A Godward Heart by John Piper

This is a collection of insights from Piper. Some insights, he notes, do not take a whole book to communicate. Sometimes a single paragraph can be life changing.

Some of the topics he covers include what it means to seek the Lord, recognizing the possibility of idolatry, voting in a world that is passing away, why Christians suffer, Chesterton's Orthodoxy, marriage, nine ways to love your Muslim neighbor, pastors and media attention, Abraham Lincoln and divine providence, and social media.

This collection is really a variety and I could detect no cohesive theme running through it. For example, one devotion is on the I-35W bridge collapse. Another contains tips on talking to depressed people. Some are insights into puzzling Scripture. Another is on women in combat. And the length of the meditations vary as well. Some are as short as two pages while others weigh in at six pages.

This is a great book for people who like Piper (as I do). Piper is a strong believer in God's sovereignty. Be prepared for that to be proclaimed in these meditations. For example, in the meditation on lying: “We mean that God governs all things in the universe, including the sins of sinful men.” (52)

It is also good for people with a short attention span or people who routinely have a few moments in which they can read a short meditation. It would be a good book to have in the car as a meditation could be read while waiting to pick up the kids from school or similar situations.

There is a kind of serendipity to the book as every meditation is a surprise.

Food for thought: “God's love for us is not mainly his making much of us, but his giving us the ability to enjoy making much of him forever.” (13)

See the publisher's product page here. You can read chapter one here.

John Piper is the founder and teacher of www.desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College and Seminary. For thirty-three years he served as pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis. He is the author of more than fifty books, including the contemporary classic Desiring God. He and his wife have five children and twelve grandchildren.

Multnomah, 224 pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this independent and honest review.