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August 15, 2004
Quixtianity?
By QBlog in
While listening to Orrin Woodward's speech (mp3) from Quixtar LIVE! I was reminded of the important role Christianity plays within Quixtar and its related organizations. Virtually all of my IBO friends are devout Christians. Many perceive their Quixtar business as a ministry for Christ as well as a way to make money. I've heard stories of IBOs who became Christians and turned their lives around after joining up with Quixtar.
Such testimony is undoubtedly an encouragement for Christians and it works to strengthen the resolve of many IBOs, further convincing them that THIS business is the "opportunity of a lifetime." However, there is a debate among some Christians about the teachings and philosophy of many Quixtar Christians. The debate goes something like this:
- The Quixtar Christians believe that God has given them an opportunity (in the form of Quixtar) to follow their dreams. Because they've been faithful to God's will, he has blessed them abundantly with financial freedom and the ability to help others achieve similar blessings.
- On the other side of the debate are those Christians who believe that to have faith in God is to blindly follow His will, no matter where it leads. If His will is to live in poverty, then He will provide for their every need. Their happiness and comfort is in knowing they're obeying God, not in driving a new Hummer or vacationing in Europe.
Some Christians point out similarities between the Quixtar Christians and the "name-it-and-claim-it" Chritians. This only intensifies the debate because both sides are quick to use scripture to back up their beliefs. What's always fascinated me about this debate is that both sides steadfastly believe that their understanding of Christianity is correct. There is little common ground as illustrated by a brief forum discussion at Christianity.com.
And yes, I understand both perspectives. I've engaged in several debates with friends on this very topic. Always the diplomat, I see merit in each argument and I also see flaws. However, there is one fundamental question that I believe Christians must always strive to answer in the affirmative: "Is what I'm doing right now pleasing the Lord?" If, as a Christian, you can't answer yes, then you probably need to reevaluate what it is that you're doing.
Comments
Wow, you really said anything/everything in that post. Well done!
Thank You Hartman. It is those two words that I hope to hear when I meet my Jesus face to face. "Well Done, My good and faithful servant."
When the head of the largest organization in the business has a hat that says "HUB" meaning Head Up Butt and sells it to the masses on Saturday and preaches the Lord on Sunday that ought to give you a hint!
LOL
PADDLE THE CANOE! PADDLE THE CANOE!!!
I don't know why, but it just makes me laugh.
But that's just me:)
A wolf is sheep’s clothing? Sounds like Jason to me. He believes anyone mentioning Christ in connection to running a business in a Christian manner must have ulterior motives. He uses the name of Christ as a means of running his life, making his decisions, etc. Maybe he has hidden motives. See how Jason uses this logic to discredit? And that’s the hidden angle of his post – just another way to discredit Quixtar.
Another problem with his post is that he believes it is wrong to recognize and applaud individuals that achieve great things. This is wrong according to Jason. Applying Jason’s crazy logic to other areas in our society, he must believe the following activities are the same as praising false gods: Olympic medal ceremonies, ticker tape parades, all trophy ceremonies, honoring our children when they receive excellent school grades (and in fact, giving out school grades in the first place), handing out Nobel Prizes (not only are these individuals recognized and honored around the world, they receive cold hard cash – what terrible sinners believes Jason), and the list goes on, as does Jason’s deception.
And last, you believe Chris is going to greet you in Heaven and say “well done” for any behavior you do? If you own a bible, it must be dusty. Show any true Christian you post if you are looking for a good laugh.
Mentioning Christ in running your business is not bad. God is supposed to be present in all aspects of our lives, so running a business, ANY business and mentioning Him is not the problem. Using Christs name for material gain is. Christ came 2000 years ago to save us, not to make us rich or prosperous. The eighty or so years we have on this earth, whether it is spent in great wealth or abject poverty will pale in comparison to eternity.
