Charles Spurgeon: The Prince of Preachers (1988) by J. C. Carlile, Book Review

 Charles Spurgeon: The Prince of Preachers (1988) by J. C. Carlile
An edited and abridged version, 1997, by Dan Harmon

Once in a while, when I thought that I’ve done so many works and sacrifices for the Lord in my own small, faulty, ignorance perspective, and craving for people’s appreciation and attention, I will think of two mortal men who will have none of these and puts me - and all of us - to shame. First, the indisputable apostle Paul. “For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace” (1 Corinthians 15:10). And secondly, Charles Haddon Spurgeon. He was called to be a preacher when he was 16 years old. It was recorded that in his entire life he preached nearly 3,600 sermons (“The collected sermons filled 63 volumes equivalent to the 27 volume ninth edition of Encyclopedia Britannica,” observes John Piper), and published 49 volumes of commentaries, sayings, illustrations, and devotions. Every week he preached 4 to 10 times, read 6 meaty books, revised sermons for publication, lectured, edited a monthly magazine, and in his spare time, he wrote about 150 books! Not to mention, he shepherded about 6,000 church members (legend says that he knew all members by name), founded and directed a theological college, an orphanage, and oversaw 66 Christian charities.* Remember too, he was a family man with a godly wife and a healthy relationship with all his children. There are more but I think you get the point.

David Livingstone, a famous missionary, once asked Spurgeon, “How can you accomplish so much in one day?” He replied wittily, “You forget, Mr. Livingstone. There are two of us working.” No doubt, he meant the presence and grace of the living God. Reading the biographies of such godly men and women like Spurgeon is a good reminder for every Christians, especially Christian ministers, to remain faithful to His Word and be productive in doing His works. This book, under the Heroes of the Faith titles from Barbour Publishing, is a good introduction to the life, ministry, and legacy of Charles H. Spurgeon. The story of Spurgeon’s childhood and conversion are very fascinating. He was a very curious boy who love nature and learning. One of his biggest influences in my life is his thirst for knowledge. Mind you, he had no formal theological training [nor being formally ordained as a minister] but he was very well-read in Puritan theology, natural history, and popular literature. This gives me hope because I too don’t have any formal theological training (Spurgeon wrote to his father who urged him to apply for college, “You know what my style is. I fancy it is not very collegelike.” Fist bump! Although, this is not an excuse if you need one) and also a sense of unworthiness because Spurgeon is Spurgeon and he is one of a kind (to compare oneself with Spurgeon is to compare a kitten with a lion). The book outlines various aspects of his life including his development as a preacher, minister, writer, educator, and defender of the Truth. A special chapter on his belief in Calvinism is also very interesting. He famously declared: “I am never ashamed to avow myself a Calvinist; I do not hesitate to take the name of Baptist; but if I am asked what is my creed, I reply – It is Jesus Christ.”

But not all of Spurgeon’s life was bright and sunny. He shared his portion of Christ’s suffering, betrayal of friends, physical pain, and emotional depression especially due to the tragic fire incident at Surrey Gardens Music Hall and the energy-sapping ‘Downgrade’ controversy (R.J. Sheehan’s C.H. Spurgeon and the Modern Church, 1985, is an excellent short book to know more about this great battle). At the end of the day, Spurgeon is still a mortal man with flaws, and very much in need of the Saviour like the rest of us. Only by God’s grace, Spurgeon was used by Him mightily. I’m thankful for Spurgeon’s service and praise God forever. As the apostle Paul puts it: “It was not I but God who was working through me by his grace.” Amen!

