Max Lucado - Discovering the Cure for the Common Life (Excerpt): Living in Your Sweet Spot

Discovering the
Cure for the Common Life

Living in Your Sweet Spot

Max Lucado

Max Lucado

2006 Max Lucado. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Throughout this book are various expressions by Max Lucado related to the SIMA (System for Identifying Motivated Abilities) technology, which have been or are registered as copyrighted under the name of People Management International, Inc. All rights reserved. No part may be reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Published by W Publishing Group, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, Tennessee 37214.

W Publishing books may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fund-raising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail SpecialMarkets@ThomasNelson.com.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New King James Version, copyright 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers. Other Scripture references are from the following sources: The Contemporary English Version (CEV) 1991 by the American Bible Society. Used by permission. Gods Word (GODS WORD) is a copyrighted work of Gods Word to the Nations Bible Society. Quotations are used by permission. Copyright 1995 by Gods Word to the Nations Bible Society. All rights reserved. The Message (MSG), copyright 1993. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. New American Standard Bible (NASB), 1960, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. The New Century Version (NCV). Copyright 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. The Holy Bible, New International Version (NIV). Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. The Holy Bible, New Living Translation (NLT), copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. The Living Bible (TLB), copyright 1971 by Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois 60187. The Jerusalem Bible (JB) 1966, 1967, 1968 by Darton, Longman and Todd, Ltd. and Doubleday. All rights reserved. Any italics in the Scripture quotations reflect the authors own emphasis.

Printed in the United States of America

06 07 08 09 AP 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

1
YOUR SWEET SPOT
(YOU HAVE ONE!)

Each person is given something to do that shows who God is.

1 Corinthians 12:7 MSG

Sweet spot. Golfers understand the term. So do tennis players. Ever swung a baseball bat or paddled a Ping-Pong ball? If so, you know the oh-so-nice feel of the sweet spot. Connect with these prime inches of real estate and kapow! The collective technologies of the universe afterburn the ball into orbit, leaving you Frisbee-eyed and strutting. Your arm doesnt tingle, and the ball doesnt ricochet. Your boyfriend remembers birthdays, the tax refund comes early, and the flight attendant bumps you up to first class. Life in the sweet spot rolls like the downhill side of a downwind bike ride.

But you dont have to swing a bat or a club to know this. What engineers give sports equipment, God gave you. A zone, a region, a life precinct in which you were made to dwell. He tailored the curves of your life to fit an empty space in his jigsaw puzzle. And life makes sweet sense when you find your spot. But how do you? Where do you go? What pills do you order, class do you take, or infomercial do you watch? None of the above. Simply quarry...

your uniqueness.

Da Vinci painted one Mona Lisa. Beethoven composed one Fifth Symphony. And God made one version of you. He custom-designed you for a one-of-a-kind assignment. Mine like a gold digger the unique-to-you nuggets from your life.

When I was six years old, my father built us a house. Architectural Digest didnt notice, but my mom sure did. Dad constructed it, board by board, every day after work. My youth didnt deter him from giving me a job. He tied an empty nail apron around my waist, placed a magnet in my hands, and sent me on daily patrols around the building site, carrying my magnet only inches off the ground.

One look at my tools and you could guess my job. Stray-nail collector.

One look at yours and the same can be said. Brick by brick, life by life, God is creating a kingdom, a spiritual house. When God gives an assignment, he also gives the skill. Study your skills, then, to reveal your assignment.

Look at you. Your uncanny ease with numbers. Your quenchless curiosity about chemistry. Others stare at blueprints and yawn; you read them and drool. I was made to do this, you say.

Heed that inner music. No one else hears it the way you do.

At this very moment in another section of the church building in which I write, little kids explore their tools. Preschool classrooms may sound like a cacophony to you and me, but God hears a symphony.

A five-year-old sits at a crayon-strewn table. He seldom talks. Classmates have long since set aside their papers, but he ponders his. The colors compel him. He marvels at the gallery of kelly green and navy blue and royal purple. Masterpiece in hand, hell race to Mom and Dad, eager to show them his kindergarten Picasso.

His sister, however, forgets her drawing. She wont consume the home commute with tales of painted pictures. Shell tell tales of tales. The teacher told us a new story today! And the girl will need no prodding to repeat it.

Another boy cares less about the story and the drawings and more about the other kids. He spends the day wearing a Hey, listen to me! expression, lingering at the front of the class, testing the patience of the teacher. He relishes attention, evokes reactions. His theme seems to be Do it this way. Come with me. Lets try this.

Meaningless activities at an insignificant age? Or subtle hints of hidden strengths? I opt for the latter. The quiet boy with the color fascination may someday brighten city walls with murals. His sister may pen a screenplay or teach literature to curious coeds. And the kid who recruits followers today might eventually do the same on behalf of a product, the poor, or even his church.

What about you? Our Maker gives assignments to people, to each according to each ones unique ability (Matt. 25:15). As he calls, he equips. Look back over your life. What have you consistently done well? What have you loved to do? Stand at the intersection of your affections and successes and find your uniqueness.

You have one. A divine spark. So much for the excuse I dont have anything to offer. Did the apostle Paul say, The Spirit has given some of us...? Or, The Spirit has given a few of us...? No. The Spirit has given each of us a special way of serving others. Enough of this self-deprecating I cant do anything.

And enough of its arrogant opposite: I have to do everything. No, you dont! Youre not Gods solution to society, but a solution in society. Imitate Paul, who said, Our goal is to stay within the boundaries of Gods plan for us. Clarify your contribution.

Dont worry about skills you dont have. Dont covet strengths others do have. Just extract your uniqueness. Kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you. And do so to...

make a big deal out of God.