Romans 5:8-9John 4:1-27There’s the symbol of God’s constant and gracious invitation to union, God flowing out toward us, God choosing us before we ever choose back. The code word for that is water. Watch for it. We have the Red Sea itself, the water from the rock in the desert the fountain that the temple itself becomes . There is the momentous crossing through the Jordan River that John the Baptist builds into his baptismal initiation rite, then the water flowing from the side of Christ, the living water that Jesus says he is, the living water that he offers the Samaritan woman at the well. Water is almost always an invitation to that first, subtle religious experience, when the desire just laps up against you and your mind and heart are opened for the first time. It’s the first gnawing, inviting sense that there’s something more. It’s the momentary recognition that the inside of things is even bigger than the outside. A lot of the medieval mystics, especially women, use this language of God flowing out toward them and through them (Mechtild of Magdeburg, Julian of Norwich, Hildegard of Bingen, Teresa of Avila). For Christians it becomes the objective trinitarian flow of God’s life in us, through us, with us, for us — and usually in spite of us. It is experienced as an allowing and an enjoying, never a producing or an attainment. So watch for the word and image of water and consider it an invitation. – Richard RohrIn John 4, Jesus meets a woman at a well. The conversation quickly turns to the question of Jesus’s identity when she asks, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask of drink of me, a woman of Samaria?”.= Jesus speaks of water, wells, and worship, and then springs it on her that he is the Messiah. How does the woman respond? She drops her water jar, runs back to town, and tells everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done!” In this story, questions of Jesus’s identity and her identity thread together in mutual revelation. Knowing who Jesus is leads her to know who she is — and, instead of feeling shame about her mistakes, she feels new freedom to tell her story. And so it goes throughout the Gospels. Almost everyone leaves Jesus’s company saying: “He made me whole!” “I have been healed!” “I’m not a prostitute, a sinner, an outcast, or a leper. I now know who I really am!” “I may be a Samaritan, but I can still know God.” “I am loved!” “I am accepted as I am!” Being “in” Jesus, in his presence or in conversation with him, pushes the other person beyond social roles and masks to deeper awareness of “Who am I?” transforming the question from an external one to a relational one that might be better rendered “Whose am I?” Thus, the biblical query “Who am I in God?” is a starting point of Christian spirituality. Why do Christians pray? Christians do not pray to have wishes granted; rather, Christians pray to find themselves in God and that they might be more aware of their motives and actions. Why do Christians worship? Christians do not worship to be entertained; rather, Christians listen to sermons, sing, and partake of bread and wine in community to be in Jesus’s presence and come to know themselves better. Why do Christians serve others? Christians do not act charitably to earn heavenly credit; rather, Christians find Jesus in their neighbors and such proximity enables greater insight to live fully in the world. Christians practice seeking Jesus in their lives because when they find themselves in God, pretense slips away to reveal the truest dimensions of selfhood and gives individuals the power to act in transforming ways. – Diana Butler Bass

Romans 5:8-9John 4:1-27There’s the symbol of God’s constant and gracious invitation to union, God flowing out toward us, God choosing us before we ever choose back. The code word for that is water. Watch for it. We have the Red Sea itself, the water from the rock in the desert the fountain that the temple itself becomes . There is the momentous crossing through the Jordan River that John the Baptist builds into his baptismal initiation rite, then the water flowing from the side of Christ, the living water that Jesus says he is, the living water that he offers the Samaritan woman at the well. Water is almost always an invitation to that first, subtle religious experience, when the desire just laps up against you and your mind and heart are opened for the first time. It’s the first gnawing, inviting sense that there’s something more. It’s the momentary recognition that the inside of things is even bigger than the outside. A lot of the medieval mystics, especially women, use this language of God flowing out toward them and through them (Mechtild of Magdeburg, Julian of Norwich, Hildegard of Bingen, Teresa of Avila). For Christians it becomes the objective trinitarian flow of God’s life in us, through us, with us, for us — and usually in spite of us. It is experienced as an allowing and an enjoying, never a producing or an attainment. So watch for the word and image of water and consider it an invitation. – Richard RohrIn John 4, Jesus meets a woman at a well. The conversation quickly turns to the question of Jesus’s identity when she asks, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask of drink of me, a woman of Samaria?”