Reviews for Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life

The average rating for Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life based on 2 reviews is 5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2018-08-15 00:00:00 Kevin Hall Let people call our age irreligious and atheistic. Cause I disagree. We live at the dawn of a NEW world, a NEW way of life! Let me explain... William Law wrote this book in a jaded age when folks were just GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS of religious observance. A beginning of sharp religious decline. The folks Law addresses didn’t even SEE they were only falsely sanctimonious and basically hypocritical, because they were only ACTING as if they were believers. But their lives were becoming empty. But the good thing about William Law is that he cut through their layers of illusions, and told them their lives could be MUCH, MUCH deeper and satisfying. You see, Law was just addressing the believers. In his day, as in ours, many of them had lost their Devotional Centre of Gravity. You know, life without a Centre is pretty discouraging. Without a Centre, we tend to drift - not knowing where we are going. But once we find our Centre, we’re fine again. It may take a while, but it HAPPENS. That’s what Law is trying to show us. Now, I look around me and see a whole new generation of avid seekers who have swept the old assumptions off the table and started afresh! We’re no longer a Nation of Churchgoers. We’re not used now to comforting words of Reassurance. It’s an Age of Disquiet. Kids are used to VOICING THEIR CONCERNS: People are Dying everywhere. Who’s LISTENING? THAT - in part what what dear old William wanted to accomplish - is where we ARE. At a Crossroads. Where do we TURN? Though William Law would never have gone so far as to throw the Baby out with the Bathwater, as the media would have us do, he MEANS to start us AFRESH.. And somehow, I don’t think the new generation RESISTS that. The new generation, if it’s not going along with this crass modern world of appearances, has a Heart. And what you are in your heart is what you TRULY are. THERE you will find meaning. Because so many young people belong to a vibrant, hopeful part of this generation that believes good things can be accomplished in a bad world, I see lots of hope for them. But you know what? That hope, for kids, is only the first step to finding a secure refuge from the evils of this world! Along with its friends love and faith, it is just the FOUNDATION for the ONLY kind of durable yet always-threatened peace that is remotely possible in this sorry world. But one day the hopeful kids of this world will grow up. And later, they’ll see their dreams and visions threatened and perhaps even tossed into the air by the relentless, stormy gales of old age. What then? Why, they’ll need hope in Real Goodness BEYOND the storm! And that’s no joke. Old age sweeps aside ALL our illusions and one day we’ll ALL be there. But it can never sweep aside the One who watches over us, and constantly calls out to us. William Law is right! REAL things are so rare, that we can’t afford to pass them by. The important thing, as young kids now know so well, is NOT how you appear in public… The important thing is how you appear in private… to GOD. And THAT’s why William Law is still relevant!

Review # 2 was written on 2012-09-12 00:00:00 Matt Collins William Law's A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life is the most profoundly challenging, insightful and logical book I have ever read pertaining to my daily life as a Christian. His arguments for the purpose of and motivation for devotion to God (in its many forms) have impacted me in a way that I never would have imagined. I found myself challenged by every chapter and contemplative throughout. Law's arguments touched me intellectually, logically, emotionally, and spiritually. This is not necessarily a book of strict doctrine but it reveals to the reader the core of his or her actions, good or bad. He writes that if any part of our lives is owed to God in devotion, ALL parts are, otherwise we mistake the nature of God (or religion). While some may feel that this book sets unattainable standards, I believe that the heart of Law's arguments should truly drive Christians to examine how they are living their lives and what that lifestyle demonstrates about the state of their hearts and minds. The magnitude of Law's "call" perhaps only seeks to accurately grasp the magnitude of a life lived fully for Christ, in which case, it is indeed unattainable without the help of the Spirit. For all of the strength and breadth of Laws's arguments, I think one would be hard pressed to deny the logic fortifying Law's conclusions or the spiritual motivation behind them. On top of the raw challenge of what Law writes, I highly recommend reading this for the beauty in which Law communicates his "call." Written in the 1700s, this book has a unique, old-fashioned rhythm and variety of vocabulary that is unrivaled in anything I have read thus far. This work is not only a feast of content but of form as well. The artfulness of Law's writing, I feel, practically ushered in all of the hard-hitting challenges in such a way that I was constantly turning the page from both a compulsion to be encouraged spiritually and to be amazed by his literary style. I found his writing to be, at times, repetitive; but after gleaning such profound insight from a sentence or paragraph stated only slightly differently from the paragraph before, I resolved to read each section carefully for whatever nuanced morsel that I could take away. Just as I thought, after a couple pages of reading, that perhaps THIS chapter wouldn't hold as much impact as the ones before, I would be struck with a simple phrase, analogy, character story or piece of logic that made me laugh at the thought that Law's insight would run out before the pages of this book did. I highly recommend the reading and re-reading of this book for any Christian would wants to take a serious look at their life and commit to the "serious call" that exists on that life as a follower of Christ.