“I wish I could say that my experience of suffering was neutral, but it wasn’t, and it isn’t for anybody else either. . . . our lives are shaped not just by what we suffer, but by what we bring to our suffering. What you think about yourself, life, God, and others will profoundly […]
“Physical suffering exposes the delusion of personal autonomy and self-sufficiency. If you and I had the kind of control that we fall into thinking we have, none of us would ever go through anything difficult. . . . Independence is a delusion that is quickly exposed by suffering.”- Paul David Tripp In Chapter 1 (“The […]
“Because I did not have the power or control to make Mr. Hardship leave, I ran to the place where I have always found wisdom, hope, and rest of heart. I ran to the gospel of Jesus Christ, and in so doing, into the arms of my Savior.”- Paul David Tripp In his Introduction to […]
“Maybe the walls of cynicism, compromise, disconnection, irrelevance, pride, burnout, and emptiness show us the poverty of life apart from God. They do for me. Essentially, these are the things I accomplish unredeemed — untouched by grace and the regenerative work of God.”- Carey Nieuwhof Carey Nieuwhof completes the Conclusion of Didn’t See It Coming […]
“Without knowledge of self, there is no knowledge of God. Our wisdom, insofar as it ought to be deemed true and solid wisdom, consists almost entirely of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves. But as these are connected by many ties, it is not easy to determine which of the two precedes […]
“Guess how [the cycle of discontent] leaves you feeling? Perpetually discontent. . . . Nothing’s ever good enough for long. And the discontent makes you feel empty. You’ve run everything through a ‘you’ filter your entire life, and you’re still not happy.”- Carey Nieuwhof “If you try to hang on to your life, you will […]
“People try to numb the pain of emptiness with things that make the hollow worse, not better. There are far more false comforters than real comforters in this area.”- Carey Nieuwhof Carey Nieuwhof concludes Chapter 13 of Didn’t See It Coming as he observes that the solutions we chase just end up introducing more problems. […]
” . . . the emptiness so many people experience in life is more intense in success that it is in failure. . . . Most of us have this notion that Once I get to a certain place or achieve a certain thing, life will truly start in full, and I’ll finally be happy […]
“You’ll be tempted to think God has left you in the dark night of your soul. But he hasn’t. Like a surgeon, he’s operating. And when you surrender to him, it works for your good and his glory. This season in your life doesn’t have to end in defeat. And when you surrender it to […]
“The problem with pain is that when you slow down your pace, often you have only your pain to focus on. And pain is selfish; even emotional pain demands your attention.”- Carey Nieuwhof As Carey Nieuwhof continues Chapter 12 of Didn’t See It Coming, he discusses factors four through seven that help people recover from […]
“In pivotal moments . . . you will lean either away from God or into him. Lean in, hard. Even if you feel nothing. I did this, and eventually the feelings of intimacy returned. Just because you can’t feel God’s love doesn’t mean he doesn’t love you.”- Carey Nieuwhof In Chapter 12 (“Your New Normal”) […]
“Burnout .. . messes with your thinking. Its arena is your thought life, and burnout can be a merciless, savage beast.”-Carey Nieuwhof In Chapter 11 (“Like Falling off a Cliff”) of Didn’t See It Coming, Carey Nieuwhof explores the topic of burnout. Pastor Nieuwhof compares being burned out to falling off a cliff. There’s nothing […]