What do you think?
Rate this book
Guard Us, Guide Us: Divine Leading in Life's Decisions
Seeking God's guidance is a focus for many believers. We want to know what God has planned for our lives. Are we making the right decision? Are we in his will? For some people, knowing God is guiding their lives makes them relax and enjoy the ride. But others fear making the wrong choice and find themselves paralyzed as they wait for signs from above.
J. I. Packer and Carolyn Nystrom answer these fears with Guard Us, Guide Us . With a solid biblical footing, they shed light on the notion of God's guidance in response to the many misunderstandings well-meaning Christians can have. Readers seeking God's will in major life decisions, as well as anyone interested in understanding how God guides us, will welcome this practical and inspiring book.
J. I. Packer and Carolyn Nystrom answer these fears with Guard Us, Guide Us . With a solid biblical footing, they shed light on the notion of God's guidance in response to the many misunderstandings well-meaning Christians can have. Readers seeking God's will in major life decisions, as well as anyone interested in understanding how God guides us, will welcome this practical and inspiring book.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2008
4 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
J.I. Packer
447 books916 followersWhat do J. I. Packer, Billy Graham and Richard John Neuhaus have in common? Each was recently named by TIME magazine as among the 25 most influential evangelicals in America.
Dr. Packer, the Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College, was hailed by TIME as “a doctrinal Solomon” among Protestants. “Mediating debates on everything from a particular Bible translation to the acceptability of free-flowing Pentecostal spirituality, Packer helps unify a community [evangelicalism] that could easily fall victim to its internal tensions.”
Knowing God, Dr. Packer’s seminal 1973 work, was lauded as a book which articulated shared beliefs for members of diverse denominations; the TIME profile quotes Michael Cromartie of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington as saying, “conservative Methodists and Presbyterians and Baptists could all look to [Knowing God] and say, ‘This sums it all up for us.’”
In a similar tribute to Dr. Packer almost ten years ago, American theologian Mark Noll wrote in Christianity Today that, “Packer’s ability to address immensely important subjects in crisp, succinct sentences is one of the reasons why, both as an author and speaker, he has played such an important role among American evangelicals for four decades.”
For over 25 years Regent College students have been privileged to study under Dr. Packer’s clear and lucid teaching, and our faculty, staff and students celebrate the international recognition he rightly receives as a leading Christian thinker and teacher.
(https://www.regent-college.edu/facult...)
Dr. Packer, the Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College, was hailed by TIME as “a doctrinal Solomon” among Protestants. “Mediating debates on everything from a particular Bible translation to the acceptability of free-flowing Pentecostal spirituality, Packer helps unify a community [evangelicalism] that could easily fall victim to its internal tensions.”
Knowing God, Dr. Packer’s seminal 1973 work, was lauded as a book which articulated shared beliefs for members of diverse denominations; the TIME profile quotes Michael Cromartie of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington as saying, “conservative Methodists and Presbyterians and Baptists could all look to [Knowing God] and say, ‘This sums it all up for us.’”
In a similar tribute to Dr. Packer almost ten years ago, American theologian Mark Noll wrote in Christianity Today that, “Packer’s ability to address immensely important subjects in crisp, succinct sentences is one of the reasons why, both as an author and speaker, he has played such an important role among American evangelicals for four decades.”
For over 25 years Regent College students have been privileged to study under Dr. Packer’s clear and lucid teaching, and our faculty, staff and students celebrate the international recognition he rightly receives as a leading Christian thinker and teacher.
(https://www.regent-college.edu/facult...)
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
May 25, 2013
Great Content. A little too many words to say what needs to be said but none the less it is an important read when it comes to the question of "what is God's will for my life"?
October 20, 2009
Do not let the prologue and first chapter stop you, this is an excellent book on discerning God's will. Few Christian books employ Scripture as well as Packer and Nystrom do here. Citing many of the abuses and problems in discerning God's will, the authors lay out a methodical strategy anyone could follow. My favorite chapters were the last two, so read on and get wisdom.
August 5, 2024
Stellar. Each chapter was worth the price of the book. Hard to say which one was the most useful. Seeks to avoid the extremes of the excesses of the Charismatic movement without falling off the other side into rationalistic deism.
Essential reading in 'Christian living.' I hope to return before long (but I say that a lot).
Essential reading in 'Christian living.' I hope to return before long (but I say that a lot).
