ken castor

100+ words from "Thanksgiving"

100+ words out of the one word thanksgiving.  If you take the letters of this word and scramble them up, you can create some great omelets.  It's just so much fun.  From Star Wars to Astronaut drinks, from intelligence to annoyance, I'm so thankful for the words that come from thanksgiving.

Words like giving and thanks are obvious.  But think of all the others (favorites in orange):

THINK(s)    THANK(s)    HANG(s)    TANG    GNAT(s)    KING(s)    GANG(s)    SING(s)    SINGING    HANGING    SKIING    THAN    THIN    SNAG    THING(s)    THANG    NAG(s)    KIN    TIKI    STINK(ing)    THANKING    THINKING    HANK(s)    GAIN(s)    GIN    SANG    SITH    IT    AT    IS    AS    GIST    GAS    ITS    ANT(s)    TAN(s)    SHIN    GASH    SHIV    SHANK    KIT(s)    HIT(s)    (a couple of bad words omitted)    HAT(s)    SAINT    SKIT    ANGST    TAKING    VAN(s)  VIN    SKIN    HINT(s)    STING(ing)    HINTING   ASK(ing)    TASK(ing)    AH(s)    SIN    IN    AN    GIG(s)    INN(s)    ANN(s)    GAG(s)    TAG(s)    TANK(s)    STAN    STAG    STAGING    AGING    GIGI    GIST    TAG(s)    SKI

The Bible speaks often about the words that derive from thanksgiving.  An "attitude of gratitude", as a I say with my 5-yr-old daughter (it's quite cute when she says it), causes us to erupt in thankful expressions.  For instance, in 1 Chronicles 16:8-36, David overflows with thanksgiving to God... which creates in him a litany of other words too:

SING(s)    PRAISE(s)    TELL(s)   MIRACLE(s)    GENERATIONS    GLORY    ACTS    WONDERFUL    NAME    KNOWN    NATIONS    CALL    GOOD    JOY    REJOICE(s)    REMEMBER(s)    SEEK    FACE    THE-LORD    YAHWEH    STRENGTH    DWELLING    DECLARE(s)    ASCRIBE(s)   RESOUND    SPLENDOR    HOLINESS    PORTION    OFFER(s)    TREMBLE(s)    HEAVENS    SALVATION    EVERLASTING    PEOPLE    SAY    AMEN   

*Do you see more words stemming from Thanksgiving today?

Romans 5:9-11 ~ How Much More?

I'm going to wrestle with this for a moment.  The truth is that I am not always comfortable with what I read in the Bible.  The letter-book of Romans brings out a myriad of reactive feelings in me.  Some of the verses help me sail to heaven... while others hand me into darkness.  Sometimes I'm gutted.  Sometimes I'm radically inspired.  Sometimes, lost.  Sometimes, in awe.  Sometimes, frustrated, angry.  Sometimes, insatiable.  And sometimes, like today, I am mixed up mess of all of these feelings.

Perhaps it's the mood I have as I approach the passage today... or perhaps it's the passage.  I have joy... the type of joy that someone who has an undeserved relationship with Jesus has.  But I also have a heaviness in my soul... the type of weight that someone who has a burden in their soul has.

Yes, there is life in these verses... but life comes out of death... and it's that part that causes me to pause today.

Blood is red.  I've seen it.  It's real.  And it's not pretty.  Except when it saves the life of one who has already bled out... then it is somehow tragically beautiful.  But this sort of thinking all shatters my comfort zone... It startles my nicely controlled climate and safe walk.  And I'm burdened as a result...

Here's the passage: ROMANS 5:9-11  Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!  For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

So the Good News: We have been justified.  That means that somehow we have been declared "just".  Somehow, just in time, we just made it.  When the judgment was made, even though we had messed it all up, somehow we found ourselves innocent.

The Burdensome News for me today: Justification came about by the blood of Jesus.  I am declared "just" because he was declared guilty.  That's not fair.  And it guts me.  How much more of this can I take?

