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How This Book Came About
About 30 years ago I was walking on the job site of an engineering project, when—like a bolt out of the blue—the thought struck me: What does it mean to be effective as a Christian? I put the thought out of my mind, but it kept recurring in the weeks and months that followed. I went to a university library and discovered that while there are many books on how to be a more effective pastor or Sunday school teacher or church officer, no book had been written concerning what it means to be effective as a Christian. I told myself that someday I would do some research on that subject.
I began the project when I retired from the work-a-day world. I have always been an early riser, so I worked on my new project during the early-morning hours almost every day for more than 10 years. Occasionally I would put the manuscript aside for several months, and when I went back to it, I would throw out most of what I had written, and start over.
One thing that was consistent throughout the book’s long “gestation” period was my approach to the subject. In seeking answers to the question, “What does it mean to be effective as a Christian,” I attempted to answer two basic questions:
· What is the primary goal of a Christian? · How can that goal be attained?
I knew the answer to the first question had to come from the Bible; I felt that the answer to the second question could come not only from the Bible, but from reading the biographies of outstanding Christians. I read scores of biographies in a search for characteristics that are common to all effective Christians.
Christians know that we don’t earn salvation by doing things for God. The Bible clearly states that we are saved by grace—that we don’t need to strive, because we live from a position already won through the atoning work of Christ on the cross. However, Christians should feel an obligation to serve and to witness. The question is, “How do we serve and witness effectively?” That is what this book is about.
John Wesley’s favorite prayer was said to be, “Lord, make me an extraordinary Christian.” If Wesley were living today, he might substitute the word “effective” for “extraordinary.” Surely, all Christians can subscribe to the prayer, “Lord, help me become a more effective Christian.”
T.E.H., Jr. Stokesdale, NC April 2001
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