Betting everything on hope

I have been reading through the book Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan.
It has been challenging me to grow in Christ and look at things in a different way.  God had already been working in me to stop putting Him in human constraints (because he doesn't fit in the boxes we tend to put Him in), and to start seeing that the love and value He places on me are so much more than I can understand.  Reading this book has really been challenging me on the way I live, and talk, and how much my life should just be 110% for Him.  That He wants me to thrive and constantly grow in Him.  To not get stale or stuck.  I want to share some of the quotes that have really made me stop and think...

Lukewarm people do not live by faith; their lives are structured so they never have to.  they don't have to trust God if something unexpected happens--they have their savings account.  They don't need God to help them--they have their retirement plan in place.  They don't genuinely seek out what life God would have them live--they have life figured and mapped out.  They don't depend on God on a daily basis--their refrigerators are full and, for the most part, they are in good health.  The truth is, their lives wouldn't look much different if they suddenly stopped believing in God. (p.78)

Now, I can only speak for myself, but I do not want to live lukewarm.  I am not someone content to just get by.  I like to stretch, grow, and have even begun to love trying new things.  I have had the privilege, especially in the last three years, to be totally dependent on God for pretty much everything.  The ends just don't meet without Him stepping in and intervening. I know there are big changes coming in my life, that will challenge this part, but I hope to never forget how He is my provider, my Daddy, my best friend... and I want to be living a life that shines completely for Him.

Following Christ isn't something that can be done halfheartedly or on the side.  It is not a label we can display when it is useful.  It must be central to everything we do and are. (p.94)

Are you willing to say to God that He can have whatever He wants?  Do you believe that wholehearted commitment to Him is more important than any other thing or person in your life?  Do you know that nothing you do in this life will ever matter, unless it is about loving God and loving the people He has made? (p.97)

True faith means holding nothing back; it bets everything on the hope of eternity. (p. 97)

When you are running toward Christ, you are freed up to serve, love, and give thanks without guilt, worry, or fear. (p.104)

 I want to be running so hard toward Him, that nothing else matters.  That I think outside my own comfort zone and am effectively living my life for my Daddy God.  For my life to be having a positive impact on the lives of all those around me.  To be spreading kindness, with eyes open and seeing things the way that He sees them. I don't want to be living life with a personal agenda... but to be living out the potential He placed in me before I was even born, doing all things for Him alone.