So the Good News:  We were reconciled.  That means that somehow we have been made right in relationship with God.  At some point, even though we were enemies--- fighting against God and God's ways in the world--- somehow we found ourselves as his friends.  How much more Good can Jesus be?  I can hardly embrace this thought at this moment without breaking down in agonizing joy.

The Burdensome News for me today: Reconciliation came through the death of Jesus.  I am declared God's friend because Jesus was executed.  That's not right.  This is much more than what is supposed to be true.

The Good and Burdensome News: We will be saved.  That means that somehow we have been snatched from imminent peril.  Our deliberate and undeliberate wrongs had consequentially put us in a position of endangerment.  So, at the end of time, instead of God's wrath being poured upon us for messing it all up... Jesus will proactively step in and accepts wrath upon himself.  On the day of our deserved sentencing, we will be saved.

So we boast, or rejoice, or praise God through Jesus who has made us right with God, present and future.  But HOW MUCH MORE of this can we take?  Jesus just keeps heaping on grace upon grace.  John 1:16 is right: "From the fullness of his grace we have reveived one blessing after another."  Wave upon wave... upon wave... upon wave... life pounding against me.

It's like burning coals on my head... because God's grace is so undeserved... and yet I welcome it whole-heartedly in unabashed thanksgiving to my Savior.  Amen.

mobilizing others in ministry

This is the graphic from the first slide for my session at the Minnesota Church Expo tomorrow.  The workshop will focus on "how to mobilze your church for personal outreach".  Should be an encouraging, and hopefully radical (in the real sense of the word), look at "outreach" and our tendency to do it alone... or not do it at all.  Some of my favorite topics such as Cultural Intelligence, Romans 16, St. Patrick, Generational Transference and Active Listening will be explored... maybe... if time allows.  Can't wait!  Come on by!

Romans 5:1 ~ on a rainy day

Okay... so here's a great verse:

 ^{ROMANS 5:1 (NIV)} Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ...

Notice that this is not the complete sentence... oh no... there is much more to this statement.  But for a moment, let's obey the verse designations and ponder the first verse of Romans chapter 5.

Therefore ~ See the post from yesterday for a whole obsessed discussion about this word.

since ~ Paul is reminding his readers about his multi-chapter line of reasoning.  He's already helped us come to a conclusion... and now he's launching off of it.

we have been justified ~ "We have been justified" is actually the first word of this sentence in Greek (Δικαιωθέντες).  In English we feel compelled to put "therefore" first... but Greek sentence structure often calls for the topic of the phrase to be upfront.  So it is that the emphasis and focus of this first phrase is 'justified'.   Paul just completed a huge thought at the end of Chapter 4 about being credited as "right" even though we were wrong.  Because of the fact that "we" (Paul and those he addresses in Rome) have been "made right" (NLT)... Since the reality is that "we" are "set right" (Message)... Since it is true that we have been justified... something cool is about to happen...

through faith, ~   The Greek word for "faith" here is πίστεως.  Faith in this way means not a set of statements, but a deep, active, soul-full conviction of God in relation to one's life.  This kind of faith in God actively trusts God for righteousness, for justification, for being credited... all in the realization that on human merit alone there is nothing someone can do to earn God's favor.  "Justification" (being declared "all right" by God) comes about when someone becomes convicted and then engages in trusting God with one's life.

we have peace ~ My favorite Greek word of all time is the word for "peace" (εἰρήνη,n  \pronounced i-ray'-nay).  Dr. Bill Heth at Taylor University taught our class way back in 1991 that "because of Jesus we could have 'peace' on 'aye rainay' day."  Get it?  It's worked for me.  Virtually every time it rains, I repeat to my heart, "I have peace today because of Jesus."  It's a little English trick to remember a wee Greek word... but it is still remarkably profound.  Since we have been made right with God, we have peace.  Isn't peace what everyone needs?  In the midst of chaos and uncertainty and war and broken relationships and non-stop-busyness... Isn't peace what we are all searching for?  When Jesus was born, what did the angels proclaim?  PEACE ON EARTH! (See Luke 2:14)

with God ~ The whole problem with humanity since the beginning has been a frictious relationship with God.  Not God's fault.  God didn't stop short... Romans 3:23... we did.  Ever since we have had turmoil and heartache.  But because we have been made right with God, we have peace with God.  So simple a truth... and yet so amazing.

