The Satisfied Soul - John Piper

This is the second book of meditations I have read by this author, who has an outstanding reputation as a Scripture expositor. I probably should read one of his topical books, such as Desiring God,which might have been more academic and less personal. The Satisfied Soul, 120 Daily Meditations, covers the gamut with regard to topics, so much so that reading it straight through in order to review it was, at times, a jarring experience. Some of the better meditations are straight out of Scripture and aim to encourage, such as Why God Tells His Children That He Delights in Them, Thoughts on the Book of Life and Union with Christ, and Thoughts on the Nature of Sanctification, to name a few. However, John Piper, I would say, is sometimes very culture resistant, such as when he rails against television (he has not had one in his home in 34 years). While he makes a valid point that people have had access to this form of mass entertainment for only about 2 percent of human history, it’s too late to go back now, as most people lack the reason and incentive to completely boycott this medium. His last meditation, A Prayer for Our Church, asks that God build people who “don’t care if they own a house. . . don’t need recent styles. . . don’t expect that life should be comfortable and easy, who don’t feed their minds on TV each night. . . who don’t whine or use body language to get pity. . . .” Not many are left out in this more-than-odd list, and I am not convinced that these are anything but personal preferences. I got the distinct impression that Piper is an intense man, sometimes reflected in his writing, which can become convoluted, such as this quote from page 66: “But when I ask, when did God become 100 percent for us? I mean more than, when did it become 100 percent certain that God would save us? I mean, when did it happen that God was for us and only for us? That is, when did it happen that the only disposition of God toward us was mercy? Or, when did God become for us so fully that there was not any wrath or curse or condemnation on us, but only mercy?” That could and should have been edited down to one or, at most, two questions. This hard-driving style of writing caused me to feel browbeaten, not a good feeling for a reader, but I wondered it if was the intended result. If you love John Piper’s writing, you probably will be mentally and emotionally prepared to read this book. If you do not, or if you do not know, bypass this book or start with another of his writings. I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.