I’ll be honest. When people post quotes from theologians and Christian literature or sermons in their blogs, I usually don’t read them. This is for a few reasons:

1) They’re too long and intellectual, and while I do enjoy intellectual things and the writings of theologians, usually when I’m reading blogs I’m in a lazy, brain-powered-off mode, so I’m not in the mood for it.

2) I didn’t come to your blog for regurgitation. I read blogs because I like to know what you’re thinking. Thanks for the quote, but how did it impact you personally, my friend, and why? Is this something you’ve been struggling with? Something on your mind? Please expand on it, in your own words.

3) It usually lacks context, and therefore effect. We miss what the author or speaker was saying previously to build up to that point, to whet our appetite for the climax (and yes, the climactic statement is usually what is posted). I have often been affected greatly by excerpts from books I read, but to just give you a one-liner would not adequately convey the power that very same line had on myself.

Well, now that I’ve admitted my thoughts, I’m here to say that I’m going to start doing that very thing. Why? Because in the last 3-4 months I’ve established a habit of reading one chapter of Christian literature per day and listening to one sermon every two days. And as I’ve been reading and listening, I have been convicted of and learning a lot of good things. I’m going to begin to post things here, not so much for your benefit, but for my own memory’s sake. And if you can benefit from it in the meantime, then praise God.

I’ll close with my first quote that just brings this whole idea into light, so humbly spoken by one of my favorite speakers, C. J. Mahaney:

“I’m always standing on somebody’s shoulders whenever I speak—I never have an original thought—basically I just read and tell you what I read. That’s just it: try to read the right guys… and then tell you what I read.”

—C. J. Mahaney, Discern Your Heart: The Idol Factory, New Attitude Conference 2007