These are the quotes I noted while reading S.H.A.P.E. by Erik Rees:
Forward by Rick Warren
- You were uniquely designed, wired, and “shaped” by God to do certain things.
- You are a custom-designed, one-of-a-kind, original masterpiece.
- You are shaped to serve God by serving others.
- Whenever God gives us an assignment, he always equips us with what we need to accomplish it.
2 – Spiritual Gifts
- A spiritual gift is a God-given special ability, given to every believer at conversion by the Holy Spirit, to share his love and strengthen the body of Christ.
- Discovering your spiritual gifts is not the ultimate goal – using then to bless others is.
- The more you serve God in ministry, the more clearly you will see your gifts.
- “I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble.” – Helen Keller
- “If you think you are a leader but no one is following you, you are just taking a walk.” – John Maxwell
3 – Heart
- “God has given each of us a unique emotional ‘heartbeat’ that races when we think about the subjects or circumstances that interest us. We instinctively care about some things and not about others. These reveal the nature of your heart and are clues to where you should be serving.” – Rich Warren
- The key is to discover the cravings the Creator has put in you.
- “Your deepest desires reveal your deepest calling, the adventure God has for you.” – John Eldredge
4 – Abilities
- “The difference between an ordinary day and an extraordinary day is not so much what you do, but who you do it for.”
- “The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” – Michelangelo
5 – Personality
- God didn’t create other people to please you – and he didn’t create you to please them. He made us to please him.
- You find an exciting, challenging, and achievable destiny if you will but discover and embrace who you were designed to be.
6 – Experiences
- Before our experiences – positive or painful – can be fully used by God, for the benefit of others, we must let go of their hold over our lives.
7 – Letting Go
- The greatest obstacle to God fulfilling his purpose for our lives is not other people but ourselves – our own goals, ambition, pride, and self-will.
- We surrender when we hand off every aspect of our lives – past, present, and future – to God and trust him completely with all of it.
- “The blood of Jesus never cleansed an excuse.” – Corrie ten Boom
8 – Other-Centered
- “Your theology is what you are when the talking stops and the action starts.”
- “The body never goes where the mind has never been.”
- “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” – Thomas Edison
9 – Better Together
- “Spiritual transformation is not a matter of trying harder, but training wiser.” – John Ortberg