Quote: Dietrich Bonhoeffer

"Confession in the presence of another believer is the most profound kind of humiliation. It hurts. It makes one feel small. It deals a terrible blow to one's pride. To stand there before another Christian as a sinner is an almost unbearable disgrace. But by confessing actual sins, the old self dies a painful, humiliating death..."

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

RePost: No Such Tales Are Told

The post below was at David and Sarah Dark's blog. Too good of a quote not to share.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

America is the wealthiest nation on Earth, but its people are mainly poor, and poor Americans are urged to hate themselves.... It is in fact a crime for anAmerican to be poor, even though America is a nation of poor. Every other nation has folk traditions of men who were poor but extremely wise and virtuous, and therefore more estimable than anyone with power and gold. No such tales are told by American poor. They mock themselves and glorify their betters.

- Kurt Vonnegut

Quote - Mark Driscoll

"The curious paradox of the atoning death of a bloody Jesus rising above the plane of human history with a mocking crown of thorns is that he is offensive in an attractive way. It is the utter horror of the cross that cuts through the chatter, noise, and nonsense of our day to rivet our attention, shut our mouths, and compel us to listen to an impassioned dying man who is crying out for the forgiveness of our sins and to ask why he suffered. Tragically, if we lose the offense of the cross, we also lose the attraction of the cross so that no one is compelled to look at Jesus. Therefore, Jesus does not need a marketing firm or a makeover as much as a prophet to preach the horror of the cross unashamedly."





- Mark Driscoll



Thanks

Quote - G. K. Chesterton

"Every man who knocks on the door of a brothel is looking for God."

-G. K. Chesterton



thanks

A ban on all religion?

"From my point of view, I would ban religion completely. Organized religion doesn't seem to work. It turns people into really hateful lemmings and it's not really compassionate." - Elton John

You can read more of Elton John's statement HERE.

I'm a little torn by the comments made by Sir Elton. While I think it's pretty shortsighted and intolerant of him to not allow a person of faith to have the opinion that homosexuality is wrong, I wonder if this reaction is due to the unloving response Christians have shown the gay community.

It's hard to live a response like Jesus' because Jesus never encounter a homosexual in the scriptures. But we do know that Jesus loved sinners and responded to sinners with demonstrations of love. And we know that Jesus was stern and confronting in the way he addressed believers who did not demonstrate love.

I am not in anyway condoning homosexuality. Just like I wouldn't condone any kind of sexual immorality. But I do believe we need to be a people who love the unlovably...just like God loved us.

-T-

Quote:

"My children will not remember the words of wisdom I've passed along over the years, nor will yours remember the good advice you've given. However, etched in their minds and planted in their hearts is a permanent picture of who you are and how you've lived before them."
- Dorothy Kelley Patterson, Parents in Ministry (co-written by Armour Patterson)