1. Jesus does not give as the world gives. With Jesus, everything is guaranteed and has been finished from the start.
  2. Virtue, like all good things, can easily be weaponized. And not only can, but constantly is. Indeed, I would argue that, for churchgoing, rule-following, tradition-honoring, morality-applauding people, virtue often becomes the cancer that we deem a badge of honor.
  3. What do we say when a Christian admits the church has driven them to atheism? And they don't mean ideologically.
  4. Sometimes, the bible bores me. Sometimes, I take scripture, grace, and Jesus lightly.
  5. I'm having one of those days. You know, the kind where you're filled with confusion, guilt, and fear? If you don't know what I'm talking about, just stop reading now.
  6. He looked me straight in the eye and said these words, almost in a challenging way, “I hate God. I do."
  7. I finally climbed all 109 mountains. My journey began out of desperation, fueled by anger, fear, resentment.
  8. Thank God for heroes: they inspire us to be better, to help others, to live and work for the good of our race. And thank God for villains, too: they incarnate our shadow side, our nocturnal soul, the dragon within us that must incessantly have its throat slit on the altar of repentance.
  9. How strange and yet how comforting: God prays to God for us, the Spirit to the Father. He sees through the fog of our emotions to what we truly need.
  10. "Are you Republican or Democrat?” “Liberal or conservative?” “Yankees or Red Sox?” “Star Wars or Star Trek?”
  11. He was providentially injecting streams of light into the darkness, that thereby he might lead them toward the true light of Christ.
  12. Show me. If I’m going to believe, I need to be convinced—on my terms.