Anti-Jason asked for biblical reference to the "well done though good and faithful servant" passage. Please go to Matt. 25:21. Jesus is giving a parable, this parable has to do with the Talents, and in it the "well done..." passage come out. This passage has been used to give an example of what a faithful believer can hope to hear when he/she enters into heaven. But since none of us here on earth have been to heaven and back again, we don't know what God will say...it might be differant for everyone, it might be the same..we will find out.
Come on anti jason...you must have misread jasons post. Applauding individuals for accomplishment is bad according to him? No, it is not, and the Bible does not say it is. The issue is when humans are arrogant enough to believe that they are the be all and end all...that they succeeded because of themselves, not because of God. When individuals take the credit...and ALL the credit and give no praise or glory to God.
The bottom line is this, all success (and by success I do not mean just $$ in the bank) comes from God. Every day you wake up is a gift...God controls when you will die, and to not recognize that it is God who gives you the opportunity to suceec is the sin. I run another business....I don't sit on my butt and say "well if God wants it to suceed, He will do all the work.", and neither do I say "God has nothing to do with the success or failure of this business." I say that "God has given me the opportunity to suceed in this business, it is up to me to do work, but I will trust Him for results"
Paul talks about runing the race to win, Christ and John speak about a crown given in glory. Christ talks about our works being hay, stubble, gold, and precious stone. The bible clearly talks about recognition for accomplishment...but it also says salvaiton is BY GRACE, THROUGH FAITH.
Jason - I applaud your post.
Using Christianity AS A MEANS to further your secular business is at the very least, unethical but more to the point, psychologically damaging. Psycologically, particularly for new Christians, being told that 'God has annointed this business' and other such nonsense is dangerous. Many new Christians are so unsure of what to do next, they will listen to anyone who professes to be a Christian. So when upline says 'you MUST sow to REAP - so God wants you to SOW your time/money into this business so that you will REAP the rewards"....but, when an IBO is not yet successful, the upline then claims that the IBO doesn't have enough faith in God. This is not rare, it is common. My experience with WWDB did more to DAMAGE my faith than it did to enforce it. The 'name-it-and-claim-it' mentality is not biblically based. Of course you can be a wealthy Christian, but not all Christians are destined to be wealthy, regardless of what they do. It is God's plan that we must allow to work in our lives and embrace, not our upline's plan for our lives.
This was one of the biggest issues for me, and was instrumental in my departure from participation.
We had a similiar thread in the forum area on this subject.
I had stated there the biggest "guilt" to overcome was leaving the business because it was so ingrained in us to wins souls to christ.
I asked my pastor why the "fruit" on the tree, as far as winning souls, was good in the "biz" ,but there was so much affairs and bad teaching going on.
He said that God's grace allows this to go on because it does wins souls, but that eventually all would be brought to life about the behind the scenes of what is going on.
Now we begins to see the fall of the Kingpins..Such as Bill Britt, Paul Miller and others, I hope it will teach the Quixtar folks not to put so much adolation on humans.
I feel the main areas they error are..
1) They think that God wants every1 in Quixtar, and call them either losers if they quit or do not get in.
2)Teach against going to church on a regular basis and being in subjection to a "preacher or shepherd"
3) That your upline will help you spiritually, I have heard people say that their upline were their spiritual father SCARY !!!
4) Judge a good ministry by the amount that get saved by it.
The only argument they can try is getting alot of people saved, and that is it.
Now everyone’s a Theologian. Just because you go to church or claim to be a Christian doesn’t mean you are an expert on the subject. Ever notice how individuals negative towards Quixtar claim to be “experts” in just about every subject that comes up in the posts such as network marketing, law, and now theology.
Anti-Jason,
Just because you show some plans and buy some products doesn't make you a business expert or the authority on Quixtar.
Anti-Jason,
Where di you read that any 1 posting here claimed to be an expert? Is this general classification you are using again? We have alot of Pro-Quixtar use the general classification statements..notice I said alot and not every1.
By the way I would say I am more of an expert in Quixtar than you.
12 years/direct/sponsored 30+/never missed a function/did all 8 teams steps/had over 500 people/
And you?
