The morning meeting with The Boss primarily consisted of Second Corinthians, chapters one through four.

Here are my main takeaways…

  1. Sharing abundantly
  2. Being utterly burdened beyond our strength, so that we must rely no on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.
  3. BEHAVING IN THE WORLD WITH SIMPLICITY AND GODLY SINCERITY (“godly sincerity” must must must be assiduously defined and demarcated by Jesus of Nazareth). Helpful illustrations include: Bob Wiley, Edmond Dantés, Phil Connors, Willy Wonka, Flannery O’ Connor, Master Oogway, Dr. Elwin Ransom, Eli (from the Book of Eli), and Mary Poppins.
  4. “We don’t write to you anything other than what you read and understand and we hope you will fully understand …and we want to visit with you so that you might have a second experience of grace, and in order to work with you for your joy.”
  5. We do not want to make painful visits …because who is there to make us glad if you’re crying “foul!”? We do not want to suffer pain from people who should have made us rejoice, and we want to avoid the disappointment of feeling sure that our joy would be the joy of you all – only to discover that you actually don’t enjoy the things we believe to be of the utmost joy!
  6. Being NOT outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of Satan’s schemes… “discerning and understanding Satan’s schemes” must must must be assiduously defined and demarcated by Jesus of Nazareth. In other words, the question must be asked, “WHO did Jesus chiefly discern to be under the dominion of the devil?”
  7. When Paul was in Troas to preach the gospel of Christ — even though a door was opened for him in the Lord — Paul’s spirit was not at rest because he did not find his Gentile brother Titus there. So Paul left work during the busiest ‘business hours’ and went to look for Titus.
  8. We are supposed to be spreading the fragrance of the knowledge of Jesus everywhere (#knowledge of Jesus = 1 Corinthians 2:2, Hebrews 11:26-27, 12:2, 1 Corinthians 1:20-25).
  9. YOU ARE A LETTER FROM CHRIST.
  10. Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Paul calls the ministry of Moses “the ministry of death”!!!???!!! Can you believe that!? And if the ministry of Moses came with such luster that the Israelites could not gaze at Moses’ face because of its glory (which was being brought to an end) will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory!!!!???!!! For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of righteousness must far exceed it in glory. Indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all, because of the glory that surpasses it. For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
  11. Having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways.