God stands ready to allocate his power to all who are radically dependent on Him and radically devoted to making much of Him.

Our greatest need is not to try harder. Our greatest need is a new heart.

We can rest confident in the fact that nothing will happen to us in this world apart from the gracious will of a sovereign God. Nothing.

I believe that the gospel and the American Dream have fundamentally different starting points. The American Dream begins with self, exalts self, says you are inherently good and you have in you what it takes to be successful so do all you can, work with everything you have to make much of yourself. The gospel begins with God, the reality that we were created to exalt his name to the ends of the earth.

What if all it took to bring us to our knees and to ignite our affections was the Word opened and the presence of God? What if that was enough for us? What if it didn't take a great band to evoke that kind of response from us in worship? What if His presence - His Word opened - what if it was enough?

I want to move from what we let go of to whom we hold on to. I want to explore not just the gravity of what we forsake in this world, but also the greatness of the one we follow in this world.

God chose to set his love on the Israelites not because of any merit in them but solely because of mercy in him.