through our Lord Jesus Christ, ~ Jesus Christ is called "The Prince of Peace" for a reason.  His governance is one of peace.  His authority ushers peace through the gates.  His lordship is a rule of goodness.  THROUGH faith in Jesus we have been justified... THROUGH Jesus we have peace.  I'm wondering who makes out best in this deal?  Seems like Jesus is doing some amazing work of grace for us.

Note: Today is a great day to invite Jesus into our lives... whether we have not yet done so or even if we have.  Jesus makes us right with God and Jesus gives us peace with God.  If this isn't enough to convict us to place our trust today in Jesus then we might as well convert to all the man-made philosophies and religions of this world in which humans hopelessly strive to earn their way to the Divine.  And then, when we reach the extent of our exhaustion, perhaps it'll be time to just place our faith in Jesus... inviting him to help us, or to be with us, or to make his ways true in our life.  I've known a few people who gave their lives over to Jesus precisely because of this verse.  All the human baggage of Romans 1-4 is set free in the half-sentence of Romans 5:1.  What a great verse.

Romans 5:1 ~ thus ergo therefore

Therefore.

What a huge word 'therefore' is.

Somebody spends all this effort to set up their thought and keep your attention with lots of cool prose or smart verbage or shocking comments... and then they say, "therefore".

"You don't want to use a cheap, lesser-brand-name carpet cleaner to get out this heavy stain!  Therefore, try REMOVIT!!"  (No offense if REMOVIT is actually a real stain remover label.  The name just popped in my head and it may be suitable for copyright and product placement, therefore, please cut me a substantial check... or a cheque if you are in Canada or the UK.  Thank you.)

Thus, ergo, hence, consequently, then, οὖν... (See Dictionary.com)

The way 'therefore' works is impressive.  All the stuff that has come before 'therefore' has been scaffolding... what's behind the scenes, so to speak.  What comes after 'therefore' is the application that can be visualized in a person's life.  'Therefore' introduces a new commentary derived from what has just preceded it.

For instance: "I spent all of my money on Whoppers, therefore I am no longer able to buy real food."  Or this one: "A meteor is about to crash into the earth, therefore tonight is your last chance to read the Harry Potter series."  See how important 'therefore' is?  It's like an "=" in math (Well that's not quite true... factually, in math, there is an actual 'therefore' sign).  Or it's like that amazing moment between 'cause' and 'effect' when everything slows to a paradoxical crawl in time - Something dramatic has just taken place... slow motion pause (imagine a tumbling car crash or maybe loud thudding heart beats in a courtroom)... and sny second there is going to be a profound result.

Paul's scaffolding in Romans up to this point has been nothing short of amazing.  If building inspectors were to take a look at Paul's framework and wiring, they'd fight for the honor to sign their name on the dotted line: "MEETS CODE" or "PASSES INSPECTION".  In the first four chapters, Paul cut no corners and left no waste.  Paul used the best material and built the best subfloors.  Paul has said all of these great things, all of these profound strings of arguments, all of these sound thoughts and intertwined phrases...

Therefore... something amazing is about to be shown.

Romans 5:1a (virtually any translation):  "Therefore..."

Note: Early in my Christian life, someone taught me: "If you see a 'therefore' you should ask 'What is it there for?'"  Before we go plodding into Chapter 5, it is right to realize that Paul is making a big transition here.  Ergo, it is right to pause and remember what Paul has argued so far... and why we suspect this scaffolding has been built.  In other words, what is the 'therefore' at the beginning of Chapter 5 there for?   Hence, take time before we continue on to read back through the first four chapters.  Big things have been spoken... and consequently, the application is about to be applied.

