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The story goes that a public sinner was excommunicated and forbidden entry to the church. He took his woes to God. ‘They won’t let me in, Lord, because I am a sinner.’ ‘What are you complaining about?’ said God. ‘They won’t let Me in either.

Brennan Manning

Our huffing and puffing to impress God, our scrambling for brownie points, our thrashing about trying to fix ourselves while hiding our pettiness and wallowing in guilt are nauseating to God and are a flat denial of the gospel of grace.
BRENNAN MANNING

God Grace Impression Scripture Try
We have been given God in our souls and Christ in our flesh. We have the power to believe where others deny, to hope where others despair, to love where others hurt.
BRENNAN MANNING

Believe Body Despair God Hurt Love Presence Soul
There is a beautiful transparency to honest disciples who never wear a false face and do not pretend to be anything but who they are.
BRENNAN MANNING

Beautiful Discipline Face Honesty Pretend Transparent
Faithfulness requires the courage to risk everything on Jesus, the willingness to keep growing, and the readiness to risk failure throughout our lives.
BRENNAN MANNING

Courage Failure Faith Growth Live Ourselves Risk Willing
If in our hearts we really don’t believe that God loves us as we are, if we are still tainted by the lie that we can do something to make God love us more, we are rejecting the message of the cross.
BRENNAN MANNING

Believe Heart Love Lying Message Ourselves Rejection
What makes the Kingdom come is heartfelt compassion: a way of tenderness that knows no frontiers, no labels, no compartmentalizing, and no sectarian divisions.
BRENNAN MANNING

Compassionate Department Division Heart Tender
When we wallow in guilt, remorse, and shame over real or imagined sins of the past, we are disdaining God’s gift of grace.
BRENNAN MANNING

Gift Grace Guilt Imagination Reality Shame
In every encounter we either give life or we drain it; there is no neutral exchange.
BRENNAN MANNING

Encounter exchange Life
The sorrow of God lies in our fear of Him, our fear of life, and our fear of ourselves. He anguishes over our self-absorption and self-sufficiency… God’s sorrow lies in our refusal to approach Him when we sinned and failed.
BRENNAN MANNING

Failure Fear God Himself Life Lying Sin Sorrow
The gospel will persuade no one unless it has so convicted us that we are transformed by it.
BRENNAN MANNING

Conviction Oneself Scripture Transformation
Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. This is the true self. Every other identity is illusion.
BRENNAN MANNING

God Identity Illusion Oneself Radical True
Jesus reveals a God who does not demand but who gives; who does not oppress but who raises up; who does not wound but who heals; who does not condemn but forgives.
BRENNAN MANNING

Demand Forgiveness Generosity God Healing Oppression Reveal Wound
The Good News of the gospel of grace cries out: We are all, equally, privileged but unentitled beggars at the door of God’s mercy!
BRENNAN MANNING

God Goodness Grace Mercy Scripture
That which is denied cannot be healed.
BRENNAN MANNING

Acceptance Deny
Be daring enough to be different, humble enough to make mistakes, wild enough to be burnt in the fire of love, real enough to make others see how phony you are.
BRENNAN MANNING

Dare Different Enough Fire Humble Love Mistake Phone Yourself
If asked whether I am finally letting God love me, just as I am, I would answer, ‘No, but I’m trying.
BRENNAN MANNING

God Love Myself Try

The story goes that a public sinner was excommunicated and forbidden entry to the church. He took his woes to God. ‘They won’t let me in, Lord, because I am a sinner.’ ‘What are you complaining about?’ said God. ‘They won’t let Me in either.

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The story goes that a public sinner was excommunicated and forbidden entry to the church. He took his woes to God. ‘They won’t let me in, Lord, because I am a sinner.’ ‘What are you complaining about?’ said God. ‘They won’t let Me in either.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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