Life Without Lack
Living in the Fullness of Psalm 23
by Dallas Willard
Summary
Willard argues that we can live at perfect peace, regardless of our outward circumstances, when we come to fully trust that we are in the care of Another. The path to spiritual wholeness leads from the faith of propriety (in which we follow the rules of a religion) through the faith of desperation (in which our religious system fails us) to a faith of sufficiency (in which we turn to the guidance and care of our Good Shepherd). We begin to flourish when we learn to live in daily dependence on Him, to die to self, and to become filled with His agape love, which flows in and through us and into the world around us.
Author’s Website: Life Without Lack - Book by Dallas Willard
If you like this content, check out the Firm Foundations small-group study that incorporates readings from the Gospel of Luke along with content from John Mark Comer’s The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry and Dallas Willard’s Life Without Lack
Favorite Quotes
“At the center of so many of our difficulties is fear—fear of rejection, fear of failure, fear of death, fear of sickness, fear of not being able to take care of ourselves in old age, fear of what may happen to our loved ones…What is the answer to all our fears? Love.”
“…the primary means Satan uses to keep the evil pot boiling are the ideas that govern society’s individuals. Of central importance are the ideas about what is good and what is right, and how things should be done.”
“Faith has drawn us nearer to God and positioned us to receive his blessing. Death to self has made our life a willing receptacle for him, and now agape love flows into us like a river and out into a desperately thirsty world, completing the triangle to fulfill all that is needed for a life without lack.”
“Ask in particular for the faith, death to self, and love that make the Shepherd’s sufficiency your own. Remember, these are the marks of Jesus himself. To be with him is to become like him. His life is contagious among those who are susceptible to it, who desire it. Let him know that you want to be infected!”
