Making A Name For Yourself

"According to the world, whether you and I make a name for ourselves in this life depends on what we do and say to convince others of our importance. This kind of self-promotional thinking doesn’t just happen in the workplace. It can bleed into our spiritual identity and affect how we relate to God.

...When I evaluate my identity based on results I can see and positive circumstances, I focus more on trying to make things happen, rather than enjoying what God has for me right now... 

Moved by great love, Jesus gave Himself, totally, in exchange for me.  I don’t need to prove my worth to Him. In fact, quite the opposite is true. I need to exchange my strivings for God’s love to transform me. In the absence of self-branding, I yield and God shapes my path.  The more I give myself over to God’s hidden work of the heart, the more I understand and experience his favor."

- An excerpt from Power Breakfast with Jesus by Bonnie Gray on her blog Faith Barista

Where Do We Begin?

"Nothing truly valuable in life comes easy. Often the successes with the greatest rewards are the ones with the longest paths and the toughest journeys. Maturity in life – spiritual or otherwise – does not happen instantly.

What do you need to begin a long journey, to scale a huge mountain? What did Jesus tell the apostles when they asked him to increase their faith? “He replied, ‘Because you have so little faith, I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.’” (Matthew 17:20)

- An excerpt from A Journey Begins with A Mustard Seed by Heather Sunseri on her blog Balance with Purpose

Learning Obedience

"Although He was God's Son, yet He learned obedience from the sufferings which He endured; and so, having been made perfect, He became to all who obey Him the source and giver of eternal salvation." (Hebrews 5:8-9, WNT)

"This passage from Hebrews is one of endless fascination to me. Jesus—the perfection of God in human flesh—was "made perfect" (or "made complete") by learning obedience to His Father. He became something more than He already was in this experience."

- An excerpt from Made Perfect by Anne Bundy on her blog Building His Body

Sin Is Sin

"There's a big difference between being a sinner and denying that your sin is sinful at all. There's an even bigger difference when you claim that sin is a virtue, and demand that everyone else effectively say so too."

- Matt Kaufman (Boundless Webzine)

Do You Care?

"People want to know how much you care, before they care about how much you know."