Addison Road’s song, “What Do I Know of Holy?” really got me thinking. The chorus is:

What do I know of HOLY?
What do I know of wounds that will heal my shame?
And a God who gave life “its” name?
What do I know of HOLY?
Of the One who the angels praise?
All creation knows Your name
on earth and heaven above
What do Iknow of this LOVE?

This chapter combines God is LOVE and God is also HOLY. Jim explains how God’s wrath toward sin is an action that reflects both LOVE and HOLINESS! (and he does it in a very clear way!)

• Jim addresses two false narratives that we may believe. the first is that God is wrathful and always angry at us because we are not holy. The second he describes a “teddy bear” god who does not care about our sin. Which of these opposite view points have you grown up believeing? Do you ever combine the two?
• Thomas Jefferson literally snipped parts of the Bible that he didn’t believe. We may not do this literally, today, but are there parts of scripture that you feel like we as believers, “snip” out?
• Dallas Willard's definition of love (see page 119) is, “to will the good of another.” This is not the emotional love we tend to hear and think about! Begin on page 121 with “God is fiercely and forcefully opposed to the things that destroy his precious people....” and ends with “if there were no sin there would be no wrath.” We are his precious people, you and me! Does this connect LOVE-WRATH-HOLINESS to you?
• God is love, not just God loves! He cannot NOT be love. God is HOLY! but God is NOT wrath. Wrath is just an act of the holy God towards us. Complex, indeed, but also a simple truth. To me, this concept was one of the most helpful of all of Jim’s teachings. Explain it in your own words and how it effected you.
• Picture a coach who loves the game of basketball and wants her team to play the game in a “pure” way. That means teamwork, execution, fundamentally, etc. You are that coach. You go watch a game and see how sloppy it is, how selfish players are being, and the street ball way of play by a group of individuals. As you are watching, how do you feel? And is that because you really love the game? Do you get my analogy?
• The chapter ends with “God’s first word is always grace.” Do you agree that only when we begin to understand God's holiness can we begin to understand true grace?

The soul training exercise this week is probably very challenging for most coaches. Were you able to create and understand the importance of margin? Is it practical for a kingdom coach who wants to keep her job?

Celtics or Lakers? I am confused....have a great week...