Pastors are highly susceptible to the sin of sloth.

People learn to shop for churches; there is no loyalty to the church. They're consumers being attracted to one product or another. I think it's sacrilege, to tell you the truth, it really is.

My job is not to solve people's problems or make them happy, but to help them see the grace operating in their lives.

Stories are verbal acts of hospitality.

Religion is a very scary thing, because a pastor is in a position of power. And if you use that power badly, you ruin people's lives, and you ruin your own life.

That's why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they're blue in the face and not get it.

Sabbath is that uncluttered time and space in which we can distance ourselves from our own activities enough to see what God is doing.