.= Jesus speaks of water, wells, and worship, and then springs it on her that he is the Messiah. How does the woman respond? She drops her water jar, runs back to town, and tells everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done!” In this story, questions of Jesus’s identity and her identity thread together in mutual revelation. Knowing who Jesus is leads her to know who she is — and, instead of feeling shame about her mistakes, she feels new freedom to tell her story. And so it goes throughout the Gospels. Almost everyone leaves Jesus’s company saying: “He made me whole!” “I have been healed!” “I’m not a prostitute, a sinner, an outcast, or a leper. I now know who I really am!” “I may be a Samaritan, but I can still know God.” “I am loved!” “I am accepted as I am!” Being “in” Jesus, in his presence or in conversation with him, pushes the other person beyond social roles and masks to deeper awareness of “Who am I?” transforming the question from an external one to a relational one that might be better rendered “Whose am I?” Thus, the biblical query “Who am I in God?” is a starting point of Christian spirituality. Why do Christians pray? Christians do not pray to have wishes granted; rather, Christians pray to find themselves in God and that they might be more aware of their motives and actions. Why do Christians worship? Christians do not worship to be entertained; rather, Christians listen to sermons, sing, and partake of bread and wine in community to be in Jesus’s presence and come to know themselves better. Why do Christians serve others? Christians do not act charitably to earn heavenly credit; rather, Christians find Jesus in their neighbors and such proximity enables greater insight to live fully in the world. Christians practice seeking Jesus in their lives because when they find themselves in God, pretense slips away to reveal the truest dimensions of selfhood and gives individuals the power to act in transforming ways. – Diana Butler Bass

Romans 5:8-9John 4:1-27There’s the symbol of God’s constant and gracious invitation to union, God flowing out toward us, God choosing us before we ever choose back. The code word for that is water. Watch for it. We have the Red Sea itself, the water from the rock in the desert the fountain that the temple itself becomes . There is the momentous crossing through the Jordan River that John the Baptist builds into his baptismal initiation rite, then the water flowing from the side of Christ, the living water that Jesus says he is, the living water that he offers the Samaritan woman at the well. Water is almost always an invitation to that first, subtle religious experience, when the desire just laps up against you and your mind and heart are opened for the first time. It’s the first gnawing, inviting sense that there’s something more. It’s the momentary recognition that the inside of things is even bigger than the outside. A lot of the medieval mystics, especially women, use this language of God flowing out toward them and through them (Mechtild of Magdeburg, Julian of Norwich, Hildegard of Bingen, Teresa of Avila). For Christians it becomes the objective trinitarian flow of God’s life in us, through us, with us, for us — and usually in spite of us. It is experienced as an allowing and an enjoying, never a producing or an attainment. So watch for the word and image of water and consider it an invitation. – Richard RohrIn John 4, Jesus meets a woman at a well. The conversation quickly turns to the question of Jesus’s identity when she asks, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask of drink of me, a woman of Samaria?”.= Jesus speaks of water, wells, and worship, and then springs it on her that he is the Messiah. How does the woman respond? She drops her water jar, runs back to town, and tells everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done!” In this story, questions of Jesus’s identity and her identity thread together in mutual revelation. Knowing who Jesus is leads her to know who she is — and, instead of feeling shame about her mistakes, she feels new freedom to tell her story. And so it goes throughout the Gospels. Almost everyone leaves Jesus’s company saying: “He made me whole!” “I have been healed!” “I’m not a prostitute, a sinner, an outcast, or a leper. I now know who I really am!” “I may be a Samaritan, but I can still know God.” “I am loved!” “I am accepted as I am!” Being “in” Jesus, in his presence or in conversation with him, pushes the other person beyond social roles and masks to deeper awareness of “Who am I?” transforming the question from an external one to a relational one that might be better rendered “Whose am I?” Thus, the biblical query “Who am I in God?” is a starting point of Christian spirituality. Why do Christians pray? Christians do not pray to have wishes granted; rather, Christians pray to find themselves in God and that they might be more aware of their motives and actions. Why do Christians worship? Christians do not worship to be entertained; rather, Christians listen to sermons, sing, and partake of bread and wine in community to be in Jesus’s presence and come to know themselves better. Why do Christians serve others? Christians do not act charitably to earn heavenly credit; rather, Christians find Jesus in their neighbors and such proximity enables greater insight to live fully in the world. Christians practice seeking Jesus in their lives because when they find themselves in God, pretense slips away to reveal the truest dimensions of selfhood and gives individuals the power to act in transforming ways. – Diana Butler Bass

