Influencers
We all look at ourselves, others, the world, God, Scripture, etc. from a perspective that has been shaped by various factors throughout our lives. The way we view everything is affected by this lens through which we’re always looking and from which we can never fully escape. Fortunately, that lens can and should be adjusted (and focused and corrected) as we renew our minds according to God’s Word. Often, even the way that we read the Bible and think about the Christian life needs to be challenged. In the course of my journey, God has used three men in particular to challenge my perspective and to strengthen my desire to be used by God in His mission for His glory:
John Piper – God used this man to give me a hunger for the supremacy of Christ and to teach me that a pursuit of God’s glory is simultaneously a pursuit of all satisfying joy! (Desiring God)
C.J. Mahaney – God drastically changed my life through C.J’s book, The Cross-Centered Life. Here I learned that the cross is not merely something to be believed on for salvation, but the cross stands at the center of my daily battle against sin and my fight for joy in God.
Greg Beale – God used Dr. Beale to help me learn how to read the whole Bible as a majestic, inspired story about the Sovereign God who is on a mission to redeem the world for His glory and the eternal joy of His people. (See The Temple and the Church’s Mission)
None of these men would want any attention drawn to themselves, but God has given each of them gifts that He has used to awaken my love for Christ and for His Glory, and for this, I am thankful.
soli Deo gloria!