06/02/2025
The Gift of Ourselves As A Gift of Love
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, and a lot of praying, about generosity and the role sacrifice plays in it. I was struck deeply by King David’s statement:
I will not make an offering to God that has not cost me something.
The giving of ourselves is what makes a gift something powerful and life-changing. The more the giving of myself costs me something, the greater the power of the gift.
You know I love quotes, so after a little research, let me share a few of my favorites on this very subject:
“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” — Jim Elliot, missionary martyr
“When you let go of what you are, you become what you might be.”
— Lao Tzu, ancient poet and philosopher
“Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.” —Jesus of Nazareth
“No one has ever become poor by giving.”
—Anne Frank
“To sacrifice something is to make it holy by giving it away for love.”
—Frederick Buechner
“There is no love without sacrifice, and no sacrifice without love.”
—Pope John Paul II
“Give, but give until it hurts.” —Mother Teresa
(She often said that real love begins where sacrifice begins.)
“You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.” —Kahlil Gibran
“I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver.” —Maya Angelou
Archived Posts
What just missed the cut for Sunday’s Sermon
Naaman’s servants may actually become one of the hidden gems of the sermon. They say, essentially: “If the prophet had told you to do something difficult, you would have done it.”
One of the Longest Benedictions I Ran Out of Time to Share
Maybe you know the story of how Joseph and Mary accidentally left Jesus at the gas station on their way home from Jerusalem. Well, not the gas station bathroom in Jesus’ case. Joe and Mary are far down the road before they realize Jesus isn’t with them...
So many quips and quotes...
So little time to preach
I wonder what Mary and Martha’s phones might look like:
* Martha = the open browser with 27 tabs
* Mary = the single window that matters
* Psalm 46 = God saying, “Close the tabs.”
Quotable Outtakes That Didn’t Make the Sermon This Week
“When you try to control everything, you don’t just exhaust yourself—you quietly replace trust in God with trust in you.” & more
There is a challenge when it comes to preaching the Word of God.
Preachers are called to open up and interpret the word—inspired and written down thousands of years ago—and make it relevant to a very different world. On top of that there’s a degree of persuasion that goes along with the process.
What Jessica Really Meant to Say in Her Sermon…
When Jessica or Rick or a guest preacher takes the pulpit it’s hard for me to write a One More Thing Blog. I can’t share with you what didn’t make it into the sermon because I have no idea, not having written or delivered it.
Jesus Keeps On Ruining Funerals!
I didn’t have anything this last week that didn’t end up in the sermon. No catchy illustrations that didn’t make the cut. No theological insights that slowed down the main point. No one can ruin a funeral like Jesus. Told as I saw it and that was it. So I did some quick research and I thought I’d share just a reminder of what Easter is all about.