My name is Steven A. Janda. I am the author of Ready or Not, Here I Come, which I wrote this year. As a new author I'm interested in what other authors have to say about how to follow Christ. Rick Warren does an excellent job of directing the new Christian to the middle of the gospel road where all things in life are held in perspective with Christ in the midst. The purpose of our lives should be revisited from time to time to be sure we haven't veered from the path of truth. The Apostle Paul said, "Thou hast fully known my purpose and manner of life." It's one matter to know God's purpose for your life, it's another to do it. I suggest men in the ministry read this book again. Jesus said who is that wise and faithful servant whom his Lord has made him ruler over his household to give them their meat in due season. Blessed are those servants whom their Lord shall find so doing. Luke 12:42-43. Jesus taught his disciples to feed the flock of God, not to fleece the flock of God.

I feel this is an incredibly inspiring book. Being relatively new to my Christian Faith, this book has very helpful in giving me insights into how to live a life that is focused on God. It has also helped me in my Bible studies, by referencing specific Bible passages relating to each topic in the book.

There are so many positive changes that have taken place in my life as a result of reading the Bible and this book.

Review of The Purpose Driven Life: What On Earth Am I Here For? by Rick Warren

I chose to review this book because I couldn't resist a best seller. The Purpose Driven Life has sold over 20 million copies. The book has won the Book of the Year Award from the Evangelical Christian Publisher Association 2 years in a row. The back book jacket calls the book "A GROUNDBREAKING MANIFESTO ON THE MEANING OF LIFE." Given the popularity of this best seller, I had to see what Warren wrote to demand the attention of readers who buy multiple copies to give to friends, neighbors, and relatives. Additionally, there are many accompaniments to the main book, such as hardbound and leather-bound journals.

Warren divides the book into 40 short chapters because, he writes, "The Bible is clear that God considers 40 days a spiritually significant time period. Whenever God wanted to prepare someone for his purpose, he took 40 days." Thus, the 40 days are intended to be a time frame for this spiritual journey that encourages self-reflection. At the end of each chapter the author offers a point to ponder, a verse to remember, and a question to consider. Warren states: "By the end of this journey you will know God's purpose for your life."

The promise made by this author grabbed my attention. In fact, chapter 2 is titled "You are not an accident." Warren repeats the premise of this chapter in several different ways, such as "God made you for a reason" and "God never does anything accidentally." Warren contends that most people ask of their life "What's in it for me?" rather than considering that we are "born by His purpose and for His purpose." By the end of the book, I received the main message summed up in the first sentence: "It is not about you."

However, there were statements and paragraphs that challenged my credibility of Warren. He uses the book to express his opinions that I daresay are shortsighted and even stereotypical. For example, Warren defines a "real" servant as someone serving God by serving others and as having 6 characteristics, 1 of which is: "real servants maintain a low profile." Warren hardly has a low profile. Does that mean that according to his definition he is not a "real" servant?

Another area of disagreement is with Warren's supposition. He writes: "There are more than 750 `Halls of Fame' in America and more than 450 `Who's Who' publications, but you won't find many real servants there." How does he know? Has he interviewed each member? No one can tell what constitutes a "real" servant because, in my opinion, only a Higher Power can discern a "real" servant.

Warren uses multiple references to the Bible, and uses verses to prove his points. I had to remind myself that this was his interpretation, and there are multiple translations of the Bible, and another Bible scholar could just as easily make the opposite point by using other verses.

I can't deny that this book has its place in the spiritual journey. I found lessons that were appropriate to my own journey. Warren encourages readers to embrace their weaknesses and accept their vulnerabilities. Having many of those, I was heartened to learn that God does not expect perfection, and I can complete my purpose with all my foibles.

Review by Lynn C. Tolson

I am seriously concerned about the quality of modern Christian apologetic literature, although this book seemed to be more of a self-help book than a serious examination/explanation of Christianity.

A sincere Christian friend of mine (not the same one who recommended "The Case for Christ" to me), who was also concerned for my salvation because I am a lifelong agnostic, repeatedly urged me to read this book, telling me that it would change my life. So I picked up a copy, more out of curiosity than anything else, because I had heard it was a best seller. The book recommended I take "forty days" to work my way through it. I didn't have the patience for that, and simply read it through over the course of a couple of nights.

As an aside, Mrs. Gorilla, who is often mystified by some of my reading choices, inquired about this book, and when I explained that it was supposed to help Christians figure out what the purpose of life was, she asked, in all seriousness: "you need a whole book for that?"

Now you have to understand that Mrs. Gorilla is Jewish (I'm a recovering Catholic myself), and you also have to take a crash course in Judaism 101 to understand the very important and fundamental difference between Christian and Jewish cosmology. Christians are taught that Man is fundamentally a sinner and is responsible for the Fall that basically wrecked everything. Jews are taught that God deliberately made the world imperfect, because a perfect world would be unchanging and pointless - its very perfection would make it imperfect. Thus the world is incomplete - a work in progress - and Man was put here on Earth specifically to assist God in completing creation. In short, from the Christian standpoint, Man is responsible for the world being a mess, while from the Jewish standpoint, quite frankly, God is. But to the Jews, God had good reason to do so. What's great about Jewish philosophy is it quite neatly solves the problem of evil: the world is imperfect because God made it that way. The end. Mystery solved.

Moreover, Jews are taught from birth, for this reason, to get up every day and try to make the world a better place. This perhaps accounts for why they are such overachievers - they are programmed from birth to be that way. Hence Mrs. Gorilla's mystification about "The Purpose Driven Life." She's right. You don't need a whole book to figure this out. Just get up every morning and do the best you can.

That said, "The Purpose Driven Life" is full of lots of little nice sentiments and words of advice. Sort of like a "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff" for Christians.

It's also full of philosophical contradictions. Rick Warren may have a doctorate in Theology, but he clearly skimped on the courses in philosophy along the way. Throughout the book, he keeps telling the reader that God has a plan specifically for each and every one of us. Then, usually in the next day's segment, he goes on and on about "free will." Dr. Warren, you cannot have free will in a fully deterministic universe, and visa versa. It cannot be both. It is exactly like saying black is white, or that a dog is a cat.

Also, Rick Warren has a curious habit of cherry picking the Bible, which of course puts him in the company of most Christians, quite frankly. Now I have read the Bible through, not once, but twice, which is more than I can say for the majority of people who call themselves Christians. I am not ignorant of its contents, and know all about people deliberately taking individual lines out of it to make a point, when you really need to read the entire passage or even book to get the contextual meaning.

To quote another reviewer who said it way better than I can: "The book plays on the ignorance of most of its readers by rewriting the Bible. Warren tells the reader his theories which are not in the Bible and then backs them up by using random quotes from many different translations of the Bible. One of the many problems with that is that anyone who needs to know their purpose or to know God needs to read the Bible itself. The Bible doesn't need Rick Warren or anyone else to explain or expand what is said."

Amen to that. Reading the Bible did not happen to inspire me, but I know that it inspires many others, for the most part to go do good things. Like any good Jew is doing. More power to them. Maybe "The Purpose Driven Life" can inspire people too - there seem to be five-star reviews on this site testifying to that - but to me - it seems like if you are a Christian, just read the Bible, and figure it out for yourself. If you need someone like Rick Warren to tell you what it means, that ought to tell you something. Think for yourself.

Never one to be first on any popular bandwagon, I have arrived rather late for the hoopla surrounding the new panacea, Rick Warren's "The Purpose-driven Life." Having dunked my toes into its transparent waters for only 8 of the requisite 40 days, I am unsure how much deeper I will wade.

TPDL is a 40-day, (kind of ) biblically-based program to help people find out -- not just what *they* want of of life -- but what *God* intends for them. The books starts with large theological truths about God's relationship with humanity, such as that God has planned our lives, has provided everything we need, and wants us to love him. These catechetical building blocks are intended to lead to an awareness of what our God-given life purpose is.

