Eyes Wide Open: Enjoying God in Everything [Paperback]

Steve DeWitt (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Credo House Publishers (January 5, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 193539164X
• ISBN-13: 978-1935391647
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #162,920 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fresh Perspective April 11, 2012

By Erin Craig

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is definitely worth your time to read. Steve DeWitt is very gifted at using practical, commonplace illustrations to bring out deep truths. Most Christians have heard the adage, "All truth is God's truth." In Eyes Wide Open, DeWitt asserts that the same is true of each of God's attributes, in this book namely His beauty. All beauty is God's beauty because He Himself IS beauty and the Creator of all things beautiful. DeWitt uses an illustration of a yardstick. Not only do you measure yards by it, but it IS itself a yard. In the same way, God IS beauty and by Him we measure beauty. All beautiful things were gifted to us for a greater purpose than just the sheer enjoyment they have to offer. Rather, DeWitt states, they are a reflection of the truest beauty: Christ.

Not only does this book make you think more about what beauty means in our world, but it provides challenging thoughts from other great minds throughout history (and of course, the Bible) about finding the essence of Christ in the world around us. After reading this book you may find, like myself, that you notice beauty in new places. All because I was challenged to walk through my days with my eyes wide open.

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Eye-Opening Book September 19, 2012

By David Murray

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Eyes Wide Open not only opened my eyes. It also opened my mind and my heart. So enjoyably, that I've now read it three times in just over a month.

It also leaves me open-mouthed asking, "Why isn't everyone talking about it? Why isn't this book all over the Christian blogosphere?"

I was stunned to discover only one Amazon review! It was a five star review, unsurprisingly. The surprise was only one review. Where are your friends when you need them!?

When I see the dozens of reviews and five stars attached to so many other Christian books of far less worth, I'm inclined to think that this is failure of marketing.

Or maybe it reflects a general lack of Christian interest in and passion for beauty in our world. Some Christians are perhaps too "spiritual" to see anything beautiful in the world. Others are possibly too "worldly" to appreciate beauty and see its spiritual dimensions. And the myriads of busy activists don't want to pause and ponder: "Just give us something practical."

So, how can I encourage you to read this book? Let me put it in one sentence: It will utterly transform the way you view, experience, and interact with the world and the God who made it. Yes, it's one of the most spiritual, beautiful, and practical books I've read in a long time.

It's good to see a growing number of Christian authors calling Christians to rediscover their biblical calling to be the greatest creators, connoisseurs, and communicators of beauty. But I'd recommend this book to thoughtful non-Christians too as it paints a picture of Gospel-centered Christianity in such a positively beautiful and inspiring light.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Year's Best January 2, 2013

By Tim Challies TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

You may have noticed that over the past few weeks I have been reviewing books that come from a little bit off the beaten path, so to speak. I have been reading, enjoying and reviewing books that have come our way from lesser-known Christian publishers. It turns out there are some fresh, excellent titles coming from some of these smaller publishers.

From Credo House Publishers and author Steve DeWitt comes Eyes Wide Open, a book about learning to enjoy God in everything. Let me say it from the outset: this is a really good book. I enjoyed it thoroughly and benefited in very specific ways from the time I spent reading it. Let me tell you about just one of the most important things I learned.

The place to begin when considering the topic is with a question like this one: Why do I enjoy _________ so much? You can fill in that blank with a kind of food or a form of art or even with a beautiful landscape. Why do you enjoy that thing so much? What draws you to it? What does it do in you and for you?

DeWitt wants to help you appreciate those things even more than you do now, and in order to do that, you need to understand beauty and joy and wonder from a biblical perspective. You need to know why God made this world as wondrously beautiful as he did. The author's reflections on this topic, more than anything else in the book, have resounded in my mind and heart.

Beauty was created by God for a purpose: to give us the experience of wonder. And wonder, in turn, is intended to lead us to the ultimate human expression and privilege: worship. Beauty is both a gift and a map. It is a gift to be enjoyed and a map to be followed back to the source of the beauty with praise and thanksgiving....

This was tremendously helpful to me, this idea that beauty is meant to evoke wonder. Wonder, in turn, is meant to lead us to worship. The analogy of the map is helpful--beauty is meant to point us to the source of all beauty. It's a simple progression: Beauty to wonder to worship.

Of course we live in a sinful world and have sin-stained hearts. Too often we allow beauty to lead us to wonder and we then get fixated on the wonder or the beauty without ever getting to the worship. Why do we worship so little even when we wonder so much? Reflecting on this DeWitt writes,

We are confused about where to place the glory. Beauty still creates wonder, and wonder still searches for someone to give glory for the beauty. Without God, however, we are left to worship the artist or simply the beauty for its own sake. We worship created things rather than the Creator (Romans 1:25). Our wonder turns onto itself. We worship things, stuff, and matter.

I see this most clearly in music. Excellent musicians evoke wonder in their listeners; their listeners express this wonder in worship of the musician. What we ought to do, of course, is allow the beauty of the music to move us to worship God. The same is true of a great meal or a great painting; even while we affirm the skill of the chef or artist, our worship should be directed at God alone. That is just one reflection, one application, from this excellent new title.

Eyes Wide Open is a very enjoyable, very quotable book, and one that made an immediate impact on my life. It was a book that showed up unannounced and a book that was just exactly what I needed to read at this time. I am glad to commend it to you. Read more ›

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars See His Beauty October 4, 2012

By Atreegrows

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is truly a real "eye-opener" of an elusive concept--His Beauty. The author's step-by-step method to open both believers and unbelievers' eyes to the beauty of Christ is both logical and awe-inspiring. I use this book as my opening devotional to personal Bible study and can truthfully say I am reading the Bible differently after having read "Eyes Wide Open."

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Seeing the Creator March 25, 2013

By Jeanie S

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

What is it to enjoy the Lord in everything? More than you would think and it is a lifestyle. Seeing the Lord in everything changes how you live, how you respond to Him and to others. Seeing the Lord in everything should lead you to wonder, in awe of Him, then lead to worship in a meaningful way. Somewhat convicting in that do I enjoy the things of this life without regard to the creator, am I like a non believer. Do not let your heart be deceived. If anything, this read engages you to ask questions of yourself and who you think God is. The word is central in knowing the beauty and truth of the Lord. The gospel is the heart of His beauty