Books
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About the Book
The Eternity Focused Life
Finding Purpose Now Storing Treasure Forever
“Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” In these words, Jesus unabashedly offers the invitation to every believer to squeeze eternal treasures out of this life; treasures that will be enjoyed for all eternity. In The Eternity Focused Life, the author provides biblical insights and practical guidance for navigating the complexities of living in this world while keeping our eyes fixed on eternity.
Believers need to expand their vision to encompass eternity. That vision is established on one’s God-appointed purpose in this life and an awareness of the God-placed opportunities in their life journey for securing his promised rewards. In the context of daily life, the author explores how believers can use the resources God has provided to make an eternal impact for the kingdom in this life and store up treasures in the next. With a preview of what life will be like in eternity and what “treasures” await them in heaven, the author arrives at the core message of the book: practical insights and wisdom on how to use their spiritual gifts, their work life, and their financial resources to prepare for “a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
The book includes reflection questions at the end of each chapter, making it an ideal resource for individual study or small group discussions.
Excerpts from The Eternity Focused Life
Every part of life derives its meaning from God, and they all fit neatly together. Our spiritual, emotional, relational, and vocational lives revolve around our relationship with God and provide a foretaste of his blessings.
The opportunities in your life now are the currency for your rewards in the world to come. Following Jesus is an adventure ensconced in the love, wisdom, and protection of almighty God. This is what you were created to do—God working in you and you living and working in him—as the means of bringing him glory, as the source of life and blessing to others, and as the storing up of treasures in heaven.
The key to preparing for eternity is to adjust our aspirations to encompass that ultimate future. But the challenge of the journey remains. As we navigate this life, we still carry our old nature, begging for attention and satisfaction. We encounter trials, temptations, and persecutions. We must work for a living and be good citizens. We have careers, hobbies, vacations, and personal time. As followers of Christ, our journey is a struggle with competing priorities and aspirations. But as we redirect our focus toward eternity, we discover the opportunity to leave our indelible fingerprints on this world while preparing for the next. Each day God speaks to us, leads us, and compels us forward in our sojourn of faith that leads to our new-earth destiny.
Your life should have, as its core purpose, the goal of fulfilling your role in the advancement of the kingdom. Aligning your priorities with your God-appointed mission puts you in the life-shaping and world-changing flow of the kingdom of God.
The phrase is simple and the words are few, but the message from heaven is profoundly life-altering. As recorded in Matthew 6:20, Jesus stated what sounds remarkably like an invitation, maybe even a challenge: “Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven”. The opportunity, purpose, and destiny of the Christian life are all captured in these words of Jesus, imploring all all who would respond to live an eternity-focused life.
When you look at the evidence and examine the promises, it is not only reasonable to passionately pursue following Christ, it’s the only response that makes sense. Anything less cheats you out of that which is true life: the unspoiled life on the new earth. There is no other relationship deserving of your strongest loyalty. No other answer to your deepest longings. No other life path that merits pursuit. No other treasure that compares to heavenly rewards.
About the Author
John Hargrave
A graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary, John has insights from both the perspective of serving as a church pastor as well as working in a secular job. He relates well to the challenges facing believers as they navigate life as a committed follower of Christ. His ministry experience includes twelve years serving as a staff pastor, thirty years as an elder, initiating and leading a discipleship ministry, co-founding a financial teaching and counseling ministry, and chairing the board of an inner-city ministry. After his years on church staff, John served as managing partner of a nationally recognized banking consulting firm prior to his retirement.
John and his wife Linda reside in Arkansas and have two adult children and are proud grandparents to one granddaughter.
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