Sounds great. So why might I not finish the book? Warren's book is written from a conservative Christian viewpoint, for conservative Christians. Not for him the heaven in which we hope to meet our loved ones. Only the *Christian* loved ones can expect to greet us beyond the pearly gates. And Warren is one of those Christians who sees the Scriptures as delivering a unified message. "The Bible" tells us this (as he quotes from Isaiah and "the Bible" tells us that (as he quotes Paul). Not for him the not very subtle suggestion that Biblical authors wrote from vastly different perspectives, for different purposes, during vastly different historical periods.

Warren mixes a variety of biblical translations, all Protestant, with his own paraphrases of biblical material. Some of these paraphrases quote wide far from their sources. He also makes numerous suspect and fundamentalist interpretations of biblical stories. For instance, hoping to disabuse readers who equate church music with worship, he tells us that "in the Bible," worship comes before music. How does he know? Because Adam worshiped in the Garden, and Jubal, who prompted the first biblical mention of music, comes later. But in what sense of the word did Adam worship? Seems to me he sat around naming the animals and eating apples.

"The Purpose-driven Life" is not a bad book, but it uses bad theology and bad biblical interpretations to make its points. It stuffs a peculiar conservative theological spin down the throats of unwitting listeners. Its lessons are lost in the sauce of fundamentalism that most readers might not even know they are swallowing along with a few seeds of wisdom. Ultimately, TPDL is tiresome and troublesome, as it leaves Muslims, Hindus, atheists and Jews without purpose short of finding Christ. Is that really what God wants from them?

The author believes that he has the authority to tell you what your purpose in life should be. Don't believe a word of it. You need to define your own purpose in life. Read a liberal diverse literature and think for yourself. You don't need a slick mega-church charlatan to tell you what your purpose is.

How can any one person purport to know your purpose in life? The book begins with the assumption that you have a predefined (and presumably prototypical) purpose. But the author doesn't present any proof of that assumption. Furthermore, the author presents no evidence of outcomes. How are we to know that the approach presented herein offers improved life outcomes? Everything he offers is from self-referential religious literature.

A waste of money to buy; and a waste of time to read.

What's the deal? The Bible -the actual "word of GOD" wasn't good enough for you? Why is 'trademark R' in the title itself? THE PURPOSE DRIVEN -trademark R- LIFE. The profit driven life. ®ick Warren is a $mooth opperator. This book isn't interesting or original. It's mostly good for uninteresting, anti-intellectual American sheeple that vote Republican, and feel they are so very special and the salt of the earth and are god's special friends. And frankly it's really for loosers that just can't feel good about themselves. Well, maybe you shouldn't feel good about yourself? Think about that. Maybe you should kill yourself like Jesus did. Okay, I kid. At least shut-up and stop ruining other people's lives -make that your purpose. It ain't a wonderful life. Please shut-up about your pretend friend Jesus and your lame, half baked ideas about politics and the world.. That would be great.

Rick Warren's "followers" are meth addicts.

Remember the story about the murderer who was talked into giving up after having read from this book? A LIE!

The true story:

ATLANTA (AP) -- The woman who says she gained the trust of suspected courthouse gunman Brian Nichols (search) by talking about her faith in God discloses in a new book that she gave him methamphetamine during the hostage ordeal.

Smith says Nichols had her bound on her bed with masking tape and an extension cord. She says he asked for marijuana, but she did not have any, and dug into her crystal methamphetamine (search) stash instead.

I must say that I was not a very spiritual person until now. I have gone to several churches over many of my 41 years and not one has delivered the message to me that this book has. This book has saved my relationship and given me a completely different perspective on life. I am so interested in learning more about God and have plans to read the entire Bible within the next year. I have already purchased this book for a close friend and my brother. I also plan on sending this book to my children. I urge you to visit the website asscociated with this book to view the wonderful things there [...]. I am in no way associated the author or publishing company for this book. I found this book approximately one week ago after hitting a very low point in my life and while looking for a book that might change my life I found this book the day after a car accident that left me stranded for two days in Texas until some family assistance arrived. Again, I highly encourage those of you who are not familiar with God to give this book an opportunity to make a change in your life.

