To be a minister means above all to become powerless, or in more precise terms, to speak with our powerlessness to the condition of powerlessness which is so keenly felt but so seldom expressed by the people of our age.

Prayer requires that we stand in God's presence with open hands, naked and vulnerable, proclaiming to ourselves and to others that without God we can do nothing. As disciples, we find not some but all of our strength, hope, courage, and confidence in God. Therefore, prayer must be our first concern.

When we have nothing to cling to as our own and cease thinking of ourselves as people who must defend privileges, we can open ourselves freely to others with the faithful expectation that our strength will manifest itself in our shared weakness.

When we have sold our identity to the judges of this world, we are bound to become restless, because of a growing need for affirmation and praise.

Through discipline, discipline is the other side of discipleship. If you want to follow Jesus, you have to have discipline.

Life is not entertainment. Life is not distraction.

Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.