--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Focusing on what we ought to do for God…" description: "\"Focusing on what we ought to do for God creates only frustration and exhaustion; focusing on what Jesus has done for us produces abundant fruit. Restin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ea/j-d-greear-2-26077_christianity_focusing-on-what-we-ought-to-do-for-god_3069704.jpg" --- # Focusing on what we ought to do for God creates only… ![“Focusing on what we ought to do for God creates only frustration and exhaustion; focusing on what Jesus has done for us produces abundant fruit. Resting in what Jesus has done for us releases the revolutionary power of the gospel.” quote by J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ea/j-d-greear-2-26077_christianity_focusing-on-what-we-ought-to-do-for-god_3069704.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ea/j-d-greear-2-26077_christianity_focusing-on-what-we-ought-to-do-for-god_3069704.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9ea/j-d-greear-2-26077_christianity_focusing-on-what-we-ought-to-do-for-god_3069704.jpg) > “Focusing on what we ought to do for God creates only frustration and exhaustion; focusing on what Jesus has done for us produces abundant fruit. Resting in what Jesus has done for us releases the revolutionary power of the gospel.” [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Focusing on personal effort for God leads to burnout; trusting Jesus’s work yields spiritual fruit. **In simple terms:** Relying on Jesus’s work, not our own, brings peace and productivity. Key Takeaway Rest in Christ’s work for lasting impact. Themes faith spirituality exhaustion trust fruitfulness Mood encouraging spiritual reflective Type theology pastoral guidance When to use this quote - Personal prayer - church teaching - spiritual counseling - overcoming legalism Key Concepts Grace dependence spiritual fruit rest renewal Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance grace with personal responsibility? - What practices help you trust more? A Different Perspective May downplay the value of personal effort in growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Exhaustion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exhaustion/) [Fruit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fruit/) [Frustration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frustration/) [Gospel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gospel/) [Jesus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jesus/) [Revolutionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionary/) ## Related quotes > [For me personally, joy comes from focusing on Jesus, others, and yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dabo-swinney/for-me-personally-joy-comes-from-focusing-on-jesus-others-and-yourself/) [Dabo Swinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dabo-swinney/) > [I lived in New York, and I was the guy who was flying home almost every week, so there was a physical exhaustion and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jacobson/i-lived-in-new-york-and-i-was-the-guy-who-was-flying-home-almost/) [Peter Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jacobson/) > [We fought a military war; our opponents fought a political one. We sought physical attrition; our opponents aimed for our psychological exhaustion. In the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-fought-a-military-war-our-opponents-fought-a-political-one-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The sort of the template of being a mother is that you're endlessly giving to the point of exhaustion. You know, that's amazing if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-moran/the-sort-of-the-template-of-being-a-mother-is-that-you-re-endlessly/) [Caitlin Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-moran/) > [Enthusiasm is always connected with the senses, whatever be the object that excites it. The true strength of virtue is serenity of mind, combined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/enthusiasm-is-always-connected-with-the-senses-whatever-be-the-object/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [Write to exhaustion so that you can no longer manage to avoid writing the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elissa-schappell/write-to-exhaustion-so-that-you-can-no-longer-manage-to-avoid-writing/) [Elissa Schappell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elissa-schappell/) > [It is not the dream of what you're feeling laziness, if not, the sleep of exhaustion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-not-the-dream-of-what-you-re-feeling-laziness-if-not-the-sleep/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Death is the expression of exhaustion, a solution arrived at rationally once one has known the deepest depths of tiredness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hui-wei/death-is-the-expression-of-exhaustion-a-solution-arrived-at/) [Hui Wei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hui-wei/) > [The downfall of civilized states tends to come not from the direct assaults of foes, but from internal decay combined with the consequences of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-h-liddell-hart/the-downfall-of-civilized-states-tends-to-come-not-from-the-direct/) [B. H. Liddell Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-h-liddell-hart/) > [Everything that these folks are saying that they're trying to move away from, like comparison, perfectionism, judgement, and exhaustion as a status symbol -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bren-brown/everything-that-these-folks-are-saying-that-they-re-trying-to-move/) [Brené Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bren-brown/) > [People would do well to ask themselves how many of their ambitions and aspirations derive from the type of economic system they inhabit and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-benn/people-would-do-well-to-ask-themselves-how-many-of-their-ambitions/) [Tony Benn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-benn/) > [… but only because exhaustion is a life-sign; it is at least a form of being human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/but-only-because-exhaustion-is-a-life-sign-it-is-at-least-a-form-of/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“...and, without once looking back, walk down the road through the forest. If the Germans want to shoot me, let them. I am too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audie-murphy/and-without-once-looking-back-walk-down-the-road-through-the-forest/) [Audie Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audie-murphy/) > [“Remember what I done for you here today,' he shouted and passed out.