Win, lose, or draw, it didn’t really matter to me. I was second string and all I ever did was practice.

I would not be surprised if this epic allegorical tale is destined to become a cult classic of sorts or in it's own right, a classic.

The beauty revealed in Hank's life is that the love of God for us is NEVER changed whether we are on the path or have wandered. I found this to be a very practical presentation of the walk of the Christian - running the race to reach the goal. 

This is the best fiction I've read in a long time. 

I get it now: The old don’t-eat-from-this-tree-or-you’ll-die myth. It is a prevarication, sister. An equivocation, a fabrication, a misrepresentation. My soul girl, don’t look so dumbfounded. It’s a fib, a whopper. A white lie, if you will.

Since He wanted to go out fishing, they would. And the rest is history. It took two boats to haul all the fish to shore, and they were lucky to get there without sinking. 

Of all the places for Him to go, and all the things for Him to do, He chooses to keep tabs on me—to pour His heart into mine as if that was all He had to do. 

Although he was wealthy and had the best of everything money could buy, he had no friends, no peace, and no satisfaction. He had gotten ahead by stepping on people, defrauding them, and taking advantage of them.

There is a “tired” from working all night and accomplishing your goal. And, there is a “tired” from simply working all night.

My left thumb is marked by a slight irregularity next to the nail where I nearly cut it off. 

Being too busy to stop and envision means your world shrinks and your reason for existing gets small, repetitive, and uninteresting—and this is how burnout occurs.

If someone is overwhelmed or burned out, we say they have lost their edge. And this makes my point: All edges, even human ones, need to be cared for.

I bear physical scars from my years that testify to the fact that my guardian angel has gray hair, frayed wings, and bags under his eyes from sleepless nights. 

If purpose and meaning are jeopardized, our souls sink under a weight of desperation and despondency until we are able to determine what makes us special. While there is the option to grasp wildly at what is temporal and worldly in order to sate our craving for distinction, the need to live extraordinarily is given to us by God.

Opening your soul for another’s examination is a scary proposition. However, if we see in ourselves what God sees in us, we will recognize that we are absolutely secure in Him. 

God intends for us to live life the same way He lives His. When we purpose to live as He intended, we make it a supreme, over-arching priority for Him to be our life.

Ultimately, a life lived with distinction must have clarity regarding individual meaning.

As followers of Jesus Christ, here is a sample purpose statement: Our purpose is to know Jesus Christ, see ourselves as He sees us, live as He intended, and effectively share the same with others.

There are people to love, children to be reared, projects to be developed, games to be played, homes to be managed, and empires to be run. Behind all of these initiatives—and many more—are people, each with unique distinction, living in an extraordinary manner, believing inside that what they do is important.

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