“I take my [biblical] text and make a beeline for the cross.”- Charles Haddon Spurgeon In Chapter 7 (“Factory Reset”) of If, Mark Batterson emphasizes that “if you fear God, you have nothing else to fear.” All your other fears are served an eviction notice, because it is impossible for fear to coexist with the perfect love […]
“Stewardship [is] doing the best you can with what you have where you are. . . . Make decisions against yourself.”- Mark Batterson “Everything is permissible- but not everything is beneficial.”- 1 Corinthians 10:25 Mark Batterson concludes Chapter 6 of If with the assertion that making decisions against yourself “could save you from a hundred […]
“Just as it takes time to conjugate verbs, it takes time to conjugate praise.”- Mark Batterson “Walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”- Romans 8:4 (KJV) In Chapter 6 (“Muscle Memory”) of If, Mark Batterson defines muscle memory as “a procedural memory that is stored in your brain anytime you repeat a muscle […]
“But when you fast and pray, God leans in a little closer.”- Congressman Tony Hall In Chapter 5 (“A $100 Million Dollar Fast”) of If, Mark Batterson discusses the topic of fasting- a time when God leans in. Pastor Batterson believes fasting is one of the best ways to break the power of the flesh. […]
Mark Batterson concludes Chapter 4 of If by discussing condemnation versus conviction. Pastor Batterson finds it ironic that Satan leaves our unconfessed sins alone. Satan would rather that you don’t deal with unconfessed sin at all. His accusations pinpoint confessed sins. Because confessed sins have been forgiven, Satan’s accusations are false. Mark goes on to […]
“It’s [Romans 8:1] the emergency exit from if only and the main entrance to what if.”- Mark Batterson Mark Batterson continues his discussion of Romans 8:1 in Chapter 4 (“Double Take”) of If. Mark strongly believes that the first verse of Romans 8 should be our first thought every morning. There’s no better way to […]
“You are a new creation, but sometimes it takes time for your new nature to become second nature.”- Mark Batterson As Mark Batterson concludes Chapter 3 of If, he offers encouragement that it is never too late for you to be what you might have been. God still can roll away your if only regrets. […]
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”- Romans 8:1 “We can’t get on with our lives because we can’t get past the past. Instead of living in the here and now, we’re living back then and back there.”- Mark Batterson In Chapter 3 (“Can’t Forget”) of If, Mark Batterson […]
“No power on earth or in hell can conquer the Spirit of God in a human spirit. It is an inner unconquerableness.”- Oswald Chambers Mark Batterson concludes Chapter 2 of If by noting that the leverage point in any system’s structure is the place where a solution element can be applied. A high leverage point […]
“The most insidious lie we can believe about God is that He is somehow against us.”- Mark Batterson “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”- Romans 5:8 In Chapter 2 (“The Most Terrifying Fact”) of If, Mark Batterson quotes from author Eric Mataxas’ […]
“It’s been said that what if is the historian’s favorite question.”- Mark Batterson Mark Batterson concludes Chapter 1 of If by observing that history, as well as Scripture, if full of what ifs. In fact, there is a branch of history, counterfactual theory, that asks what if questions. Mark believes counterfactual theory and thinking is […]
“One little if can change everything. One little if can change anything.”- Mark Batterson “Give Pharaoh of Egypt the title King Bombast, the man who missed his moment.”- Jeremiah 46:17 (New English Bible) If: Trading Your If Only Regrets for God’s What If Possibilities is the most recent book by Mark Batterson, lead pastor of […]