I've gone through a rough patch in my life just a few months ago and at one point I was considered suicidal. It was a struggle to just get through the days. I've read "The Road Less Traveled" which helped greatly. But then I read "The Purpose Driven Life" and it changed my life completely. I have a whole new outlook on life now. This is a book that I will read over and over. It helps you to accept things in your life and helps you to understand life in general and focus on God. I HIGHLY recommend this book for ANYONE going through a rough time. As Scott Peck starts his book, "Life is Difficult". That statement is 100% accurate. So read The Road Less Traveled and THEN read the Purpose Driven Life and you will be headed in the right direction.

Thsi book is really wonderful to read, it really makes you focus on what should be most important in your life. We were created for a reason and we should be living our life for the purpose we were put on earth for, not just for ourselves. In general be a fun-loving, caring, down to earth, spiritual person, and always smile.

This book was suggested to me by a dear friend and I am so glad I bought it. It is an awesome book. I've enjoyed every page I've read so far. It not only explains what God wants you to do, it helps you believe. I couldn't have asked for a better book to read. It has been a very spiritual journey.

Superb service, fast delivery, and a high quality product. I would strongly recommend this product and this seller to anyone intersted in making a quality online purchase.

This book was very useful to me. By the time I had finished the book I was charged with energy and looked at things and issues differently. I recommend you read and one section at a time. I also recommend that you keep a journal and record your thoughts. It will be very helpful to go back and read reference. I highly recommend this for everyone, whether they are young and coming out of high school, college or at any point in your life. It will be very meaningful for you. Jessica V. Psalidas - Author Everlasting Purity

I not entirely sure I agree with some of what Mr. Warren speaks about. Half way through the book and I'm not getting what I expected.

This book was very useful to me. By the time I had finished the book I was charged with energy and looked at things and issues differently. I recommend you read and one section at a time. I also recommend that you keep a journal and record your thoughts. It will be very helpful to go back and read reference. I highly recommend this for everyone, whether they are young and coming out of high school, college or at any point in your life. It will be very meaningful for you. Jessica V. Psalidas - Author Everlasting Purity

Every household should read this book! The earlier the better. Jessica V. Psalidas - Author Everlasting Purity

The first sentence reads "It's not about you." But the entire book then gives you a complicated series of steps to live out your life in order to, what, get in good with God? On the plus side of His score sheet? Aha! Then it IS about you after all? For an in-depth, hard-hitting review from the perspective of an abuse survivor, please read http://www.abusehelpspiritual.com/purposedriven.html. I am not affiliated with this review or site in any way, but it's the best review of this book I've ever read. I would like to emphasize the point that Warren pulls verses out of context to make his points, from whatever translations fits his points the best.

First let me say this is a great book I would recomend it to anyone. I read some of the 1 star reviews and was amazed how misinformed these nay sayers were. One person said that it taught that life is for us to fulfill our own perpose instead of living for God. What the book teachs is that serving God is our purpose. Another person said Rick Warren wrote this book just to make money, I guess he doesn't know Rick warren gives away 90% of his income and lives off 10%. He accepts no sallery at all from his church, that doesn't sound much like a person who is motivated by money only to me. The people who have writen these negitive reviews obviously don't get what they call a simple book or have not read it at all. The gospel is not complicated God made it delibritly simple. The purpose driven life is a book that will change your life if you read it with humility and are willing to live a life that is purposely serving God.

Absolutely one of the worst popular books on Christianity to hit the market only second to The Prayer of Jabez.

I was only able to get through the first few chapters before throwing the book aside in disgust. Warren consistently pulls verses out of context or uses obscure paraphrased versions that totally distort the meaning of the passages. Thus he makes the scripture say whatever he wishes even the exact opposite. This leads to false and shallow understanding of God and his purposes.

