Originally posted by One Eyed Jack
Yeah, but I'm not here to make anyone like me. I'm here to speak my piece, and you can like it or not. It doesn't really matter to me.
Well, my reasons for coming here, is because I was interested in the debate, the arguments used, and so fort. And also I speak my piece, and try to explain why I adapt to another perspective on reality, and hoping for fruitfull debates, and not just "stand stills". After all, when human knowledge is concerned, there is no apriori way to tell who is right and who is not.
So we better listen to each other, and explore each others arguments, try to understand one another, etc.
But about my remarks, I grew a little embarrased in a certain stragey towards conversation you had. I hope you don't take it as an offense, I don't want to have hard feelings.
The issue is of course this. When you tell someone that "your ways are not going to get you anywhere", this might be taken personally, and even more personally perhaps as intended. It can be interpreted as telling someone that their lifes have no value.
To each and everyone of us, of course, it is a fact that one's life, no matter what you have done or who you are, are valuable, and are the most important to them as anything in the world.
How can you state such a thing, without having real knowledge about someone. What makes you say such a thing?
I know, it probably did not even enter your mind, when you stated it. It should not have bothered me. But I can not escape from sometimes taking offense in such things.
But the same thing can of course happen the other way around also. Maybe something I did or said here, are offensive to others.
I don't intend to, but I can imagine that it could.
And for those concerned, I hope it is clear that such was not intendend.
As to the issue itself, your statement was that my ways are not going to bring me anywhere. The fact is of course, you have no way of knowing that.
Your reply in later instance was, that I would have to follow Jesus.
I already knew you were intending to bring that in. So at that point I referred to your future statement, that even if I took offensive in what you said, and would turn myself into changing myself, this would nevertheless be "my way" No way around that. So, suppose I would follow Jesus. Even that would be "my way". But your initial statement was that "my ways are not going to get me anywhere". The absoluteness of that remark, of course implicates, that "there is no solution".
The trivial thing is of course, whatever one does, a human life is gonna end anyway. No way to change that. (not even when following Jesus).
But apart from the "common view" in which it is said to be refrettable that one dies, I could think of it the other way.
What would living in eternity be like? That's why I asked you, do you know how long eternity is?
Let me try to give you a slight idea on this. Suppose all of your life (I don't know how old you are, I think perhaps near the 40?) (I am 40 by the way) which already happened, would have occured in the time an electron (on average) evolves one time around the nucleus (if one could use that analogy, although it's quite inadequate cause an electron is not like a satelite orbiting a planet, but anyhow) and that occurs at least a million times every second. Now your age would be a million times your age stated in seconds, and that would just be less then a fraction of a fraction of your life. In fact you would grow older then the age of stars (the sun is perhaps 5 billions years old, and will continue another 5 billion years) of galaxies, and even the age of the universe would be a fraction of your lifetime.
Do you think you could keep up with yourself, for that time? And even this unimaginable amount of time, is just a whisper on your total life time of eternity, in fact it never lasts at all!
What would that be like? Yes, indeed. Even when you would be in heaven, it would be hell after all! You would not want that even for your worst enemy!
Conclusion: don't be worried that life only is so short, be very pleased that it doesn't last forever! It would be the worst thing that could happen to you!
