I started this thread seeking to know what purpose religion serves in helping others get their minds around a narrowly-missed encounter with mortality. Not very many have stuck to this topic.

1. God doesn't will anything that resembles sickness and disease. One of those Urban legends that seem to have become fact.

2. Sickness and disease are the work of the enemy. The word says that the enemy came to lie, steal and destroy.

I've had two very unusual encounters, 2 years ago, I had a large thyroid lobe and I wasn't sure it was going to be cancer or not. I cried for all of 3 minutes and decided that my life belonged to God. I put my faith and trust in him and went off to surgery to have it removed and sent to pathology. (it came back totally benign).

I didn't worry about what was going to happen to my kids. I didn't worry about how my bills were going to get paid. I just fully trusted God.

I did the same thing 3 months later, when I ran into a bear in the woods with my son.

I just stood still, closed my eyes and gave my entire being into God's hands. The bear
slowly walked around me. The last time I peeked at it. It was much farther away, up a hill, to my left and staring at me from where he was sitting. Eventually he lumbered off.

That's how I handle life or death. I simply allow God to know that my life is his. He can do with it whatever he wants.

I started this thread seeking to know what purpose religion serves in helping others get their minds around a narrowly-missed encounter with mortality. Not very many have stuck to this topic.

My next question is: have you ever had an incident where you did not know your own grave peril until after it had passed, and if so, how did you rationalize it?

Thank you for getting back on-topic, and for your contribution. My next question is: have you ever had an incident where you did not know your own grave peril until after it had passed, and if so, how did you rationalize it? [/qu0te]

Yea...about 30 years ago, I took my own life into my hands. I was 14, stupid and had No idea what I was doing.

I went with a girlfriend out to the mud flats at Earthquake Park and proceded to attempt the walk OUT to the waters edge at extreme low tide.

It seemed like a lark at the time. The mud flats are dangerous and more than one person has become mired down and lost thier life when the tide rolls back in.

I also ran into a bear when I was 8 years old. I hunkered down in the 3 sided outhouse
at my Grandfathers guide ranch and waited for it to pass. Nobody believed me when I went running to the main cabin to tell them ( I have no idea why....It's Alaska...bears come with the woods at no extra cost)

I look back over several near misses and just realize that God has covered me thru a lot of really bad decisions.

I am asking, how would YOU- as contributors to this thread, use YOUR faith to rationalize events consisting of a near-miss mortality crisis. That's all.

Stop lecturing me, it is neither wanted nor appreciated.

I think if you took the time and viewed the comments with an unbiased mind you would see that the people you berate and accuse of trying to hijack the thread are in fact answering your question. It just isn't to your liking.

You ask people to use their faith to rationalize events consisting of near-miss mortality crisis. Voicing their belief that God does not orchestrate such events is following your guidelines as is most of the comments that you have a problem with.

I cope by preaching.

You can't ask someone to share on their faith and beliefs and than tell them their thoughts are not relevant or not in line with what you were hoping for.

Please keep in mind that while you initiated the thread, not all posts are written for strickly your benefit.

There may be others who are going through similar circumstances and they may benefit from what others are trying to convey. It's not always all about Trippy. There are others suffering equally, or worse than what you are.

I remember hearing two christians argueing about alot of the things that have been said in this forum. I think it's inconclusive scripturally but for me... Yes I do believe that my God will allow me to get sick or cause me to get sick however that works. It's humbling to me... it makes me lean more on my God and perhaps look at what is not pleasing in my life to my creator I AM.

That's how I rationalize when I get sick or have health difficulties. I think that the "only if you have the faith" crowd miss the part where Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead and the part where the blind man was told to go wash the mud off his eyes. But who know's maybe they're right but I don't see it.

I have come to the conclusion that there are no formulas set in granite that we can make out and say "this is how God works when bad things happen." I think that Gods long range goals and all knowing skills make things random for us to keep life interesting. I do believe that if you do good and master the "sin" in your own power to correct then you will not be self-righteous in the end.

And I think that my friend

Trippy Hare

doesn't care too much for self righteous behavior. I know because he's called me on it a few times. So watch out you know it all scripturalist... and after you've been found out by those of the "unrighteous mammon" then open the book up at random and find out that yup... they too were created in the image and likeness. Who is the liar and the theif but they who will not give up the illusion of innocence for the hard cold fact of complete and utter ignorance.

I didn't ask if God did- or didn't- make people sick, I asked how they would deal if they got sick/nearly died. I don't have a problem with people believing in whatever the hell they want: but that's not what this thread is for. I'd like to see how people cope- out of personal curiosity.

...I asked them to put themselves in a situation, and explain how they would get out of it.

I asked how they would deal if they got sick/nearly died...