Skip to main content

“I read three thousand books before I wrote one.”

A thought by Mark Batterson from his book, Whisper: How to Hear the Voice of God (p. 80). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

What do you love to do?  What is your greatest desire?

Mark shares, “When I was in seminary, there was a distinct moment when I felt called to write. I was praying in the chapel when the still small voice whispered, Mark, I’ve called you to be a voice to your generation. The irony is that I had just taken a graduate assessment that showed a low aptitude for writing.

“Writing is not a natural gifting, but God compensated for that by giving me a strong desire to write. And trust me, it takes a ton of desire to meet deadlines. Sometimes your desires will line up with your talents, and that’s where you’re doubly dangerous to the Enemy! But God also calls us to do things that are outside our skill sets, requiring tremendous dependence upon His help.

He goes on, “At first my desire to write expressed itself as a voracious appetite to read… I read very few books before my senior year of college. But once I felt called to write, I knew I needed to read. And I spent every spare minute and every spare dollar doing it. I read three thousand books before I wrote one.

“In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus revealed a supernatural sequence that is inviolable. He said, ‘Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.’   I’m afraid many of us read this backward. We want everything the world has to offer, and then we’ll seek God. But that isn’t the way it works. You can’t seek God second or third or tenth and expect Him to give you the desires of your heart. Seeking God first is delighting yourself in the Lord. Seeking God first is giving Him the first word and the last word. Seeking God first is making sure His voice is the loudest voice in your life.


Maybe you are wondering what you are to do with your life.  Have you ever thought about seeking God first?
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“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...
Post a Comment
Read more

“When you understand that life is a test, you realize that nothing is insignificant in your life.”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 57). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. To realize that from God’s perspective life is a test goes a long way in determining how you handle your life.   It is important to see that in testing your character is both developed and revealed.   Rick goes on to say that “even the smallest incident has significance for your character development. Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen your character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God.” So there is a God purpose behind each situation in your life.   Even the bad ones are there to strengthen you and develop you.   You see those bad situations are really good ones because they are there for your good. I start each day with a reminder that God is good.   Not every situation that is going to come in my day is good but because G...
Post a Comment
Read more

“Sometimes we think we’re stuck simply because things are hard.”

A thought by Matt Perman, from his book, How to Get Unstuck (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.  (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the That is a possible trap for many, isn’t it? Matt says, “But if you’re continuing to make progress and aren’t experiencing huge snags, you’re not stuck. Rather, you’re in a dip. “A dip is a temporary hard slog that you will get through if you keep pushing and don’t give up. And pushing through the hard slog is actually the fastest route to the destination. In these cases, you will be especially tempted to bail. Be discerning and able to identify that you’re in a legitimate dip and you’re not a failure.” Matt says another trap to be careful of, “Some people are stuck and don’t know it.” He goes on, “Everything can be going your way, going smoothly, and going quickly. Everything feels and seems wonderful. Yet... you are still headed toward a dead end, a form of getting stuck, if you are leaving God out of t...
Post a Comment
Read more