Anti-Jason:
I didn't read anything in any of these posts about anyone claiming to be an expert. However, now that you mention it, I am a licensed psychotherapist and have quite a bit of experience in the area of quasi-Christianity and the damage that psychological games can do to an individual, regardless of their faith. Additionally, Jason sounds like a well-versed bible based Christian (although no one can judge another man's heart), and QBlog has certainly done much more research than you on the topic of Quixtar, and I'm sure has a wider, deeper view, with less bias about the subject than do you. Being exposed to all sides of an issue may not qualify someone as an expert, but it certainly entitles one to speak intelligently on a topic. Considering many upline suggest an "expert" on Quixtar is simply one who has been in 'a day longer than you,' are you claiming to be one? With that being said, I suggest that you are out of your league in terms of this discussion. All replies in this post speak more intelligently and with greater passion than your whining about someone trying to discredit Quixtar.
FYI - they are doing that on their own. We just enjoy discussing it.
PADDLE THE CANOE anti-Jason!!!!!
PADDLE THE CANOE!!!!!
This might be that couple's only shot at financial independance!!!It's up to you to take care of them!!!!! Show the plan!!!
PADDLE THE CANOE!!!!!!
I am laughing out loud right now.
But that's just me:)
Anti-Jason
(nice moniker by the way)
I agree that just going to church does not make one an expert in christianity. Nor does it make one a Christian for that matter. What I disagree with on your last post is that those negative towards quixtar claim to be experts on various subjects (law, network marketing, etc.). I think that most everyone (quixtar IBO's included) ARE experts in just about everything. Depending on the person, you may have people from many different backgrounds offering input in their area of expertise. Everyone has been blessed by God with a talent and each should use it to 'run the race' to win as Paul said to the Corinthians (as was illustrated in a previous post).
I don't believe it to be wrong to applaud those who have achieved great things. I am a huge football fan and love to sit in front of the TV on Sunday afternoon and cheer fellow Christian Shaun Alexander on as he rushes for over 100 yards a game. But what I don't do is worship him. I do not have a problem with giving credit where credit is due. But after watching speaker after speaker (I did attend a few rallies) being worshipped on the stage, and the twisting of scripture being spoken as gospel to thousands of easily influenced new IBOs, I decided it wasn't for me.
Lastly, I would hope that anyone would use logic in an attempt to discredit something, so thank you for your observation. As far as having a hidden angle for discrediting Quixtar: It is hardly necessary for one to need to be sneaky in doing that.
Hi Gang - Interesting Topic as usual. However, I think people are making the debate a bit more black and white then it needs to be. My concern and question for people from either side is this.
1.) If you believe that a sign of blessing from God is wealth how do you justify the biblical passages that state clearly that the poor are a blessing to us? In addition, if wealth is a sign of God's blessing how do we address the places in the bible addressing how difficult it is for the rich man to get into the kingdom of heaven and that Jesus himself asked the rich young ruler to sell all he had and to give it to the poor?
2. Jesus taught his followers to pray "My kingdom come, my will be done on earth as it is in heaven..." Do believers of Christ then believe that because we pray for God to bless the poor and heal the sick, but it doesn't happen as they hoped it would - that there will be illness or proverty in heaven? What about the passages that says that the disciples and Jesus was supported by rich women. Jesus has also told us that if we are in his will and ask we can receive anything we desire. Are there some that have been called to be rich so that they can bless others?
Just a thought....
Eric are you really a stooge of Bo Short? You never do address the big gap between the image of Bo Short and the reality. Qrush may be obnoxious, but his points are hard to argue with, which is why I see you avoid him. The question all the pros and cons want to know is Bo Short going bankrupt? What type of christianity is he that misrepresents his opportunity? The internet is great because it gives different opinions and why is everyone so scared of qrush? Eric you have really let us down here. What is the deal with qrush and why won't Bo share the facts with us?
