the rails help

"People today are afraid to be alone. This fear is a dominant mark of our society. Many now..."

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 10:14:13 -0400

“

People today are afraid to be alone. This fear is a dominant mark of our society. Many now ceaselessly sit in the cinema or read novels about other people’s lives or watch dramas. Why? Simply to avoid having to face their own existence… .

No one seems to want (and no one can find) a place of quiet — because, when you are quiet, you have to face reality. But many in the present generation dare not do this because on their own basis reality leads them to meaninglessness; so they fill their lives with entertainment, even if it is only noise… .

The Christian is supposed to be very opposite: There is a place for proper entertainment, but we are not to be caught up in ceaseless motion which prevents us from ever being quiet. Rather we are to put everything second so we can be alive to the voice of God and allow it to speak to us and confront us.

”

- Francis Schaeffer, “Walking through the mud,” in No Little People (Downers Grove, 1974), pages 86-87 [via]

"I have come to the conclusion that none of us in our generation feels as guilty about sin as we..."

Fri, 03 Dec 2010 20:19:07 -0500

“I have come to the conclusion that none of us in our generation feels as guilty about sin as we should or as our forefathers did.”

- Francis Schaeffer (via quotationsblog)

"Our greatest temptation is not any of the desires of the flesh. It is not power or food or sex. it..."

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 14:30:03 -0500

“Our greatest temptation is not any of the desires of the flesh. It is not power or food or sex. it is not a party lifestyle. Our greatest temptation is forgetfulness. We forget every day how much God has done for us, how blessed we are, how loved we are. We forget every day that we are children of God.”

- priest at St. Mary’s (paraphrase)

And it’s a prideful forgetfulness. We want to think we’re in charge of our own destinies, and that we don’t owe anyone anything.

via heisjealousforme: capelesscrusader

(via davereed)

"Some people are so busy being clever they don’t have time enough to be wise."

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 09:39:54 -0500

“Some people are so busy being clever they don’t have time enough to be wise.”

- Thomas Sowell, Of ‘fairness’ and ‘social justice’

"Most Americans believe that what their problem is is something that has happened to them, and their..."

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 09:59:48 -0500

“Most Americans believe that what their problem is is something that has happened to them, and their solution will be found within. They believe that they have an alien problem that is to be resolved with an inner solution. The Gospel says that we have an inner problem and the only solution is an alien righteousness.”

- R.C. Sproul, from his talk at T4G ‘06

Of all the Christian doctrines, this is the one that demonstrates itself to me most from what I see in the world around me. People are certainly capable of acts of selflessness and enlightenment, but I see that all people are also capable, in certain situations, of selfishness and evil. Being in God’s nature, our original light still shines through, but we have all been marred, dirtied, broken. We need Him to fix us, but before that, we need Christ’s own righteousness imparted to us to make us worthy of even stepping before His throne to be fixed.

(via davereed)

"If we let ourselves, we shall always be waiting for some distraction or other to end before we can..."

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 13:57:52 -0500

““If we let ourselves, we shall always be waiting for some distraction or other to end before we can really get down to our work. The only people who achieve much are those who want knowledge so badly that they seek it while the conditions are still unfavorable. Favorable conditions never come.””

- C.S. Lewis

Oh, God, make me like this.

via psychotherapy: quote-book: southernram: theamazon: on-a-sunday-afternoon: whomshallifear: shiningdefiance

(via davereed)

"[I]f a man has once looked at the Atlantic from the beach, and then goes and looks at a map of the..."

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:55:28 -0500

“[I]f a man has once looked at the Atlantic from the beach, and then goes and looks at a map of the Atlantic, he will also be turning from something real to something less real; turning from real waves to a bit of colored paper. But here comes the point. The map is admittedly only colored paper, but there are two things you have to remember about it. In the first place, it is based on what hundreds and thousands of people have found out by sailing the Atlantic. In that way it has behind it masses of experience just as real as the one you could have from the beach; only, while yours would be a single isolated glimpse, the map fits all those different experiences together. In the second place, if you want to go anywhere, the map is absolutely necessary. As long as you are content with walks along the beach, your own glimpses are far more fun than looking at a map. But the map is going to be more use than walks on the beach if you want to get to America.”

