Here are a couple quotes shared over at the Vitamin Z blog lately. Enjoy.
There are things worse than dying. I do not know how many times I have sung the words, “O let me never, never/ Outlive my love for Thee,” but I mean them. I would rather die than end up unfaithful to my wife; I would rather die than deny by a profligate life what I have taught in my books; I would rather die than deny or disown the gospel. God knows there are many things in my past of which I am deeply ashamed; I would not want such shame to multiply and bring dishonor to Christ in years to come. There are worse things than dying.
- Edward T. Welch, When People Are Big And God Is Small, p. 39- 40.
Aren’t the most popular mission trips the ones that take us far from our own neighborhood? Russia is easy; our own neighborhood is a constant challenge. Has anyone consistently had the boldness and clarity of Jesus in testifying about the gospel? Never. Has anyone consistently avoided the fear of man in evangelism? Certainly not. There is a “foolishness” inherent in the message of the cross. The clear proclamation of the gospel does not make us look good. It doesn’t make us popular.
- D.A. Carson, How Long O Lord? – Reflections on Suffering and Evil, p. 107