The Life You've Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People [Hardcover]

John Ortberg (Author), Bill Hybels (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 3, 1997

The reader is presented with what it means to live as Jesus would on a day-to-day basis. John Ortberg presents readers with life on the edge--one filled with new meaning, hope, change, and a joyous, growing closeness to Christ.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

The Christian life is about more than being forgiven, more even than making it to heaven. The heart of Christianity is about transformation about a God who isn't just concerned with our "spiritual lives," but who wants to impact every aspect of living. It's realizing that God meets us not in a monastery but on Main Street, and that all of ordinary, daily life has the potential to be lived as if Jesus himself were the one living it.

John Ortberg calls us back to the dynamic heartbeat of Christianity God's power to bring change and growth and shows us how we can attain it . . . and why we should attain it. Salvation without change was unheard-of to Christians of other days, he says so why has the church today reduced faith to mere spiritual "fire insurance" that omits the best part of being a Christian?

The Life You've Always Wanted offers modern perspectives on the ancient path of the spiritual disciplines. But it's more than just a book about things we should do if we want to be good Christians. It's a road map toward true transformation, compelling because it starts not with ourselves but with the object of our journey Jesus Christ. Ortberg shows us that Christianity isn't a matter of externals, of outer form that gets the church stamp of approval, but of Christ's character becoming etched with ever-increasing depth into our own character.

As with a marathon runner, the secret lies not in trying harder, but in training consistently. Hence the spiritual disciplines. They're neither taskmasters nor an end in themselves. They're exercises that strengthen our endurance race down the road of growth. As we continue down that road, we'll see the signposts joy, peace, kindness, and all the hallmarks of a faith that's vital, real, and growing.

Paved with humor and sparkling anecdotes, The Life You've Always Wanted is an encouraging and challenging approach to a Christian life that's worth living. Life on the edge, that fills our ordinary world with new meaning, hope, change, and a joyous, growing closeness to Christ.

From the Author

John Ortberg is a teaching pastor at Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois. Each week he speaks to thousands of people at the church's New Community services. John has written for Christianity Today and is a frequent contributor to Leadership Journal

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan Publishing Company (November 3, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310212146
• ISBN-13: 978-0310212140
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #390,506 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John Ortberg is a pastor at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church in Menlo Park, California. He is the bestselling author of Faith & Doubt; When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box; God Is Closer Than You Think; The Life You've Always Wanted; Everybody's Normal Till You Get to Know Them; If You Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to Get Out of the Boat; Love Beyond Reason; and (with Kevin Harney) the multimedia curriculum Old Testament Challenge. He and his wife, Nancy, have three children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

211 of 214 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Book, February 9, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Life You've Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People (Hardcover)

The book focuses on three primary questions: what does true spiritual life really look like? what hinders me from living such a life? The author gives some valuable suggestions. If you want more answers to these questions and you are not imprisoned by religious dogma try the book An Encounter With A Prophet.

58 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The 3rd most important book I've ever read. . ., March 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Life You've Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People (Hardcover)

. . .The Bible and Mere Christianity were #1 and #2, by the way:) Once you get past the Baby-Boom-marketing-gimmick title, there's good stuff here. There is a time and place for retreat and contemplation--which he discusses in Chapter 5--but John Ortberg doesn't live in a monastery, and he realizes the average person reading this book isn't, either. His message is that we can live a deeper, more spiritual life right where we are, even with mortgages and kids and dogs and laundry. (He even says that, approached in the right way, our everyday responsibilities are spiritual training ground. That may not be revolutionary to some of you--but it is for me:) This work is immensely readable and laugh-out-loud funny in places--but I've had it two months and am still not finished studying it. It's deep:) What he says about studying Scripture--that our goal is not to get through the Scriptures, rather to get them through US--is also true of his book. My Christian walk is never going to be the same again. I'm giving this to every believer--new and mature--on my Christmas list this year.

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Willard for Dummies?, March 17, 2000

By 

Brent Hudson (Moncton, NB) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Life You've Always Wanted (Paperback)

John Ortberg opens this book by stating that he has drawn heavily from Dallas Willard writings. Having read two of Willard's books I must agree that there is nothing in Ortberg's book that could not be gleaned from Willard; however, that is not the end of the story. Ortberg is a better communicator for non-academics; he is a gifted teacher. His anecdotes and illustrations are well done and on a couple of occasions I actually laughed out loud (look for his story about the pick-up truck). He makes himself vulnerable throughout this book and you cannot help but let your guard down as you read.

This is one of those "easy-read" books that can have a very heavy impact on real life if one allows. It is not so much a book about spiritual disciplines as a guide book to a life of joy and transformation. My wife and I both have appreciated this book (which is quite something I might add). I will be reading it again.