SooBonn
The passage to read that states his perfect will is... 3 John 1:2 "Beloved I wish above all things that tho mayest prosper and be in good health even as thy soul prospers"
The verse that talks about how hard it is for a rich man to get into heaven is when it talks about a camel to get thru the eye of a needle.
The eye was a small passage thru the protective walls in jeruslum. This passage was so small that a person had to take off all luggage and heres the kicker..the camel had to get on its knees to get thru.
Jesus did say we would always have the poor and sick with us, but not in heaven.
Alot of folks do not realize that during his years they did have some money or why else did they need a treasurer "Judas" ?
In fact no one knew he had been stealing from the pot except Jesus.
You can always pray for the poor and sick, but they need the faith for it to work..it has no corelation to Heaven
Big John
Who is Eric?
Good questions.
Be careful when quoting scripture though. The prayer (Matthew 6: 9-13) is "THY kingdom come, THY will be done" and not MY (you have mistakenly quoted the exact opposite).
Christ has called us to be compassionate to the poor, prisoner, widowed, and orphaned. So I think that yes, being rich is a blessing and those who are blessed with riches and influence are called to be good stewards of that blessing in helping those in need.
Jesus' request for the rich man to sell all he had and give to the poor was a test for him to see which the rich man loved more. Not a means of proclaiming that no one should be rich or that it is wrong to be rich. It is the rich man's failure in this that leads to Jesus saying "It is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 19:23). It is important to make sure that when we examine a passage such as this, that we take it in it's full context. The rich man was asking Jesus what he must do to get eternal life. Jesus knew this man's heart and knew that he loved his wealth more than anything else so his answer to the rich man was to sell all he had and give to the poor. The rich man then went away sad because he knew that he couldn't do this.
This is what following Jesus is all about. It is about admiting that you have nothing (even though you may be rich beyond anyones wildest dreams), and giving everything you are to him and trusting that he will supply your every need.
Paul talks about this in his letter to the church in Phllipi (Phillipians 3:7-8) when he says: But whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus as my lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ.
Paul was a very influential man before he gave up everything to follow Christ. He wrote that passage when he was in prison for his beliefs. What's more is that what we read here has been cleaned up (the word rubbish in this passage is from the Greek word Scobalah which translated is B**Sh*t) so Paul really is emphsising how much riches, gain, and influence should play in importance to the follower of Christ.
Yep, that's me, Bo Short's hired stooge. You're quite the Sherlock Big John. I'm not ignoring anyone, if someone contacts me, I try to respond. See how I'm responding to you!!!
I don't know about Bo Short and Passport. I'll ask him to explain. Have you asked him? I can't speak to "all the pros and cons" but whether or not Passport is going bankrupt isn't at the top of my Questions List, though it is on that list.
Sorry to have let you down but you know, this is the Quixtar BLOG and not the Passport Blog. However, speaking of Passport Blog, I own passportblog.com and plan to start a similar (yet different) blog about Passport if time allows. If you think I have any affection for Passport, you're dead wrong.
I tell you what, send me what you have about Bo Short and Passport and I'll see what I can do. You know my email address.
And speaking of QRush, I have no idea what his deal is. Why don't you ask him? Am I suddenly QRush's mouthpiece or something? Seems like you're on the wrong blog Big John.
Eric Janssen, so what you are saying is Bo Short is becoming more spiritual by going bankrupt. This allows him to get closer to the lord and glorify Him by Bo's deceptions? Is this what we are supposed to get from this? Jason I hope you don't work or have any money or else you would be in sin. Join Bo Short and go broke. Qrush could you please comment on this BS.
Ex-dd,
I am Eric. I think some people wrongly believe it pisses me off when they use my name instead of my Web moniker. it can be confusing and a truly Web savvy person would avoid such confusion. Or maybe there's another reason. Either way, it's all the same to me. Call me whatever you wish, just don't call me late to dinner.
Uh... yeah Big John. What exactly are you smoking? I didn't say anything about Bo Short's spirituality. Where are you reading that?
