Our struggles against evil, temptation and suffering are all framed by the security of God’s unshakable love and resolve to bring us safely to fullness of life.
Our struggles against evil, temptation and suffering are all framed by the security of God’s unshakable love and resolve to bring us safely to fullness of life.
When we detach from things, God comes to fill or possess us by God’s Spirit, and suddenly the world is full of life once more.
Christian ascetic discipline is not about earning God’s acceptance, but about banishing the demons so that we can live life more fully in the here and now.
A fortified inner self not only enables a person to offer love properly but to receive love properly, even from God, to give without strings, to receive without suspicion.
In the elusive quest to know Christ, spiritual disciplines are a valuable means, but can also easily degenerate into idols.
The wound of abandonment which haunts every human being will find its healing in Christ who is everywhere present as the authority and power of God.
God has ordained that the work of God should flow from a deep and abiding being with God, from a baptism in the love which holds all things together in Christ.
Celebrating God is not to be a denial of reality, but a faith-filled reaching out for a new reality.
Jesus is not calling us to self-mutilation, but he is saying that our efforts to root out sin in ourselves need to be as rigorous as it takes, even if it means appearing like a fanatic.
The challenge of relinquishing selfish desire is a crucial key to a deeper journey into the life of Christ.
The forces seeking to destroy any chance of real Christian living are formidable, but so are the weapons God gives us.
Praise and prayer enable us to find our true identify in Christ, and it is as we find out who we are that we find our true strength.
Self sacrifice and asceticism are not incompatible with the call to care for oneself and live life to the full.
Christians are to be known for what they do rather than what they abstain from.
The search for meaning and fullness of life without cost, risk or struggle is futile, but the Kingdom is still a free gift, given by God, to all who will accept it.
The three most valuable helps for those who would learn to pray are, 1) an experienced mentor or spiritual director, 2) the use of well prepared set prayers, and 3) perseverance.
Our bodies are integral to who we are and are destined for resurrection and glorification, but the fracturing of the integrity of creation affects us too in ways that mean we often find our bodies at war with our spirits. The pathway to sanctification involves a reintegration of body and spirit, and sometimes that means denial and disciplining of physical desires.
It is in a developing relationship with Jesus Christ that our minds will be opened to understand the scriptures, just as happened for the disciples of Jesus.
Prayer is a learned discipline which begins with acknowledging God’s goodness and aligning ourselves with God’s purposes.
A healthy devotional relationship with God is required if we are to sustain our discipleship in the world.