Trust is that rare and priceless treasure that wins us the affection of our heavenly Father.
Brennan ManningRead
The kingdom is not an exclusive, well-trimmed suburb with snobbish rules about who can live there. No, it is for a larger, homelier, less self-conscious caste of people who understand they are sinners because they have experienced the yaw and pitch of moral struggle.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes that the kingdom is open to all individuals who acknowledge their imperfections and moral challenges.
Brennan Manning's quote suggests that the concept of the kingdom is not limited to a select elite but is inclusive of those who recognize their own flaws and have endured moral struggles. It highlights the value of humility and authenticity over societal expectations or superficial judgments, inviting a broader and more accepting understanding of community and belonging.
In practice
During a community gathering, you could use this quote to challenge perceptions of who belongs in a community.
Trust is that rare and priceless treasure that wins us the affection of our heavenly Father.
The sinners to whom Jesus directed His messianic ministry were not those who skipped morning devotions or Sunday church. His ministry was to those whom society considered real sinners. They had done nothing to merit salvation. Yet they opened themselves to the gift that was offered them. On the other hand, the self-righteous placed their trust in the works of the Law and closed their hearts to the message of grace.
There is the "you" that people see and then there is the "rest of you". Take some time and craft a picture of the "rest of you." This could be a drawing, in words, even a song. Just remember that the chances are good it will be full of paradox and contradictions.
Do you honestly believe God likes you, not just loves you because theologically God has to love you?
Suffering, failure, loneliness, sorrow, discouragement, and death will be part of your journey, but the Kingdom of God will conquer all these horrors. No evil can resist grace forever.
For Ragamuffins, God's name is Mercy. We see our darkness as a prized possession because it drives us into the heart of God. Without mercy our darkness would plunge us into despair - for some, self-destruction. Time alone with God reveals the unfathomable depths of the poverty of the spirit. We are so poor that even our poverty is not our own: It belongs to the mysterium tremendum of a loving God.
And what is life? God manifested in the material plane. For it is in Him that we live and move and have our being.
In the matter of a difficult question it is more likely that the truth should have been discovered by the few than by the many.
Flying has torn apart the relationship of space and time: it uses our old clock but with new yardsticks.
I went to get a detective story. You have to kill time. But time will kill me too - and there´s the true, preestablished balance.
Every neurosis is a primitive form of legal proceeding in which the accused carries on the prosecution, imposes judgment and executes the sentence: all to the end that someone else should not perform the same process.
Don't take anything personally. Even when a situation seems so personal, even if others insult you directly, it has nothing to do with you. Their point of view and opinion come from all the programming they received growing up. When you take things personally, you feel offended and your reaction is to defend your beliefs and create conflict. You make something big out of something so little because you have the need to be right and make everybody else wrong.
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