From Shun Lee Fong

If my life is to be a work of art, and if yours is too, we can't allow ourselves to remain untested. We can't stay in a place that requires no risk, no danger, no passion, no faith, no vision. To do so would be to live something less than the life that God gave us.

Focus

Swiped this from a friend's blog:

"We need a focus. A main thing. Something bigger than skin cream or tennis shoes that reminds us of the purpose of it all. If we expect to regain a more simple heart, a more centered pace for our day, we need to order our lives in specific ways."

God Grant Me Derring-Do

"Yet for all the depression no one ever quit. When someone quit, we couldn't believe it. 'I'm becoming a rafting instructor on the Colorado River,' they said. 'I'm touring college towns with my garage band.' We were dumbfounded. It was like they were from another planet. Where had they found the derring-do? What would they do about car payments? We got together for going away drinks on their final day and tried to hide our envy while reminding ourselves that we still had the freedom and luxury to shop indiscriminately." 

-from Then We Came To The End by Joshua Ferris

Tremendous Internal Discipline

Just got done listening to one of my favorite radio shows appearance at my alma mater. This past month the Prairie Home Companion visited ACU and Garrison Keillor took some time to interview the Dean of the College of Biblical Studies. Jack Reese. Keillor tried to get to the heart of what binds the churches of Christ together other than attributes that they share with, say, Episcopalians. As Jack attempted to explain an increasingly complex confederation (what Keillor described as "loose"), and explain practices like strict a capella worship, Keillor ended with this comment:

"Well, it must take tremendous internal discipline and commitment for all you people to stay together when there's nothing keeping you together other than just the fact that you're together."

Priceless.

A Great Verse

Harry is a random kid.

Lately, he's been into memorizing verses from the Bible. He picked it up in a BSF class and we encourage it at home. Yesterday, while he and I were playing, he looked at me and said, "I bet John 1:5 is a good verse."

Somewhat startled, I said we should look it up and see. I handed him the Bible and he read: The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.

He then looked at me and said, "That is a good verse."

He's right. That really is a good verse. And a good reminder.