Though we have rightly applauded our ancestors for their spiritual achievements ... those of us who prevail today will have done no small thing.

Daily hope is vital, since the ‘Winter Quarters’ of our lives are not immediately adjacent to our promised land either. An arduous trek still awaits, but hope spurs weary disciples on.

It's service, not status, that counts.

Coming unto the Lord is not a negotiation, but a surrender.

Trials and tribulations tend to squeeze the artificiality out of us, leaving the essence of what we really are and clarifying what we really yearn for.

The truth is that not yet usually means never. Trying to run away from the responsibility to decide about Christ is childish. Pilate sought to refuse responsibility for deciding about Christ, but Pilate's hands were never dirtier than just after he had washed them.

Never give up what you want most for what you want today.