daftdame, I wish I understood what you were saying. I am intelligent, but clearly out of my depth here. I am a Christian, but young in the faith. I have read the bible in its entirety but have not studied it nearly enough. I also cannot understand the mysteries (and savagery) of the OT, but mahairday's wonderful post says exactly what I know to be true in my heart.
Tunip, your post, too, I was grateful for. I understand why you think, from my past, that I may be treating others with the criticism I dole out to myself. It is true I am hard on myself and carry the burden of having huge expectations of myself now I am a Christian. However, the hardest battle for me is not attacking those who who I feel are out to attack me or my faith. I do not relish these tirelessly militant atheists coming on here with their attempts to derail my faith and batter me with their vision of what and who I am as a Christian. They have nothing in the way of true concern for me in the context of my post and yet still they come...
So, we've already established I am far from being the ideal Christian (I know, I know, there's no such thing) and, as such, I feel free to say that the devilry of the atheists pisses me right off 
I have to say, moreover, that, in my past as a prostitute I can only imagine the criticism that would have been levelled at me from the likes of Nick, the feminist. It does seem that neither my life choices before my salvation through Christ, nor the decisions I struggle with since are going to be anything but reprehensible to the likes of him and his ilk.