Deep Simplicity: Meditations on Abiding in Christ

by Emily Darnell

To abide is to remain, to rest, to dwell, to be at home. Emily Darnell encourages readers to truly abide in God and His Word, not just to read a couple of verses, but to take time to meditate on it and be nourished. Each chapter will unfold an aspect of abiding, ending with some practices to incorporate in personal worship, or Scriptures to meditate upon to grow deeper in grace, and in knowledge and love of the One who loved you first.

160 pages, Paperback

Published November 6, 2020

Reviews

[Ashley Hoss · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review is a long time coming for Emily and I. Back in December, she messaged me asking if she could send me a copy of Deep Simplicity in exchange for a review and of course, I said yes.

Don’t let the short length of this book fool you. It is saturated with rich theology and scripture; it’s really not a quick “all in one sitting” read. There are 13 chapters aside from the introduction and conclusion, so if you’d like to take it into smaller pieces, you could do it in two weeks. Or you could divide it even further by taking it down to the smaller sections within each chapter, which should make it take about 12 weeks. Or you could do each chapter for one day, but have it one day a week and work on applying the Practice part for the rest of the week (what I recommend).

Deep simplicity is designed to walk you through what it means to abide in Christ (as written in John 15). In the introduction, Emily suggests reading John 14-17 to prepare for the rest of the book, which I highly recommend, especially if it has been a while since you last read it. These chapters remind us of who God is, who we are in Christ, His purpose for us, and His care for us. Emily also refers to them repeatedly throughout the book, so it’s great to have it fresh in your mind.

Emily addresses the concept of abiding in Christ through chapters broken up into:

1) Seeking God

2) Clinging to God

3) The Heart of Psalm 119

4) God as our refuge and dwelling place

5) Hope

6) Renewal

7) Always becoming (addressing the already and not yet)

8) Partaking in Christ’s divine nature

9) Abiding in truth and love

10) Abiding deeper

11) Knowing that apart from abiding in Christ, we can do nothing

12) Abiding together (as a universal church)

13) Retreating for spiritual rest


By far, my two favorite chapters are Renewal and Abiding in Truth and in Love. Renewal especially highlights who we are in Christ, the work that Christ is doing in us, and also challenges the tendency to be a people pleaser instead of focusing on honoring God. Abiding in Truth and in Love was definitely the most convicting, but was so full of grace that I truly felt edified by the time I was done reading it and not just beat down for not being perfect.

Throughout the book, Emily pushes you to experience the Word for yourself and teaches you how to study. One of the things that I really appreciated is how she’s able to connect different verses that touch on the same topic and show a unified message to create a more meaningful application. An example of this is on page 51, where she is able to connect Exodus 20 and Isaiah 58 and address God as our refuge on the Sabbath. I think it pairs really well with Westminster’s teachings on the Sabbath.

Another thing I appreciate is that Emily brings the character of God to the forefront and then reminds us that because of this character, it is really a joy and delight to abide in Christ. While reading this book, it helped draw me to enjoy reading the Bible more and I was encouraged towards godliness more, as well.

All in all, this book was truly excellent. I am thoroughly impressed with Emily’s ability to write something so impactful in such a compact way. I am the kind of person that mostly likes to hold out and not underline books as long as I can, but I could not make it very far with this one and probably about half of the pages have at least one quote (or paragraph!) underlined. One of the things I appreciated about the book is that Emily left each chapter with tangible applications to take from it. Those kinds of things really help those who may have trouble with some of the more abstract verbiage that Christianese can include.

I think the only thing I wish there was more of would be that I wish the Holy Spirit was touched on a little bit more, but that’s honestly me being super super nitpicky. That said, we are starting this month out strong with 5 out of 5 stars for Deep Simplicity: Meditations on Abiding in Christ. I would recommend this book to both new believers and mature believers alike. There is something for anyone to learn and appreciate.

[April Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Make time to read this book in 2021. It will re-focus your attention on what is lasting. It will ground you in solid Biblical theology. It will give you practical ways to continue going back to the well of living water in the mundane as well as the really hard times in your life-that living water that is truly what your soul needs. Thank you, Emily.

[Mike Massey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes books can leave you with a works mentality where you feel you need to do more that you might have a deeper walk with Christ; this book does the opposite. Instead it reminds you what you already have in Christ and thus you come away feeling refreshed wanting to spend time with Jesus. This book is simple enough to read for encouragement without having to wonder what is meant while deep enough to emerge yourself one sentence at a time should you so choose. It is great to read in big chunks at a time but can also be used as a daily devotional should you spend time to hit each section as one. Another great detail in this book is that it gives you the practical "how" at end of each chapter that puts in place what you just read. As a pastor, this book is great for the new believer or the seasoned saint and it is one that I have bought for each of our leaders. People make the mistake of overlooking books if the author isn't nationally known but don't make the mistake here - these simple truths will inspire you to abide in Christ and get the most out of your time with Him. It doesn't take the place of the Word but gives you the tools to make the most of your time in the Word.

[Ed Creedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read, encouraging us to abide wholly in Christ, and exploring what that means for us, spiritually, day in day out.

[Lauri Hogle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I began this book in a busy and hard season. Although it's an easy read, within days, it became a slow, pouring-into read for me. I slowed down and started to highlight, take notes, and abide in His Word with the Scriptures Emily practically suggested and winsomely shared. He renewed my strength, heart, and mind in new and fresh ways. Abiding in His Word is my delight and I too have clung to God as He's revealed Himself in His Word, in personal worship times, and in ways Emily describes. So in my case, I was deeply encouraged by a sister in Christ whom He has beautifully directed. He reassured me, time and time again, with each paragraph that points me to His Word. God gave me a new gift of His love in this treasure of a book and author, as she walked alongside me. I'm praying this book will help many who seek to know God deeply. It has been such a blessing to me in the past few months.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a peaceful book, written in a traditional style, about what it looks like to abide in Christ. It provides several scriptures in each chapter to help you have further study. I would have liked to see more personal stories from the author in this book. But it is solidly biblical and could be a good resource for research and sermon preparation.

I received a preview copy of Deep Simplicity from the author.