Last week I was blessed with the opportunity to go to the Right Now Conference in Dallas with three of my brothers in Christ. The conference was great. It was a breath of fresh air and it challenged me to make changes in my own life and to encourage changes in the life of my church. I am posting some great statements that I heard from this conference. They are only punch lines & thoughts of lessons and do not explain the full context of what they were addressing, but I feel like these thoughts were beautiful and can encourage and challenge you with out the full context. These statements came from sessions on day 1 of the conference. I will include more stuff from day 2 later. Share your thoughts about any of these statements. I pray they encourage you.
We must never allow the authority of books, institutions, or leaders to replace the authority of *knowing* Jesus Christ personally and directly. When the religious views of others interpose between us and the primary experience of Jesus as the Christ, we become unconvinced and unpersuasive travel agents handing out brochures to places we have never visited. --Brennan Manning in the Ragamuffin Gospel (shared by Pete Briscoe)
Walk with Jesus, don’t work for Him. –Pete Briscoe
Be traffickers of God’s Grace. –Pete Briscoe
The Church is God’s chosen vehicle to take the gospel into the world. –Pete Briscoe
Don’t judge what God is doing by what we do or don’t like. –Larry Osborne
We like to be a Servant Leader until someone wants us to be a servant. –Larry Osborne
We exist [individually & as a church] to live out the Great Commandment and to carry out the Great Commission. –Dave Auda
God Loves You, He created you uniquely, He gifted you specifically, & He placed you strategically. Remember this and be used by God right where He has placed you.—Dave Auda
How are we going to get people into a relationship with Christ while we are squeezing them through the tiny hole of religion? --Tim Ross
God places boundaries in our lives for His purposes and there is true joy in submitting to those boundaries. –Todd Phillips
Seek wise council, especially when you are most certain. –Todd Phillips
God’s solution for a hungry & hurting world is a compassionate church. –Max Lucado
Compassion is our finest Apologetic. –Max Lucado
The book of Acts is in the Bible, not to show us what the church did, but to show us what the church can do. –Max Lucado
Don’t neglect compassion. 2000 verses in the bible tell us to care for the poor. –Max Lucado
WOW! 2000 verses tell us to care for the poor??? Hmmm... there is something very unbalanced about how much that is asked of us and how little we actually do it!
ReplyDeleteI like "Be traffickers of God's grace"
I am not the most graceful person... how much I show it to others needs to be evaluated! I gladly accept it... and that's a pretty hypocritical thing to accept something and then not give it... that and compassion... just aren't always in my nature!
Thanks for passing on the wisdom and encouraging us by challenging us! Looking forward to seeing what day 2 held!
Yes Jessica, there is something that is very unbalanced.
ReplyDeleteI feel like a lot of believers struggle with extending grace and compassion while accepting it & expecting it. Those things aren't part of most of our natures. This is where we have to constantly pursue God's nature in our lives so that His grace and compassion will come out of our lives.
Thanks for your thoughts and honesty.