Diana, I think the Lord is leading in this. And I think you are wise in being upfront about your background.

My prayers are with you,

Randy

John 3:16
Oh, I am glad I went to that Bible study.  This man, I will not dignify him with the title of pastor, is using the clear word book(does not dignify the title of Bible or capitalization).  These poor unsuspecting folks are being deceived.  When I asked him what the clear word was he said it was a translation.  I could not take that and said, no, it is a paraphrase.  I turned to my friend and told her I was leaving.  I had felt a very opppresive spirit on me the moment I entered that room. 
What I want to do is go back next week and tell this man why I left and that I think he is being very deceptive telling the people this is a Bible and that they are studying the Bible only and not any one religion or denomination.  Please pray for me.
I will call my friend later today and tell her why I left.
Pray for her continually.
Diana

Diana, I will be praying. Using the Clear Word (insert whatever you want to call it here) for Bible study is a disgrace.

Greg

John 3:16
I wrote on here to tell about my friend calling me early Thursday evening, but I must have hit the wrong button because the writing did not post.
My friend called me and I told her why I left the meeting:  The cw skews the book toward SDA beliefs.  She told me the leader told her he used it because he understood it better.  She knew it had upset me.  I read a post on CARM to her that had Deut 5:3 from 2 different versions of the Bible and from the cw.  She was surprised to say the least.  I do not know if she will be going back to the study.  I pray she will not.  She was raised Catholic and by her admission did not know much about the Bible.  Please pray for her and all those other souls who are in that study.
Diana

Praying Diana for you in this situation.

The Clear Word paraphrase is indeed a disgrace. There are those who continue to call it a Bible. But the CW clearly diminishes the person of Christ, and pushes SDA’s closer to cultic status.

My wife Marti continues to improve for now, and is cooperating with rehab.

Her faith remains strong, despite her overall continued decline.

I have also been especially blessed to have a new standard poodle puppy who is almost five months old, but is now house broken! He is really getting big.

God has been awesome indeed in sustaining us through this difficult time.

Stan

I am presently posting at the rehab hospital where Marti is getting her therapy.

She continues to make remarkable progress and is getting stronger. She still requires a feeding tube, but she is gradually starting to swallow real food again. She is starting to walk again and making efforts to climb stairs.

She has not been home since August 5, but her spirit is remaining confident that God is in control of this situation.

We are believeing that God is working through these awful circumstances, and that His will and purpose is being accomplished according to His good pleasure, and He is working to accomplish this as promised in Romans 8:28,29.

Trusting in His sovereign grace,

Stan

John 3:16
Stan,
My heart and prayers go out to you and Marti.  It is not easy for either of you. 
I received your book.  I explained what happened in another thread.
Father in Heaven, be close to Marti and Stan at this time.  I do not know what you have for either of them.  Let you name be glorified and honored by all of this.  I would really like it if you healed Marti.  You are awesome God.
Diana

Dear Father, please be with Stan and Marti. Thank you for giving us an example of what faith in you can do in even the darkest of circumstances. We have so many good gifts from you, yet we find a way to complain much of the time. Even something as simple as swallowing is taken for granted, yet when it is gone, we see the tremendous value in it. Thank you for giving these gifts even when we don’t remember to thank you. Thank you for your loving comfort, and for working in both good and bad circumstances. May we not forget how much you suffered in Jesus Christ for us.

Greg

Stan,

Our daughter sent us this quotation I hope will contribute to bolstering up your faith and that of Marti’s.

“God is down in front.
He is in the tomorrows.
It is tomorrow that fills men with dread.
God is there already.
All the tomorrows of our life have to pass Him before they can get to us.” ~ Frederick B. Meyer

And so it is.  God knows the future.  God is the future in a real way.  He holds us securing, keeping in mind our living with Him throughout eternity.

Our prayers continue for you.

Jess & Bonnie

[quote author="JessD"]Stan,

Our daughter sent us this quotation I hope will contribute to bolstering up your faith and that of Marti’s.

“God is down in front.
He is in the tomorrows.
It is tomorrow that fills men with dread.
God is there already.
All the tomorrows of our life have to pass Him before they can get to us.” ~ Frederick B. Meyer

And so it is.  God knows the future.  God is the future in a real way.  He holds us securing, keeping in mind our living with Him throughout eternity.

Our prayers continue for you.

Jess & Bonnie

Thanks Jess and Bonnie and all for your prayers.

Marti continues to make a hopeful recovery at the stroke rehab unit, and she is gaining strength, and starting to eat some finely chopped food. She is again starting to climb stairs. She will be coming home soon. We pray that this terible disease she has will go in remission.

But we are forever hopeful in God’s sovereign will regarding all of this.

We feel God’s presence in all of this continuously.

Thanks again everyone,

Stan

Guibox,

I am so sorry to hear this evening about the loss of your buddy and former band member.

My prayers are for his family and for you as you mourn his loss.

Always a friend,

Randy

Thanks Randy,

For everyone’s information, I found out yesterday that our old banjo player Bob, who had to leave the band last March due to hip cancer just passed away yesterday.

I saw him on Sunday when he came to our bluegrass church service we were doing at the United church here in town as a promo for next months fundraising gospel concert. He looked very thin and gaunt but was in good spirits. I got the chance to pray with the band and say a prayer for Bob too that God would reveal His mercy and grace to him. I wish I could have said that prayer with him, but hopefully it was also a witness to the rest of the band. After the concert I said goodbye to him, gave him a hug and fully expected to see him again soon.

The next day I guess he was feeling good enough to go for a walkbut came home and began coughing up blood. I don’t really know all the details but I think he might have bled out. It was very sudden! The doctors stopped giving him chemo as his tumors were growing but I think this was an unexpected complication as I’m sure he had at least a few more months yet.

If you could pray for his wife, Suzie that would be appreciated. I don’t know when the funeral will be held but pray that I can give comfort to the family in some way and reveal God’s love for them.

Guibox,

May God guide you in giving comfort to the family.

Stan,

May God grant you the happiness of worshiping together with your wife in the same faith. With God all things are possible.

Praying for you all,
Gabriel

Guibox,

I am so sorry to hear about your fellow band member Bob’s death. We pray for you and all who have been affected by this.

The Lord continues to bless and has seen fit to give Marti a very significant recovery from her most recent stroke. 4 weeks ago today, she could not walk or sit up, and could not eat or swallow at all. She had to be tube fed.

She came home two days ago, and is doing reasonably well. She is now able to walk and eat real food and swallow liquids. We even took her to the ocean today and had dinner on the terrace overlooking the ocean. She really loved it.

She is still very weak, and requires almost total care in ADL’s, and it is very time consuming to take care of her. But I thank God for the privilege of taking care of her. She is also trusting in God even more on a daily basis, and it is really beautiful to see her simple trust in the Lord, despite this terrible disease.

We praise God for His Goodness and Grace,

Stan

Thanks Stan, the funeral is today and our bluegrass band is playing three songs. Hopefully they will be comfort to the family.

Am continuing to pray for you and Marti, Stan.