“A godly marriage occurs when a man and a woman both die to themselves, and are raised to the life that seeks the best interest of the other in all things. This is the only kind of godly marriage there is. And when we give all away in this manner, we discover that we receive …
Dispassionate Science
“It had been twenty-four hours since — as the diplomats would phrase it — the frank exchange of views had taken place. His knuckles were still throbbing gently . . . Chad had stumbled on his way to the door, lurching into Mitchell, and Mitchell had taken that opportunity to unload a punch which connected …
And a Heathen Continent Before Her
“Deep within every wife lurks the heart of a missionary and reformer” (For a Glory and a Covering, p. xix).
An Important Personage
“The Rev. Lester, the recipient of said eye-blackening, was the leading light and chief shaman at a mega-church across town” (Evangellyfish, p. 10).
And Repeated Tries Don’t Help
“Many marriages are in bad shape because people assume that good marriages can somehow be separated from a basic godly demeanor throughout the course of our lives. As long as husbands and wives commit this particular error, the words of life with regard to marriage will just bounce off them — like a ping-pong ball …
Divinity from the Delta
“When asked what his degrees were in, he would say that his undergrad was in philosophy, and he had an MDiv from Westminster, but that everything he did was ‘deeply rooted in the blues.’ Some people didn’t get that either” (Evangellyfish, p. 9).
A Pietism Hell
“The hardness such pietism causes in marriage requires a jackhammer, not a feather duster. The only high standards that are at all spiritually safe are standards that are born from gratitude, thanksgiving, and gladness and simplicity of heart (Acts 2:46). Grace is foundational, and so the higher you want the structure to go, the more …
Amazingly Toxic
“As a marriage counselor, I have seen more than a few marriages in which husbands and wives had ‘high standards’ for Christian conduct, and yet tolerated and advanced amazingly toxic attitudes in the home” (For a Glory and a Covering, p. xvi).
The Speed Limit Sign Is Not Attached to Your Brake Pedal
“‘Standards,’ including very high standards, by themselves do not provide any power for living up to them” (For a Glory and a Covering, p. xv).
But How Does the Letter Kill?
“Now what does he mean when he says the ‘letter kills’? Paul is clearly not arguing against ever writing things down, for his argument that the letter kills and the Spirit gives life is an argument that he himself wrote down. The issue is therefore not ‘the letters’ in themselves. The issue is not paper …