I’ve been working through this book on and off for the past couple of months. I got a little bogged down at times because, while the content was excellent, it did seem a bit repetitive. That being said, it was definitely worth the time spent finishing it because it called me to take a step back and look at myself, and my aspirations, honestly. But more than that, this book called me to look deep into the grace of God found in Jesus Christ and desire to throw myself upon it more fully every day.
While this book is certainly written with the pastor (or aspiring pastor) in mind as its primary audience, it has so much practical wisdom that I would recommend it to any Christian. In fact, on the last page Tripp challenges his non-pastor readers to apply the wisdom of this book through prayer, encouragement, and loving confrontation of their pastors.
If you would like read an overview of the book you can do that here. If you would like to read an honest review of the book you can do so here. If you would like to purchase the book you can do that here.
Here are 10 of my favorite quotes. Enjoy!
1. Page 23
No one celebrates the presence and grace of the Lord Jesus Christ more than the person who has embraced his desperate and daily need of it.
2. Page 25
But it must be said that maturity is not merely something you do with your mind (although that is an important element of spiritual maturity). No, maturity is about how you live your life.
3. Page 35
When I daily admit how needy I am, daily meditate on the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and daily feed on the restorative wisdom of his Word, I am propelled to share with others the grace that I am daily receiving at the hands of my Savior.
4. Page 38
Autonomous Christianity never works, because our spiritual life was designed by God to be a community project.
5. Page 51
When the word of God, faithfully taught by the people of God and empowered by the Spirit of God, falls down, people become different. Lusting people become pure, fearful people become courageous, thieves become givers, demanding people become servants, angry people become peacemakers, complainers become thankful, and idolaters come to joyfully worship the one true God. The ultimate purpose of the Word of God is not theological information but heart and life transformation.
6. Page 59
I’m convinced that the big crisis for the church of Jesus Christ is not that we are easily dissatisfied but that we are all too easily satisfied. We have a regular and perverse ability to make things work that are not and should not be working. We learn to adjust to things that we should alter. We learn to be okay with things we should be confronting. We learn how to avoid things we should be facing. We would rather be comfortable than hold people accountable. We swindle ourselves into thinking that things are better than they are, and in so doing we compromise the calling and standards of the God we say we love and serve. Like sick people who are afraid of the doctor, we collect evidence that points to our health when really, in our heart of hearts, we know we are sick. So we settle for a human second best, when God, in grace, offers us much more.
7. Page 118
Awe of God puts theology in its place. Theology is vitally important, but whatever awe of theology we have is dangerous if it doesn’t produce in us a practical awe of God.
8. Page 128
Fear can overwhelm your senses. It can distort your thinking. It can kidnap your desires. It can capture your meditation so that you spend more time worrying about what others think than about what God called you to be.
9. Page 186
So when you’ve forgotten who you are, when you assign to yourself more maturity than you actually have, and when you think you are more capable than you really are, you leave yourself little reason to seek the ongoing help of your Savior.
10. Page 215
It is so easy to confuse your kingdom with the Lord’s. It is so easy to tell yourself that you are fighting for the gospel when what you’re really fighting for is your place.
The Drawing Board 