It takes more courage to build a bridge than to burn one. I have learned this the hard way.

For years, I was known for confrontation. I believed — genuinely — that I was standing for truth. And perhaps in some ways I was. But I have come to understand that truth without love is not the full Gospel. The Apostle Paul put it plainly: "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal." (1 Corinthians 13:1)

The church is called to courage. But the courage we need most is not the courage to confront — it is the courage to reach out. The courage to sit down with someone who believes differently and listen. The courage to say, "Tell me about your faith." The courage to love first and argue later — or perhaps not to argue at all.

The Apostle Paul became all things to all people so that he might save some (1 Corinthians 9:22). That is the model. That is the calling. That is the braveheart spirit — not the spirit of the warrior, but the spirit of the missionary.

I am still learning. But I am convinced: the future of the church lies in its willingness to reach out, not to close off.

— Dr. Terry Jones