1. A “good death” and “good life” are not accomplished through personal striving but are grasped by faith in the promises of God.
  2. God gives his church a story that helps to make sense of this life.
  3. Your justification isn’t a matter of “Jesus plus” anything.
  4. It would serve us well to embrace the beauty of our diversity within the unity of the body of Christ.
  5. We know that death does not have the last word in Christ.
  6. We must also address the stigma surrounding addiction within so many churches.
  7. It is of the utmost importance that pastors teach their congregation that through faith in Jesus Christ, they are fortified against the machinations of the adversary.
  8. I’ve experienced firsthand the promise that God never leaves a congregation empty-handed.
  9. A pastor is sent to proclaim the unconditional grace of God, reminding us again and again that it is our Heavenly Father who reaches out to us in love through his Christ-won forgiveness, and not the other way around.
  10. Christ Jesus brings his word and presence to where you are and he is even willing to do so through the likes of your personally present pastor.
  11. The Parable of the Lost Sheep bursts through the confines of convention and demands that we embrace the messiness of life and the unpredictable ways in which God's grace and forgiveness operates.