The idea that any COG members needs to ask this question shows how sick Armstrongism really is!
Back in those early years in Church services, it seems that I can remember when the preaching Pastor would speak out against someone who was sleeping when he was trying to present his sermon! It must have been very exasperating for him to do his best to do his job in preaching and to have someone sleeping!
I can remember when, at one of those Holy Day meetings with several hundred gathered together, that I had spotted a Deacon, at the time, who was sleeping in his chair. I thought that he should have known better but that perhaps he had a bad night the previous night. I`m guessing that he was in his sixties at the time. Obviously, since I was in my forties, I couldn`t understand that!Now, in my eighties, it is easy for me to understand! Most of the time lately, during services, I have had to fight off nodding to sleep and my wife would give me the elbow to wake me up and on another occasion I would have to bump her arm to wake her up!! We would always be sitting back about the third row and it could be very easy for the minister to see us and for us to be embarrassed.
We had been checking out MP3 tapes to bring home to hear and then when they came out with the DVDs, we chose to watch them through the TV, but the problem was, we would both start falling asleep so we went back to checking out the MP3s. What we had been doing was to put picture puzzles together when listening to sermons which would keep us awake and we could take in every word of the sermons! I had wondered if that would be proper to do on the Sabbath but that is the only way that we can stay awake to hear the sermons!! We have a card table set up in the den next to the computer where we listen to the sermons while piecing the puzzles together. It is the only way that we can stay awake .
7 comments:
Dear Mr_________
Thank you for your question about is it ok to assemble a jig saw puzzle while listening to a sermon and as a way to stay awake.
In searching the scriptures we have found the following examples that should prove helpful in answering this question of assembling stuff while listening to sermons.
Matthew 26:3
"Then the chief priests and the elders of the people ASSEMBLED in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas,"
I believe it is obvious that assembling is fine in a religious setting. If the Chief Priests and Elders can assemble in the very palace of the High Priest, we believe you should be able to assemble while listening to the sermons of the High Priests.
And to...Mr. Art Mokarow has written a book, God's Puzzle Solved. I believe we can infer that if God himself has puzzles and can assemble and solve them, he must do it while also listening to sermons and such, probably also to stay awake.
We feel these two examples will give you the confidence to both Assemble Puzzles and Solve them as you assemble listening to sermons in the COG of your choice.
We have been pleased to assist you in this truth and hope you will continue to stay in touch as you need any further guidance in the scripture
Sincerely
Letter Answering Dept.
Wild World Church of God
oh and also...It is obvious that God has given out puzzles to the believer to be solved. Obviously if you have to work six days and can only rest on the seventh, it is indeed the seventh day that God intends you to take out his puzzle, assemble it and stay awake long enough to shout, "I did it, I did it."
Therefore we find you guiltless in this matter. Puzzle on!
Dennis, that is actually sounds like Armstrong theological answers. It's scary because I can picture that coming out of the mouth of a minister.
When I was in the service, I used to iron my uniform and polish my boots listening to taped sermons. Did housework after I got out. Sermons are good for dull, soothing background noise.
Paul Ray
This is serious stuff! It has as much veracity as the guy's argument about washing his car on the sabbath, stating it helped him relax!
I say NO!! to doing puzzles with listening to sermons!! NO!! The harm is so obvious that I am alarmed that someone like Dennis C. Diehl should give approval for this laodicean behavior.
Note that by NOT doing puzzles, the people in question will likely fall asleep. This will benefit their physical bodies. It also means that they will miss the XCOG sermon - this will benefit their spiritual lives.
BTW, I think I heard that man's sermons sometime in the past as well.
The sermons were hypnotic in nature and depressing to no end. Sleeping was beneficial, listening to these criminals was to be battered about. Your senses assaulted with endless negativity results in a negative person.
It has been said that you are what you eat. In another sense, you are who you listen to.
My wife, as a child, used to play "Mad Libs" with her sister in WCG church services [Frankly, I think the word, "services" is a bit of a misnomer]. They'd make up their own Mad Libs and pass the notepad back and forth as they worked them out.
Here are a few other "ACOG-Services-Appropriate" games.......
Playing "I Spy"-
I spy in my little eye...sideburns too long!(Then a sibling looks around and writes down the names of men who have sideburns too long.)
I spy in my little eye...a skirt too short!(Then a sibling looks around and writes down the names of women who have dresses too short.)
I spy in my little eye...a sweater too tight!(Then a sibling looks around and writes down the names of women wearing tight sweaters.)
The sibling with the most names named wins.
Playing the "Armstrong Game"-
Each sibling draws a little swastika on his notepad every time the minister mentions "Mr. Armstrong"
The sibling with the most swastikas wins.
Playing the "Crappy Pot-Luck Game"-
Each sibling writes on his notepad the name of the persons who contributed the most "barf-worthy" dishes at the last church pot-luck. One point awarded for each "chef's" name. Another point awarded for names of each person who actually barfed.
Playing the "Minister-Wipes-His-Forehead-With-A-Rag" game-
Every time the minister wipes his forehead with a rag, the siblings turn toward each other, and wipe their own foreheads.
Playing the "Creepy Deacon" game-
Each sibling draws pictures of their creepiest deacon. The winner is the one who later sees his picture in the newspaper for raping his daughter.
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