“Many people acknowledge they can never be perfect. They say, "I'm not perfect, so what's the point? I'm not even gonna try.”

“You miss the living because you are waiting for perfect, and so you let goodness and blessings pass you right on by.”

“That's what service does. It points us to Jesus, not to ourselves.”

“You are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:41-42)Choosing to please God sounds right at first, but it so often leads to a performing life, a girl trying to become good, a lean-on-myself theology. If I am trying to please God, it is difficult trust God. But when I trust God, pleasing him is automatic.Anything we do to get life and identity outside of Christ is an idol, even service to Christ. He doesn't want my service. He wants me. And from that life-giving relationship, "streams of living water will flow from within" (John 7:38 NIV)”

“These outward identities we build for ourselves are not all that we are. A person is made of so many layers. Skin is just the top layer. It's the part you can see, so when you walk into a room, others won't run into you. It's the brown-hair, brown-eyes layer; the you-look-good-in-green layer. Your outside is important because God made that part. He made you on purpose, uniquely beautiful. But you can't stop there, because that's your body, your skin, your outside. Dead people have all that stuff too.”

“Maybe you're wondering what it actually means to live a graceful life. We've got many chapters ahead to figure out what that might look like for you. ...”

“Life is so much further from my control than even I know.”