I want to highlight key points from Jim Petersen's The Insider as I read it. From chapter 1:
God has purposes and He is working them out.
We all need to live for something. It’s contrary to our nature to be content if we feel our lives are not counting for something that is bigger than life! God made us this way. Whatever the earthly value of our achievements, if we do not feel that what we’re working on somehow transcends the here and now, we find ourselves struggling with feelings of futility. This is a universal phenomenon that runs through all of human history.
We often don’t feel like we have a part because it seems like “the main feature in most Christians’ lives today is congregating. This makes most of us passive participants.”
The purpose of this book is:
We want to help people… understand their calling to participate in what God is doing today. We want people to see that this calling is to be worked out within their existing relational networks where they are already positioned as insiders. God intends that every part of our daily life should line up with his purposes, to his glory. We believe this is something that is within reach for all of us, not just the gifted few.