In Chapter 5 of How Can I Possibly Forgive?, Sara Horn differentiates between venting versus talking. Because Sara has seen more hurt than help happen when people vent, she is convinced that venting doesn’t do us any long-term good. While we think of venting as a way to relieve strong emotions, Sara prefers the appliance […]
Following the conclusion of Chapter 4 of How Can I Possibly Forgive?, Sara Horn offers five ways to initiate the healing process. 1. Recognize God’s truth over your own. Sara states that dwelling on our scars adds doubt, fear, and plain old lies into our hearts and minds. She emphasizes that “this is not (italics […]
“See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”- Hebrews 12:15 As Sara Horn concludes Chapter 3 of How Can I Possibly Forgive?, she notes that Abraham had a heart change in his relationship with Lot. Previously, when […]
“We cannot see God’s plan when we can see only our pain.”- Sara Horn Sara Horn concludes Chapter 2 of How Can I Possibly Forgive? by stating that when Joseph chose to let go of the difficult circumstances that brought him to Egypt, he was able to see God’s plan. Joseph grabbed on and trusted […]
“So no one stayed withy him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. And he wept aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it.”- Genesis 45:1-2 In Chapter 2 of How Can I Possibly Forgive?, Sara Horn notes that the Bible is replete with examples of resentment. While […]
“Come, unto me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”- Matthew 11:28-30 John Ortberg […]
“They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient along the way.”- Numbers 21:4 “Nothing in man seems to intent upon God as the soul. . . . The soul seeks the Might One as though he is the soul’s own home, as […]
“Call this world if you please ‘The vale of soul-making.’ “- John Keats As John Ortberg continues Chapter 7 of Soul Keeping, he stresses that soul formation is the most important process in the universe. While in our day self-talk often is discussed, in the Bible people talked to their souls. The difference between self-talk […]
“My soul yearns, even faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.”- Psalm 84:2 As John Ortberg concludes Chapter 6 of Soul Keeping, he reiterates that the soul never will be satisfied without God. When Pastor Ortberg was a young associate pastor at his first […]
“What matters most is not the accomplishments you achieve; what matters is the person you become.”- Dallas Willard John Ortberg begins Chapter 3 (“A Soul-Challenged World”) of Soul Keeping by stating that the cries of the soul are very real and what matters deeply about us. The fly in the ointment is that the material […]
John Ortberg dedicates Soul Keeping to the late Dallas Willard (1935-2013), noted Christian author and long-time professor of philosophy at USC. Soul Keeping is based on what Pastor Ortberg learned over the years as he sought Dallas’ wisdom in understanding the human soul. Dallas once gave the following advice when John expressed dissatisfaction with his […]
“I tell you, though, he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise up and give him what he needs.”- Luke 11:8 In Chapter 14 of Prayer, Timothy Keller states that there is a necessary balance between the two purposes of petitionary […]