Quotable...

Quotes from David Watson that didn't make it into the message I preached yesterday, but still are worth thinking about..."Today, there is no shortage of pious words, affirmations of faith, discussions about hunger, or expressions of spirituality.  But the world is still waiting for the demonstration, in hard, costly and practical terms, of what we proclaim with our lips.  'I was hungry, and you formed a committee to investigate my hunger...I was homeless and you filed a report on my plight...I was sick, and you held a seminar on the situation of the underprivileged...You have investigated all aspects of my plight.  And yet I am still hungry, homeless and sick.""We must be suspicious of any faith about personal justification that is not substantiated by faith in God's power over material things in our everyday life.  Faith about pie in the sky when I die cannot be demonstrated.  Faith that God can supply my need today can be demonstrated.""...the lifestyle of most western Christians and churches has no prophetic challenge at all to the affluent society all around.  In fact it is scarcely distinguishable from it.  We have quite unconciously adopted the values and standards of the world; and as the standard of living has risen comfortably over the last thirty years, so we Christians along with our neighbors spend that much more on our cars and carpets, TV sets and washing machines, furniture and hi-fi equipment, until we regard most of these things as necessities for modern life.  Where is there any serious attempt to live on enough, to be content with food and clothing, and to give the rest away for every good work?"