📢 Forum Update - Hello everyone! I've made an improvement to the forum that should make following active discussions much easier. Beginning today, forum topics will display the most recent replies first (while keeping the original topic post at the top), so you no longer have to navigate through multiple pages to find the latest conversation. This change also helps improve the browsing experience in long-running discussions with many pages of replies. If you notice anything that doesn't seem to be working correctly or have any feedback, please let me know. — Richard G. In the last many years we could have rightfully named this fellowship “RITA Soon.” But it feels like it truly has legitimately become RITA Now. Hundreds of us feel a deep conviction. An excited conviction! God has blessed our RITA project endeavor all along. You all know that. Just look at our erected Ebenezer! (1 Samuel 7:12) “Till now the LORD has helped us.” As a great bonus surprise, as of yesterday we have our really old comfortable family couch back from the upholsterer’s shop. He has sewn a tag onto the upholstery toward the back which reads “raptureintheairnow.com.” So sit down and relax! Right? I have a three relatives and a close friend who together have four high school seniors expecting their lives to somehow change dramatically. Big changes anticipated round Memorial Day. Then on through the summer… And then into next September, the biggest unknowns await… So they all four think... Personally, still out of step with my family and friend’s non-near-term Rapture expectations, I believe these four kids will never graduate from high school. Yeah, fool as I still remain, I expect we’re all going to graduate in April or May this year. And that includes these four beloved youth who know Jesus as Savior. So kids, listen to Poppy, and stop worrying about those scholarships! Oh, and those graduation robes? You guys have no idea! Wow! Group dynamics operate in all cases relative to pursuing every group’s mission together. Four questions, and these never out of order, must be answered by each member of the group. The four are: 1 - Why am I here? Like my relatives and friends are doing, we RITANs should all be making Graduation Plans! So we each know the answer to number 1. To glorify God. Since yesterday we’re having a grand time remembering number 2, Who are you – i.e., greeting our old dear friends here on our old reupholstered sofa. But for the fun of this unexpected expected reunification here, today we’re probably paying less attention to item number 3: What shall we do? Not as a moderator here seeking direction, but as your old brother who also, like you, wants to honor Jesus... I ask you to share below your thoughts about item number 3: What shall we do? Okay, I’ll seed this discussion. Who among us are making lists of invitees and buying engraved invitations? Are those necessary? Can we really start a graduation party without invitations? FaceBook? Not necessarily bad. Snail mail? Don’t wait too long. Texting?... Hmmmm... What shall we do? You get the idea. Our entire project’s success depends on you too. By the way, Donna, I want to express my condolences for your loss. He is with Jesus now. Two or three years ago I started referring to my situation as "the trapture." Some serious emotional misery in there sometimes -- felt inextricable. Trapped! Jesus never came! “Rapture Schizophrenia” That's perfect! :good: I have a daughter who is scheduled to graduate from law school in May. I remember when she started in the Fall of 2016. I did not think there was any chance she would graduate because I thought the Lord would return for the Bride before that time arrived. Maybe He still will. Once again, I find myself living in the state of mind I coined several years ago on this site, "Rapture Schizophrenia". This is the condition where one finds oneself living between the tensions of being fully convinced that the Lord's trumpet will sound very soon and the commitment to live a responsible, God-honoring life in fulfilling the often mundane responsibilities of this life with excellence until He comes. It's making plans and clicking the book button on the airline website to book my travel reservations for the graduation, even as I do so with a keen sense of awareness that I may never set foot on that plane. What will Southwest and other airlines do with all those unused reservations? LOL. I can't tell you how many times in the past few years I have asked myself, "I wonder if this will be the last time I ____________ (fill in the blank). Pay to renew the auto insurance, prepare for a year-end job evaluation, have to get my teeth cleaned...
2 - Who are you?
3 - What shall we do?
4 - How shall we do it?
ybiC,
Dan
You get the idea. I have weed killer that's been in my trunk for two weeks and I wonder if I need to bother putting on my grass, which already has been permanently eliminated from being the neighborhood poster child for the HOA marketing material. LOL. In the end, I think we seek to honor God by doing things with excellence, seeking to hear His voice for guidance, and occupying until He comes. Maranatha!!!