“Thus, for followers of Christ, calling neutralizes the fundamental position of choice in modern life. “I have chosen you,” Jesus said, “you have not chosen me.” We are not our own; we have been bought with a price. We have no rights, only responsibilities. Following Christ is not our initiative, merely our response, in obedience. Nothing works better to debunk the pretensions of choice than a conviction of calling. Once we have been called, we literally “have no choice.”

“When we come to understand not only WHO we are, but who we always have been – and therefore, who we may become – the choice between following Christ or embracing the world is really no choice at all.”

“Are we not to call Christ ours because we have not made him but only received him? Again, if we are the makers of things that are called ours, then we must have made our eyes, we must have made our hands, we must have made our feet, unless eyes, hands and feet are not to be called ours.”

“Sometimes we can choose the paths we follow. Sometimes our choices are made for us. And sometimes we have no choice at all.”

“Personal responsibility is the willingness to completely accept choices that we have made throughout our life.”

“Is this idea of the non-fruit bearing Christian something that we have concocted in order to make Christianity 'easier?' ...so that we can follow our own course while still calling ourselves followers of Christ?”