Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life-gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life.
Oswald ChambersRead
A good book, in the language of the book-sellers, is a salable one; in that of the curious, a scarce one; in that of men of sense, a useful and instructive one.
Interpretation
What this quote means
A good book is valued differently depending on the perspective of the reader or seller.
This quote by Oswald Chambers illustrates how the worth of a book can vary based on who is evaluating it. For booksellers, it's about marketability and sales; for those with curiosity, it's about rarity and uniqueness; and for discerning readers, a good book serves a greater purpose of education and enlightenment. This highlights the multifaceted nature of literature and the diverse ways in which it can enrich our lives.
Themes
BooksEducationLiteratureValuePerspective
In practice
Example use cases
During a book club meeting, to emphasize the importance of selecting diverse genres.
More from Oswald Chambers
All quotes →Never make the blunder of trying to forecast the way God is going to answer your prayer.
Oswald ChambersRead
Service is the overflow which pours from a life filled with love and devotion. But strictly speaking, there is no call to that. Service is what I bring to the relationship and is the reflection of my identification with the nature of God.
Oswald ChambersRead
When we preach the love of God there is a danger of forgetting that the Bible reveals not first the love of God but the intense, blazing holiness of God, with His love at the center of that holiness.
Oswald ChambersRead
It is much easier to do something than to trust in God; we mistake panic for inspiration.
Oswald ChambersRead
Service is the overflow which pours from a life filled with love and devotion.
Oswald ChambersRead
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The Greeks understood that mind and body must develop in harmonious proportions to produce a creative intelligence. And so did the most brilliant intelligence of our earliest days - Thomas Jefferson - when he said, not less than two hours a day should be devoted to exercise. If the man who wrote the Declaration of Independence, was Secretary of State, and twice President, could give it two hours, our children can give it ten or fifteen minutes.
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I have no interest in teaching writers how to sell. I want to teach them how to write. If the process is sound, the product will take care of itself, and sales are likely to follow.
William ZinsserRead