If you have to run away from something that used to be an idol, you're actually still enslaved by it. It's still controlling you.

We were designed to know, serve, and love God supremely - and when we are faithful to that design, we flourish.

So live in the light of the resurrection and renewal of this world, and of yourself, in a glorious, never-ending, joyful dance of grace.

For indeed, grace is the key to it all. It is not our lavish good deeds that procure salvation, but God's lavish love and mercy. That is why the poor are as acceptable before God as the rich. It is the generosity of God, the freeness of his salvation, that lays the foundation for the society of justice for all. Even in the seemingly boring rules and regulations of tabernacle rituals, we see that God cares about the poor, that his laws make provision for the disadvantaged. God's concern for justice permeated every part of Israel's life. It should also permeate our lives.

The most liberating act of free, unconditional grace demands that the recipient give up control of his or her life.

God has become human. The absolute has become particular. The ideal has become real. The divine has taken up a human nature.

Prayer can be simple, but it's not easy. Nothing great is.