Waking the Dead: The Glory of a Heart Fully Alive Paperback – January 1, 2003

If our present view of oursleves, and God, is correct then why are we, as individual Christians and also collectively as "the Body of Christ" so powerless, so ineffectual? The answer lies imbedded in every page of this powerful and moving work. We were (past tense) evil of heart. When we surrender to Christ we are renewed, transformed, converted in the most profound ways. "Behold all things have become new." The enemy would love to convince us that we must still struggle in the gutter but in reality we are already present it the heavenlies because of the completed work of Christ. We have reduced The Faith to mere cognition and acceptance of dogma and it is killing us. Eldridge reminds us that there is something far deeper in our souls that yearns to be reunited with God. This deeper self, which we call the heart, has been seduced into slumber, or reduced to mere sentimentality, and often sacrificed on the alter of rationality. A point we miss, or perhaps hide from, is that God still wants to walk with us, communicate to us, and provide direction and comfort to us. We cloth oursleves in a psuedo-spiritutual figleaf because we think God can't stand to see the real us. We have lost our ability to sense God's leading because we have lost the connection to our deepest selves, to our hearts. Our faith has become so focused on objective truth that we have lost the ability to experience the subjective reality of God and find who we are in God's plan. Like monks we forsake those things that we mistakenly believe are anethema to God and adopt pious pretenses. God wants us to experience Him and truly live in Him. Some may find the use of illustrative snippets from movies and shows distracting but there is genius at work here. By using the things from our culture that touch our hearts we are primed to see the things of God from an open heart. "All things are permissible" according to St. Paul and Eldridge's careful selection insures that each is also "profitable." There are the two other major threads intertwined through the book that we dare not forget; we are at war; we are meant to be in community. We desperately need each other, flawed though we still are. We each have something that others need and they bring to us things that help complete and fulfill us. Like a marriage the church can only thrive on a holy intimacy. For me, personally, this book "connected the dots" of ideas, impressions, longings, and scriptures that have been percolating in my soul for decades. Eldridge put to page what God has been imprinting in my heart slowly over the years. At one point I had to put it down for some weeks because my heart was too weak to stand the bright light it brought. At just the right time God brought healing to some wounds and then I couldn't put this book down. Don't settle for the lesser of what God has for you when He yearns to bring you abundance. This book is a great place to begin the journey to wholeness and recovering your walk with God.

In my work, I feel the most important thing I do is to give the gospel to Christians. Might sound a bit contradictory, but there is so much that most regular "church goers" have never been told (or experienced), and sadly, much of what we WERE told is misused, overused, or just plain wrong.Spiritual "depth" many times equates to working harder, getting "more serious" or giving more time and commitment to your local church and whatever activities/programs they deem important and need to grow.Life in the heart, aliveness, relational intimacy with God and others, and honestly and literally walking with God seems almost extinct. And it's killing us. The place where life should spring from is buried, held suspect, under continuous scrutiny, or simply neglected.There's no lack of telling us to "get busy. Don't be late. Sign up. Get useful. Get on board." We seem to serve "in mass" learn and get taught "in mass" are sort of known "in mass" even get saved "in mass." It's like churches have taken their cues from the "Word of Walmart" rather than the Word of God.But John's work in Waking the Dead (and much of his other writings) is like triage for the heart! It's an invitation. It's permission. And it deeply honors those who read it. It's (thank God) not another version of "c'mon, get motivated, change your world for Jesus" kind of thing. It's both an invitation and a trail map into the great (and largely unchartered) landscape inside every one of us. And it's there where we find life. The life that we and others desperately need.This may sound funny, but John's message actually includes US! WE matter! Not just our efforts, "being used by God", or what we can accomplish in this life. WE matter. We are made certain ways (beautiful ways), we are known deeply by our Father, and there is room, even wide open spaces, to live a riskier, larger, and richer life. We even get to make mistakes!Eldredge's work is like invigorating fresh air for our souls.

I've just ordered 6 of these books to give out to others. I've been recommending it for years.I've been through this book 4 or 5 times now, once in a men's bible study. It is so "eye opening" to me. It's impact on my life has been huge! So many impacting concepts, they are too numerous to mention them all. To start off, I became "acquainted" with John back in the mid-80's when my wife was in his drama group for a year in Southern California. As he writes about those times in his books(I've read Wild at Heart and Waking the Dead), it shed some light on the John Eldgridge I observed back then. I could relate with his statements about himself and the change that has taken place in his life. (I've had no further contact with him beyond those "drama group" times.)I love the style with which John writes. It's not like these principles were brand new to me. He just relates to me like no other writer ever has. Most importantly, He has helped me open my eyes even more so to the reality of the spiritual warfare around us. "Things are not what they seem!" How many of us forgot what the first part of John 10:10 was? I DID...AND SO DID JOHN.Regarding our Healing, Chapter 8 helped me get past a roadblock that had affected me for years. I found myself working through that chapter at a park and told God I was not leaving until He disclosed "that past wound" that had been hindering me. He DID and I am so grateful for it. I agree with John that the Four Streams he talks about are imperative for our spiritual growth. This IS the BEST book I've ever read!This book will have the tendency to get you into the Bible more. It is our responsibility to do so. Waking the Dead: The Glory of a Heart Fully Alive

At last a Christian author who's down to earth and has the added bonus of original thought! Enjoyed Wild at Heart and Waking the Dead, both of which had something to say that was and is valuable, applicable and speaks on a fundamental level to the reader. As a thirtysomething I felt that with John Eldredge I have an ally and his references are not from some dusty tomme but from Star Wars or some other source that I could relate to from a fresh angle and perspective. Very affirming and encouraging. Highly recommended!!!!

Is book changed my life. My relationship with God is restored and deeper than ever. My life is more positive with my focus now on God and living life. It is no longer in the shadows and mere existance.My mother also bought the book and experienced a similar awakening.I cannot say whether you will experience the same profound impact I did, but I can recommend you try it.

In this brilliant book John Eldredge expands on his revelation about the importance of our hearts to God, on the importance of myth and legend in helping us find our real identity and on the 4 streams: healing, deliverance, counselling and warfare. John is basically a Christian counsellor and he outlines his approach in this well written and easy to read book. Highly recommended

Oh my days. I have not cried for years, but this book brought tears of joy and sadness to me. Tears of healing and redemption. Tears which have started a trek back to a whole and healthy heart. I have a long, long way to go, but now I know the direction, and I know who walks beside me.

I read a bit of this whilst on retreat and decided to buy the book. The most inspirational book I had read for a while. I dip into it often. It's positive and leaves you with a better feeling about yourself and the world than many a sermon