Warren seems to know very little of the idea of Covenant. In fact for him Christianity means no covenant at all. For warren there is no free will. No covenant parties. No understanding of or repentance of sin. No covenant initiation in baptism. No covenant terms. No personal responsibility thus no personal growth. No understanding of the differences in Old and New covenants. No understanding of New Covenant promises.

He basically makes his own religion and bends scripture to make it say what he pleases. That's not the way we're supposed to handle scripture. We are to read it, discover what the original writer meant and keep scripture in context. If we disagree that's OK, better yet have the decency to amend our beliefs to fit the Word of God.

I would not recommend this book to anyone especially any serious student of scripture.

David Cole (MA in Christian Ministry, MEd.)
Christian Church Missionary in Japan
Language and Bible Professor at Oberlin Jr. College, Japan Social Work College and Rikkyo University.

This is a tremendous book for everyone including the ones whose faith is lost or non-existent. It gives the reader a more confident starting point to turn their life around and incorporate values that God has laid before us. Rick Warren's undeniable faith is an illuminating source of God's will that inspires oneself to take that leap of faith and place your salvation in the Hands of God.

I had heard of this book many times but never bought or read it. I was especially impressed a few years ago when someone (in Atlanta, I think) used material from it to help her deal effectively with someone who broke into her house. The person had already shot someone the same day. She was struggling with many issues before the intruder came. Together they talked about content of the book in a way that made a difference.

Finally, I was moved to get the book after the faith forum between McCain and Obama at Saddleback Church in August 2008. I was so impressed with the way he dealt with both candidates. I wanted to read more about what Warren says and learn more about how he says it.

I highly recommend the book.

This book is very condescending towards "self-help" books. Has he really read any of them? Because if he had, he would have gotten the exact same underlying messages in those books that are found in his own book. I don't appreciate the whole "Christians do it best" attitude either, but I guess that is to be expected from modern, misguided, mainstream so-called Christians. When will people learn? God is love and loves all, no matter what religion or lack thereof the person believes in. For a truly non-condescending and respectful-of-all-of-God's-people book on finding your true soul path and purpose, I suggest any of Sonia Choquette's books.

This is a great book for all you godaholics with oatmeal for brains. It should perfectly reinforce all of your idiotic, illogical, irrational beliefs. As H.L. Mencken once wrote, "The curse of mankind is his stupendous capacity for belief in the incredible." Rick Warren is either an imbecile or a con artist (or both) who panders to ideas that people want to believe, but couldn't possibly be true.

If you are already a born again Christian then there are some good points in this book. My problem with the book is the weak shallow prayer on page 58. It is a 9 word prayer.."Jesus I believe in you and I recieve you". No mention of repentance. The problem is that a lot of non-Christian are going to read this book and say that prayer and think that they are saved. No wonder secular work groups, corporations, baseball teams are eating it up. Without repentance there is no forgiveness of sins..Tell me what you think about..The Palace Theatre

My copy, from Christmas 2004, says "over 15 million copies sold". I see cover copy on books in stores now showing 20 or 30 million sold.

So, this is not a new or little-known book, and obviously, many people have read it and find it very good, and indeed it is. Warren gives five Biblical purposes for life, consistently using scripture (in many different translations where they help convey meaning). And while the book does occasionally reference other "PDL" products like the journal, it doesn't appear to be a sales tool for these other products.

In fact, the The Purpose-Driven Life Journal in conjunction with a good study translation (New American Standard, New Internation, or King James) is a great way to study and make notes.

Wow-really good book!! On a side note, would have prefered the Bible references at the point of reference ( eg Psalm 23:1 and not '2' so as to prevent the need to continually turn to the back of the book. I am at day 12 and I am really impressed at how applicable this book is to my life. Again, I wonderful read

Excellent book!! As a Christian I was at a time in my life where I knew I needed help and to lean on God, but I didnt know HOW to go about doing it. This book definately shed some light on my path.

