Tim Hansel’s message in Holy Sweat is timeless, yet personal:
How and why can you live out your God-given purpose?
He blends the spiritual (holy) and the earthly (sweat) to talk about living out incredible truths in practical ways, not just living FOR Christ, but also living IN Christ.
Tim notes that the Old Testament is crammed with real stories, examples of weak and nervous people, like us, who still reveal God in amazing ways. Take the burning bush: it wasn’t the bush that sustained the flame. It is GOD IN THE BUSH. Any old bush would do.
Likewise, we’re to see how powerful GOD is in using anybody, even a bush, even us, to carry out HIS plan, and trust his skill and his guidance to make it happen through us. Don’t live too cautious to take risks; live in trust.
Christianity is more than conforming to certain patterns of behavior; it is knowing God in a real way. God clearly states it over and over in scripture. Tim points out that we’re to delight in that relationship and relish the opportunities it brings.
Nobody else ever has or ever will have the same relationship with Jesus Christ that you will. Yours is absolutely, positively unique. No wonder everybody expresses it differently. Tim encourages us to embrace the differences and venture out in the unknown.
Commit to a Person. Choose joy. Celebrate freedom.
As is his style, Tim includes many enlightening quotes from others in this book, and uses clear examples from his own life to make his points. His personal struggles are made transparent, as is the joy he finds in Christ.
Some of Tim’s thoughts:
* We don’t get a free detour around problems when we become a Christian; we get a guided tour through them.
* Self-pity will not allow us to keep any joy that isn’t tied to something bigger. Choosing joy for others, though, can give us a better, stronger reason not to give in.
* We must remember that as we serve others, we are essentially, emphatically serving God first and foremost. Above all, above everything—your primary responsibility is your relationship with Christ. Then next, as you become so connected to and empowered by God through Jesus Christ, you give naturally out of your overflow.
For decades, Tim has given to others out of his overflow, despite living with chronic pain. He will continue to serve for decades more, through words he leaves behind and through the lives he has touched.
Continue to pray for this faithful soldier of Christ and for his family as Tim struggles near the end of a long journey of physical pain and deteriorating health.
Thanks, Sandy, for letting me borrow another of Tim’s books off your shelf. I knew it was going to be good when I saw all the pink highlighting throughout the book, the numerous asterisks and bracketed sections, and the prolific underlining. Now that I’ve finished it, I can understand why it got the official Sandy “Great Book!” stamp of approval on the flyleaf.
2 comments:
Lisa, your review makes me want to re-read Tim's book!
I emailed the page to him and Anastasia!
Bless you!
Wow! I found someone else who read his book. I read it about 20 years ago. I dug around and read it again a couple of years ago and made notes on the Peak Performance Keys, and began to put them to work in my life.
Two weeks ago I was preparing for my Sunday School lesson, it was on the calling of Moses, and I kept hearing the quote "Any old bush will do". I searched and dusted off the book and used a number of quotes from the book including "Missing the Adventure" at the start.
Also, one of my favorite parts was the poem "The Road of Life".
PS: I never saw your site before, I linked over here from your comment on Tim Challies .
Post a Comment