"God's grace" Tagged Touchpoints
Paul vs. the Pimps
“It makes me wonder, as I look at my life, how often I may have prostituted my gifts. How have I debased my talents, with egoistic intent, unworthy of the good news that saved me from the exploitation of others?”
One Shepherd Many Voices
John 10:22-30 At that time the festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered, “I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name testify to me; but you…
Dinner Party
John 12:1-8 Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the…
Prodigal Sons
From now on, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat
you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Jesus Cliff Notes
“This is the story we have to tell. The story of a God who is bigger than we can imagine. The story of One who embraces more than we can embrace. One who is beyond our limits.”
Sami and the Scribe
Grace and peace to you from the Mystery in whom we live, move, and have our being. The first commandment. The First Commandment Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater…
Name, Image, and Likeness
May the light of the Liberator guide your path, grounding you in truth and love. Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.” And he sternly…
God’s Love Burns
“Branches are connected to the vine and they abide together. Fecundity is the intimacy of abiding with the vine and each other. The vine is rooted in love below the earth, in what is called the rootstalk. It is the source of all growth and renewal. Branches cannot renew themselves separately from the vine and rootstalk. No wonder Jesus says, ‘Apart from God, we can do nothing.'”
Immersed in Life
“As I stared out and watched this living metaphor, I thought about how in my suffering, Spirit was no longer separate or dormant in my life. It did not reside in my practices, and it need not be conjured up emotionally. It is ever present and stirred by my conscious awareness of its silent, life-giving power. It fascinates me that we are more comfortable talking about the force in Star Wars than the third person of the Trinity in all its power.”
Let’s Get Tattoos!
“At baptism it is not about our declaration of acceptance of God, it’s about our full acknowledgment of God’s reception of us! This mystery invites us into God’s heart. This mystery is the heartbeat in all people, whether aware of it or not. Though we may sin, doubt, judge, curse, deny, betray, we cannot remove the tattoo placed on our hearts as a reminder that we belong.”
Rejected
“Over the past three and a half years, there have been many times when I wondered if the Board was right in the first place by overlooking me as a serious candidate. I have questioned my ability to lead this ministry. Maybe a big piece of the stone that left me broken and crushed ended up as a chip on my shoulder… left me needing to prove I belonged here, in this position, leading this ministry, without the credentials that were so important to those in charge.”
The Economy of God
“There is no one for the last one in line to give to. That person’s job, in that moment and time, is to be a recipient. Being a recipient renders us powerless, but it is the greatest source of freedom and intimacy because its freedom comes from gratitude, vulnerability and a willingness to receive without apology, and with no justification. That would be the refashioning of “I worked all day so I deserve to be the recipient.””