Topic : 07/17 Living on a Prayer

Tell you what, Sweetie...you take a good look at third world countries where birth control isn't readily available and children are starving and dying horrible, slow deaths in astronomical numbers every day and tell me again that "MANY children are a blessing unto his Father"!

How could a loving God look upon that and find ANY sort of "blessing in it?

And, by the way, here in the U.S. where jobs are available, when you choose to have a litter of children and then refuse to get a job to support them it IS abuse, regardless of what you say. You can hide behind the Bible all you want...it doesn't change the facts of what IS.

That same Bible also tells you that if a man does not work, he shall not eat...and it says it many times.

You cannot pick and choose passages to suit yourself....you either believe and go by it all, or none of it. 

It was so obvious that Dan was obsessed with recounting all of the reasons why his business had failed, AS IF that had any relevance to his current situation.  "Stuff" happens, but life goes on.  I agree with you,  Dan has had some kind of breakdown (or an existing problem is simply escalating) and he is stuck in self-pity. Fear of failure is probably at play here too.  As long as Dan can wander in the wilderness and wait for a burning bush, he doesn't have to be a mature, independent, responsible man/father/husband. 

His wife isn't helping matters by enabling him.  She treats him like one of her children.  At the end of the show, she had her arm around his shoulders, stroking and patting him in a very maternal way.   She needs help getting him to accept help.

And not to be too morbid about this, but doesn't this couple conjure up images of Rusty and Andrea Yates?  We all know the tragic end to that story.  This couple needs serious help...and fast.

It's great to trust in the Lord.....but He also says that He will help those who help themselves....which means using common sense...which, by the way, he also gave us.

Dr Phil said, "Ya trust the Lord, but row to the shore"....well YEAH! What would you have the boater do....sit in the boat and wait for the wind to come up and blow him onto the shore? That could take forever; he could die of starvation, and when he got to Heaven and questioned why God didn't blow him to shore, God would look at him, shake His head at this fool and say, "I gave you oars so you could help yourself to shore!  

Kind of like I said in another posting: A man stands in the middle of a freeway and says,  "I have total faith in God. He will prevent cars from hitting me." Of course, he gets smooshed. When he gets to Heaven, he angrily asks God, "Why did You not prevent me from getting hit by those cars?"  God replied: "I gave you the common sense to stay out of the street...you chose to ignore it!"

Common sense, people....just common sense.

"More families should be like this"? I don't think so!