- C.S. Lewis in The Joyful Christian p. 33 (i’m not sure where that occurs originally)

"Everyone has warned me not to tell you what I am going to tell you… . They all say”the..."

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:49:51 -0500

“Everyone has warned me not to tell you what I am going to tell you… . They all say”the ordinary reader does not want Theology; give him plain practical religion.” I have rejected their advice. I do not think the ordinary reader is such a fool. Theology means “the science of God,” and I think any man who wants to think about God at all would like to have the clearest and most accurate ideas about Him which are available. You are not children:why should yoube treated like children?”

- C.S. Lewis in The Joyful Christian p. 32 (i’m not sure where that occurs originally)

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is..."

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:59:48 -0500

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.”

- Philippians 4:8

This is one of my favorite verses! At least, in terms of being helpful in shaping my attitude and thought-life.

Jesus isn’t about DOs and DON’Ts as much as SHOULDs and SHOULDN’Ts. Sure, I can go to a violent movie, but is it pure? Lovely? Admirable? Shouldn’t I rather be spending my time absorbing things which are excellent and praiseworthy?

via classyliving, davereed

yes! “i will set no worthless thing before my eyes…”

"The irony is that while God doesn’t need us but still wants us, we desperately need God but don’t..."

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:36:10 -0500

“The irony is that while God doesn’t need us but still wants us, we desperately need God but don’t really want Him”

- Francis Chan

via peacenotwar: shiningdefiance: derekthornton

(via davereed)

"When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die."

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:29:34 -0400

“When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”

- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

via shiningdefiance: peacenotwar

(via davereed)

"Giving to the poor is an essential part of Christian morality. I do not believe one can settle how..."

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:29:25 -0400

“

Giving to the poor is an essential part of Christian morality. I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I’m afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare. In other words, if our expenditure on comforts, luxuries, and amusement, is up to the standard common of those with the same income as our own, we are probably giving away too little.

If our charities do not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say they are too small. There ought to be things that we’d like to do but cannot do because our charitable expenditure excludes them.

”

- C.S. Lewis

via classyliving

(via davereed)

"Fairy tales, are more than true. Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell..."

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:05:11 -0400

“Fairy tales, are more than true. Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be defeated.”

- G.K. Chesterton

via kari-shma: thoughtsdetained

(via davereed)

"So the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will..."

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 09:17:53 -0400

“So the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we be extremists for hate or for love?”

- Martin Luther King Jr.

via christ-follower: peacenotwar : davereed

John Wooden Quotes - UCLA Coach John Wooden Quotes on Age, Death, Coaching - Esquire

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 22:01:11 -0400

John Wooden Quotes - UCLA Coach John Wooden Quotes on Age, Death, Coaching - Esquire:

some of my faorite bits:

Discipline yourself and others won’t need to.

You can do more good by being good than any other way.

If I were ever prosecuted for my religion, I truly hope there would be enough evidence to convict.

Pick up your own orange peels.

I don’t believe in praying to win.

"God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no..."

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:17:38 -0400

“God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.”

- C.S. Lewis

via christ-follower

(via davereed)

"Many people are willing to be God-centered as long as they feel that God is man-centered. It’s a..."

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:16:56 -0400

“Many people are willing to be God-centered as long as they feel that God is man-centered. It’s a subtle danger.”

- - John Piper

To further quote Piper, “God is not an idolater; He puts nothing before Himself.”

via chrislazo: derekthornton: peacenotwar

(via davereed)

part of moving on to better things is letting go of good things

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 02:03:25 -0400

i am loyal to things beyond what they deserve.

"May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so..."

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 10:25:05 -0400

“

May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers,
half-truths, and superficial relationships,
so that we may live deep within our hearts.

May God bless us with anger at injustice,
oppression, and exploitation of people,
so that we may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless us with tears to shed
for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war,
so that we may reach out our hands to comfort them
and turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless us with enough foolishness to believe
that we can make a difference in this world,
so that we can do what others claim cannot be done.

”

- Franciscan Benediction « Christ Community Worship Blog

giving

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 10:59:15 -0400

giving:

submitting grant requests to our foundation for 88 Bikes & Project Rwanda. bikes help people; i want to help people get bikes.