This book is thought and prayer provoking. It opens up your eyes to what it means to live as a Christian using thousands of verses in the bible. For me bible study was difficult and often times I did not understand what I was reading, but this book gave me insight and help walk me through the door of understanding so that it all made sense to me.

If you are looking for answers inside of you and you know God is the way, but just not sure how to make a move-- then read this book! God Bless you!!

Simplistic book which offers very little that is new or valuable. If you already believe in Christian principles, you already know this stuff. If you don't believe, the book will does nothing to provide any basis for why you should.

This seem like just another "get rich" scheme on the part of the author, regurgitating quotes and scriptures.

Fidel Castro loved this book so much, he asked the author for an autographed copy. It's just a blank page, onto which you can project anything you want. I'm not even a "believer," but for some reason I feel sorry for how Jesus Christ was represented in this absurdly stupid book. I guess it would appeal to people who don't like to think much.

Instead, read The Reason Driven Life. You will be far richer on all levels after having read it.

this is trash, sheep are not driven, they are led. i am a preacher, teacher and chaplain, anyone who is truly born again has the indwelling holy spirit to lead them into all truth, through the word of god, why do you think you need this? if you stick with the word you will not need false teachers(ravening wolves) such as this. examine yourselves, see if you are actually in the household of faith. i dont believe the author is.

My husband and I used this book to do an almost year long study with our house church group a few years ago. We did a chapter a week and had discussions and worked through the Points to Ponder and Questions together. Probably time to revisit this book I think! Definitely one you can do over and over again

I disagree with many reviews here. This book is not meant to be your bible or replace the bible. You cannot read this alone and expect to have all of the answers. If Rick Warren attempted to put every single point that is in the bible into this book, this book would have been overwhelming and very long
Rick touches on important points that many of us may miss while reading scripture. God made each of us for a purpose and I believe Ricks purpose was to solely touch on the points that he did in this book. It truly inspired me to look more beyond what my mind would read a scripture or passage to be.
We could read the bible and say Noah, Abraham, Paul or Joseph did these things, but that may be all we read it as. Simple as that. But God made certain people to understand these stories more in depth. While I am by no means stupid, my mind will not put together passages from the book of James and the book of Revelations and see a puzzle pieced together or see the relevance of 2 very different books, one from the old testament and one from the new, to be very much connected. Most of us cannot do that. But I know God created people specifically to do so.
That is what I believe Rick does here in this book. He gives it to us in laymans terms that any idiot cannot misunderstand. Do not let the very narrow minded reviews keep you from checking this book out yourself. It is very inspiring and will help get that fire burning under your behind. If you've felt yourself slipping away or backsliding a bit, then this book may be just what you need to get back on track with your relationship with Jesus.
ps. Shame on the people who would give this book a 1....or per a previous review that people would rate the Holy Bible a 1....You should be ashamed.

This is a book for everyone. It is not a book that you have to read quickly or in a short period of time. A chapter at a time is all it takes. I highly recommend this book!

I purchased this book on the advise of a co-worker and am about half-way through the book. Reading a chapter a day, as it suggests, does make it easier to absorb what you are reading and have the time to think about what you've read.
I find it interesting. I have just recently starting on my spiritual journey to discover my place on God's earth. Everyone says that what you get from reading the bible or other materials about it, is that person's interpretation of what they think it means. This book is a great example of that. He takes all these quotes, scriptures, whatever from numerous books and puts it how he thinks it should be.
I am in no way in any position to say he's right or wrong. That's exactly why I'm reading the book. I am enjoying reading it and am learning things I didn't know before. It's definately worth the read.

The Purpose Drive Life is a wonderful book from start to begining. I followed its prefered method of reading by doing a chapter a day. After reading the chapter, I wrote in the journal that I had bought with it. I highly recommend the journal for this book.

It is simple and easy to follow, while placing YOU at the center of it and letting you examine your life the way God wanted you to. The scriptures are beautiful and the book has some very interesting question at the end of each chapter.

I recommend this book to anyone that wants to look deeper into their lives.

