While I agree with much of Piper's message in this book, I found it a bit long-winded and repetitive. Not to mention boring - especially the first half.

There were a few times when I cringed at the author's choice of words or examples, even though I understood what he was getting at. Hopefully others won't be put off by these things the way I was, but instead be challenged and encouraged because, as I said, the message is a good one. ( )

I led our college bible study group to read this book and participate in the study. The teaching is deep, but very rewarding if the time and effort is put into really understanding and applying the author's content. ( )

Since he was young, John Piper has been motivated by this idea of not wasting his life and time on earth - what has he been called here to do? In ten chapters, he explores the main purposes of a Christian: to glorify God by finding our joy in him, and to love others by making them glad in God.

I was really hoping I had a review from when I first read this book about eleven years ago, because it's hard to try to sum in for a review. Piper covers a lot of ground, and the first few chapters of this book were intellectually demanding and tough for my small group to take in. But in the end, he does get practical, using a lot of Scriptural support to talk about how we spend our time, money, what our witness should be like at work, and participating in missions. There's a lot here to challenge and convict, and we were glad we stuck with it. ( )

This book is part of my collection that really focuses in on Biblical Commentary more than anything else (including some well known authors in the theological world). All of these books haven't been read cover to cover, but I've spent a lot of time with them and they've been helpful in guiding me through difficult passages (or if I desire to dig deeper). ( )

I'm not a huge Piper fan which in some circles is tantamount to blasphemy. I don't agree with his Christian hedonism principle--it seems to me to be self-focused rather than God focused.

However, this book is a helpful reminder that our lives should be used for the glory of God. We are always on duty in His service and cannot afford to waste our time.

Recommended. ( )