January 21, 2019
A reminder that God is always there to guide and guard us. B
June 26, 2021
Comprehensive, grounded and optimistic. I may return to it.
April 4, 2023
A great work on the guidance we receive and can expect to receive from God. It is a book to help all believers to process how God leads us and how we can make godly decisions.
October 28, 2013
Am not sure who wrote which chapters, but the style of many important chapters in this book clearly resembles that of packer. In fact, the whole book is aligned to the direction set for us in his Knowing God.
The end of all christian knowledge while we are still on this earth will eventually lead to this question: Given all these knowledge, how do we make the right decisions in life?
As in real life.
Packer (shall use only one name though he is the co-author) first assures us that we dun necessarily make the right decisions always. Beginning from psalm 23, he reminds us that we are like sheep, easily confused, sometimes too impetuous, and other times too slow. But no matter what, we rest in the assurance that our Lord will guide us along even as we learn along the way.
Chapter 2 then go on to untangled some “tangled tales” – mistaken myths of reading God’s will and calling, before going into the true foundation for all christian decision-making, the wisdom as revealed in the Word of God, in chapters 3-5. These are chapters that need to be scrutinised in detail even as we examine our spiritual health.
Chapter 6 and 7 then turn to two other avenues – the advice of godly friends and examples set by godly leaders (and of course Jesus Himself). Chapter 8 and 9 apply the principles learnt in real life: our choice of job and situation ethics.
But having said all, the last chapter is still the most insightful as it warns against the dangers of two possible extremes: of being super-spiritual on the one hand and sub-spiritual on the other. By being super-spiritual, we tend to (1) undervalue God’s gift of reason; (2) overvalue the grace of patiently waiting; and (3) we “program” the Holy Spirit, ie. “limiting His freedom by specifying in advance what we expect Him to do and then waiting for Him to do it.” And of course by being sub-spiritual, we tend to act otherwise. Packer calls for a good balance between the two.
In short, christian decision-making should be based on foundation laid by the constant study of, and reference to God’s Word and by prayers, godly fellowship and also by allowing God to lead us through our faculties and by His Spirit.
The end of all christian knowledge while we are still on this earth will eventually lead to this question: Given all these knowledge, how do we make the right decisions in life?
As in real life.
Packer (shall use only one name though he is the co-author) first assures us that we dun necessarily make the right decisions always. Beginning from psalm 23, he reminds us that we are like sheep, easily confused, sometimes too impetuous, and other times too slow. But no matter what, we rest in the assurance that our Lord will guide us along even as we learn along the way.
Chapter 2 then go on to untangled some “tangled tales” – mistaken myths of reading God’s will and calling, before going into the true foundation for all christian decision-making, the wisdom as revealed in the Word of God, in chapters 3-5. These are chapters that need to be scrutinised in detail even as we examine our spiritual health.
Chapter 6 and 7 then turn to two other avenues – the advice of godly friends and examples set by godly leaders (and of course Jesus Himself). Chapter 8 and 9 apply the principles learnt in real life: our choice of job and situation ethics.
But having said all, the last chapter is still the most insightful as it warns against the dangers of two possible extremes: of being super-spiritual on the one hand and sub-spiritual on the other. By being super-spiritual, we tend to (1) undervalue God’s gift of reason; (2) overvalue the grace of patiently waiting; and (3) we “program” the Holy Spirit, ie. “limiting His freedom by specifying in advance what we expect Him to do and then waiting for Him to do it.” And of course by being sub-spiritual, we tend to act otherwise. Packer calls for a good balance between the two.
In short, christian decision-making should be based on foundation laid by the constant study of, and reference to God’s Word and by prayers, godly fellowship and also by allowing God to lead us through our faculties and by His Spirit.
August 30, 2012
Much easier read than the typical Packer book because of Carolyn Nystrom's contribution I'm sure. This book really does offer a host of direction on how to be led by God in our lives. Mr. Packer gently nudges the believer into God's path in ways that only he can. I plan to re-read this book again in the coming years as this topic is always relevant.
February 28, 2015
"Many books take up the subject of God's guidance, some of them offering a wide range of excellent insights, but few speak to the prerequisite of spiritual health: that guidance from God is only to be expected when spiritually you are in good shape."
February 24, 2009
Excellent study of how God leads His people. Recommended.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews