Jules Verne was a prolific author-far more prolific than I ever knew-until just now. As my thoughts churned for this post, I hit on a theme. Once I hit on that, I began to brainstorm and decided to investigate Jules Verne. After all, my favorite movies are the Back to the Future trilogy and Doc Brown talks about Jules Verne, and even names his children, Jules and Verne. 🙂 So, I went here to find more info and found that he wrote 62 novels. Some, obviously, are more popular than others: Around the Word in Eighty Days; Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea with Captain Nemo; and perhaps his most famous, The Journey to the Center of the Earth (Doc Brown’s all-time favorite).
IT. IS. THE. IDEA. OF. A. JOURNEY. THAT. HAS. CAPTURED. MY. ATTENTION.
The idea of life being a journey clicks with me. The greater idea of the Christian life being a journey (for lack of a better word) resonates in me. My mind began working when I read this quote by St. John of the Cross:
The soul’s center is God. When it has reached God with all the capacity of its being and the strength of its operation and inclination, it will have attained to its final and deepest center in God.
The whole idea of being a Christ-follower is one of a journey-a journey to the center of our heart. Leader or follower. Pastor or sheep. Teacher or student. Friend or family. The journey to settle in deeply is one we all need to pursue. Jesus put it this way: “Love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind.” Right there is to be my goal, my mission in life. It is to be my journey of a lifetime.
Over the next several weeks, three of us are going to be taking you on a journey. Jim Foreman, Michael Perkins, and I will be posting our thoughts each Wednesday from the book Building Below the Waterline by Gordon MacDonald. The only things we will have in common is a love for Jesus and posting from the same two chapters. We will not be contacting each other to see what we are posting about. We will each post as God leads. Our prayer is that each one of us has something to say that will lead us deeper into the center of our heart, where we will find the true Center. We invite you to join us; to read along with us; (maybe) to purchase the book; and to comment. I am excited to see what this will do for each one of us…and hopefully you as well. There is no greater place to be than the spiritual center of your life. There is NO ONE greater to pursue than the ONE who wants to be the very center. Join us won’t you…in our journey to the center of our heart, AND as we journey through this book. One question: who is your center right now?
This is really going to be fun – just read Michael’s post and he hit it out of the park and you hit it out too! Back to back homerun’s (it is the playoffs so had to use a baseball analogy).
Who is at my center? Well the answer should be Christ but I find times where I edge him out of the way and self and selfishness slides in. Sad but true – I wish it was not that way but I cannot deny the truth.
This is a lot of fun and I really and looking forward to doing this each week!
I believe it is going to be great ride Jim. Michael did hit it out but don’t underestimate your post either. Back-to-back-to-back homeruns. Very cool. Thanks for taking part in this experiment for all three of us.
I’m pretty pumped about this. I’ve never jumped on the book club bandwagon, but I really like this. To answer who is at my center: For the longest time I couldn’t answer the way that I should without lying, but today I can truthfully say Him.
i am excited to have you as part of it Michael. i can’t wait to see what it will do for all of us. Glad He is your center. Thanks.
Looking forward to this journey. Thanks to all of you for sharing with us.
I will be more than gratified to have you along with us Tom. I pray we can be faithful to what God says. Thanks for the comment.
My utmost desire is to have Jesus as my center…and it is a journey with a promised destination. Looking forward to reading the discoveries and insights my friend.
Relying on God has to start all over everyday., as if nothing has yet been done. -C.S.Lewis
I know you, Jay, by media only (so far). I know this is your desire. I welcome any insights you can share along the way. Thanks for the C.S. quote.
Hi Bill,
I love this woship song. The flute is so drawing to me, like the pied piper… after all, my past heritage is linked to Ireland, Scotland, and Britian.
I think that my eyes have been more on myself the past few weeks. Especially after I got the court judgment back from the legal case with my former husband.
But, it seems that even in the midst of this stress God was still working in me. ‘We can do all things in Christ Jesus’.
The scripture says that if we can suffer with Christ we will also reign with Christ. Christ asks the disciples James and John, ‘can you drink the cup I am going to drink? The disciples say ‘we can’. Jesus says ‘You will indeed drink from my cup…’
We can suffer, we can be shipwrecked, we can be rejected, we can lose our jobs… ‘we can do all things in Christ’.
Striving for the Center may have its price, but it also has it glory. Eternal life, ruling and reigning with Christ, being a part of and experiencing the new heaven and the new earth. Being a part of and experiencing what God has prepared for those who love him, newness over and over again. Greater and greater glory. Never to end. No sorrow, sadness, or sickness in this new place. No sin. Only righteousness forEVER and forEVER.
Are we being saved if we are going the ways and the patterns of the world? The scripture admonishes us to no longer be conformed to the world. The scripture says that to be the friend of the world means to be the enemy of God. The scripture says the world is darkness. The scripture says that the world is ruled by Satan. The world will be destroyed. The world embraces the works of the flesh and does everything it can to encourage others to do so also. The world thinks evil and wicked thoughts.
Are we being saved if we follow the world? Or are we moving further and further from the protection and provision of God. Vulnerable to the deceit and the lies of the enemy.
Didn’t know about your heritage. That is cool that the song speaks to you in that. You are right. Striving for the center is a challenge and has a price, but I am convinced it is worth it. i am reminded of that old song: “Turn your eyes upon Jesus.” Praying for you eyes to see Him. Thanks.
If you had asked me this question some weeks back, I would have given you a different answer. The answer would have been ME.
My center right now, is God. I’ve learned to pray to Him everyday that He should fill my mind with thoughts of Him.