I heard this for the first time a few years ago when a visiting pastor shared it with us. I've listened to it several times since. I don't think it ranks as the greatest sermon ever or even the greatest sermon outside of the Bible (I have a Dream and Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God rank higher for me)... but as far as sound bytes go it is truly fantastic.

I think often when I do think that I need God (which isn't very often honestly) what I really am thinking is that I need God to be what I want Him to be... if that makes sense. It's idolatry.

I've never been a believer in the "God has one specific person picked out for you" thing but there are those I respect that DO believe that for themselves so I could be convinced that I'm wrong. One thing I do know, for those of us that are married, is that our current mate is God's plan for us.

I wonder how many people have gone into marriages thinking they've found their "soul mate" and then threw it away when they discovered things weren't as easy as they expected. And how many marriages have ended because either the husband or wife found someone else that they thought was their soul mate?

I recently listened to a sermon in which the speaker said "pornea" is not just what we call pornography today... but it's any fantasized view of a romantic relationship... meaning anything that incorrectly portrays the relationship between a man and a woman. He includes romance novels and "chick flicks" in this definition because they often paint an inaccurate picture. Just as pornography can cause a husband to have incorrect expectations of his wife, romance novels and "chick flicks" can plant the same seeds in the mind of the wife. Very thought provoking. Not exactly sure how this relates... I guess it has to do with expectations. Thinking you've married your soul mate may be setting up expectations that are likely to be challenged later in life.

Sorry to ramble... lots of random thoughts here.

Cussing someone out in your head... ouch. That one hits home.

Here's the start of my list.

For the times when I confused fighting for a cause with doing your work... I'm sorry.

For trying to substitute knowledge for obedience… I'm sorry.

For assuming the next guy will do the work… I'm sorry.

For thinking that reading ABOUT the Bible is same thing as reading THE Bible… I'm sorry.

For saying "I'll pray for you" and then not doing it… I'm sorry.

For not trusting You with the little stuff… I'm sorry.

For not trusting you with the BIG stuff… I'm sorry.

For forgetting that you love "the least of these" as much as you love me… I'm sorry.

For assuming the debt I owed was less than that of my neighbor… I'm sorry.

For begrudgingly giving precisely 10%... I'm sorry.

For the counting on the church to train my child in the ways of Lord… I'm sorry.

For being more interested in making sure others know what *I* have to say about something rather than what YOU have to say about something… I'm sorry.

For not taking the time to understand what someone is really saying and responding anyway… I'm sorry.