"If you aren’t willing to begin at the beginning, God cannot use you."

A thought by Mark Batterson, (2013-09-24) from his book, All In: You Are One Decision Away From a Totally Different Life (Kindle Locations 704-705). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

Back when I was in college studying to be a Minister I worked as a custodian in a middle school. I was married and I needed to work to help with our expenses. Now I knew a lot of other young preacher boys who also worked as custodians but they thought they were so much better than their job because they were called of God. I looked at it a bit differently. I looked at that as a part of my calling and learning and I did my best to be the best custodian I could be. That attitude carried over into my ministry. I appreciated what I learned as a custodian.

I know of some kids who get married and their expectations are that they should have what their parents have, a big car, a big house and they get deep in debt. They don’t want to start at the beginning. But there are lessons to be learned and character qualities to be given at the beginning.

What are your expectation in your life? Do you want it all and expect God to give it to you right now? That is why I loved being a church planter. I loved starting with nothing and through God’s direction seeing it grow.

There is so much to learn at the beginning. Now of course God doesn’t want us to stay there. He does want us to grow and mature. And there is so much to learn and so much He wants to do through us.

So where are you today?

Comments

"Lie 2: The more you worry about it, the better your odds of avoiding it."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book, Winning the War on Worry (p. 5). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Here is another lie that the Enemy uses with us. And Louie says, "This is a tricky lie. Yes, we often have cause for concern and preparation. But the Enemy wants you to believe that if you worry or fret over a certain outcome long enough, you can keep something bad from happening." But this is so important to realize. He says, "The reality is worrying has never once prevented something negative from happening. Planning might. Prayer has. But worry never will." He continues, "The Enemy tells you that by worrying about a situation (or every situation) you can make your tomorrow better. Really, worry just robs you of today. Jesus implored us: 'I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body mor...

“Hurry and love are incompatible.”

A thought by John Mark Comer from his book, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (p. 23). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Wow, pretty strong thought isn’t it? John says, “All my worst moments as a father, a husband, and a pastor, even as a human being, are when I’m in a hurry—late for an appointment, behind on my unrealistic to-do list, trying to cram too much into my day. I ooze anger, tension, a critical nagging—the antitheses of love. If you don’t believe me, next time you’re trying to get your type B wife and three young, easily distracted children out of the house and you’re running late (a subject on which I have a wealth of experience), just pay attention to how you relate to them. Does it look and feel like love? Or is it far more in the vein of agitation, anger, a biting comment, a rough glare? Hurry and love are oil and water: they simply do not mix.” He goes on, “Hence, in the apostle P...

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle? Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...

Just Continue That Thought...

Search This Blog