Hey Big John, are you paddling the canoe?
Because paddling the canoe means going out and giving people the chance to get on board this once in a lifetime opportunity, not dwelling on what Passport is doing.
You Amway dudes claim to have the best opportunity on the planet, period....period....period.....
Why would you care what Passport's doing?
But that's just me:)
Big John's does'nt even debate good..
Hey Big John goe ask your Q-rush friend why he wont let any1 post
To whom it may concern,
Yes I don't debate good and I take forever to post because I poke with two fingers. All I wanted to know was what is the deal with this Qrush guy and if he is serious or just a bunch of BS. I am a two time loser in Amway and am looking at Passport but not if Bo is going broke. I thought Eric was the one to ask. My apologies if I posted in wrong spot.
Big John
Go to Bo's site and ask him or ask Mastergunner or Ty from this site.
By the sound of your post you seemed to come out with both guns blazing..That is why you received like responses back.,
Good luck with your ventures..I dont consider you a loser by the way
Big John,
Have you ever asked Bo about these so called secrets?
Big John
I once had an uncle who would never shut up. He talked constantly, seemd to know everything about everything and would never let anyone else speak. Most saw him as an ignoramus and simply put up with him.
Now I ask you. Are you really wondering if Qrush is legit or a BS artist? The guy has a blog site that is filled with unsubstantiated garbage that goes on and on with no posts. Do you really need someone else to help you decide if Qrush is a BS artist or not?
And what are you looking to accomplish with a third attempt at MLM? Consider the definition of insanity (doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result).
I do have a great job. My dream job as a matter of fact. I hope you are blessed with the same one day.
Ask Bo Short of Passport questions about Bo Short or Passport? Right. That's about as bright as asking Bill Clinton the truth about Monica Lewinski.
Or like trusting your uplines and diamonds for spiritual advice.
Qblog,
Dude, you hit a nerve on this one. I had no idea so many folks were out there.
I address Qblog as Qblog, as a matter of respect over the web. Granted, Qblog is a much better super-hero moniker than 'porkchop' but you are what you are...
Now to the point:
anti-jason says "-just another way to discredit Quixtar."
How many ways do you need?
"Ask Bo Short of Passport questions about Bo Short or Passport? Right. That's about as bright as asking Bill Clinton the truth about Monica Lewinski"
Or asking Orrin Woodward about Team of Destiny?
i'll be honest when I looked at Quixtar/amway the thing that attracted me to the business was money and Christian values. It was because of the business I came to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. I was fortuneate that I lived a far distance from my upline and the whole group. I found a bible teaching church in my area and when I started reading the bible for myself, instead of listening to the speakers from stage at WWDB functions, I saw they were using Christianity to increase their business. I heard many speakers in WWDB quote scripture but what I found out they were twisting scripture. One example was I always heard was 1 Timothy 6:10, "For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil." Now when I read the whole context of the passage starting with 1 Timothy 6:3-10. I notice an intresting part when Paul is writing this letter to Timothy, 1 Timothy 6:9 "People who want ot get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction."
Is there anything wrong with money. No, the problem is what do we do with it. Do we use it to further the kingdom of God on earth or are we using it to buy things we really don't need. The other question is who is your master, God or money?
Many speakers in Quixtar sound like TV evangilist. Thery are promoting their business and God. They believe their business is ordained by God. To be truely honest I think they all need to read the parable of the Rich Fool (luke 12:13-21) I think many people in other network marketing businesses should read it too.
To be frank, I think that The leaders in Quixtar need to examine their business and what they say. If they want to proclaim their faith and share the gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, great. But I would greatly appreciate if the would stop twisting scripture to meet their needs. I would like them to present the gospel for what it is not for what they need it to be. Let me leave with this quote from 1 Timothy 6:3-5 " If anyone teaches false doctrine and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is concieted and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy intrest in controversies, and quarrels about words that result in envy,strife, malicous talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of truth and who think that godliness is a means to finacial gain."