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-higson/remember-what-i-done-for-you-here-today-he-shouted-and-passed-out/) [Charlie Higson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-higson/) > [“And though I feel an unfathomable exhaustion, I feel compelled to keep at it, as though to give up working would be to concede…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-laffoley/and-though-i-feel-an-unfathomable-exhaustion-i-feel-compelled-to-keep/) Steven Laffoley ## More by J. D. Greear > [Don’t feel your way into your beliefs; believe your way into your feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/don-t-feel-your-way-into-your-beliefs-believe-your-way-into-your/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [If you want to be led by the Spirit of God, then devote yourself to the Word of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/if-you-want-to-be-led-by-the-spirit-of-god-then-devote-yourself-to/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [The gospel has done its work in us when we crave God more than we crave everything else in life - more than money,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/the-gospel-has-done-its-work-in-us-when-we-crave-god-more-than-we/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart: How to Know for Sure You Are Saved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/stop-asking-jesus-into-your-heart-how-to-know-for-sure-you-are-saved/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [When we realize how great a debt we owe to God, we become willing servants, eager to be poured out for God and His…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/when-we-realize-how-great-a-debt-we-owe-to-god-we-become-willing/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [The gospel points us upward to a God who gave himself for us, backward to the price he paid for our sin, and forward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/the-gospel-points-us-upward-to-a-god-who-gave-himself-for-us-backward/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [Lord, as You have been to me, so I will be to others. As I pray, I'll measure Your compassion by the cross and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/lord-as-you-have-been-to-me-so-i-will-be-to-others-as-i-pray-i-ll/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [God calls us first... not to a platform, but to an altar!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/god-calls-us-first-not-to-a-platform-but-to-an-altar/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [Things like radical generosity and audacious faith are not produced when we focus on them, but when we focus on the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/things-like-radical-generosity-and-audacious-faith-are-not-produced/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [God sometimes answers our prayers by giving us what we would have asked for had we known what He knows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/god-sometimes-answers-our-prayers-by-giving-us-what-we-would-have/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [At your church, the week is more important than the weekend. Empower people and send them out for the week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/at-your-church-the-week-is-more-important-than-the-weekend-empower/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [Satan's most effective weapon is to take our eyes off of what God has declared over us in the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/satan-s-most-effective-weapon-is-to-take-our-eyes-off-of-what-god-has/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [Surveys show that more than 50 percent of people in the U.S. have prayed the sinner's prayer and think they're going to heaven because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/surveys-show-that-more-than-50-percent-of-people-in-the-u-s-have/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [The goal of the gospel is to produce a type of people consumed with passion for God an love for others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/the-goal-of-the-gospel-is-to-produce-a-type-of-people-consumed-with-2/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) > [Worry springs from not being convinced of a sovereign God's absolute love for you. Worry disappears when you realize that God loves you unfailingly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-greear-2/worry-springs-from-not-being-convinced-of-a-sovereign-god-s-absolute/) [J. D. Greear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) [Explore all 22 J. D. Greear quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-greear-2/) ## More Christianity quotes > [Christianity was never meant to be defined by its disciplines, but by its passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/christianity-was-never-meant-to-be-defined-by-its-disciplines-but-by/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/) [Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/) > [“God hates Hell. He hates the idea of people going there. He hates it so much that He was willing to take on human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-minton/god-hates-hell-he-hates-the-idea-of-people-going-there-he-hates-it-so/) [Evan Minton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-minton/) > [“some of my good Baptist brethren in Georgia had done a little preaching from the pulpit against the KKK, I would have a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-moss/some-of-my-good-baptist-brethren-in-georgia-had-done-a-little/) [Norman Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-moss/) > [I pray that wherever we are and whatever duties we have in the priesthood of God, we will be united in the cause to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/i-pray-that-wherever-we-are-and-whatever-duties-we-have-in-the/) [Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/) > [Why do Christians sing when they are together? The reason is, quite simply, because in singing together it is possible for them to speak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/why-do-christians-sing-when-they-are-together-the-reason-is-quite/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“every church can treat each discipleship class and each worship service as an opportunity for continual rehearsal of what the words, stories, symbols, rituals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-arthur/every-church-can-treat-each-discipleship-class-and-each-worship/) [Sarah Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-arthur/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [The notion of a non-religious Christmas is ridiculous. But so is the insistence on the part of Christians that politicians and retailers carry out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-campos-duffy/the-notion-of-a-non-religious-christmas-is-ridiculous-but-so-is-the/) [Rachel Campos-Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-campos-duffy/) > [A real Christian in an odd number anyway. He feels supreme love for One whom he has never seen, talks familiarly every day to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-real-christian-in-an-odd-number-anyway-he-feels-supreme-love-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Because the truth is that gossip is as good as gospel in this town. 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Then I went to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-patinkin/i-grew-up-in-synagogue-in-the-boys-choir-we-didn-t-listen-to-music-in/) [Mandy Patinkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-patinkin/) [Browse all 14,385 Christianity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Focusing on what we ought to do for God creates only frustration and exhaustion; focusing on what Jesus has done for us produces abundant fruit. Resting in what Jesus has done for us releases the revolutionary power of the gospel.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "J. D. 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