Romans 5:8-9John 4:1-27There’s the symbol of God’s constant and gracious invitation to union, God flowing out toward us, God choosing us before we ever choose back. The code word for that is water. Watch for it. We have the Red Sea itself, the water from the rock in the desert the fountain that the temple itself becomes . There is the momentous crossing through the Jordan River that John the Baptist builds into his baptismal initiation rite, then the water flowing from the side of Christ, the living water that Jesus says he is, the living water that he offers the Samaritan woman at the well. Water is almost always an invitation to that first, subtle religious experience, when the desire just laps up against you and your mind and heart are opened for the first time. It’s the first gnawing, inviting sense that there’s something more. It’s the momentary recognition that the inside of things is even bigger than the outside. A lot of the medieval mystics, especially women, use this language of God flowing out toward them and through them (Mechtild of Magdeburg, Julian of Norwich, Hildegard of Bingen, Teresa of Avila). For Christians it becomes the objective trinitarian flow of God’s life in us, through us, with us, for us — and usually in spite of us. It is experienced as an allowing and an enjoying, never a producing or an attainment. So watch for the word and image of water and consider it an invitation. – Richard RohrIn John 4, Jesus meets a woman at a well. The conversation quickly turns to the question of Jesus’s identity when she asks, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask of drink of me, a woman of Samaria?”.= Jesus speaks of water, wells, and worship, and then springs it on her that he is the Messiah. How does the woman respond? She drops her water jar, runs back to town, and tells everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done!” In this story, questions of Jesus’s identity and her identity thread together in mutual revelation. Knowing who Jesus is leads her to know who she is — and, instead of feeling shame about her mistakes, she feels new freedom to tell her story. And so it goes throughout the Gospels. Almost everyone leaves Jesus’s company saying: “He made me whole!” “I have been healed!” “I’m not a prostitute, a sinner, an outcast, or a leper. I now know who I really am!” “I may be a Samaritan, but I can still know God.” “I am loved!” “I am accepted as I am!” Being “in” Jesus, in his presence or in conversation with him, pushes the other person beyond social roles and masks to deeper awareness of “Who am I?” transforming the question from an external one to a relational one that might be better rendered “Whose am I?” Thus, the biblical query “Who am I in God?” is a starting point of Christian spirituality. Why do Christians pray? Christians do not pray to have wishes granted; rather, Christians pray to find themselves in God and that they might be more aware of their motives and actions. Why do Christians worship? Christians do not worship to be entertained; rather, Christians listen to sermons, sing, and partake of bread and wine in community to be in Jesus’s presence and come to know themselves better. Why do Christians serve others? Christians do not act charitably to earn heavenly credit; rather, Christians find Jesus in their neighbors and such proximity enables greater insight to live fully in the world. Christians practice seeking Jesus in their lives because when they find themselves in God, pretense slips away to reveal the truest dimensions of selfhood and gives individuals the power to act in transforming ways. – Diana Butler Bass

John 3:1-17Born Again: "anothen" – from above, not of this flesh world, different originsNumbers 21:4-9"God so loved the world, reads the famous text in the King James Version of John 3:16, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. There we are, think average Christian readers. This is the biblical promise of a timeless heavenly bliss. But it isn’t. In the many places where the phrase zoe aionios appears in the gospels, and in Paul’s letters for that matter, it refers to one aspect of an ancient Jewish belief about how time was divided up. In this viewpoint, there were two aions (we sometimes use the word eon in that sense): the Present age, ha-olam hazeh in Hebrew, and the age here now, ha-olam ha-ba. The age to come, many ancient Jews believed, would arrive one day to bring God’s justice, peace, and healing to the world as it groaned and toiled within the present age. You can see Paul, for instance, referring to this idea in Galatians 1:4, where he speaks of Jesus giving himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age. In other words, Jesus has inaugurated, ushered in, the “age to come". But there is no sense that this age to come is eternal in the sense of being outside space, time, and matter. Far from it. The ancient Jews were creational monotheists. For them, God’s great future purpose was not to rescue people out of the world, but to rescue the world itself, people included, from its present state of corruption and decay." – NT Wright, How God became King"The Greek phrase John uses for eternal life literally means 'life of the ages', as opposed, I think we could say, to 'life as people are living it these days'. So John’s related phrases 'eternal life', 'life to the full', and simply 'life' give us a unique angle on what Jesus meant by kingdom of God: a life that is radically different from the way people are living these days, a life that is full and overflowing, a higher life that is centered in an interactive relationship with God and with Jesus. Let’s render it simply an extraordinary life to the full centered in a relationship with God.”–Brian McClarenThe word condemn is “krino” which literally means judge“We are rarely greater sinners than when we condemn, in part, because we feel so righteous in unjust and unmerciful judging.” –Mirsolov Volf

John 3:1-17Born Again: "anothen" – from above, not of this flesh world, different originsNumbers 21:4-9"God so loved the world, reads the famous text in the King James Version of John 3:16, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. There we are, think average Christian readers. This is the biblical promise of a timeless heavenly bliss. But it isn’t. In the many places where the phrase zoe aionios appears in the gospels, and in Paul’s letters for that matter, it refers to one aspect of an ancient Jewish belief about how time was divided up. In this viewpoint, there were two aions (we sometimes use the word eon in that sense): the Present age, ha-olam hazeh in Hebrew, and the age here now, ha-olam ha-ba. The age to come, many ancient Jews believed, would arrive one day to bring God’s justice, peace, and healing to the world as it groaned and toiled within the present age. You can see Paul, for instance, referring to this idea in Galatians 1:4, where he speaks of Jesus giving himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age. In other words, Jesus has inaugurated, ushered in, the “age to come". But there is no sense that this age to come is eternal in the sense of being outside space, time, and matter. Far from it. The ancient Jews were creational monotheists. For them, God’s great future purpose was not to rescue people out of the world, but to rescue the world itself, people included, from its present state of corruption and decay." – NT Wright, How God became King"The Greek phrase John uses for eternal life literally means 'life of the ages', as opposed, I think we could say, to 'life as people are living it these days'. So John’s related phrases 'eternal life', 'life to the full', and simply 'life' give us a unique angle on what Jesus meant by kingdom of God: a life that is radically different from the way people are living these days, a life that is full and overflowing, a higher life that is centered in an interactive relationship with God and with Jesus. Let’s render it simply an extraordinary life to the full centered in a relationship with God.”–Brian McClarenThe word condemn is “krino” which literally means judge“We are rarely greater sinners than when we condemn, in part, because we feel so righteous in unjust and unmerciful judging.” –Mirsolov Volf

John 3:1-17Born Again: "anothen" – from above, not of this flesh world, different originsNumbers 21:4-9"God so loved the world, reads the famous text in the King James Version of John 3:16, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. There we are, think average Christian readers. This is the biblical promise of a timeless heavenly bliss. But it isn’t. In the many places where the phrase zoe aionios appears in the gospels, and in Paul’s letters for that matter, it refers to one aspect of an ancient Jewish belief about how time was divided up. In this viewpoint, there were two aions (we sometimes use the word eon in that sense): the Present age, ha-olam hazeh in Hebrew, and the age here now, ha-olam ha-ba. The age to come, many ancient Jews believed, would arrive one day to bring God’s justice, peace, and healing to the world as it groaned and toiled within the present age. You can see Paul, for instance, referring to this idea in Galatians 1:4, where he speaks of Jesus giving himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age. In other words, Jesus has inaugurated, ushered in, the “age to come". But there is no sense that this age to come is eternal in the sense of being outside space, time, and matter. Far from it. The ancient Jews were creational monotheists. For them, God’s great future purpose was not to rescue people out of the world, but to rescue the world itself, people included, from its present state of corruption and decay." – NT Wright, How God became King"The Greek phrase John uses for eternal life literally means 'life of the ages', as opposed, I think we could say, to 'life as people are living it these days'. So John’s related phrases 'eternal life', 'life to the full', and simply 'life' give us a unique angle on what Jesus meant by kingdom of God: a life that is radically different from the way people are living these days, a life that is full and overflowing, a higher life that is centered in an interactive relationship with God and with Jesus. Let’s render it simply an extraordinary life to the full centered in a relationship with God.”–Brian McClarenThe word condemn is “krino” which literally means judge“We are rarely greater sinners than when we condemn, in part, because we feel so righteous in unjust and unmerciful judging.” –Mirsolov Volf

