A Ragamuffin Knows He's Only

To Ignore, Repress, Or Dismiss Our Feelings Is To Fail To Listen To The Stirrings Of The Spirit Within Our Emotional Life. Jesus Listened. In John's Gospel We Are Told That Jesus Was Moved With The Deepest Emotions (11:33)... The Gospel Portrait Of The Beloved Child Of Abba Is That Of A Man Exquisitely Attuned To His Emotions And Uninhibited In Expressing Them. The Son Of Man Did Not Scorn Of Reject Feelings As Fickle And Unreliable. They Were Sensitive Antennae To Which He Listened Carefully And Through Which He Perceived The Will Of His Father For Congruent Speech And Action.

Our Culture Says That Ruthless Competition Is The Key To Success. Jesus Says That Ruthless Compassion Is The Purpose Of Our Journey.

The Dominant Characteristic Of An Authentic Spiritual Life Is The Gratitude That Flows From Trust

This Is The God Of The Gospel Of Grace. A God Who, Out Of Love For Us, Sent The Only Son He Ever Had Wrapped In Our Skin. He Learned How To Walk, Stumbled And Fell, Cried For His Milk, Sweated Blood In The Night, Was Lashed With A Whip And Showered With Spit, Was Fixed To A Cross, And Died Whispering Forgiveness On Us All.

We Are Enveloped In Peace, Whether Or Not We Feel Ourselves To Be At Peace. By That I Mean The Peace That Passes Understanding Is Not A Subjective Sensation Of Peace; If We Are In Christ, We Are In Peace Even When We Feel No Peace.