Francis Chan Quotes

Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.

The world says love yourself, grab all you can, follow your heart. Jesus says deny yourself, grab your cross and follow me.

It's crazy, if you think about it. The God of the universe - the creator of nitrogen and pine needles, galaxies and E-minor - loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love. And what is our typical response? We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss.

But God doesn't call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn't come through.

God has allowed hard things in your life so you can show the world that your God is great and that knowing Him brings peace and joy, even when life is hard.

God's definition of what matters is pretty straightforward. He measures our lives by how we love.

Lukewarm people give money to charity and to the church...so long as it doesn't impinge on their standard of living. Lukewarm people tend to choose what is popular over what is right. Lukewarm people don't really want to be saved from their sin; they want to be saved from the penalty of their sin. Lukewarm people rarely share their faith with their neighbors, coworkers, or friends. Lukewarm people are thankful for their luxuries and comforts, and rarely consider trying to give as much as possible to the poor.

We never grow closer to God when we just live life. It takes deliberate pursuit and attentiveness.

Life is about Jesus. We are not here to tell our story, but His.

Don't fall into the trap of studying the Bible without doing what it says.

Again, our marriage problems are not really marriage problems. They are heart problems. They are God problems. Our lack of intimacy with God causes a void that we try to fill with the frailest of substitutes. Like wealth or pleasure. Like fame or respect. Like people. Like marriage.

The irony is that while God doesn’t need us but still wants us, we desperately need God but don’t really want Him most of the time.

The truth is that the Spirit of the living God is guaranteed to ask you to go somewhere or do something you wouldn't normally want or choose to do. The Spirit will lead you into the way of the cross, as He led Jesus to the cross, and that is definitely not a safe or pretty or comfortable place to be. The Holy Spirit of God will mold you into the person you were made to be.

He wants all or nothing. The thought of a person calling himself a 'Christian' without being a devoted follower of Christ is absurd.

I don't want my life to be explainable without the Holy Spirit. I want people to look at my life and know I couldn't be doing this by my own power. I want to live in such a way that I am desperate for Him to come through. That if He doesn't come through, I am screwed.

Be careful not to turn others' lives into the mold for your own...we have a #‎ God who is a #‎ Creator not a #‎ Duplicator .

Something is wrong when our lives make sense to unbelievers.

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.

Jesus said go and make disciples, but so often we just sit and make excuses

What are you doing right now that requires faith?

When I am consumed by my problems-stressed out about my life, my family, and my job-I actually convey the belief that I think the circumstances are more important than God's command to always rejoice.

When we become overly concerned about our appearance, our spiritual reputation, our coolness, and our acceptance, we are living as citizens of this world rather than as ambassadors.

Having faith often means doing what others see as crazy.

I believe He wants us to love others so much that we go to extremes to help them.

Lukewarm people don't really want to be saved from their sin; they want only to be saved from the penalty of their sin.

God didn’t just give a little for us; He gave His best. He gave Himself.

Trust whatever He has for you. It will be better than anything you can plan for yourself.

The world is not moved by love or actions that are of human creation. And the church is not empowered to live differently from any other gathering of people without the Holy Spirit. But when believers live in the power of the Spirit, the evidence in their lives is supernatural. The church cannot help but be different, and the world cannot help but notice.

Making disciples isn’t about gathering pupils to listen to your teaching. The real focus is not on teaching people at all–the focus is on loving them.

The point is not to completely understand God but to worship Him. Let the very fact that you cannot know Him fully lead you to praise Him for His infiniteness and grandeur.

If God cared only about religious activities, then the Pharisees would have been heroes of the faith.

The God who loans you life sees your every move, hears each word you speak, knows your every thought. You are seen by God. Noticed. Known.

Lukewarm living and claiming Christ's name simultaneously is utterly disgusting to God.

The point of your life is to point to Him. Whatever you are doing, God wants to be glorified, because this whole thing is His.

Let us be eager to leave what is familiar for what is true.

‎"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?

We don't get to decide who God is.

When we work for Christ out of obligation, it feels like work. But when we truly love Christ, our work is a manifestation of that love, and it feels like love.

Has your relationship with God changed the way you live your life?

We are most alive when we are loving and actively giving ourselves because we were made to do these things.

I quickly found that the American church is a difficult place to fit in if you want to live out New Testament Christianity. The goals of American Christianity are often a nice marriage, children who don't swear, and good church attendance. Taking the words of Christ literally, and seriously, is rarely considered. That's for the 'radicals' who are 'unbalanced' and who go 'overboard.' Most of us want a balanced life we can control, that is safe, and that does not involve suffering.

Can you worship a God who isn't obligated to explain His actions to you? Could it be your arrogance that makes you think God owes you an explanation?

I want to see people do more than simply raise their hand when they come to Christ. Where are the totally changed lives?

Proclaiming the gospel to a lost world cannot be just another activity to add to the church's crowded agenda. It must be central to who we are. It forms our identity.

God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. The answer to religious complacency isn't working harder at a list of do's and don'ts-it's falling in love with God.

We need to be more concerned about who we are before God than our reputation before people.

Doesn't every encounter with God only cause us to thirst for Him more?

People who are obsessed are raw with God; they do not attempt to mask the ugliness of their sins or their failures. Obsessed people don't put it on for God; He is their safe place, where they can be at peace.

James 2:19- 'You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that- and shudder.' God doesn't just want us to have good theology; He wants us to know and love Him.

The fact is, I need God to help me love God. And if I need His help to love Him, a perfect being, I definitely need His help to love other, fault-filled humans.