Since there are over a thousand reviews posted here, one might ask: why am I writing another one? It is because I feel this beautiful book, so eloquently and accessibly written, has much to offer Roman Catholics as it has to offer non-Catholics, and Rev. Rick Warren continues to be one of the most loving and positive ministers in the public arena. He has managed to write a deeply meaningful book here about how to live as a Christian, without saying anything negative about anybody or anyone else's church. This is no small feat. We Christians are tempted at every turn to criticize one another. Rev. Rick teaches love. Anyone who thinks this is superficial or insipid should, I believe, reconsider. To love one's neighbors and one's enemies is for me the hardest thing about being Christian; it is at the core of the Christian explosion of the First Century, and it remains the core of Christian teaching today. --- Just about every page of this book is inspiring, and Rev. Rick has managed to impart to the reader complex theology in wonderfully simple terms. ---- When theology is too difficult, when it is opague or unreadable, what good does it do for most Christians? Well, this is a book with deep theological roots that is for everyone. Highly recommended. And also an excellent gift. ---- Let me quote Rev. Rick in closing: "Jesus taught that spiritual maturity is never an end in itself. Maturity is for ministry!" (p.231 of the hard cover.)

Rick Warren hit on a lot of great ways to get people focused on reaching their highest potential. In many ways it is similar to the writings in The Spoken Words of Spirit: Lessons From The Other Side. I was intrigued by Rick's perception of God and the workings of Spirit. IF people follow his plan, at the very least they will learn to be more determined to add a positive force as a driving force for their future.

Rick Warren's book has been out for years now and is truly a graduate level course in Christian principles. So often these principles are not taught or learned yet they are basic. Theologically there are differences in various groups but Rick is very sound in application. This is an ideal small group study as well as a personal reader.

I feel compelled to write a review on this book because of the impact it had on me. I love this book, I found it comforting and very thought provoking. It honestly has changed my thoughts about my own spirituality and has given me great perspective on priorities in my life. This book is written in short, easy to read chapters that allow you to reflect easily at each point. I found myself re-reading certain chapters and marking pages that especially touched me. This book is pure goodness, it made me feel grounded, allowed me to see how I lived my life, and what needed to be changed, and what was already working for me. This book and its wisdom will stay with me for some time, and I imagine that I will read parts of it over and over in the future. It helped strengthen my religious beliefs and my relationships with my family, god and my community.

I already had a copy of this book when I bought another for my daughter who lives in another state. She and I read the book together and then discussed the questions. It brought us closer together as well as brought us closer to God. An experience that can not be beat!

This is a book everyone should read. I've bought and given away probably 20-25 copies. It was tremendous help for my daughter when she was going through the dying process. I sent several copies to Iraq at the request of a military person (not a chaplain) there. This last copy I ordered and had delivered to a young man on his way to prison.

This is a helpful book for both baby and mature Christians alike. The only suggestion that I have with this book is to include more footnotes especially when it refers to scripture. It states the scripture but it generalizes it with the statement 'The bible says'. I understand that, but if the exact scripture was provided then I look back to my Bible for confirmation. Other than that, it's a great book for building your relationship and edifying self in God through Christ.

I was looking forward to getting this book, but was seriously disappointed to find so many quotes from wordly resources! We are all better off just sticking to The Word of God, our Sword... The Bible.

Rick Warren's book The Purpose Driven Life uses over a thousand scripture versus from many different versions of the Bible to explain why we were born on this planet and what our purpose is. The author provides a Danish proverb that states: "What you are is God's gift to you; what you do with yourself is your gift to God." Warren also provides John Wesley's motto: "Do all the good you can in all the ways you can in all the places you can at all the times you can to all the people you can as long a you can."

Our mission in life as outlined in this book is a continuation of Jesus' mission on earth. In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus said: "Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to do everything I have told you." This is the Great Commission.