Note 2: Why do we put "a" and "b" in verse designations nowadays?  When did that start?  Is that a power point thing or did this exist prior to that?  It's already kind of bad taste that we're obsessed with verse numbering (something that didn't exist over the eras when the Bible was being written - see blog post here).  Thankfully, none of my English translations have yet succumbed to lettering our numbering.

 

 

Romans 4:23-25 ~ Good Credit in a Bad Economy

In a bankrupt economy this chapter has been good news.  Credit. 

Where the chapter began, so now it ends... soon to give way to the more famous and more catchy verses to come.  But Paul's profound closing comments to this chapter are not to be over-looked.  He has woven an airtight argument, threading a thought-process that ends where it was headed. 

• Yes, the chapter may have started with Abraham... but he never was the point.  Abraham was merely an example.  
• Yes, the chapter may apply directly to the readers in Rome (and to readers now also!)... but neither are any of them the point.  They are merely beneficiaries. 
• Yes, the chapter was about obtaining good credit in a bad economy (so to speak)... but that was merely the topic.  
• This chapter was ultimately pointing to Jesus.

The chapter ends with Jesus... the reason Paul talked about Abraham.  And Jesus is the reason Paul wrote this whole letter for the Roman Christians in the first place.

Paul can't neglect the fact that Jesus did something amazing.  Jesus changed everything with what He did.  As Abraham's life demonstrates, Paul reminds us that Jesus made it possible for people to "be credited".

Even though every one has broken the law, any one can still be "credited" with righteousness.  That's how Abraham experienced faith in God... and that's how people today (at the time of the writing of Romans) and people tomorrow (like us) experience faith in God.  God's grace through Jesus on the cross taking for us the consequence of our law-breaking.

And then Jesus rose out of prison with life.  Just to celebrate with us.

Romans 4:23-25 (NIV) The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.  He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

 

Romans 4:16-22 ~ Old Faithful

  Let's just rest in these few verses near the end of Chapter 4 for a moment... In fact, please read it twice through and look for key themes:

NLT Romans 4:16-22   So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift. And we are all certain to receive it, whether or not we live according to the law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham’s. For Abraham is the father of all who believe. That is what the Scriptures mean when God told him, “I have made you the father of many nations.”  This happened because Abraham believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who creates new things out of nothing.  Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!"  And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb.

 Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God.  He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises.  And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. 

God gave a promise.  Abraham believed God.  So God considered Abraham to be "righteous".

So stop trying to earn God's favor.  You can't.  You won't. 

Just trust God.  Trust God at His Word.  God Is Who He Is.  So trust God for Who God Is. 

If you don't know God... then pursue after God.  Start with those things about God that you do already know... and go forward in faithful steps from there. 

Abraham didn't really know too much about God when all this began.  He didn't know what the outcomes would really be.  He didn't understand how God was going to work in his life.  Abraham was quite uncertain about the specifics.  We're not even entirely sure what Abraham called God... but we know they interacted with one another... and that God had taken special interest in old Abe.  And the more that Abe and God interacted, the more Abraham trusted God... and the more Abraham relied upon God... and the more God shaped Abraham's life.  (Read the 2nd half of Genesis again if you need to remember the full story!)

God promised Abraham he would be the father of all nations.  Abraham believed this.  Paul tells us that God's promise wasn't merely a physical reality, but a spiritual one too.  Abraham's royalty wouldn't be passed on merely through DNA, but it would be passed on for generations by those who believed in God.  So Abraham is the father of all those ever since who have called out to God and found Him to be trustworthy. 

The Kingdom God promised was greater and more numerous than any temporal, geographic kingdom Abraham could have conceived.  Even just one child was beyond Abraham's imagination.  So it is remarkable that Abraham was actually open to whatever God's promise held for him--- And yet this is the precisely the proper stance of faith: Confident hope within the uncertainty that God presents (Hebrews 11:1).

Nothing Abraham could do about it really.  Just believe God at His Word.

Abraham's faith is noteworthy... because Abraham was OLD... and so was his wife.  Added to this fact was this little complication: Sarah, Abe's wife, had been barren her whole life.  Now she was wrinkly old, well past any child-bearning years.  The idea that nations would be birthed through her was laughable (Genesis 17:17).  And still Abraham believed God at his word.

