Terrible Sweetness of Jesus

Chapter 8
Standouts
"God's primary call, his address to us, always has two dimensions: summons and invitation, law and grace, demand and offer. Unquestionably the former comes first, yet that side is missing among many followers of Christ today. The result is a casualness in faith and a slackness in behavior that show no sign of having listened to any call from either Sinai or Galilee, let alone Calvary."

"All too often our familiarity with the Gospels breeds inattention. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer insisted, 'The response of the disciples is an act of obedience, not a confessions of faith in Jesus.' They did not consider his claims, make up their minds, and then decide whether to follow - they simply heard and obeyed."

"The only way to follow is to leave everything and follow him."

"Disciples are not so much those who follow as those who must follow."

The scripture focus of this chapter is Matthew 4:18-22 (the calling of Peter & Andrew and James & John). When I was about 4 or 5-years-old, I was with my mom in Woolworth in downtown Honolulu (about 1955). It was crowded. We were together and then we weren't. I was lost. I've never felt so desperate, so alone. I looked around and I couldn't see her. Then, I heard a voice calling my name. I didn't see her, but I knew it was my mom - instantly. No mulling over if it was her voice or not. I knew it was her. Every child knows mom's voice, their mom. I ran to her. I wasn't lost anymore.