Rick Warren states that the following two statements are what his book is all about:
1. "Live life with a due sense of responsibility, not as those who do not know the meaning of life but as those who do." (Ephesians 5:15) and
2. Don't let the errors of evil people lead you down the wrong path and make you lose your balance." (2 Peter 3:17)

He states that: "God's five purposes for your life:
1. `Love God with all your heart': You were planned for God's pleasure, so your purpose is to love God through worship.
2. `Love your neighbor as yourself': You were shaped for serving, so your purpose is to show love for others through ministry.
3. `Go and make disciples': You were made for a mission, so your purpose is to share God's message through evangelism.
4. `baptize them into....": You were formed for God's family, so your purpose is to identify with his church through fellowship.
5. "teach them to do all things': You were created to become like Christ, so your purpose is to grow to maturity through discipleship."

This book brings tell it like it is. The author is not afraid to be blunt when he tells us that we are not on this earth to be happy, rich, and powerful or other self-centered ideals. We are here to serve God not to consume. In this temporary body we are to prepare and mature in Christ for eternal spiritual life in Heaven.

This is an important and easy to read book. It is broken down into 40 small chapters meant to be read and thought about one day per chapter. The author provides a question to ponder at the end of each chapter and a group of questions at the end of the book with recommended reading for Bible studies. I recommend this book to readers of all ages and nationalities with a caveat. The author's views will not be popular with those who do not want to serve.

This is not a book for reading through, like a novel. It loses a lot if you just flip through, reading a paragraph here, a subject heading there, and jumping around in the different subjects. If you sit down with it, start at the beginnng and really study it, seriously, you will get a whole lot out of it. It is meant to be studied a little at a time and some thought given to its messages between readings. Then you will learn what a fulfilled life really is, and realize that anyone who is serious in wanting fulfillment will probably get it through this book. This book is a very good guide.

This book is a good way to start in learning your purpose. When you take a chapter at a time daily pace, you receive the benfits of thinking on a good path that day. Acceptable for people who are just starting to learn the bible or need a refresher.

I think it's a little over the top. Warren is a great man and a knowledgeable guy but somewhere he fails to remember that the world is full of normal folks who simply aren't going to be able to drop what they are doing and take a fly-in trip to Honduras.

It's a noble thought but, there's plenty of Christian work to do right here.

While he did a great job on the book, he lost me by a wide margin by suggesting that if I am not trying to preach to jungle muslims in east Africa, I am an even more worthless Christian than I already am.

I know it's a struggle, all I have is faith. I didn't like to be told that life isn't worthwhile if you aren't carrying a New Testament in Saudi Arabia.

HOWEVER, the book still deserves a 5-star.

I bought and read this book a few years ago. While reading it, I was very motivated and uplifted. But, those feelings soon faded after reading the book. The book was not life changing and did not have a strong lasting effect. I feel as though I wasted my money.

I was not impressed with this book. While the gods of contemporary Christianity applaud Dr. Warren, millions of Christians who have faithfully served and supported their local churches are being driven like cattle out of their churches, heartbroken and spritually crushed by Rick Warrens teachings with his Purpose Driven Church agenda. You will find alot of new age ideas and terms in this book.

Dr. Rick Warren also idolizes Jimi Henrix. Dr. Warren sang his song "Purple Haze" before thirty thousand in the Angels' stadium to prelude his one billion -man peace plan. Rick said that he had always wanted to do this.

Jimi Hendrix was the idol of the pot-immersed, drug-soaked, mind-blown, sex-crazed new youth rebellion generation. He was continually stoned on pot or high on various drugs, including herion. It was not uncommon for him to have sex with six different women a day. Jimi Hendrix died one day in 1970, drowing in his own vomit from a heroin drug overdose. Why would Dr. Warren pay homage to this kind of person?

I recommend that a person read THE DARK SIDE OF THE PURPOSE DRIVEN CHURCH by Noah W. Hutchings. There truly is a dark side to the Purpose Driven Church with its new age message. Also read DECEIVED ON PURPOSE by Warren Smith. A lot of churches split when the Purpose Driven Church is forced on its members.