“I’m trying to figure out what it means to be a follower of Jesus and I need to confess right up-front that often I’m not a very good one.” (>>) [MP3]

“I became obsessed with symmetry. If I stepped on a crack with my right foot, I felt an irresistible urge to step on a crack with my left foot. I added more details until this ritual became all-consuming. If I stepped on a pebble with my right heel, I had to step on a pebble with my left heel. If I missed and stepped on the pebble with the middle of my left foot, I had to step on a pebble with the middle of my right foot while still ‘owing’ my left heel a pebble.” (>>)

“The gospel for him equals the doctrine of penal-substitutionary atonement… Jesus said that the gospel was ‘the Kingdom of God is at hand.’ Shouldn’t we let Jesus tell us what the gospel is?” (>>) [MP3]

“They help by making me sad at how hard we all try and at how far short we fall, and the sadness softens me for love.” (>>)

“I was lied to, and I am tired of being lied to.” (>>)

“It’s not that he favors children being tossed onto bonfires or teenage girls being gang-raped and mutilated, but he can’t bother himself to try very hard to stop these horrors, either. […] I can’t understand why Mr. Bush is soft on genocide, particularly because his political base – the religious right – has been one of the groups leading the campaign against genocide in Darfur. As the National Association of Evangelicals noted in a reproachful statement about Darfur a few days ago, the Bush administration ‘has made minimal progress protecting millions of victims of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.’ ” (>>)

“A good portion, however, of my diminished appreciation for Gibson’s movie is the awareness of how the marketing and promotion of the film took on a life of its own, and brought the distinctly secular, cynical, unholy forces of marketing to bear on some of the most sacred of all Christian imagery and story. I resent the commodification of the Passion of Jesus by those who wanted to make a dollar and draw a bigger crowd. I am fearful- almost certain, in fact- that the beloved story of Aslan is about to be plunged into the same baptism of profiteering and evangelical, church growth driven manipulation.” (>>)

“We believe that today’s church […] is in a serious spiritual crisis and needs a reformation of theology and practice… From […] investing in maintenance Christianity (pastors, buildings, church programs) to aligning our finances and possessions with God’s heart and purposes: the poor and oppressed, reaching the unreached, mobile apostolic teams, and serving our communities.” (>>)

“…grateful to be able to feel at all.” (>>)

“I see my world through my kailedoscope – all it’s broken potential and beauty.” (>>)

“…I think [that] the closer we are to the teachings of Jesus the more on track we’re going to be.” (>>) [MP3]

“God, please help me and forgive me where i get prideful and judgmental.” (>>)