By Elizabeth George
Harvest House Publishers
- Best things I learnt from the book:
In order to minister to people, we need to withdraw from them and spend time with God. We can’t have a ministry to people by always spending time with them - Place our families as our no. 2 priorities (1st one is God). If we are to serve others, make sure our family members are served first.
These are the 2 main basic important lessons I learnt from this book. Below is the excerpt from some chapters which stood out for me.
Chapter 2: A heart abiding in God’s Word (Pg 25)
Roots are unseen – like a creeping fig or any other plant, your spiritual roots are underground, invisible to others. I’m talking about your private life, your hidden life, the secret life you enjoy with God out of the public eye.
One seventh of an iceberg is visible above the surface, and any wise fisherman knows not to get too close because underneath spreads the other six-sevenths. What was visible to the eye – only a fraction of the huge, icy mass – was enough to evoke fear, awe, dread and respect in any sailor!
And that’s what you and I want for our life. We want what other people see of our life -– the public portion – to stir up this kind of awe and wonder. We want our strength in public to be explained by what goes on in private between us and God. If we faithfully nurture what is beneath the surface of our life, people will marvel at what they see of God in us!
But it’s so easy for you and me to get this all backwards. It’s easy to think that what counts in the Christian life is the time spent in public with people, people and more people! We seem to always be with people – people at work, people on campus, people in the dorms, people from the bible studies, people we live with, people in discipleship settings or fellowship groups.
But the truth is that “the greater the proportion of your day – of your life – spent hidden in quiet, in reflection, in prayer, [in study], in scheduling, in preparation, the greater will be the effectiveness, the impact, the power, of the part of your life that shows. As I heard one Christian leader say, you cannot be with people all of the time and have a ministry to people. The impact of your ministry to people will be in perfect proportion to the time you spend away from people and with God.
Chapter 19: A heart that shows it cares
Develop your prayer life (pg 201)
Extract of J. Sidlow Baxter’s story
Prayer isn’t easy! It’s definitely a discipline, but it’s also a ministry that flows from a full heart. Three decisions you can help you place yourself before God so He can fill your heart with concern for others.
- Determine a time
- Determine a place
- Determine a plan
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