Tag: Chrestomathy

“The Puritans did in fact shape the American personality. But personality is not the same thing as character. Two men can have an outgoing personality, with one of them honest and the other treacherous. Two men can be quiet and withdrawn, with one of them a rock of integrity and the other a knave. We do share certain personality features with the Puritans, attributes we inherited from them. But inheriting their personality is not the same thing as inheriting their character.”

American Milk & Honey, pp. 173-174

“The idea of America as messiah-nation is an idea that dies hard, but die it must.”

American Milk & Honey, p. 165

“I do not want to treat gathered saints
As I would an assembly of the unconverted,
But, nevertheless, I would still preach the gospel
And true liberation and conversion to all.
I pray that Your Spirit would accomplish this work,
And not only do it but make real sense of it.”

21 Prayers, p. 66

“I pray that Your Spirit would work here to topple
Every delusion that sets itself up
Against a true and a functional knowledge—
A knowledge of You that believes and obeys.”

21 Prayers, p. 65.

“But no nation of Christendom will ever occupy the same place or position that Israel did. This is because the church—which is international in its genius—was commanded to disciple all of the nations, not leaving any of them out. So there will never be a Christian nation that will be the chosen nation. That is no longer an option.”

American Milk & Honey, p. 164.

“Knowing this, and budgeting for the reality that when it comes to power, all men are alcoholics, and that unlimited and unrestrained power is a large bottle of 100 proof Dead Carrion Reserve, our Founders were truly exceptional.”

American Milk & Honey, p. 162

“The Founders did not establish this Constitution to protect future generations from the British. We already had our independence from Britain. They did all this to protect future generations of Americans from Americans.”

American Milk & Honey, p. 162

“Father, give me to know and help me to see
The whole world full of tinder, as truly combustible,
And to see Your bright Word as unstoppable flame.”

21 Prayers, p. 63

“Father, my Father, keep me from sinning
Or grieving Your Spirit in my thoughts or behavior.
Put right within me what needs to be right,
Directed and led by Your killing Spirit,
In line with Your heart, Your words, and Your Spirit.”

21 Prayers, p. 62

“The popular expressions of American exceptionalism are as old as dirt. There is nothing new about top dogs vaunting themselves over their top dogginess. This is the most unexceptional form of exceptionalism possible. This high school has been here for many decades, and nobody currently knows who the senior class president was twenty-five years ago. Nobody knows because nobody cares.”

American Milk & Honey, p. 160