Matthew
What is God's will for my life? To reflect the image of God. Jen Wilken proposes that when we ask this question of God's will we usually begin in the wrong place, asking what we should do. Rather we should start with who should we be. At least, that is what the Bible seems to be more concerned about. And the answer is simple. We should be imitators of Christ, imitating God in His character.
Jen Wilken walks us through ten communicable attributes of God (holiness, loving, good, just, merciful, gracious, faithful, truthful, patient, wise) defining what they are, how we see these attributes in God, and how we can imitate them. I appreciate many of her keen insights into these attributes such as understanding impatience as having wrong expectations or pointing out that often when we ask for wisdom, we're actually asking God for knowledge. And I agree with her overall framework of seeking to imitate God out of gratitude for all He has done for us. We are His image-bearers.
Wilken's style is much like a devotional. I listened to this in audiobook this time around, but I will consider picking it up again for reading so that I can better follow the verses for meditation, questions for reflection, and prayer at the end of each chapter. I've also added her previous book “None like Him” (about God's incommunicable attributes) to my reading list.
I'd recommend this book for anyone desiring to draw nearer to God. Like I said, it's makes a good devotional reading in what I think is the best sense as it focuses not on self-help or a feel good message, but on knowing the living God.
What is God's will for my life? To reflect the image of God. Jen Wilken proposes that when we ask this question of God's will we usually begin in the wrong place, asking what we should do. Rather we should start with who should we be. At least, that is what the Bible seems to be more concerned about. And the answer is simple. We should be imitators of Christ, imitating God in His character.
Jen Wilken walks us through ten communicable attributes of God (holiness, loving, good, just, merciful, gracious, faithful, truthful, patient, wise) defining what they are, how we see these attributes in God, and how we can imitate them. I appreciate many of her keen insights into these attributes such as understanding impatience as having wrong expectations or pointing out that often when we ask for wisdom, we're actually asking God for knowledge. And I agree with her overall framework of seeking to imitate God out of gratitude for all He has done for us. We are His image-bearers.
Wilken's style is much like a devotional. I listened to this in audiobook this time around, but I will consider picking it up again for reading so that I can better follow the verses for meditation, questions for reflection, and prayer at the end of each chapter. I've also added her previous book “None like Him” (about God's incommunicable attributes) to my reading list.
I'd recommend this book for anyone desiring to draw nearer to God. Like I said, it's makes a good devotional reading in what I think is the best sense as it focuses not on self-help or a feel good message, but on knowing the living God.