Book Review: The Furious Longing of God
Advent is a time of waiting for the arrival of Christ. We celebrate His first coming to Earth. We look forward to His second return. It is also a time where we long for Him to come into the brokenness of our lives.
Longing for God is a beautiful thing. As we wait, expecting His arrival, He too is longing for us.
I recently read The Furious Longing of God by Brennan Manning. A pastor friend gave it to me. If you are looking for a good read or gift, it’s on my recommended reading list. Buy it via this blog’s links and we get a small commission on your purchase.
Furious = Intense
The Furious Longing of God explores and imparts a beautiful truth. Furious can be a confusing word. It’s often associated with anger. In this book, its meaning has more to do with intensity, as in the sense of a “furious storm.”
In his characteristic way, Brennan calls our attention to the incredible, overwhelming power of God’s intense desire for us. As hard to comprehend as it is, the Creator of the Universe wants to be near us. He longs for closeness with us.
Jesus pursues us with fierce and absolutely unconditional affection. “His love is never based on our performance or moods,” says Manning.
The Furious Longing of God is a call to accept and internalize the reality of His passionate love. It challenges us to embrace the transformation that reality brings to every aspect of our lives. It calls us to be healed by it, to be ministers of healing through it. The message of His furious love is meant to be shared.
Affirm Beyond What You See
The book inspired me again with this simple truth. It’s not new content for me, but Manning has a powerful way of bringing this truth home. I felt called once again to love others the way God has loved me. He saw good in me before I saw it in myself.
Within us rests great power to speak life. “To affirm a person is to see the good in them that they cannot see in themselves and to repeat it in spite of appearances to the contrary,” writes Manning. We call forth goodness through our unconditional, accepting words.
We are to love deeply, profoundly, and selflessly. We obey Christ’s command to love one another as He loves us. As we do this, it is a sign, a true wonder, to a doubting world. Brennan challenged me to examine my life, areas where I am selfish, unloving, critical and condemning. I must pursue loving family, friends, and colleagues as furiously and faithfully as God loves me.
This is easier said than done.
Manning’s book is not a book of shoulds though. Quite the opposite. It calls us to embrace our darkness and struggles. “The men and women who are truly filled with light are those who have gazed deeply into the darkness of their own imperfect existence.”
How Furious Is My Love?
I found myself asking this question as I read. How furious is my love for God? For others? For the lost?
Let your longing for Jesus’ arrival grow more furious this Advent. Soak for a moment in the reality of His passionate desire for a closer relationship with you.
This truth has the power to transform. In that place of wholeness, acceptance, and intimacy, we are gently changed. It is out of that place we can share about Him with others. It’s from there that we reflect His life, love, and healing to a waiting, broken world.
This Advent season be willing to speak of Him to those around you. Start spiritual conversations. Share with others about your longing for Him and your growing awareness of His desire for you. Affirm and bless, pray for and encourage all you come in contact with. Let your love for your family, your friends, and the lost shine as brightly as stars on a dark night.
We aren’t the only ones God furiously longs for. Partner with God to bring others into His loving arms. What better gift could we give to Jesus this Christmas?