Quotes from Andy Stanley

The law was given to reveal what real sin looked like. When God gave the 10 commandments to Moses, his purpose wasn't to show us how we can be perfect and make it into heaven. God knew we could never live up to it. He did it so we can could see how bad we really can be.

Courage establishes leadership.

God sees your sin as a debt you can't pay. There is no point in asking you to. To think that being good will somehow makes you square with God would be like Allie promising to clean up her room after being confronted with the damage she did to my car. Cleaning up her room doesn't pay me back. It's a nice gesture, but it doesn't fix my car.

People with greed lodged in their heart fear that God either can't or won't take care of them. More to the point, they're afraid that God won't take care of them in the fashion or style in which they want to be cared for. And the gap between what they suspect God might be willing to do and what they want becomes a major source of anxiety. So greedy people shoulder the burden to acquire and maintain everything they need to provide the sense of security they desire.

There is a direct correlation between a person's private devotional life and his or her personal faith. And regardless of how long you've been in ministry, this is something you can't afford to lose sight of. When God speaks to us personally through his Word or answers a specific prayer, our faith is strengthened.

As my wife's mother told her growing up, "If you go to the right places, chances are you will meet the right people.

Actually, there was nothing sudden about his undoing. His fall was inevitable. The end of this story was determined years ago when he chose a path that, from the very beginning, had dishonor, disgrace, and dismissal as the destination. Direction determines destination. Every time.

Fear defies logic. Information only goes so far. Even when armed with all the reasons why we should not be afraid, the fear remains.

You're worse than you thought, but God loves you more than you imagined.

There's a third thing about getting lost. The road I'm on always determines where I end up. Pretty insightful, eh? It really doesn't matter where I intended to be; the path I take determines my ultimate destination. Plans, intentions, spousal expectations . . . none of that counts. I always end up where the road I've chosen takes me. And that, as you know by now, is the theme of this book.

The most important thing in your life is your personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

For this reason it is the dark that provides the leader with his greatest opportunities. It is your response to the dark that determines in large part whether or not you will be called on to lead. For the darkness is what keeps the average person from stepping outside the security of what has always been.