We debated whether the Bible is full of rules or guidelines. Knowing that God's grace will get us into heaven whether we stick to them or not can make them seem less important, but we know they're put there to help us. Different sins can lead to different problems, heartbreak, illness, being a single parent, prison etc. We also discussed our individual boundaries in certain areas and ways we can avoid doing anything stupid or getting hurt.
Another thing we spoke about was whether or not we'd take our future children to church. Some people thought it was unfair to take children to church before they're old enough to make up their own mind. However, some of us argued that we were raised Christians and still feel we made our own decisions to follow God.
One thing that really helped me personally was talking about being a good example to the youth. I've always been pretty open about my mistakes because I didn't want to lie to anyone. People have tried countless times to explain to me how that's not right, but last night, the message finally sank in. We're not being hypocritical or pretending to be perfect, but we don't want to be perceived as encouraging others to sin. We talked about how in certain situations, you need to tell people about things you've done wrong to help them on their journey with God, but telling everyone for the sake of being honest can do more harm than good.
I really don't tell my friends this enough but I feel so blessed to have them in my life. Beth, Sian, Jess, Charlee, Megan and Ben - thanks once again for an amazing night!
On a less serious note, here's one of the YouTube videos we watched, I must say I'm in love with it:
