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Pierced by the Word: Thirty-One Meditations for Your Soul

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John Piper is a deep thinker and deeply in love with God. Combined together, his writings are always solid food for the Christian seeking ways to draw closer to God. As a devotional, this work dishes out pastoral thoughts in bite-sized form. But though each day's reading is about 2-3 pages long, trust me, you'd want to mull over and meditate over it, as it is "solid meat''. You'd read here deep truths that will prod you to live a life that is spent on God.
I discovered John Piper only last year. Let me say that his books, particularly the full-length "Pleasures of God'' have transformed my life. They have a heart-piercing quality to them, which can only come from a man who has thought through his faith and is sold out to it. If you have more time, these full-length books will be worth every cent. I am buying "The Pleasures of God'' and giving it away as gifts.
But this bite-sized devotional also has a place on the shelf. As I said, the writings are brief, but thought-provoking nonetheless. And they come from a pastor's heart.

John Piper is my favorite contemporary Christian author, so it was no surprise to me that this would be another engaging, worship inspiring work from him. His longer works such as "The Pleasures of God" are amazing when you have a bigger stretch of time for devotion, but this provides a perfect alternative when a larger work might put one off from even getting started. Each meditation is a bit longer than a given entry from say "My Utmost For His Highest" (quite possibly the quintessential daily devotional book), but still easily manageable in a single sitting.

These thirty-one meditations follow the pattern of Piper's other excellent God-centered books in directing us both in mind and heart to the piercing words of Scripture. Join Piper in meditating on the practicality of Scripture for all of life, including: parenting and praying, fighting lust and anger, embracing the pain of shame, gaining assurance of salvation, and a score of other topics, in which God is shown to be the main reality. This is an easy to read book (a little less daunting than some of Piper's longer, meatier books) and would make a great gift to a new believer or non-reader.

John Piper has a way of making scripture relavant to daily life. This book challenged my thinking and demanded critical thinking of life and scripture. As with all of Piper's writtings, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting a closer realtionship with Christ.

In a time when most people don't see any relevance to religion, or the Bible, it is so valuable to read books like this. John Piper's perspective if filled with Biblical truth. He brings the word of God to bear on so many issues that affect our daily life. He will help you think critically and Biblically about the world around you.

When I lived in Seattle for a time I was in a new culture, a new country and indeed a whole new stage of life. One thing anchored me and kept me focused on the task at hand, God's word (with the help of Seattle's best coffee). John Piper has been used of God to open up the scriptures to many people, love him or reject him you will always need to study the scripture in order to interact with him and for that we can be thankful. I have always been encouraged by his ministry and I would recommend this book to anyone who needs anchored in God's word.

This is a collection of John Piper at his best with thoughts on scripture that are challenging, encouraging a deeper walk with him, and,as you would expect from Piper pushing us to glorify God by enjoying Him forever.

If you've never read one of John Piper's devotional books, you're missing out. The 31 meditations in Pierced by the Word cover a variety of topics -- some practical, others theological. From drinking orange juice to battling lust, from thinking about suffering to thinking about politics -- each devotional reading stresses the importance of living by faith and living for Christ.

Your soul will be nourished by this book, as it stresses the importance of personal prayer and emphasizes the glory of the Gospel. I recommend that you get this or another of Piper's devotional books, and read it as part of your spiritual diet. It will help you fight the good fight of faith.

This book is great for those short on time but in need of Biblically sound meditations to calibrate your soul each day. Each meditation is short enough to read in the morning before work or during lunch. A great find.