An ex quixtar distributor
Well Viktor, you make some good points, and I have a few things to add. The problem with the higher levels and their "distortion" of religion is two-fold, as listed from my latest blog entry:
1. They begin to believe that because they got successful (i.e. rich in BSM) that God has approved of their business.
2. They can feed off those that are already steeped in religion, by manipulating those beliefs to turn the faith of religion into a blind-faith of the business.
Let's look at the reasons for my believing this.
Religion in of itself, to be effective (and I mean "organized religion" not a religious person) requires the follower to discount any and all other beliefs, in order to prosper within the religion's hierarchy or to reach the greatest favor of that religion's "god".
Relate that to the A/Q MOs and the similarity is obvious.
Jim and Tammy Faye Baker had millions of dollars in the name of "God"....and look what happened to them, yet the other televangelists barely got any scrutiny. Cause the believers say "that was him, and won't happen here". Compare that to the scrutiny of one Diamond when another is involed in a scandal.
If a televangelist tells his flock he needs $1 million to build a satellite dish to spread the word, then all the little old ladies who send in most of their money and resort to eating cat food, are just "devoted followers". Meanwhile the televangelist is wearing $1000 suits, getting driven in limo's, living in mansions, and eating high on the hog. Again, the similarities are obvious....especially if you've eaten some of those "snack bars".
When a Diamond talks of where he's going next, or what you could be doing next, you aren't sending him the money directly, but you buy that next pin, get the stuff to put you to the next level cause "if you lead, they will follow", and you'll buy that latest tape, maybe a video of the event, & the book they talked about.
And lastly, though some people feel they get to be "better people" through their involvement in in "organized religion", by that they feel better for having helped the others that the televangelist claims to have helped....they have halped the televangelist the most. In comparison, the IBOs of Quixtar may learn some things that can benefit them from the various motivational books and such that are NOT specifically geared at the Quixtar business (releationship, marriage, confidence building) but in the end the Diamond benefits the most from the sales of all materials, if they actually help to build the business or not. Which again, in my opinion and experience, the materials produced by the BSM are fuel for the BSM only.
I'm not about to read through all of these rantish coments. What I will say is that I'm in Quixtar and I'm a Christian and I have no problem with another Christian not being in Quixtar. If they believe God lead them somewhere else, great.
So where do I fall in your scientific observation?
Dwighty,
Christianity shouldn't be a science. Either you are or you aren't and it's between you and the Lord. The issue here is about using one's faith and twisting scripture in order to persuade potential IBOs into joining the quixtar organization.
By the way, most of the comments on this post were pretty intelligent and became rantish when someone got off track.
God bless you in your endeavors. I hope that you will strive to always take the high road with Quixtar dispite what you're likely to encounter down the road. Don't be afraid to have the courage to walk away if you find something that you know in your heart is not right.
God bless,
Jason
Hey, back to topic...I found this surfing the web today.
http://forums.christianity.com/html/P975373/
:)
Was it possibly because I linked that Forum on this very post?
;o)
Oops.
I actually found it separately from here, but didn't realize it was the same forum.... you can delete that one...or leave it in, I goofed and am willing to admit it.
Finally listened to Orrin's speech, couple questions....
Who was the "multi-billionaire" that he spoke of....and where/who is he now?
After he asked who would stay with the business if it only produced $300/month he asked about getting your "product delivered for free for life"...how is that done?
And after that segways into becoming Diamond, which is what they always puch on your no matter what your dream is.... or am I the only one who caught that.
As for the "Quixtar built the canoe, and built the paddle".... the way the LOS operates, they mest be the ones that sell you the water to put the canoe in.
It's not water. It's XS energy drinks.
We do have RAID 1 0 on the DB servers, a live backup running now, and have done a few other things to ensure this wont happen again. The timing was unfortunate because things were still in transition because of the datacenter move.