And so God kept his promise.  Out of death, came life.  Out of a dead womb, came a promised one who would lead countless many to faith. 

 Note: I reflect a lot on this website about how God uses young people throughout Scripture... but it's just as apparent that God uses older people too.  In fact, it seems that God will use anyone at any age of any gender of any ethnicity and even of any religion to accomplish what He wants to do.  (People!  He spoke through a donkey!!  God can utilize anyone He wants!)  So again I am struck about how much poorer our churches are today than they should be.  We tend to segregate our congregations, separating young from old, compartmentalizing people according to age categories.  Look, God worked through an old faithful couple, and God worked through a newborn laughable baby... and God even worked through a dolt of a middle aged nephew...  Perhaps we should consider that God might want to work holistically throughout our generations today.

 

 

The Pursuit of Youth Ministry

This graphic is basically the outline for my "Introduction to Youth and Family Ministry" course at Crown College this fall.  It's a work in progress (and the 50+ students who took the course last year have helped me improve it a bit for this year)... and I'm fairly happy with this current diagram.  What do you think? 

Romans 4:9-12 ~ severe faith

Well, you can thank Abraham for circumcision.  Blame him.  He agreed to the deal.

When Abraham was 99 years old he confirmed the covenant that he had made with God... and that God had made with him many years earlier.  Genesis 17 tells the story: God approached Abraham (whose name had been Abram until this moment) and declared once again his promise to make Abraham the father of many nations and that the land (of Israel) would belong to his descendants.  That was God's end of the deal.  Abraham's responsibility was to "walk with God and be blameless."

As a way to demonstrate the human side of the deal, God informed Abraham that any male who wanted to be a part of this deal had to be circumcised.  If a descendent of his was not circumcised he would be cut off from the covenant.  Either way you get cut.

So Abraham immediately applied this sign to himself... a procedure I imagine that most 99 year-old men wouldn't really want to go through... and he also applied this sign to all the men in his household (including grown male servants, foreign men, and his 13-year-old half-illegitimate son, Ishmael).   I assume it was for the most part a voluntary procedure.  Though I'm not sure how excited everyone was... but this is what we are told happened.  Maybe some strong whiskey and very sharp knives got them through it?  "Turn your head and cough" must have been quite a cutting remark that day.  Certainly the barber shop knew what you meant when you asked, "Just a little off the top, please." 

Now I suspect that many people today consider the Bible to be a bit antiquated because it talks fairly regularly about about circumcision.  I also suspect that circumcision makes a lot of people squirm.  It's not a typical dinner conversation topic.  That's too bad in a way... because circumcision really is quite a powerful symbol of what a relationship with God is supposed to be.  Circumcision was a severe step of faith that prevented someone from being severed from God. 

But it is not the symbol that saves... Just as a road sign cannot actually get a person to their destination... it merely points the way.  This sign only applied to men (and I believe it is significant that this symbol of faithfulness was borne on the part of the male anatomy that men generally struggle to keep faithful).  This sign did not apply to women... though they would have had an intimate reminder of the covenant with God every time their sons were circumcised or they saw their husbands naked.  But clearly the sign of circumcision did not apply directly to 1/2 of Abraham's descendents... and therefore it never was the means by which someone was "saved".  A sign can not get someone somewhere... it merely points the way. 

Consider what Paul says in Romans 4:9-12.  Paul has already in this chapter introduced Abraham as an example of someone who God credited as a "righteous" person not because of his good religious piety but because of his faith in God.  The objection to this statement perhaps could be that Abraham was "obedient" and did many good things because God told him to do so (e.g. circumcision)... and therefore Abraham was called "righteous".  But it is fair to say that "righteousness" is not a complete adjective describing Abraham's life... a life of general goodness mixed with significant moments of sin.  To this argument, Paul says...

^{NIV 9-12} Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before! And he received circumcision as a sign, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. And he is then also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

Paul makes it clear that Abraham was "credited" as "righteous" before he started really "doing" things for God.  The outer sign of belonging to God took place after the inner reality of faith in God had started to take root in Abraham.  Inside out faith. 