#ServeToLead #PreachTheWord #LeadersAreReaders #LetsMakeReadingCoolAgain #CharlesHSpurgeon #PrinceOfPreacher #ChristianBiography

Here are a few other related #1Book1Week reviews:

1) Spurgeon on Leadership (2010) by Larry J. Michael, CLICK HERE

2) C. H. Spurgeon and the Modern Church: Lessons for Today from the ‘Downgrade’ Controversy (1985) by R.J. Sheehan, CLICK HERE

3) Words of Counsel: For All Leaders, Teachers, and Evangelists (Updated 2018) by Charles H. Spurgeon, CLICK HERE

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Growth Is Intentional

Physically, our bodies grow automatically. But personal growth is not. You must be intentional. "Every moment of one’s existence," said Norman Mailer, "one is growing into more or retreating into less.” Which direction are you heading to? #ServeToLead #GrowthIsIntentional #TheLawsOfGrowth #GrowingLeader

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It Requires Hard Work to Dig Deep In the Word of God

Jerry Bridges, author of The Pursuit of Holiness, says it better: "Reading [The Word of God] gives us breadth, but the study gives us depth." We don't need more Christian t-shirts, we need more deep Christians #ServeToLead #DugDownDeep

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Angelus' Quote: Three (3) Most Important Questions All Winners Ask Themselves

Actress Helen Hayes said her mother drew a distinction between achievement and success. Her mother advised her: "Achievement is the knowledge that you have studied and worked hard and done the best that is in you.

"Success is being praised by others, and that's nice too, but not as important or satisfying. Always aim for achievement and forget about success" 😊 I love success and yet, achievement is more satisfying. Don't stop learning, work hard until you know how to work smart, and do the best as you possibly can 😉 #ServeToLead #GrowingLeader

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Angelus' Quote: Lord, Make Me as Big as Any Problems

The little soul prays, "Let me off easy" 😔

The great soul prays, "Lord, make me as big as any problems" 😊

The small soul prays, "Lord, let me have a lighter load" 😔

The giant soul prays, "Lord, give me strength sufficient for a hard day" 😊

The weak soul prays, "I get tired and quit" 😔

The busy soul prays, "Lord, stand with me until I finish my task" 😊

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Eight (8) Benefits of a Team

"One person seeking glory doesn't accomplish much," writes John C. Maxwell. "Success is the result of people pulling together to meet common goals." One leader can do only so much. To be more impactful and grow bigger, you need a team ⚡

No task is too great, no accomplishment too grand, no dream too far-fetched for a team. It takes teamwork to make the dream work. Here are Eight (8) Benefits of a Team:

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Angelus' Quote: Leadership Is Something You Have to Earn

If we read the autobiography of any leader (please read biographies and autobiographies of great leaders. There you will find that they are 'ordinary' people), we can clearly see that almost everyone would have struggled a lot to get to that position and nobody were born with a silver spoon.

The more the struggles they faced, the stronger leader they are. There is no match for the hard work that they have put in and every bit of effort and hard work they did has really paid them off back. Vincent Lombardi, a famous football coach, said, "Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.” 💪😉☝

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Angelus' Quote: Good Leaders cultivate Honest Speech

Good team leaders never want Yes-men. They need direct and honest communication from their people. But at the same, team members "advisors" need to display respect, too. Leading a team isn't easy (I observe my leaders and myself to know this to be true). It takes hard work. So, communicate directly, honestly and respectfully 😊

____________

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Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World (2016) by Cal Newport, Book Review

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World (2016) by Cal Newport

What is Deep Work? Dr. Cal Newport, a graduate from MIT and currently a computer science professor, divides our professional work into two categories: Deep Work and Shallow Work. Deep Work (what he called the “superpower of the 21st century”) is defined as: “Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that pushes your cognitive capabilities to their limit. These efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate.” On the other hand, Shallow Work consists of tasks that can be performed while being distracted. If you spend more time doing shallow activities such as checking your emails for hours even during meals or chat on WhatsApp while listening to lecture and scrolling mindlessly on Facebook simultaneously, your capacity to perform on Deep Work decrease dramatically. In a distracted world like today, Deep Work is important and thus valuable – and rare.

