The new life is not implanted because man perceives the truth, but he perceives the truth because the new life is implanted. A man is not regenerated because he has first believed in Christ, but he believes in Christ because he has been regenerated. He is not regenerated because he first repents, but he repents because he has been regenerated. - William GT Shedd

The gospel is this: We are more sinful & flawed in ourselves than we ever dared to believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved & accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared to hope. This is the only kind of relationship that will really transform us. Love without truth is sentimentality; it supports & affirms us but keeps us in denial about our flaws. Truth without love is harshness; it gives us information but in such a way that we cannot really hear it. God’s saving love in Christ, however, is marked by both radical truthfulness about who we are & yet also radical, unconditional commitment to us. — Timothy Keller

Fear not because you sometimes walk in darkness and have no light. Remember that you cannot understand the mind of the Lord, nor the meaning of His dealings. But when the clouds compass you about, believe in God as Daniel did; trust in the Lord Jesus at all times; sing to Him in the dungeon, as Paul and Silas; sing to Him even in the fire, as the three Hebrew children did; be sure, be very sure, he who believes shall never be ashamed.~ J.C. Ryle, Daniel Found Faithful

Christian maturity is not indicated by the infrequency of temptation but by the infrequency of succumbing to temptation.-Douglas Moo, James, Eerdmans, 2000, p. 76.

Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices of their social environment. Most people are even incapable of forming such opinions. - Albert Einstein, 1879 - 1955