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Available
Collection
Description
Since Eugene Peterson first wrote this spiritual formation classic nearly forty years ago, hundreds of thousands of Christians have been inspired by its call to deeper discipleship. As a society, we are still obsessed with the immediate; new technologies have only intensified our quest for the quick fix. But Peterson's time-tested prescription for discipleship remains the same-a long obedience in the same direction. Following Jesus in this way requires a deepening life of prayer, and throughout history Christians have learned to pray from the Psalms. Peterson finds encouragement for today's pilgrims in the Songs of Ascents (Psalms 120-134), sung by travelers on their way to worship in Jerusalem. With his prophetic and pastoral wisdom, Peterson shows how the psalms teach us to grow in worship, service, joy, work, happiness, humility, community, and blessing. This special commemorative edition of A Long Obedience in the Same Direction includes a new preface taken from Leif Peterson's eulogy at his father's memorial service.… (more)
Publication
Intervarsity Press (1980), 197 pages
Series
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User reviews
LibraryThing member StephenBarkley
Seventeen publishers rejected this manuscript.
Peterson recalls being informed that "there was no 'niche' in the market, ... that it was irrelevant to the concerns of contemporary North Americans" (202). Who wants to purchase a book on Spiritual Growth with the words "long" and "obedience" in the
Fortunately, InterVarsity Press took a risk and published a book that spoke honestly about Spiritual Growth. Life with God is not a sprint—it's a decade-long path of obedience. Whether or not the message is popular is irrelevant: it's true.
This book is a meditation on the 15 Songs of Ascent (Psalms 120-134). Even at the beginning of his career, Peterson had a knack for taking ancient scripture with all its obscurity (Kedar? Meshech?) and making it deeply understandable and personal. As a pastor, I'm amazed at his skill. The modern applications he explores are so obvious in hindsight—but it takes someone like Peterson to point them out in the first place.
I don't recommend many devotional works. I'm probably too cynical, but I find that most of Christendom's best-sellers are little more than pop-psychology with a Christian veneer. This is not the case with Peterson. A Long Obedience in the Same Direction runs counter to the spirit of our age even as it aligns with God's paths.
I suspect this is one of those books that will be reprinted in perpetuity for the life of the church.
Peterson recalls being informed that "there was no 'niche' in the market, ... that it was irrelevant to the concerns of contemporary North Americans" (202). Who wants to purchase a book on Spiritual Growth with the words "long" and "obedience" in the
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title, anyway?Fortunately, InterVarsity Press took a risk and published a book that spoke honestly about Spiritual Growth. Life with God is not a sprint—it's a decade-long path of obedience. Whether or not the message is popular is irrelevant: it's true.
This book is a meditation on the 15 Songs of Ascent (Psalms 120-134). Even at the beginning of his career, Peterson had a knack for taking ancient scripture with all its obscurity (Kedar? Meshech?) and making it deeply understandable and personal. As a pastor, I'm amazed at his skill. The modern applications he explores are so obvious in hindsight—but it takes someone like Peterson to point them out in the first place.
I don't recommend many devotional works. I'm probably too cynical, but I find that most of Christendom's best-sellers are little more than pop-psychology with a Christian veneer. This is not the case with Peterson. A Long Obedience in the Same Direction runs counter to the spirit of our age even as it aligns with God's paths.
I suspect this is one of those books that will be reprinted in perpetuity for the life of the church.
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LibraryThing member MarthaHuntley
This is the third time I've read A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, and it has the same kind of staying power - as does its author, Eugene Peterson - as it talks about. The book is not exactly a Bible study; it is more a scriptural meditation, which Peterson excels at and has done all his
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pastoral life. Reading it will teach one to read scripture prayerfully and carefully, with response all important. In 2000, the 20th anniversary edition was released with a little updating and Bible passages from Peterson's The Message instead of the RSV. The book is of historic interest, because it was in writing it that Peterson was led to embark on his paraphrase of the Bible which came out as The Message. It was also the first of about 30 more books of scriptural meditation/discipleship. I've read about 10 of his other books and they are magnificent. If you are a follower of Christ, and haven't read any Eugene Peterson yet, please do so!!!! Show Less
LibraryThing member wilsonknut
This is one of the best books about Christian faith I have read. Peterson draws his title from Friedrich Nietzsche, a most unlikely place. "The essential thing 'in heaven and earth' is... that there should be long obedience in the same direction; there thereby results, and has always resulted in
Some quotes:
"There is a great market for religious experience in our world; there is little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition of virtue, little inclination to sign up for a long apprenticeship in what earlier generations of Christians called holiness."
"...I am quite sure that for a pastor in Western culture at the dawn of the twenty-first century, the aspect of the world that makes the work of leading Christians in the way of faith most difficult is what Gore Vidal has analyzed as 'today's passion for the immediate and the casual.' Everyone is in a hurry. The persons whom I lead in worship... want shortcuts. They want me to help them fill out the form that will get them instant credit (in eternity). They are impatient for results."
On joy- "We try to get it through entertainment. We pay someone to make jokes, tell stories, perform dramatic actions, sing songs. We buy the vitality of another's imagination to divert and enliven our own poor lives. The enormous entertainment industry in America is a sign of the depletion of joy in our culture. Society is a bored, gluttonous king employing a court jester to divert it after an overindulgent meal. But that kind of joy never penetrates our lives... When we run out of money, the joy trickles away."
"Western culture takes up where Babel left off and deifies human effort as such. The machine is the symbol of this way of life which attempts to control and manage... Machines become more important than the people who use them. We care more for our possessions with which we hope to make our way in the world than with our thoughts and dreams which tell us who we are in the world."
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the long run, something which has made life worth living." Peterson's premise is that today's marketing/tourist mindset has changed religion and how people practice it. He examines Psalms 120-134, the Songs of Ascent, and how they pertain to the "long obedience in the same direction" of Christianity. Some quotes:
"There is a great market for religious experience in our world; there is little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition of virtue, little inclination to sign up for a long apprenticeship in what earlier generations of Christians called holiness."
"...I am quite sure that for a pastor in Western culture at the dawn of the twenty-first century, the aspect of the world that makes the work of leading Christians in the way of faith most difficult is what Gore Vidal has analyzed as 'today's passion for the immediate and the casual.' Everyone is in a hurry. The persons whom I lead in worship... want shortcuts. They want me to help them fill out the form that will get them instant credit (in eternity). They are impatient for results."
On joy- "We try to get it through entertainment. We pay someone to make jokes, tell stories, perform dramatic actions, sing songs. We buy the vitality of another's imagination to divert and enliven our own poor lives. The enormous entertainment industry in America is a sign of the depletion of joy in our culture. Society is a bored, gluttonous king employing a court jester to divert it after an overindulgent meal. But that kind of joy never penetrates our lives... When we run out of money, the joy trickles away."
"Western culture takes up where Babel left off and deifies human effort as such. The machine is the symbol of this way of life which attempts to control and manage... Machines become more important than the people who use them. We care more for our possessions with which we hope to make our way in the world than with our thoughts and dreams which tell us who we are in the world."
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LibraryThing member lothiriel2003
This book is a treasure! Peterson uses the psalms of ascent to frame his discussion of living the Christian life and learning to live like Christ. Chapters explore topics such as hope, perseverance, community, joy, etc. I will read this one again and again!
LibraryThing member pgchuis
Perhaps inevitably I found some chapters of this book more helpful and comprehensible than others. However, Peterson's anecdotes are always real and down to earth, and an extra star for his quoting from my favourite author, Anthony Trollope.