I understand the concept of Deep Work for so long now but nobody put it into words as awesome and awestruck as Cal Newport. I need this message, I must be converted, and I want Deep Work as part of my life. In order to survive and prosper in today’s ever distracted world, Newport said we need to develop these two skills: #1 the ability to quickly master hard things [speed] and #2 the ability to produce at an elite level [quality]. If you like an equation, it looks like this;

[High-Quality Work] = [Speed or Time Spent] + [Deep Work or Intensity of Focus]

I confess Deep Work is easy to read but very hard to practice. If it’s easy, everyone will do it…. but the fact is, most of us don’t. Yet, we must! Newport emphasizes, “To remain valuable in our economy, therefore, you must master the art of quickly learning complicated things. This task requires deep work. If you don’t cultivate this ability, you’re likely to fall behind as technology advances.” What separates Carl Jung and Albert Einstein from the rest of their other genius contemporaries? Their ability to think deeply. What separates Stephen King and J.K. Rowling from other amazing novelists? Their commitment to Deep Work. “Human beings, it seems,” writes Newport, “are at their best when immersed deeply in something challenging.” These deep people (including the author) understand that “less mental clutter means more mental resources available for deep thinking.” I remember I went into Deep Work mode when I wrote an eBook to help my students to understand this one particular false religion that was spread in campuses and student’s residents. I start in the afternoon after lunch, shut off my smartphone, locked myself in the office, only drink water and coffee, and I finished the book by 1.00am. I was in the flow, super focus and away from any conscious distraction. It was one of the most productive and great works that I’ve ever done.

There are lots of lessons I learned from this book. Some I disagree (such as Quit Social Media), but to most of his wisdom I say, “Amen” (especially on Embrace Boredom, Drain the Shallows, and the 4DX Framework). Like I said, Deep Work is easy to read but hard to practice. But it worth it. Everything worthwhile is hard at first. “The differentiating factor in the 21st century is going to be those who can focus and those who cannot,” says Newport. Read this book and increase your Deep Work capacity. I’m always reminded of that when I end every blog with this philosophy…

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Angelus' Quote: A Dropout Will Beat A Genius Through Hard Work

Besides Gaara, one of my favorite characters in the Naturo Anime is Rock Lee. Why? Because on the surface, Rock Lee is not the strongest or the coolest person in comparison, says, with Naruto, Neji, or Sasuke. He cannot even use any form of ninjutsu and must solely rely on his taijutsu skills in battle. However, I think, Rock Lee’s inability to use ninjutsu is what makes him a standout character. Because of that, he becomes a man with the most determined and hard-working character. He was often made fun of because of his inability. Even the adults doubted the possibility of him becoming a ninja. But, with the help of his mentor, Might Guy, Rock Lee became one of the strongest ninjas! "A genius, huh? What does that mean? 'Genius'?," Rock Lee reasoned, "So I was not born with a whole lot of natural talent, not gifted like Neji... but I work hard and I never give up! That is my gift, that is my ninja way." Wow!

Many of us like Rock Lee: We don't have impressive natural-talents like others, we have flaws and handicaps, we often laugh at, not so good looking (or as beautiful), and people may doubt our ability. But don't let these be your excuses. We can be geniuses. In fact, as Rock Lee once said, "A dropout will beat a genius through hard work." Don't look down on yourself, improve yourself! Don't let your inability be your incapability - you're capable to work hard!

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Timothy, Work Hard Even at the Point of Suffering - It Is Worth it (1 Timothy 4:10-11)

"This is why we work hard and continue to struggle [or to suffer], for our hope is in the living God, who is the Saviour of all people and particularly of all believers. Teach these things and insist that everyone learn them"

(1 Timothy 4:10-11, NLT)

Every bit of suffering Paul the Apostle experienced and all the agony he went through for the sake of "the glorious Good News entrusted to [him] by our blessed God" (1 Timothy 1:11) was worth it because his trust was in the living God who "is the Saviour of all people and particularly of all believers" – and that God is worth trusting and will never let us down. Therefore, "work hard" on yourself and for the Lord! "Thrown ourselves into this venture so totally," said Eugene Peterson, "We're banking on the living God." If you work hard to warn others about apostasy and false teachings (read 1 Timothy 4:1-6) and work hard to "train yourself to be godly" (1 Timothy 4:7), you'll suffer but it will be worth it! Paul said in 2 Timothy 3:12 that "Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution" but it will be worth it! Why? Because if you warn others about their wicked schemes, you'll be hated; and if you be godly in the world where sins are praised, you'll be persecuted. Take heart! Our hope is in the living God, not the imaginary one! It is worth it!

Now, let us come to one of the most controversial verses in the Scripture, "the Saviour of all people." Does Paul teach universalism, that all men will eventually be saved? I say NO because how then could He be the special or particular Saviour "of all believers"? Paul once addressed the Athenians saying that "in [God] we live and move and exist" (Acts 17:28). This text tells me that even the very life and breath of unbelievers who may blaspheme God is a gift from God. Even now God is "saving" them from going to hell and giving them physical life and opportunity to be saved. In a way, God is the Saviour of all people. During Paul's time, the emperor of Rome was called "the Saviour of the world" by reason of the fact that he was the preserver of mankind by his ‘benevolent' reign. Then how much more is our God "the Saviour of all people" in the sense that everything good and gracious comes from His hand, even life itself. However, God is the Saviour "particularly of all believers" in Christ. I like how Life Application Bible Study interprets this verse: "Christ is the Saviour of all, but His salvation becomes effective only for those who trust Him." Amen and hallelujah!

The importance of what Paul has just been saying is emphasized by him when he admonishes Timothy to "teach these things and insist that everyone learn them."  Albert Barnes commentary on 1 Timothy 4:11 notes: "It follows from this, that a minister of the gospel is solemnly bound to teach that there is a sense in which God is the Saviour of all people. He is just as much bound to teach this, as he is that only those will be saved who believe. It is a glorious truth - and it is a thing for which a man should unceasingly give thanks to God that he may go and proclaim that He has provided salvation for all, and is willing that all should come and live." Do it Timothys – it is worth it!

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Self-Leadership #7 Work Harder Than Everybody

Don't buy the myth of the overnight success. "It takes years to make an overnight success," observed Eddie Cantor. Most of the people we celebrate for their effortless achievements have actually put a whole lot of energy into preparing for their victory. Yes, they make it look easy and they may even talk in a way that makes their success seem almost inevitable. But if you listen to them, you will usually find that they are working hard toward a compelling goal. It's the clarity of that goal – vivid, precise, focus – that makes their success seem unavoidable.

What they're not necessarily talking about (by the outward victory that we see), are the long lonely hours of practice and hard work that they subjected themselves to, or the many, many doubts they experienced along the way. I like this quote, "Some people dream of worthy accomplishments while others stay awake and do them."

I read that Adam Clark is reported to have spent 40 years writing his commentary on the Bible; Noah Webster laboured 36 years forming his well-known dictionary (in fact, he crossed the ocean twice to gather material needed to make the dictionary absolutely accurate); John Milton rose at 4 o'clock every morning in order to have sufficient hours to compose and rewrite his poetry which stands among the best of the world's literature; Edward Gibbon spent 26 years on his monumental book The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire; William Bryant rewrote one of his poetic masterpieces a hundred times before it was published just to attain complete beauty and perfection of expression; young Lee Chong Wei, now Malaysia's finest badminton player, sleep by 10 o’clock every night and is up by 5 o’clock, after he finishes his breakfast at seven, it is a whole day of non-stop regimented training. These men have a tremendous focus on what they were doing and each one threw all his energy into his effort no matter how difficult the job.

With hard work, practice and discipline, they were gaining complete confidence in their ability to do the things that they do. It is this discipline of hard work and training, investing those countless hours of practice that leads to mastery that takes a skill or gift from the conscious level to just second nature to them. "Achievement," said Mortimer Adler, "seldom exceeds effort."

Here are three (3) techniques to make sure you're working hard:

Perfecting Your Discipline: Hard work is discipline, focused training that develops self-control. It helps you make the hard decisions, endure pain, and stay on track despite the stress, pressure, and fear.

Invest in Your Talent: All too often, our culture celebrates success without effort. And all too often, these stories turn out to be untrue (be careful about marketing scams that promise easy money and easy this-and-that). You have a responsibility to invest in your God-given talent for the long-term. If talent not used, it will be taken away from you.

Start At Home: A leader must send a message to his followers. They all must see the leader put in more effort than they did and therefore will be motivated to put in more effort themselves.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Self-Leadership #4 Write Your Character

We come now to the character building stage. Character is the first requirement of self-leadership. Combined with good habits and competence, character creates the building blocks for leadership:

Good Habits + Competence + Character = Superb Leadership

The word “character” is derived from older words than mean “engraved” and “inscribed.” These etymological roots imply something important. Character is written, inscribed and engraved all over you. Everyone has a character but not all of us are “of” character. Character is founded on unchanging principles. It is your underlying core. It has unspoken power, it is solid and resolute, and it doesn’t blink.