Is this true?  Was Abraham "saved" or "justified" or "made righteous" by God before he applied this dramatic sign?  Well, circumcision happened in Genesis 17 when Abraham (Abram) was 99 years old.  We are told in Genesis 15:6, when Abram was many years younger, "Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness." 

A circumcised life is simply meant to display a heart set on God.

Romans 3:9-18 ~ triple bogey

Compared to par, I am at least 3-over for the hole.

It wasn't until I started making some strong friendships with people outside of my narrow contexts that I began to learn how off par I was.  This is not a pessimistic conclusion... just a relative perception developed as I noticed non-Christians being nicer than me, non-Americans being better citizens of the planet than me, and non-KenCastor-people being just plain more amazing than me in almost everything.   Compared to the beautiful approach shots offered by others, my divoted hacks at life are put into a proper perspective.  Oh, yes, those long putts and mulligans will humble a person.

Just don't look when I discreetly kick the ball out of the rough and back into play...

I am not better.  Even if I am a "good" person... I am not better.  Even if I am relatively talented (huh), relatively wise (compared to some I suppose), or relatively clean (I usually take showers), or relatively handsome (my words), or relatively innocent (question)... I must also recognize that I am relatively mean, relatively inappropriate, relatively wrong (no I'm not), relatively short-sighted, relatively forgetful, relatively inconsistent in character, relatively short-tempered, relatively arrogant, relatively short, and relatively guilty. 

So even when I compare myself with humans in the world, I am relatively over for the front nine. 

So please let's not even start comparing me to God's par.  God's total for 18 holes is 18.  Such a comparison reveals me to be not just relatively bad... but absolutely awfully incomprehensibly completely messed up.

This is Paul's point in this section of Romans: Every single person ever is not better than others.  (Yep, read that sentence again.  I had to read it several times myself.)  Compared to others I am a triple bogey at least.  But especially when compared to God's pattern, every single person ever is not even good at all.  A withdrawal from the tournament is the only recourse.

In these verses Paul shows this two-fold reality: 1) Relatively people are messed up; 2) Truthfully people are messed up.  And Paul backs it up with Scripture.  Here we go:

Romans 3:9-18 (NLT) "Well then, are we Jews better than others?  No, not at all, for we have already shown that all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under the power of sin.  As the Scriptures say,

    "No one is good-- not even one.

    "No one has real understanding; no one is seeking God.

    "All have turned away from God; all have gone wrong.

    "No one does good, not even one.

    "Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave.  Their speech is filled with lies.

    "The poison of a deadly snake drips from their lips.

    "Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.

    "They are quick to commit murder.

    "Wherever they go, destruction and misery follow them.

    "They do not know what true peace is.

    "They have no fear of God to restrain them."

Note: The way Paul uses Scripture here is interesting.  He's not quoting a direct portion of the Old Testament... he's mashing a whole bunch of quotes together.  It's as if Paul was so steeped in Scripture that it just flowed out in an organized conversation.  I'm sure Paul would have an impressive answer if you were to ask him, "Where does Scripture say that?"  He might say "Well, verses 10-12 are from Psalms 14 and 53, verse 13 is from Psalm 5 and 140, verse 14 is from Psalm 10, verses 15-17 are from Isaiah 59 and verse 18 is from Psalm 36.  I can explain each of these further if you'd like."

Uh, I think I just sliced my scripture memorization into the woods.

Each of the contexts of these Old Testament references is worth a look if you have the time.  Psalm 14 puts people in their place.  Psalm 53 echoes this refrain.  Psalm 5 and 140 are simple observations in the midst of pleas for help.  Psalm 10 is a chilling question of faith.  Isaiah 59 is sobering and yet ends undeservingly.  Psalm 36 is a Third Day song. 

Scripture just pours out of Paul's thoughts... this is an inspirational challenge for me.  Each quotation drips with profound depth in the context of a living Word... a masterful approach shot.