What On Earth Am I Here For?
Rick Warren
“In order to keep us from becoming too attached to earth, God allows us to feel a significant amount of discontent and dissatisfaction in life – longings that will never be fulfilled on this side of eternity. We’re not completely happy here because we’re not supposed to be! Earth is not our final home; we were created for something much better.”
In all honesty, I was ready to hate this book. That’s my first confession. From the (over) 32 million copies sold in (over) 85 languages to the self-help inspired title, every alarm bell was ringing in my mind. I was convinced that it’d be awful.
But it isn’t.
The Purpose Driven Life is a 40 day “spiritual journey”, divided into six sections. The first section is titled “what on earth am I here for?” before “five purposes” answer this question:
1) You were planned for God’s pleasure.
2) You were formed for God’s family.
3) You were created to become like Christ.
4) You were shaped for serving God.
5) You were made for a mission.
Each chapter within these sections finishes with a “point to ponder”, a “verse to remember” and a “question to consider”. The edition that I read had some helpful questions for group application at the close.
I think The Purpose Driven Life is brilliant. Every hurdle that I’d created for Warren in my mind, even some of the unfair ones, he skilfully leapt over. Jumping these hurdles without plunging into quagmires of theological complexity (this is fast becoming a bizarre image) is, frankly, remarkable. It’s New Creation focused, relentless in affirming Jesus as the only way, blunt about the reality of hell, fixated on God’s glory, and all of the above tied together with Warren’s Biblically motivated and accessible warmth.
My second confession, however, is that I lost my notes on this book and am largely writing this review from memory. Some of my smaller quibbles have undoubtedly been forgotten. Despite this, I do remember that Warren is quite relaxed about which translation he uses, which isn’t overly helpful. His quotes from passages are also simply prefaced with “the Bible says”, which, although pleasingly unequivocal in Scripture being his supreme authority, makes them difficult for a new believer to weigh up.
Fascinatingly, Warren never wrote The Purpose Driven Life with the non-believer in mind. In a fantastically clarifying interview with John Piper, he showcases his own shock that the book became a bestseller. He wrote it for his own congregation. And yet, I don’t think that Warren would’ve done a disservice to any of the millions of unbelievers who inevitably got their hands on this book. He’s straightforwardly and winsomely clear on the necessity of turning to Christ for forgiveness.
For believers, The Purpose Driven Life could bring some clarity to what the Bible teaches as a whole about how we should live our lives. For seasoned believers, it brings a warm focus and clarity to what we can over-complicate. I recommend it to both.
7/10
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