I also tried the Amway thing and found out that the "average" person who enrolled (this was several years ago) lost $35 overall. The advice I got was "don't be average." But I can't, in clear conscience, get involved in something where most of the folks I will deal with will wind up worse off after the deal. Why should I, when there are so many legitimate opportunities out there?
The bottom line is serving people, not getting money. God gives us the ability to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant. Clearly, the covenant is not being established if most of the "customers" are losing money (or buying inferior products).
At the end of my short Amway experience, we had lost considerably more than $35.
I found a little interesting for me information on your website but it was very important for me. By this reason i want to say you thanks.
Hello this has been an experience and its great just wanted to say hello . and hello to all
This is one of the main areas of concern with the business of Quixtar. I was once given a tape to listen to by my would be upline who knew I was strong in my Christian beliefs. I think he felt that by showing me that the business lifts up the name of Christ and expresses their belief that the Quixtar plan is 'blessed; by God, that he'd get me signed up. The effect was the complete opposite. As a Christian I've always learned to watch for 'Wolves in sheeps clothing' and other 'false prophets'.
This event caused me to immediately turn to God's word for guidance. And let me just say this right here to all those Christians out there who may be considering this endeavor: ALWAYS seek the wisdom of Christ through the teachings of the Bible. Your upline will NEVER be able to give you the spiritual guidance that the word of God will.
I found myself praying about this because I was unsure if I was just being stubborn about not joining or if there was something God was trying to say. I asked for wisdom and guidance in finding the scripture that could help me discern the best course for me. I turned to psalm 146 (New International Verson):
Psalm 146
1 Praise the LORD . [1]
Praise the LORD , O my soul.
2 I will praise the LORD all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
3 Do not put your trust in princes,
in mortal men, who cannot save.
4 When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;
on that very day their PLANS come to nothing.
5 Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD his God,
6 the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them-
the LORD , who remains faithful forever.
7 He upholds the cause of the oppressed
and gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets prisoners free,
8 the LORD gives sight to the blind,
the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down,
the LORD loves the righteous.
9 The LORD watches over the alien
and sustains the fatherless and the widow,
but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.
10 The LORD reigns forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the LORD .
What stuck out for me was verse 3 and 4 where the Psalmist talks about the PLANS of the Princes. I looked further to try to find out what was meant by this discription. The Psalmist is refering to Princes as influential people who are in reality mortal. It reminded me of the Diamonds who are edified (did you know that if you change the e and d in edify around you get deify?) to such a high place that they become like gods. The word PLANS also stuck out for obvous reasons.
Not wanting to be too hasty I was reminded of a message our Pastor preached on the 10 commandments. The obvious one was the first "You shall have no other gods before Me. This rang loud and clear concerning the diamonds. The second "You shall not make for yourself an Idol" spoke to me about the promise of riches and luxury. Then there is of course the 10th commandment that states "You shall not covet." which should set off many alarms about being jealous about what your boss makes or about luxurys you could have.
But it was the third that really stuck out believe it or not. "You shall not take the name of the LORD you God in Vain. Now most consider this the offensive 'Goddammit' or "Jesus Christ!" exclaimation. But I think it goes further.
Anytime someone uses the name of God as a means of furthering their own agenda or manipulating the will of others they are taking the name of the LORD in vain.
The last commandment that stuck out was "You shall not steal". Now much debate could be said about how this relates to Quixtar but if you look at it further it's not the material or monitary things that are stolen from those involved in Quixtar that I have issue with but it's the issue of time being stolen. Time from children, time from spouses, and time from family. This breaks my heart when I see this in the families of Quixtar. Your kids are only kids once.
Finally I came to love Jesus' own words to the masses as he preached the sermon on the mount and said: (Matthew 6:25-34)
25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[1] ?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
I'm not a preacher and I'm not without fault of my own. But I know that Quixtar is not going to make me a better Christian.
Please prayerfully consider this decision and look to God's word for guidance. Not your would be upline.
"...and all God's people said...Amen."
Posted by: jason | August 15, 2004 6:35 PM