Discovering the Good Life

First sentence from chapter one: What is so good about life? Our hearts long for a winning answer.

Tim Savage sets out to answer the question WHAT IS THE GOOD LIFE? or to phrase it slightly differently WHAT MAKES LIFE GOOD? His answer is simple and obvious--to some--but perhaps not to others. Jesus is the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE. There is no good life apart from Christ Jesus--that is Savage's premise.

How he sets about sharing this good news about the good life is unique. He arranges the gospel as the story of three trees: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, a shoot from the stump of Jesse, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit. (The second tree is NOT the cross but the person of Jesus Christ.)

A chapter is spent on each "tree" and he takes care to join all three together into a strong, compelling narrative. The last chapter is spent on the healing powers of the fruit of the tree of life. In this chapter he goes through many of Paul's lists. There was so much to unpack in this chapter--I feel like I could read it a few more times and still be picking up more insights.

But the book isn't just a unique or clever gospel presentation. The book is about how people answer some of life's biggest questions. What is the meaning of life? Is life good? Is life worth living? Why am I here? Why am I so unhappy? Why am I never satisfied? Why does life feel so empty and worthless? Savage points the way to HOPE and JOY. Again the answer is JESUS.

The imagery and phrasing of some of Savage's text was a bit new and perplexing to me at times. But overall I think this is a good read. I particularly enjoyed the later chapters of this one which really focus on how to live life well.

Tim Savage explores the notion of the 'good life' using the analogy of the three key trees in the Bible. It's unusual and perhaps a little bit cumbersome, however, the book leads us to a very satisfactory assessment of how to discover the good life.

Savage does an excellent job weaving Scripture and supporting quotes throughout his wanderings through the Biblical gardens and introduces the reader to some new sources. Thomas Traherne was somebody new to me. He was a poet and each chapter begins with a short verse or two from the man. By all accounts both CS Lewis and AW Tozer were big fans of the man.

It's a relatively straightforward book to read and as I mentioned builds well to outlining how we can satisfy the yearnings of our hearts for the 'good life.'

I will happily recommend this book especially to those who enjoy discovering new and old voices of The Way who can guide us with their words and experiences to better seek after Jesus Christ who makes Himself freely available to us.

No longer is life about grasping after people, places and things. Rather, it is about blessing people, enhancing places, and giving away things. Life is not about getting. Life is about giving.

The core of a well-lived Christ centered life is about sacrifice. What does that look like? And what must we do to discover that on our own. Before I dig into this text, I want to share my own experience this past couple of weeks that I discovered that relates to discovering the Good life in Christ. I experienced something that I knew in my head but have not experienced for awhile and was reminded of in a new way. I invested in a fitbit. It measures your steps and helps you control physical health which also helps your emotional well being. You are suggested to keep track of your water intake and calories. I have never been a water drinker. At most 3 glasses a day and at least one. So needles to say, I was desiring coke and sugary drinks instead of pure h20. However, I took the challenge and have now in the past weeks have exceeded the recommended amount and have learned that I desire water. It took taking away the bad things that was taking from my health and replacing it with the good thing before I would desire what was good. I have since examined my life and this book has helped in what I need to take out and replace with what is good. Anything that keeps me from the word of God on a daily basis must be eliminated. I cannot desire the things of God unless I am actively seeking and immersing myself into his word and prayer. That is the beginning of living the good life. Now let me introduce you more to what this book is about and how it can help you see and experience God in a worshipful way.

The text starts with the beginning. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil which Adam and Eve failed to live out. This study of the tree is important for us to understand as it amplifies how we seek to be God and defy his sovereignty. Eve was deceived and Adam was passive. Each sinned against the Lord. I am always learning new insight with the Fall of Adam and Eve. Something about the goodness of God and how easily we fall.

The text goes into another type tree that Christians are familiar with and that is the Shoot from the Stump of Jesse which refers to the Kingdom of David. The rise of David, the fall of David and the restoration of David. This again is a study of how God brings his people up and how we get comfortable and fail. But it is our failing that God's glory is revealed. It is never about how we succeed or even how we fail but how God remains faithful.

The third tree is the Tree of Life with its 12 kinds of Fruit. This of course is centered on the work of Christ and how Christ changes us and our desires.

A text that gives you reason to think, reexamine, make the changes and worship the God that loves you! Highly recommend.

A Special Thank you to Crossway and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

This book was a breath of fresh air. It's important for Christians to frequently be reminded that we're in this world but not of it, and to have examples of what that truly looks like. The author writes in a conversational way that is easy for the reader to relate to, and gives many examples that demonstrate to the reader the importance of living life for a higher purpose with a deeper motivation- the gospel of Jesus Christ.