Woven  ## Metadata - Author: [[Meredith Miller]] | [[3. Resources/Authors/Meredith Miller|Meredith Miller]] - Full Title: Woven - Category: #books - Kindle: [Open in Kindle](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BP2N5YWM) - Document Tags: [[Faith]] ## Document Notes ## Highlights - Moralism, simply put, is the idea that the purpose of religion is to create moral humans. You know, good people. Being moral, upstanding, and virtuous is the aim, and religion is a tool to accomplish it. How does religion do that? First, by naming and reinforcing the value of being moral; and second, by communicating that the deity of that religion is pleased by your morality and displeased by your lack of it. It says, “You make God sad when you don’t pick up your toys.” ([Location 149](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=149)) - The issue is when adults tell kids exactly what fruit should look like in their lives instead of helping them get to know the Spirit who grows the fruit. It’s when we fail to recognize that fruit can be faked by a kid, especially if they fear the disapproval of a loved one. Fruit cannot grow in the soil of fear. That is true if the fear belongs to a child who wants us to affirm them, and it’s true if the fear belongs to an adult who can’t handle the long, slow, out-of-their-control process of helping children discover for themselves who God is. ([Location 159](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=159)) - The issue is when we care more about the artificial fruit of compliance, or respect, or first-time listening, than the genuine, juicy fruit of coming alive to the love of the true God and the chance to share that love with the world. ([Location 163](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=163)) - “moralistic therapeutic deism” ([Location 167](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=167)) - Jesus wanted children to be able to come to him. Not to follow his rules, but to know him. What’s more, if we turn to the Bible’s treatment of obedience, what we find is that the obedience God invites people into, both then and now, is a response to trusting God. ([Location 191](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=191)) - Trust is always the precursor to obedience. The people’s obedience is not the first course of action they take, but rather a responsive action based on their determination that yes, indeed, Yahweh God of Israel can be trusted. Yes, obedience is talked about a lot in the Bible, but obedience is not our goal, because, ultimately, it is not God’s goal. Trust is. ([Location 200](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=200)) - When it comes to our kids, we have to be clear: It’s backward to ask a child to obey a God they do not know. Childhood is for getting to know God, so kids can discover if God can be trusted. ([Location 214](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=214)) - What often gets called obedience is actually moralism, teaching kids to be good rather than helping them get to know the God who is good. ([Location 220](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=220)) - What is mine to do, though, is to intentionally craft short-term strategies that support my child in their faith journey. ([Location 241](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=241)) - Anchor threads affix to who God is, including the attributes that live in mysterious, dynamic tension with one another. Internal threads—habits; less essential, but still important beliefs; faith practices; life rhythms—give our faith its unique shape. ([Location 295](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=295)) - the whole structure doesn’t need to be deconstructed and then reconstructed, because there was nothing wrong with the whole structure; there was just something wrong in that one, localized spot. ([Location 302](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B0BP2N5YWM&location=302)) ## Related - [[3. Resources/Readwise/Articles/Why Open Source Matters More Than Ever in Education|Why Open Source Matters More Than Ever in Education]] - [[3. Resources/Readwise/Articles/WordPress 6.9 Release Features Higher Usability and Performance Additions|WordPress 6.9 Release Features Higher Usability and Performance Additions]]