Customer Reviews

LifeWork: Finding Your Purpose in Life

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In the course of my work, I receive dozens of books and manuscripts for review. Most find their way to a dusty corner of my office. Not so with Life Work: Finding Your Purpose in Life by Rick Sarkisian. Being the father of three teens, I immediately recognized the value of this book to help my older children discover their life purpose. I took Life Work home and asked all of my teens to read it. I then used Life Work as a starting point in my discussions with my teenagers about calling, career, and college.

Some people expect a book of this type to be like a magic pill that once swallowed will instantly reveal God's will for their lives. Truly discovering God's will requires effort. This book will not replace the personal disciplines necessary to discover God's will, but it certainly provides the path to follow for the honest and diligent seeker.

It starts with the foundation of rooting ourselves in God himself as a prelude to finding his will. Rick Sarkisian then describes a truly Catholic and historic Christian understanding of a personal vocation. Clear descriptions and practical advice is given for each of the four states of life: marriage, the priesthood, consecrated life and the permanent diaconate.

Life Work challenges the reader to use one's God-given abilities to bring glory to God, no matter which state of life one is called to. The final section of the book includes an extremely useful guide in making plans and decisions regarding career, training, and educational opportunities. Rick Sarkisian's twenty years of experience in professional vocational and career development is condensed for easy understanding and application for the reader. I have had the opportunity of not only using Life Work in my own family, but I have also recommended it as the finest Catholic book of its kind to families throughout North America. This is a book that belongs in every Catholic family.

A final thought - many parents end up paying for five or six years of college before their children obtain an undergraduate degree. Just think - preventing one switch of a college major in an effort to "find oneself" will pay for this book a thousandfold. Using a tool like Life Work can help any concerned parent direct his child into the path he or she should follow.

LifeWork is a unique book in that it combines information on vocation and mission with a built in "workbook" approach for planning, all from a Catholic perspective.

I appreciate the practical nature of LifeWork, which is geared to high school and college age youth. This book is ideal for older teens in catechetical programs, Catholic high school seniors, and youth ministry programs. Having read extensively, I can confidently assert that there is nothing like it on the market today.

The complementary LifeWork video is a great intro to the concepts detailed in the book. In combination, the book and video form a complete package, a program for "life work" discernment and planning.

If you are looking for a "handbook" on vocations, work, and decision-making from a Catholic perspective, this is the book for you.

I found this book to be most valuable, and I think it will enlighten people of all ages who are actively seeking God's direction for their lives.

I love Dr. Sarkisian's plain-spoken style, and his step-by-step approach makes it easy to feel like you're making progress toward discovering God's purpose for your life. He's communicative without being preachy, which makes reading his book a most pleasurable experience.

This book was probably targeted at young people (high school or college level), but I think it's appropriate for all ages. Speaking as a 30-something adult, I can honestly say that I learned a great deal about my purpose in life, and rediscovered God's love for me.

I enthusiastically recommend this book, and suggest that it would make a wonderful gift!

I was so happy to find a book that gave my two college age children some concrete advice on how to find their vocation. It was a new concept for them to look at their college studies, careers, marriages and families, as God given vocations. Including God in their daily decisions gave them a direction that they trust. In a day and age where so much of life is confusing, to look at their lives as a vocation, has helped them to warmly embrace their future and enhanced their relationship with God. Thank You Rick Sarkisian, keep books like this coming!

Although, Ignatius Press bills this book as being useful to adults, I found it useless. I bought it to help me determine God's call in regards to various issues in my life.

I was disappointed to find that the help offered was very superficial. There was no in depth suggestions for determining how to proceed. Instead a list of various types of work was offered and I was to choose what I thought was most appealing.

I am not sure that even a teenager or college student would find this book of much use.

The book is helpful in detailing both how we are called by God and why and gives us some practical ways of being open to hear and answer that call. When read along with viewing the video of the same name, I feel it can be very good in encouraging people to see the importance of hearing and listening to God's call and in eventually answering that call. The book shows how we are called both to a way of life and a mission in life and how to distinguish and unite them in one's personal and communal lives. As a vocation director, I find the book and video very helpful in introducing people to the idea of God's call, our vocation, and how that relates to career and work. If you are looking for a way to begin discerning your own call or helping your children or other young people to do the same, this book, along with the video, is for you.

"Lifework" is a wonderful book to help adults and teens take an alternative perspective in making vocational decisions. Instead of looking at their career choices only in terms of finances, they can now look at these choices and focus on the path that God would have them take. They can have the tools to balance financial security with eternal security.

I have used this book to help my two teenage sons focus on the many choices they have ahead. This book has a practical formula to choose a career that uses the unique talents God has given each of us. It's never too soon to begin thinking and praying about God's plan for your children.