Catalyst Castle

I'll just post my thoughts on the first question...I'm inclined to say that the good he does will never in and of itself outweigh the bad. It's like with us, we don't earn our way into the new system. The good we do in our lives is never enough to buy our own salvation, so to speak. There are some things you can try to make up for, such as if you steal something you can return it.

But if you kill someone how can you make up for that? You can't return the person to life. If you molest a child, how can you give them back their innocence, their sense of security, and everything else you've robbed them of?

Doing good things are important but Jehovah is the one that can really see into the heart and he's the one that will judge.

Just to clarify, I don't think good works are valueless, it's just that only Jehovah can see the works AND the heart condition of someone to judge one way or the other about them.

When a man (or a woman) has done "Bad" but has recieved forgiveness from Jehovah the "Good" does outweigh it. For who are we to second guess Jehovah. Just think of King David, yes he paid for his sin but Jehovah knew his heart and considered him rightous.

As to telling someone they are special, your right, the ones who really are seem to be the ones who don't see it. Soooo... its up to us to remind them!

Funny, but I think of myself as very feline but I do know another "Pufferfish"

I feel like maybe I didn't express myself the way I wanted to. When I read what you said I agree with it, but when I read what I typed it doesn't look like I would. lol

After further pondering...lol I think the word that kinda got the ball rolling for my train of thought was "outweighed."

When I heard that it reminded me of the old picture from I think the Live Forever book, of big scales and Adam on one side and Jesus on the other.

And so when I thought of the question I put the collective bad we've done/sinful state we exist in on one side of the scale and tried to think if anything good we'd do could ever even equalize it, much less outweigh it. And the answer I still come to is no.

That's why it's such an amazing gift that we have in Jesus' ransom. That when Jehovah sees us doing good and sees in our heart that we're repentant for things we've done and we're trying to do the right thing, then our errors are blotted out and we can receive forgiveness.

Oh...and I love the puffer fish. I SO feel like that some days. Prickly. But especially since having children I feel like a bear, with my potential for ferociousness should my children get threatened.

With my kids I'm like this:

http://jeanraffa.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/black-bear-mom-cub12.jpg

And with people that aren't nice to them I'm like this:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BnALmAAD1ik/Sm3WsYUnjLI/AAAAAAAAAdc/T0zU8U8urME/s320/angry+bear.jpg

I guess we got the spiritual answer to your first pondering today at the Assembly.

I think of myself in the feline mode kinda like the bear mode.. Content until someone messes with those who belong to me (or I claim as mine) then the claws come out.

Oh man! I'm sorry I left early. :( Hopefully I'll catch it if I manage to go with Heather.

I think you are special Nathan! :D

You are special, Nathan. :)

I have a similar defense mechanism as a bird or mouse...run/fly or hide.

About your second point, I think all my Florida friends are special. :D