Most important, character is a series of decisions and choices that you make as you grow and mature. Character is not something that is handed to you; it must be forged through years of hard work and discipline. It is the culmination of years of choosing to act one way rather than another, of choosing truth over deception, respect over arrogance, compassion over cruelty. There is no one prescription for character. You cannot simply copy someone else’s character. Character must fit our own personality and characteristics if it is to withstand trial by fire.

There are many techniques for “writing your character.” These include the habits of seeking truth, finding and keeping faith, practicing humility and showing respect and compassion for others. None is easy to adopt; all are important for self-leadership.

Here are three (3) techniques you can use as you write your character:

Learn From Hardship: It is at the most difficult times that we become most open to profound learning. Sometimes when we realize we don’t have all the answers, we begin to ask the right questions.

Building Character Takes Discipline: Internalizing the principles and values that you believe in means that they will surface in times of crisis. This takes daily renewal and practice.

Identify Your Heroes: Heroes (or Mentors) embody qualities of character that are important to us and compel us to examine more closely how we’re conducting our own lives. Find one (or more) and learn from him or her. Read biographies and autobiographies is one way.

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Things I Wish My Father Knew #15 Only the Very Best for His Children

A loving father works hard

to provide for his family.

Providing for the present

with an eye toward the future,

he wants for them

only the best.

God also wants

only the very best

for His children.

With a protective hand

on your present

and an eye toward

your eternal future,

God provided

the very best for you.

Acting according to

His Father’s will,

Jesus the Son took upon Himself

the sins of all

who would trust in Him.

The Son of God died on the cross

and then rose from the grave,

so that all who believe

might be provided

with the best!

Forgiveness!

Peace!

Joy!

Eternal life!

Provisions of a loving Father.

“Praise be to

the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ!

In His great mercy

He has given us

new birth

into a living hope

through the resurrection

of Jesus Christ

from the dead”

(1 Peter 1:3)

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Why Christians Need to Work Hard[er] (Genesis 3:16-19)

This picture represent "work hard" nothing to do with the Scripture quotes :P

“[God] told the Woman: ‘I’ll multiply your pains in childbirth; you’ll give birth to your babies in pain. You’ll want to please your husband, but he’ll lord it over you.’

He told the Man: ‘Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from, ‘Don’t eat from this tree,’ The very ground is cursed because of you; getting food from the ground will be as painful as having babies is for your wife; you’ll be working in pain all your life long. The ground will sprout thorns and weeds, you’ll get your food the hard way, planting and tilling and harvesting, sweating in the fields from dawn to dusk, until you return to that ground yourself, dead and buried; you started out as dirt, you’ll end up dirt.’”
(Genesis 3:16-19, The Message)

Before Adam and Eve sinned, the earth was perfect. Have you read that in the beginning the earth watered itself? Read Genesis 2:6. Everything changed, however, after that first sin [second, if you count the fall of Satan]. Now cursed, the ground produces thorns and thistles more easily than fruits and vegetables. Since the Fall, work has been struggle – a push back against a hostile world.

Work is not the result of the Fall, remember that fact. Even before they had sinned, Adam and Eve had the job of taking care the Garden. From our modern perspective, it’s hard to imagine what such work might have entailed if there were no weeding, no tilling, no pulling rocks out of that ground. But whatever that work entailed, we can be confident that it was a work of cooperation with the earth, free from the frustration and futility of the work we experience where the weeds always grow back, no matter how many times we pull them (I asked my mother about it).

Because of sin, everything is harder than it has to be. Work is harder. Childbirth is harder. Relationships are harder. And yet this is still our Father’s world, and He still calls us to work hard to gain rewards and fruits from this world. Today, in Christ, working hard with faith can lead to great things!

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Letters to Little Richard #4 Work Hard as Something Done for the Lord

Dear little Richard,

            In a world where easy-money is promoted online and you can be muscular just by drinking drink in one week without exercise, don’t forget the old way of getting things done: work hard. I mean work hard in your vocation, doing it promptly and doing it well. As the Scriptures say, “Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men” (Colossians 3:23).

