thinking...

"The only thing of my very own that I contribute to my redemption is the sin from which I need to be redeemed." - William Temple

"Righteousness before God on the final day comes solely from God, and any attempt to add requirements of human invention to what God has freely given amounts to a rejection of the gospel." -Frank Thielman

"Grace proclaims the awesome truth that all is a gift. All that is good is ours, not by right, but by the sheer bounty of a gracious God. While there is much we may have earned - our degree, our salary, our home and garden, and a good night's sleep - all this is possible only because we have been given so much: life itself, eyes to see and hands to touch, a mind to shape our ideas, and a heart to beat with love. We have been given God in our souls and Christ in our flesh." - Brennan Manning

"If we but turn to God, that itself is a gift of God." -St. Augustine