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The Vision And The Vow: Re-Discovering Life and Grace
In the early 18th century, a Christian named Count Zinzendorf formed a secret society called the Honorable Order of the Grain of Mustard. Members wore a ring inscribed with the words "No man liveth unto himself" and took a solemn vow to be true to Christ, to be kind to people and to take the Gospel to the nations. Zinzendorf’s vow to live unselfishly is as challenging today as ever. Through these principles, Pete Greig offers a "rule of life" for a generation looking for guidance through a chaotic culture. Included is a 40-day devotional to dig deeper into biblical principles, plus a full-color bonus section featuring a visual interpretation of "The Vision," a prayerful manifesto written by Greig that’s become a rallying cry of a generation.
208 pages, Paperback
First published May 15, 2004
10 people are currently reading
131 people want to read
About the author
Pete Greig
25 books391 followersPete Greig is the bewildered founder of the 24-7 Prayer movement which has spread into more than half the nations on earth.
He is also the Senior Pastor of Emmaus Rd, Guildford, Ambassador for the NGO Tearfund, and an Associate Tutor at St Mellitus Theological College, London.
His latest book, ‘How to Pray: A Simple Guide for Normal People’ is a companion volume to The Prayer Course (www.prayercourse.org), which has been downloaded more than a million times. His previous title, ‘Dirty Glory’, was UK Christian Book of the year in 2017.
He preaches and teaches around the world and co-hosts two British festivals: Wildfires and the Big Church Day Out which attracts 30,000 people each year.
Pete’s passions include T.S. Eliot, Portsmouth F.C. and ‘Little Mo’, a 1964 Morris Minor convertible which he has lovingly restored by hand.
He is also the Senior Pastor of Emmaus Rd, Guildford, Ambassador for the NGO Tearfund, and an Associate Tutor at St Mellitus Theological College, London.
His latest book, ‘How to Pray: A Simple Guide for Normal People’ is a companion volume to The Prayer Course (www.prayercourse.org), which has been downloaded more than a million times. His previous title, ‘Dirty Glory’, was UK Christian Book of the year in 2017.
He preaches and teaches around the world and co-hosts two British festivals: Wildfires and the Big Church Day Out which attracts 30,000 people each year.
Pete’s passions include T.S. Eliot, Portsmouth F.C. and ‘Little Mo’, a 1964 Morris Minor convertible which he has lovingly restored by hand.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 17, 2022
The Vision and the Vow is an interesting book. One part of it is the Vision, which is a poem that gained some traction in the late 90s/early 2000s that has been given an artistic treatment. It starts on the side of the book that has "The Vision" in big letters. If you flip the book to the other side it is "The Vow" part which is where the majority of the book is found and this looks closer at the ideas in "The Vision" and gives some meat to it.
I had never really heard of the original poem until reading the book, so I can't say that the poem really impacted me that much. It was interesting, but I don't know that it was really new ideas for me. "The Vow" part is also interesting. Here he talks about commitment to Christ and moves into the idea of taking a vow to follow God a la The Order of the Mustard Seed a "secret" group who took a vow to follow Christ that was started by Count Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf.
While I'm not necessarily sold on the idea, mainly since Christ does warn against taking vows more than saying that it is okay as long as it is the right kind of vow. Even though I'm not sold on the idea, there are some good things said here. Also the book is very much invitational and not heavy handed as well. So you feel like this is being presented as a option, not the only option for our faith. It's a tool that may be able to help people be more committed to God, and I really appreciated this approach.
Even without the presentation of the formal vow aspects of stuff, there is still a lot to think about in terms of commitment to Christ and how that should impact our whole life. The presentation is definitely more towards a younger audience and is kind of outdated for that since it's now like 18 years old itself. So some topics may not hit where people who get a lot of the references are and those who do relate to some of the topics may not get some of the pop culture references very easily. It's definitely something that will be dependent on the reader.
Overall, I enjoyed The Vision and the Vow. I'm not quite going to go out and become a member of the Order of the Mustard Seed, but it was a book that allowed you to look at your commitment to Christ. It also did so in a way that focused more on grace and invited you to be a part of what Christ is doing than it did on hitting the areas of guilt or fear that can be a big temptation in books like this.
I had never really heard of the original poem until reading the book, so I can't say that the poem really impacted me that much. It was interesting, but I don't know that it was really new ideas for me. "The Vow" part is also interesting. Here he talks about commitment to Christ and moves into the idea of taking a vow to follow God a la The Order of the Mustard Seed a "secret" group who took a vow to follow Christ that was started by Count Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf.
While I'm not necessarily sold on the idea, mainly since Christ does warn against taking vows more than saying that it is okay as long as it is the right kind of vow. Even though I'm not sold on the idea, there are some good things said here. Also the book is very much invitational and not heavy handed as well. So you feel like this is being presented as a option, not the only option for our faith. It's a tool that may be able to help people be more committed to God, and I really appreciated this approach.
Even without the presentation of the formal vow aspects of stuff, there is still a lot to think about in terms of commitment to Christ and how that should impact our whole life. The presentation is definitely more towards a younger audience and is kind of outdated for that since it's now like 18 years old itself. So some topics may not hit where people who get a lot of the references are and those who do relate to some of the topics may not get some of the pop culture references very easily. It's definitely something that will be dependent on the reader.
Overall, I enjoyed The Vision and the Vow. I'm not quite going to go out and become a member of the Order of the Mustard Seed, but it was a book that allowed you to look at your commitment to Christ. It also did so in a way that focused more on grace and invited you to be a part of what Christ is doing than it did on hitting the areas of guilt or fear that can be a big temptation in books like this.
November 30, 2021
Gracefully weaves in delightful quotes and stories from sources as diverse as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Irenaeus. I appreciated how obviously authentic Greig is in his faith, a beautiful mix of conviction and openness, which I humbly confess I can currently only aspire toward.
Also, one should take into account how avant garde this book when it first came out in 2004(?). It would be one thing to write a book like this now that the market is more or less saturated with the genre, but it was quite another thing to do it then. But as Greig would say, following Jesus is far more important than reading another bestselling book about Jesus.
Also, one should take into account how avant garde this book when it first came out in 2004(?). It would be one thing to write a book like this now that the market is more or less saturated with the genre, but it was quite another thing to do it then. But as Greig would say, following Jesus is far more important than reading another bestselling book about Jesus.
May 7, 2021
What an absolutely inspiring and refreshing read!
February 7, 2023
Pete Greig never fails to inspire me and call me forth from here. Lord let it be.
June 17, 2012
I read this book when I was in high school, about 10 years ago, and it really pumped me up to live out a very dangerous/zealous faith in Jesus. The vision side of this book is super cool but the vow part is filled with a lot of meaty concepts that one can chew on.
July 24, 2013
Such a good book for those who are called to the "mission field" - which is everyone who believes in Christ! A good book to stir your passion and remind you that you are not alone in this journey. Great for the younger generation. I've read and re-read it.
October 23, 2015
This was an amazing read. Inspiring, challenging. It's a great wake-up call for individuals and the church at large. Will definitely read it again!
June 30, 2012
This is a great book! I recommend reading Red Moon Rising first though.
January 14, 2013
Pete Greig is not only a great writer, he's a deeply thoughtful, authentic follower of Jesus. This book will get you off your spiritual duff!
September 18, 2013
An incredible vision for a radical lifestyle of love and compassion. God has spoken clearly to me through this book and continues to do so!
February 1, 2014
I wear a ring on my ring finger which is inspired, at least in part, by this story.
Mine, however, is in no way the same, or has the same meaning as the one mentioned in here.
Mine, however, is in no way the same, or has the same meaning as the one mentioned in here.
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February 20, 2016another great read from pete greig
April 11, 2022
Absolutely amazing, and challenging, and beautiful. Highly recommended.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews