Work is taking the raw material of creation and developing it for the sake of others.

Prayer is both conversation and encounter with God.

Gifts are abilities God gives us to meet the needs of others in Christ’s name.

The Christian Gospel is that I am so flawed that Jesus had to die for me, yet I am so loved and valued that Jesus was glad to die for me. This leads to deep humility and deep confidence at the same time. It undermines both swaggering and sniveling. I cannot feel superior to anyone, and yet I have nothing to prove to anyone. I do not think more of myself nor less of myself. Instead, I think of myself less.

Paul reminds us that in the Gospel we are both brought lower and raised higher than we can imagine.

The best people often have terrible lives. Job is one example, and Jesus—the ultimate ‘Job,’ the only truly, fully innocent sufferer — is another.

What you treasure will ultimately require you die for it, Jesus is the only treasure that died for you.