John 3:1-17Born Again: "anothen" – from above, not of this flesh world, different originsNumbers 21:4-9"God so loved the world, reads the famous text in the King James Version of John 3:16, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. There we are, think average Christian readers. This is the biblical promise of a timeless heavenly bliss. But it isn’t. In the many places where the phrase zoe aionios appears in the gospels, and in Paul’s letters for that matter, it refers to one aspect of an ancient Jewish belief about how time was divided up. In this viewpoint, there were two aions (we sometimes use the word eon in that sense): the Present age, ha-olam hazeh in Hebrew, and the age here now, ha-olam ha-ba. The age to come, many ancient Jews believed, would arrive one day to bring God’s justice, peace, and healing to the world as it groaned and toiled within the present age. You can see Paul, for instance, referring to this idea in Galatians 1:4, where he speaks of Jesus giving himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age. In other words, Jesus has inaugurated, ushered in, the “age to come". But there is no sense that this age to come is eternal in the sense of being outside space, time, and matter. Far from it. The ancient Jews were creational monotheists. For them, God’s great future purpose was not to rescue people out of the world, but to rescue the world itself, people included, from its present state of corruption and decay." – NT Wright, How God became King"The Greek phrase John uses for eternal life literally means 'life of the ages', as opposed, I think we could say, to 'life as people are living it these days'. So John’s related phrases 'eternal life', 'life to the full', and simply 'life' give us a unique angle on what Jesus meant by kingdom of God: a life that is radically different from the way people are living these days, a life that is full and overflowing, a higher life that is centered in an interactive relationship with God and with Jesus. Let’s render it simply an extraordinary life to the full centered in a relationship with God.”–Brian McClarenThe word condemn is “krino” which literally means judge“We are rarely greater sinners than when we condemn, in part, because we feel so righteous in unjust and unmerciful judging.” –Mirsolov Volf

Matthew 4:1-11“Many might assume that symbol means pretend or make-believe. But symbols aren’t pretend, they’re pointing to something real, something happening in the world. So that’s the first thing we need to get clear about. Fallen angel or symbol, the Devil is real...Satan names that which is working against God and God’s kingdom in the world.” - Richard Beck, Reviving Old Scratch “There are forces working against love and inclusion in the world, and some of those forces are at work in my own heart and mind Hate is the satan of love. Exclusion is the satan of inclusion. War is the satan of peace. Oppression is the satan of justice.Tearing down is the satan of building up. Competition is the satan of cooperation. Revenge is the satan of mercy. Harm is the satan of care. Hostility is the satan of reconciliation. There is a satan to the Kingdom of God.” - Richard Beck, Reviving Old Scratch“The problem with the devil is that we see him in the faces of those we hate.”- Richard Beck, Reviving Old Scratch“You can safely assume you've created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.”- Anne Lamott “Baptism had given Jesus the clear assurance that he was God’s well-loved Son, and that the Father was deeply pleased with him. Is Jesus, however, really God’s unique Son, and is he really pleasing to the Father? If he has any questions at all, transformed rocks will answer these questions immediately...Jesus is tempted to go beyond baptism to a remarkable ‘deeper’ experience. These are the dynamics of Jesus’ first temptation.”- Frederick Bruner “In this temptation Jesus experiences one of the most surprising sources of radical evil in the world: the perverse use of Scripture...Jesus’ main first-century opponents throughout the Gospel - the scribal Bible teachers and the separatist, Bible-believing Pharisees - warn us that a mere Bible zeal, uninformed by or uncentered on the biblical Christ can minister death.” - Frederick Bruner “When people begin to be zealous in religion, Satan hurries them into bigotry and intemperate hearts.”