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(Joe Stowell) Tells the story of a letter from then- NY Governor Martin Van Buren to President Andrew Jackson appealing to him to maintain the status quo of the canal systems versus the railroads. In his letter he states," As you may well know, Mr. President, railroad carriages are pulled at the enormous speed of fifteen miles per hour. The Almighty certainly never intended that people should travel at such  breakneck speeds"

(Stowell) We are often deceived into thinking that what we have grown accustomed to is best. Beware of becoming smugly satisfied with the spiritual status quo which, in essence, says, " this is good enough. I think I'll stay right here" . Going into a fixed orbit about Christ means stifling any further impulse of movement toward Him. Orbital Christians contradict the very essence of what it means to be followers of Christ. Fully devoted followers are involved in a passionate pursuit of Christ that is never satisfied with stagnancy. Becoming an orbital Christian is alluring because it is more comfortable and less challenging. And besides we can always take satisfaction in the fact that there are others whose orbits are farther out than ours. Refusing to deorbitize ourselves denies the essence of who we are in Christ. Following Christ is a call to resume the adventure-regardless.

(Stowell)  Christ seeks to radically alter the essence and expression of both the content and the context of our lives. Christ seeks to take us back to our intended glory as the pinnacle of His creation and to show us life the way it was meant to be. He is undaunted in His pursuit of this purpose

(Stowell) Nowhere is the radicaltransforming leadership of Christ more evident than in the Sermon on the Mount. The underlying tenet is that all of life must be viewed beyong the boundaries of this present world. Eternity is the benchmark by which every earthly issue is measured. He toppled the ever-prevalent notion that externals reflect who are what we really are. He took us beyond action and held His listeners accountable for attitudes and thoughts. He put everyting in paradigms never taught before

(Stowell) No one Christ meets is exempt from His care and compassion, regardless of one's status or position

(Stowell) Christ was never intimidated by the prevailing norms of behavior or the power of the leaders

(Stowell) Christ, the transformational  Leader, imposed on the fallen world the culture of eternity. He was aware that eternity is the real forever world. He never lost His sense of reality and how life was meant to be lived. Christ's  world is the real world

(Stowell) Christ acts in our lives on the point of change that is most strategic. Not surprisingly, this will often be the point of our greatest resistance. There is no price too high to pay to experience the privilege of walking with Him! Deep within us is the desire to live life the way is was meant to be, not the way we have made it. What could be good or valuable enough to put between Christ and you? He is the One worth the unsettling adjustment of tampering with the key components of our lives.