Product Description

A serious book about being happy in God and how that works out in all aspects of life: worship, love, Scripture, prayer, money, marriage, missions and suffering.

Includes 5 helpful appendices on topics such as: ‘Is the Bible a reliable guide to lasting joy?’, ‘Is God less glorious because he ordained that evil be?’ (Jonathan Edwards on the divine decrees) and ‘How then shall we fight for joy?’

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #54817 in Books
• Published on: 2004-07-16
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 498 pages

Baptist Times; September 2004
In this paradigm-shattering work, John Piper reveals that the debate between duty and delight doesn't truly exist:

From the Publisher
The pursuit of pleasure is not optional – it is essential. It is our business to glorify God by enjoying him for ever. Piper shows how God-centred joy, fuelled by worship, prayer and the Bible, overflows in service and mission

From the Inside Flap
Updated edition of a spiritual classic.

‘Mind-hammering and heart-warming, 'Desiring God' ignites a passion for God that would set the world ablaze if it were the norm and not the exception today.’
- Os Guinness, author of 'Time for Truth'

The pursuit of pleasure is not optional. It is essential. Scripture reveals that the great business of life is to glorify God by enjoying him for ever. In this paradigm-shattering work, John Piper reveals that the debate between duty and delight doesn’t truly exist: delight is our duty. Join him as he stuns you again and again with life-impacting truths you saw in the Bible, but never dared to believe.

‘… a modern manual of true spirituality.’
- R. C. Sproul

‘…a soul-stirring celebration of the pleasures of knowing God … a must-read for every Christian, and a feast for the spiritually hungry.’
- John MacArthur

‘The communion of a longing soul and a satisfying Christ is at the center of God’s plan. Piper makes this overlooked, contradicted, trivialized and sentimentalized message clear and compelling. Desiring God is a classic – now it’s even richer.’
- Larry Crabb

‘The healthy biblical realism of this study in Christian motivation comes as a breath of fresh air. Jonathan Edwards, whose ghost walks through most of Piper’s pages, would be delighted with his disciple.’
- J. I. Packer

Customer Reviews

Life changing
Desiring God has had the most radical impact on my thinking and life. Piper's thesis - that the only way to live is with a combined passion for our own joy and for God's glory - has been a powerful and fruitful motivation in my life eversince I grasped this truth. His biblical exposition is stunning - there is no fanciful speculation, just a clear and obvious presentation of scripture. On prayer, he demonstates convincingly that the purpose of prayer is to maximise God's glory (Jn 14:13) and to maximise our joy (Jn 16:24). This has sunk deep into my spirit and transformed the way I pray - and the effectiveness of my praying! Much more could be said about this totally God-centred book. Get it, read it, share it.

A contradiction in terms?
Desiring God - The Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (someone who pursues pleasure). Isn't that a contradiction in terms? Christianity - - hedonism?
The author, John Piper, shows through scripture (the Bible) that this is not a contradiction in terms. The chief aim of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever. Ten aspects of life, ranging from conversion to suffering and money to marriage, are considered.
This would be my desert island book! I was challenged and inspired - and caused to think seriously about many areas of my Christian life. The author opened a new dimension to my faith and walk with God. I am already looking forward to reading it again in the near future!

The Chief End of Man - to Glorify God and enjoy Him For Ever
The central thesis of this book is that our pleasure or delight in God is not a secondary, peripheral issue in the Christian life, but rather it is central.

John Piper’s life mission statement and the foundation of his book is that
‘God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him’. It is a serious book about being happy in God, ‘happiness’ because that is what our Creator commands; “Delight yourself in the Lord” - Psalm 37 v 4. It is serious because, as Jeremy Taylor said, “God threatens terrible things if we will not be happy!”

The overriding concern of this book is that in all of life, God be glorified the way He appointed. The book aims to persuade its readers that; ‘The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever’.

Here are two snippets: ‘I found that the goodness of God, the very foundation of worship, is not a thing you pay your respects to out of some kind of disinterested reverence. No, it is something to be enjoyed “0 taste and see that the Lord is good” Psalm 34 v 8’ ‘The pleasure Christian Hedonism seeks is the pleasure which is in God himself. He is the end of our search, not the means to some further end. Our exceeding joy is he, the Lord, not the streets of gold, or the reunion with relatives or any blessing of heaven’.

If, like me, you enjoy the style and content of John Piper’s books, you may well find that you cannot wait for his next book to appear. His emphasis throughout is a good one, namely, that the chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever and shows how this is worked out in the areas of conversion, worship, love, scripture, prayer, money, marriage and missions.

I heartily recommend this book which is both provocative and challenging.

David Stephen