- Matthew Henry"Jesus must never be regarded as one Word among others. He is the Word to which all other inspired words point. And whatever else we take this to mean, it implies that the revelation of God in Christ, thematically centered on the cross, must never be compromised by anything else we find in Scripture.”- Greg Boyd“The third temptation is the temptation to make our work our God. This is the most powerful and subtle of all temptations. Jesus’ work as Messiah is to win the world. This work can now be done if he will just bow one knee...Jesus must have felt this temptation; otherwise it would not have been called a temptation. The love of the world is one meaning not only of Jesus’ ministry, as we know, but of God the Father’s as well (‘God so loved the world…’) But, and this is a crucial point, Jesus’ love for persons is a love in obedience to a ruling love...Jesus is ruled by a love higher than the immediate situation, higher even than the other person and that is love for God.”- Frederick Bruner “Love looks like weakness in the world...But it’s through the weakness of love that God’s power is revealed...Love doesn’t dominate us. Love interrupts us. Jesus rejected the strategies of Satan on the mountain to embrace the tactics of love: healing the sick; preaching the good news to the poor; welcoming the unclean; lifting up the oppressed. Jesus didn’t conquer, dominate, and control. Jesus invaded and interrupted.”- Richard Beck, Reviving Old Scratch“May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that we may live deep within our hearts.”- Franscican Blessing

Matthew 4:1-11“Many might assume that symbol means pretend or make-believe. But symbols aren’t pretend, they’re pointing to something real, something happening in the world. So that’s the first thing we need to get clear about. Fallen angel or symbol, the Devil is real...Satan names that which is working against God and God’s kingdom in the world.” - Richard Beck, Reviving Old Scratch “There are forces working against love and inclusion in the world, and some of those forces are at work in my own heart and mind Hate is the satan of love. Exclusion is the satan of inclusion. War is the satan of peace. Oppression is the satan of justice.Tearing down is the satan of building up. Competition is the satan of cooperation. Revenge is the satan of mercy. Harm is the satan of care. Hostility is the satan of reconciliation. There is a satan to the Kingdom of God.” - Richard Beck, Reviving Old Scratch“The problem with the devil is that we see him in the faces of those we hate.”- Richard Beck, Reviving Old Scratch“You can safely assume you've created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.”- Anne Lamott “Baptism had given Jesus the clear assurance that he was God’s well-loved Son, and that the Father was deeply pleased with him. Is Jesus, however, really God’s unique Son, and is he really pleasing to the Father? If he has any questions at all, transformed rocks will answer these questions immediately...Jesus is tempted to go beyond baptism to a remarkable ‘deeper’ experience. These are the dynamics of Jesus’ first temptation.”- Frederick Bruner “In this temptation Jesus experiences one of the most surprising sources of radical evil in the world: the perverse use of Scripture...Jesus’ main first-century opponents throughout the Gospel - the scribal Bible teachers and the separatist, Bible-believing Pharisees - warn us that a mere Bible zeal, uninformed by or uncentered on the biblical Christ can minister death.” - Frederick Bruner “When people begin to be zealous in religion, Satan hurries them into bigotry and intemperate hearts.”- Matthew Henry"Jesus must never be regarded as one Word among others. He is the Word to which all other inspired words point. And whatever else we take this to mean, it implies that the revelation of God in Christ, thematically centered on the cross, must never be compromised by anything else we find in Scripture.”- Greg Boyd“The third temptation is the temptation to make our work our God. This is the most powerful and subtle of all temptations. Jesus’ work as Messiah is to win the world. This work can now be done if he will just bow one knee...Jesus must have felt this temptation; otherwise it would not have been called a temptation. The love of the world is one meaning not only of Jesus’ ministry, as we know, but of God the Father’s as well (‘God so loved the world…’) But, and this is a crucial point, Jesus’ love for persons is a love in obedience to a ruling love...Jesus is ruled by a love higher than the immediate situation, higher even than the other person and that is love for God.”- Frederick Bruner “Love looks like weakness in the world...But it’s through the weakness of love that God’s power is revealed...Love doesn’t dominate us. Love interrupts us. Jesus rejected the strategies of Satan on the mountain to embrace the tactics of love: healing the sick; preaching the good news to the poor; welcoming the unclean; lifting up the oppressed. Jesus didn’t conquer, dominate, and control. Jesus invaded and interrupted.”- Richard Beck, Reviving Old Scratch“May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that we may live deep within our hearts.”- Franscican Blessing