Quotes from Quitter

I love quotes (and song lyrics). My sister and I frequently have full conversations entirely in quotes. When I read, I usually write down quotes I really like from the book or article. I did that with Quitter, the Jon Acuff book I talked about in my last post, and I ended up with 4 pages of quotes. I’m not going to share all of them, but I did want to share some of my favorites.

- No one ever says, “I have an amazing dream that I am going to dedicate my life to. If it works, the status quo will be solidified forever!” At the heart of a dream is change. Few people like this.

- “Success always comes when preparation meets opportunity.” It’s true and the opportunity to quit your job will always be there. The real question is whether you’re prepared.

- There is a natural feeling to the things we’re called to that we often assume everyone else has.

- Ninety-percent perfect and shared with the world always changes more lives than one hundred percent perfect and stuck in your head.

- Perfectionism seems like a character trait sometimes, not a flaw.

- People who do not attempt to recover their dreams fail 100% of the time.

- If you’re patient and deliberate, your day job can become a wonderful platform from which you can launch your dream job. If you demonize your day job though and rail against it, it becomes a prison you’ll try to escape from. And prison breaks rarely go well for anyone.

- Hustle is doing the things you don’t enjoy sometimes to earn the right to do the things you love. (Jenny Acuff)

- Competition is a great motivator but a horrible measurement.

- I’m not sure why Christians sometimes think the maturation of our own missions will be radically shorter than that of Jesus.

Is Your Dream to Be a Quitter?

Do you dream of being a quitter? Is one of your goals this year to quit your job? I’m not saying mine is, but I’m also not saying that it isn’t.

I may or may not have read several books in the past year about discovering what to do with my life (and hoping that they all at least said “not this”). Thankfully, one of those books was Quitter, Jon Acuff’s new book. Quitter is the most timely, most encouraging book about pursuing your dream job that I have read in a while.

If you’re not familiar with Jon Acuff, he is the author of the book and website Stuff Christians Like. His newest book deals with the tension between working a day job and dreaming about a passion.

God created us for work - it was part of the plan before the fall. It was part of the plan then and it's part of the plan now. God also puts within us passions and equips us with gifts with which to pursue those passions. At times, we feel like our jobs and passions/gifts couldn't be farther apart. When our jobs seem to be pulling us away from our passions, we conclude that our job is the problem, and the answer is to quit. Before quitting, though, we need to ask God to show us how our dreams/passions intersect our jobs.

We all want to be able to say that we're doing something meaningful, but most of us feel like that day is months or years in the future. The truth that Jon reminds us, though, is that the only thing keeping us from moving towards our passion and dream is ourselves. Likewise, we are the only ones who can take that first step toward our dream. That won't come from anywhere or anyone else.

Our current job is not the brick wall keeping us from pursuing our passions. Surprisingly, our current not-so-dream job may actually be the platform from which we launch our dream. At the very least, it will present us with opportunities to live out our passions on a daily basis, and teach us to develop work ethic and character.

Jon says in the book, "People who do not attempt to recover their dreams, fail 100% of the time." Quitter definitely encouraged me to not be one of those people. I'm confident it will encourage you, as well.

If you have ever struggled with the tension between working a day job and pursuing a dream job, Quitter is for you.

You can order it on Amazon or on Dave Ramsey’s website.

Another Free Audio Book

Ok, so Forgotten God was really good. I haven't listened to my August download yet, but I can tell you you definitely want to get this month's free audiobook from Christian Audio. Go here and download Spiritual Leadership by J. Oswald Sanders. I'm almost done with the paperback and have filled up several pages of quotes. Be sure to listen with a pen and paper. Great book.

Free Audio Book

Go here to download a free audio copy of Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit by Francis Chan. I haven't read it (or listened to it), yet, but Crazy Love was good and I like Francis Chan...and it's free!

Just follow the instructions, add to your cart, and use the promo code JUN2010. The offer is good all month.

You're welcome.