The cross is the place where we find the freedom to accept ourselves without being proud and to challenge ourselves without being crushed.

To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God. It is what we need more than anything. It liberates us from pretense, humbles us out of our self-righteousness, and fortifies us for any difficulty life can throw at us.

If his suffering did not make Jesus give up on us, nothing will.

We're far worse than we ever imagined, and far more loved than we could ever dream.

Sin is the despairing refusal to find your deepest identity in your relationship and service to God.

If our identity is in our work, rather than Christ, success will go to our heads, and failure will go to our hearts.

Many people think of the Bible as a book of moral teachings with stories sprinkled through to illustrate the teachings. But it's a lot BETTER THAN THAT...the Bible is a single true story with teachings sprinkled through to illustrate the story.