Inappropriate Conversations

“We do know that no person can be saved except through Christ. We do not know that only those who know Him can be saved by Him.” C.S. Lewis John 14:1-14 (when Jesus says He is the Way, He is not identifying gatekeeping rules that even He must obey as our Lord; He is telling us that He picks the Way)  

"What do you think it's gonna do when I live by faith and now my work is through? It's gonna rain! … I'm so happy to say, it's gonna rain on the world today." Gordon Gano Genesis 6:9-7:24 (flood continued for 40 days, and waters swelled on the earth for 150 days)  

"Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps. But let justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream." Amos of Tekoa Amos 5:21-24 (it’s not about festivals, assemblies, songs or offerings; it’s about justice)  

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." Aristotle of Stagira   Proverbs 13:13-17 (teaching of the wise is a fountain of life)  

"Why were we put here? What for? We're unsure. We sure weren't put here to hate." Nate Albert and Dicky Barrett Matthew 7:13-23 (knowing them by their fruit, there are some who claim the name of the Lord but Jesus has said he won’t even recognize them)  

"You cannot ask Jesus into your heart alone. He will ask, 'Can I bring my friends?'  You will look at his friends -- the poor, the marginalized, the oppressed -- and you will hesitate. But Jesus is clear, 'Only if I can bring my friends.'"  Peter Storey John 10:14-16 (“I have other Sheep,” Jesus said. “I must bring them also”)

"I see anger as a complex series of body changes triggered off by a sudden awareness of danger. This reaction to stress can be regarded as our survival kit, shared in some measure with all living creatures. All of us live, to some extent, in danger." David R. Mace Ephesians 4:26 (the old adage about not going to sleep angry is directly Biblical)  

"Whether we can take 'a life for a life' is one question; whether we should is another. Cain and Abel pose an answer. Rather than taking life for life and delivering a powerful message by killing Cain, God instead banished Cain from the community. To say the least, we must not be cavalier about death penalty decisions." -Greg   Genesis 4:13-16 (mark of Cain directly dismisses any death penalty rul...

"Honesty is not the best policy because of the pitfalls of lying; it is best because of the feeling of being deeply and genuinely known." -Greg Ephesians 4:25 (speak the truth because we are part of one another)  

"Life's an essay test; we're obliged to give essay answers." -Greg Acts 17:16-34 (I proclaim to you now what you worship as Unknown)  

"It's the things which aren't said that do the most damage." Luc Longley Acts 4:1-22 (we cannot keep from speaking about what we’ve seen and heard)  

“The world is like a book that can be read in either direction. There is the power of creation, to make something of nothing. And there is the power of destruction, to make nothing from something.”  Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz Galatians 5:13-26 (works of the flesh versus fruits of the spirit)  

"I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you, and I will remove from your body the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."  Ezekiel of Jerusalem Ezekiel 36:25-28 (a new heart and a new spirit as a baptism of sorts)  

"I wasn't voted most likely to succeed. Instead, it was most likely to be found on a mountaintop in Guadalajara writing the world's most profound three-word sentence."  -Greg Mark 9:2-13 (when they looked around, they saw no one else with them anymore)

"As we must account for every idle word, so must we account for every idle silence."  Benjamin Franklin Luke 12:8-12 (the Spirit will tell you what to say)  

"Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack, a crack in everything; that's how the light gets in."  Leonard Cohen Romans 5:1-11 (we were sinful when Christ stepped in)

From a very young age, my parents used to say that they would always know where to find me if I had a record player and a stack of albums, almost any albums. Now, as then, I have thoughts about particular songs. I have started something this year on Substack that I call "OneSong." Each weekday, I'm recommending one song -- just one -- in a written blog between 300-500 words each.  OneSong: https:/...

"We do not need to be rescued from God. God is the one who rescues us from death, sin, and destruction. God is the rescuer."  Rob Bell Luke 15:1-7 (this fellow Jesus welcomes sinners and eats with them, they said)

“People will do anything, no matter how absurd, to avoid facing their own souls.”  Carl G. Jung 2 Corinthians 13:5 (test yourself to see if you are living in the faith)  

"Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and respect."  Peter of Bethsaida 1 Peter 3:13-17 (how to account for the hope that is in you)

“Love and the self are one and the discovery of either is the realization of both.”  Leo Buscaglia 1 John 4:7-21 (everyone who loves is born of God and knows God)  

“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." Henry David Thoreau Mark 9:38-41 (we saw someone casting out demons in your name)

"Men cannot see their reflections in running water, but only in still water." Zhuang Zhou Psalm 46:10 (be still, and know that I am God)

"There's a saviour born every day in the valley of your soul." Sophie B. Hawkins John 3: 13-17 (God so loved the world that Jesus didn’t come to condemn it)

"Could I really be this thirsty if there weren't something more?" Chris Rice John 2: 1-11 (water into wine)