You are in charge of your choices.

I recently finished Sally Clarkson’s new book, Own Your Life. The Clarksons are authors of one of my favorite homeschooling books, especially for starting out with young kids: Educating the Whole-Hearted Child.

Owning your life is hard work and there are no easy answers.

[pullquote align=”center”] We are all born with the capacity to live effective lives, but culture has lost an imagination for godly character that produces such lives.

[/pullquote]

Sally Clarkson writes about how to be in charge of your life – not in a way that is controlling and self-seeking or self-aggrandizing, but in a way that sees that choices have consequences. We are called to obedience – and that looks like something – so we need to own our choices and determine to obey God, whatever that brings, trusting Him to work the results He chooses.

We aren’t owning the outcome; the outcome is God’s. But we do own our choices along the way, and this book is an encouragement to think through every area of life and make sure we are making decisions that line up with what we truly believe.

[pullquote align=”center”] [Owning our lives] requires taking responsibility for our decisions and understanding that each person has the power and authority to bring his or her life back into order.

[/pullquote]

She wants us to not live in default mode, and that’s a needed message. It’s so easy to drift, but drifting is like the man in the parable who buried his talent in the ground. Instead, we should invest our lives and trust God to work a return – not necessarily for ourselves, but for the kingdom.

[pullquote align=”center”] Each of us is a steward of the days allotted for our lifetime, and learning to manage our commitments and priorities is critical.

[/pullquote]

[pullquote align=”center”] Each of us has a “will” inside that determines, to a great degree, how strong we will become in living abundant, flourishing lives. How you exercise your choices, how you choose to invest your mind, and the degree to which you exert self-discipline to follow through with wise decisions will determine the fruit of your life.

[/pullquote]

This book has no simple steps or quick tips for getting life under control. It is the long-haul message that a lifetime of faithful decisions will not result in an easy life, but it will result in a fruitful life.

• Share
• Tweet