Focused lifestyle

FOLLOWING JESUS IN AN AGE OF
QUITTERS:
The Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards
for Today
By John D. Gillespie
Christian Focus. 315 pages. £12.99
ISBN 978 1 527 110 946 

The 18-year-old Jonathan Edwards wrote 70 Resolutions that were to form the backbone of his approach to life. They display a spiritual depth way beyond his years.

John Gillespie does our generation a favour by reproducing the Resolutions here. In 70 mainly three-page or so sections, the author reflects on each of the resolutions with the use of a sparkling array of gentle pastoral wisdom, well-chosen Biblical texts and a bran tub of quotes and stories of 2,000 years of Christian thought and practice. Gillespie issues a few cautions about our contemporary world, and what might prevent us from hearing these 70 Resolutions in the spirit in which they were written.

Having noted them, this is a brilliant tool for resetting our life’s compass.