram Jesus down anyone's throat. Accepting Christ was not a prerequisite for the "poorest of the poor" to receive needed food, shelter, medical care and LOVE. And her handshake was more firm than most men. And when she looked at me, she seemed to look into my soul. It was penetrating. That was the look of God. In February of 2000, I was invited to attend a private Mass with Pope John Paul II. Now, I know alot of you don't agree w/ his theology, his stance on women's issues, his response to the priest-sexual abuse scandal in this country. However, he too is a man of great love. I felt it when he embraced me, when he addressed me, when he spoke to me. He was sincerely interested in ME as a PERSON, as someone worthy of love, BECAUSE I am, and we all are, created in the image and likeness of God. It was an incredibly moving experience. Yes, we are capable of the worst evil. And we are all the more capable of the greatest good. It's our choice. And there is no greater good than to accept God's love and in turn give it to others. Sorry for the lengthy post. I hope it was worth the read. -the artist formerly known as sinker

hey jtval... if you DID tape it, I'd be willing to pay you a quid or two if you'd dub it for me... -the artist formerly known as sinker

alright, what's the scoop? I can't get these vids to work for me. I am using the latest windows media player. -the artist formerly known as sinker

my random thoughts for the day, seen on two bumber stickers: Just say no... to sex with pro-lifers Your father should have pulled out early (before someone flames me about the pro-lifer thing, lighten up... I'm a prolifer too. You gotta admit it's funny) -the artist formerly known as sinker

where did you get it? -the artist formerly known as sinker

I'm a true friend but I sure as hell ain't gonna rub any ointment on your friggin chest... I can boil some soup for ya, but that's about it. And I'd probably burn it anyway. Hope you get to feeling better buddy... -the artist formerly known as sinker

frodo, you've got a GREAT avatar! -the artist formerly known as sinker

rhino, that was beautiful. congrats on the boy. with death comes life. -the artist formerly known as sinker

everybody now... PUSH 'EM OUT SHOVE 'EM OUT WAYYYYYY OUT PUSH 'EM OUT SHOVE 'EM OUT WAYYYYYY OUT PUSH 'EM OUT SHOVE 'EM OUT WAYYYYYY OUT -the artist formerly known as sinker

I'm so very sorry for the loss to the Chicago skydiving community, and our community as a whole. Peace to friends and family... -the artist formerly known as sinker

we used to call them aero-flotsam and jetsam -the artist formerly known as sinker

Sorry dude, I was napping. Having a pregnant wife and two young kids is quite exhausting. I'll do better I promise. -the artist formerly known as sinker

Heres a pic for you, an Ilyusin-made airliner, evidentally VERY heavy, using ALL the runway... -the artist formerly known as sinker

I think it's quite nice, really. -the artist formerly known as sinker

Urine has protein. Maybe that'd be a good'un. No, on second thought... -the artist formerly known as sinker

you don't have to look to far... I have his number. What's it worth to you? -the artist formerly known as sinker

muenkel, that's just nasty. and I know. I've got two kids. the plug is gross. -the artist formerly known as sinker

don't think viagra will help that... -the artist formerly known as sinker

that is good news about that belly of yours. i bet you're anxious to get skyborne again. you got him that avatar? you ARE the queen... -the artist formerly known as sinker

since I don't like his avatar, can I kiss your ass? (I actually really like his avatar... that monster is from one of my favorite bugs bunny episodes...) How's your belly? -the artist formerly known as sinker

HA!!! I got the first call from Monk-man Muenkel! Ok, ok, so Michele called him this afternoon, but that doesn't count. And ok, ok, so he called me before his AFF level I, even before his ground school. But he WAS on his way to the dz. SO... Good luck Chris! -the artist formerly known as sinker

I guess we shouldn't mention his boyfriend either... -the artist formerly known as sinker

I learned the right canopy I should buy for myself. that Bytch has a nice rack but not through personal experience. that Mouth and Michelle are very friendly. that Sunshine shouldn't go through security w/ those staples in her belly that most people here are very nice and caring that skydivers are some of the best people in the world -the artist formerly known as sinker

suit looks great. who made it? I can think of some great captions for your hanging harness shots, but 1) I don't have photoshop and 2) I make it a general practice to not fuck with anyone from Texas. -the artist formerly known as sinker