            Rich, God has created a world in which generally hard work is rewarded and sloppy work is not. Yet sometimes, you may be tempted to seek ease over excellence, or you may be tempted to take shortcuts when God intends that you walk the straight and narrow path. There are times when shortcuts and pragmatic ways are good and harmless – but not always. Work hard is always right and in fact a blessing by itself. “The world does not consider labour a blessing, therefore it flees and hates it,” writes Martin Luther, “but the pious who fear the Lord labour with a great and cheerful heart, for they know God’s command, and they acknowledge His calling.” Be an industrious worker in God’s field in this world “as something done for the Lord.”

            Work hard. Wherever you find yourself – whether at work, home, school, university, or anyplace in between – give it your best. When you do, you will most certainly win the recognition and respect of your peers (either they like you or not). But most importantly, God will bless your efforts and use you in ways that only He can understand. So, my dear brother, do your work with focus and dedication. Ecclesiastes 9:10: “Whatever your hands find to do, do with [all] your strength”….and leave the rest up to God.

Read the Bible, God doesn’t use lazy people you know,

With brotherly love,

Richard

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

God Wants Us to Work, Work Hard (Genesis 3:16-19)

“To the woman [God] said, ‘I will make your pain in childbearing very severe; with painful labour you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.’ To Adam he said, ‘Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ ‘Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return’”

(Genesis 3:16-19, NIV).

Before Adam and Eve sinned, the earth offered up its good things willingly. It even watered itself (2:6). I imagined. Everything changed, however, after that first sin. Now cursed, the ground produces “thorns and thistles” more easily than fruits and vegetables. Since the Fall, work has been a struggle – contrast to work before the Fall.

Work is not the result of the Fall. It is sacred. Even before they had sinned, Adam and Eve had the job of taking care of the Garden (see 2:15). From our post-Fall perspective, it’s hard to imagine what such work might have: no thorns and no thistles. But whatever that post-Fall work might be, we can – I can – be confident that it was a work of cooperation with the earth, free from the frustration of the work we experience where the weeds always grow back, no matter how many times we pull them (ask my mother).

Because of sin, everything is harder than it has to be. Have you ever wonder about that Christians? Work is harder. Childbirth is harder. Relationships are harder. And yet this is still our Father’s world, and He still calls us to push through the hardships to gain such rewards as this world yields. God’s grace, yes; hard works, of course.   

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Jesus Promised Blessings (Long-Term) not Without Difficulties and Pain (Short-Term)

“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:10-12, NIV).

Jesus described “persecuted because of righteousness” blessing by expanded to “persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you,” which adds up to a thorough rejection. This is news we don’t want to hear. Do we really want to follow Jesus into a life of blessing that also promises difficulty and pain? Jesus instructed those considering becoming his disciples to count the cost (Luke 14:28), and he provided a clear idea of what that cost might be. There will always be some who decide the price tag for spiritual maturity and God’s blessing is too high.

Jesus helped by giving us a more long-range view. Costs and rewards may be present or future. One choice may yield great short-term rewards followed by long-term regrets; another may be difficult at first but generate years of great reward. Jesus applied the principle to all of life. He warned that the immediate results of following him may be hard, but the reward of heaven will make the hardships worthwhile.

If we read through the first seven “Blessed” (Matthew 5:3-9) with costs in mind, we discover that each one requires an uncomfortable investment, beginning with coming clean about spiritual poverty. Repentance (mourning) may not be a cost we’re eager to bear. Humbling ourselves will take a toll on pride, and longing for justice will be frustrating in a fallen world. Mercy will cost us our strong desire for revenge. And the desire for purity and peace will be costly to our tendency toward self-centredness. But Jesus has promised that God blesses those who make the difficult investments in his way of living. God will bring lasting satisfaction into your life as a long-term result.

Think about this: Jesus was certainly speaking with the end of life in mind;

Much of the blessing from the “Blessed” will come to us in eternity.

Yet there are clearly lifelong benefits that come to us on our present journey with Jesus.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.