Two great books

For a class I am taking, I had to read "The Great Divorce" by C.S. Lewis.

WOW, that is an amazing book.

Then a couple weeks ago, a friend gave me "The Shack" to read.

Again, WOW. This is honestly the best fiction book I have ever read.

Both of these books center around our view of God, heaven, relationships, etc.. etc..

My mind is just swirling with all the ideas that I've been shown.

I don't know if anyone should really be 'allowed' to read both of these books within the same month, because it definitely results in an overload to process mentally, but it's a good process to go through.

I found this quote by the author of "The Shack" that I thought was amazing:

The truth is this: "Significance originates from ‘being’, not from doing." Doing adds nothing to our significance and doing takes nothing away. Doing is directly related, not to significance, but is largely an expression of who we think we are. "As a person thinks in their heart, so are they (so they will act)." Because we are already significant, our choices and actions matter. It is not the choices that make us significant, it is our significance that make our choices meaningful. Every human being is significant by nature. They are imprinted with the very image of God, they are each the center of God’s love and goodness. True significance is individually wrapped up in the uniqueness of each person and each one being created in the image of God, regardless of what Madison Ave says, or how an individual may be damaged or broken.

In one part of "The Shack" it talks about how God is a verb and not a noun. How it's about being, I thought this was totally profound thinking. As the quote so eloquently states, our significance is not in what we do or what label is attached to us (Andrea that's for you!) but it's about God in us. We are significant because of Him. Nothing else. It's done.

That's so refreshing!!!

How many times are we caught in the trap of trying to prove our worth by coming up with something we've done that validates us?

I tell ya' it's an easy trap to fall into! Especially doing what we are doing now. We can feel 'pressure' to have a story or experience something that makes it worth it for us to be here.

No.

That's not it.

We are here for reasons that we can't even understand. We are working in relationship with Him, and He is in control of that!

Yes, we will have some wonderful life transforming stories to share, we fully believe that. BUT even without that, it's not less significant, kwim?

We are significant because of Him, not because of us. We do what we do because of Him in us. As we more fully engage ourselves to living our lives in ways that totally glorify Him, we understand true significance.

Well, that's just the first piece that I'm processing. More later!