Monday, March 10, 2014

Chapters 9 & 10

Hello from miami!

Some passages that stuck out to me from these chapters:

"Unaware of how they were shaping my current relationships and leadership. God was seeking to enlarge my soul and mature me while i was seeking a quick end to my pain" (159).

"Sorrow took up permanent residence in my soul and enlarged it" (160).

"The laments pay attention to the reality that life can be hard, difficult, and sometimes even brutal. They take notice of the apparent absence of God. They notice when circumstances seem to say that God is not good. They cry out to God for comfort and care" (168).

"She stopped working so hard to earn God's approval and began to grasp the love and grace in the gospel" (171).

"Sometimes, we rebel during confusing in-between periods rather than embrace the waiting period in which we find ourselves. The temptation to  flee from God, to quit, or to fall into despair is great when it appears God is absent. The good news is that even then, God will find us and meet us" (174).

"It became difficult to distinguish between loving people for who they are versus using them for how they could join with the mission" (185).

Chapter nine led me to revisit the grieving process during my senior year of high school. Even back then i ignored many feelings and i related with this quote: "i used to believe that grieving was an interruption, an obstacle in my path to serve Christ. In short, I considered it a waste of time, preventing me from "redeeming the time" (163). I see how i didnt allow myself to feel the whole range of emotion in a healthy space where i could bring them to Jesus.

Chapter ten reminded me of our disc reports. I remember the title slide having the word "incarnational" in it with Steve explaining how we can "get under each other's skin" and communicate better with each by becoming aware of our tendencies and personalities.

More so with my family, i hope to make incarnation my model for loving well. I see that we have related to each other by physically entering each other's world, but i desire to delve into their worlds incarnationally as well. I feel as if my relationship with them is at the tip of the iceberg with much room to grow

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