The Magnificent Obsession: Embracing the God-Filled Life

by Anne Graham Lotz, Rick Warren (Foreword)

If you or someone close to you is devoted to their church but still struggles to find meaning and passion in their faith; who loves their family, works hard, contributes to their community, but still feels life is somehow incomplete and hollow at the core; who is restless in spirit, with a nagging sense that there must be something more . . . there is The Magnificent Obsession . Gifted Bible teacher Anne Graham Lotz, daughter of evangelist Billy Graham, has known these struggles herself. As she studied Scripture, looking for a way out of the emptiness, she found her answer in the amazing story of Abraham, a very ordinary man who became extraordinary for one pivotal he pursued God in a life of obedient faith, not knowing where that decision would take him. Anne followed Abraham's lead and began a lifelong pursuit of knowing God, as he truly is, in an intensely personal relationship. Through personal anecdotes, unforgettable stories, and God-inspired insights, she invites you to draw closer to God, who is as committed to you as he was to Abraham, and longs to call you "friend."

Genres: Christian, Christian Living, Faith, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Christianity, Christian Non Fiction

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Lotz is the child of Billy Graham & Ruth Bell Graham

Anne Graham Lotz (born May 1948) is an American Christian evangelist. She is the second daughter of evangelist Billy Graham and his wife Ruth Graham. Anne Graham Lotz accepts speaking invitations worldwide, is founder of AnGeL Ministries, and an award-winning author.

Reviews

[Teri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anne Graham Lotz is a wonderful Bible teacher. This book looks at Abraham's life of faith. He was certainly not always obedient and courageous, but was continually growing in his relationship with God and in his faith. His was a magnificent obsession; one that I long to emulate. I did the Bible study and video along with reading the book, and that helped reinforce the lessons. Alone or with the study, this is a good Bible study.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful. Anne has her father's gift of expressing deep spiritual truths in language anyone can not only understand, but enjoy reading. She is so vulnerable and transparent - she makes no claims for herself, but presents the Gospel simply, forcefully and honestly. Highly recommend, wherever you are in your spiritual journey.

[Michelle Korting · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never has my soul been touched the way that Anne Graham Lotz does.
I attended her “Just Give Me Jesus” conference in San Diego, CA back in early 2000. As I walked to my seat with friends the lights were low and a spotlight was on the podium that was in purple and a wood cross, off to the side a man playing the Cello. I get chills to this day remembering this event.
Not only was I introduced to Anne Graham Lotz but also Fernando Ortega.
I never cried so many silent tears as I did this day.
As I read The Magnificent Obsession it was as if Anne herself was reading to me. She’s a powerful, passionate speaker who loves Jesus. I’m moved just as I was the day I attended “Just Give Me Jesus” conference- that’s all I need is Jesus!
Highly recommend this book for anyone who would like to delve deeper into the life of Abraham and his love for God.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO MUCH in this book! So very much that can speak into, apply, and encourage us in our everyday. Definitely plan to reread at some point. But for now going to unpack the story of Hagar and Ishmael in Lotz’ book Wounded By God’s People.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first book I've read by Anne Graham Lotz, and I loved it! She did an amazing job of bringing the story of Abraham to life. I will definitely read another one of her books and look forward to learning from her wisdom. She truly has a gift!

[Bekah Wade · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book. It's worth a read if you've read Genesis and want to give more thought to the story of Abraham.

The thoughts on Abraham were interesting, but I appreciated and enjoyed Anne's personal stories even more. (Like can you imagine being the daughter of Billy Graham? Coming from an ultra conservative family, with very traditional views on female roles, and yet being certain that God wants you to *lead* a ministry!?)

Anne's writing style is not my favorite. She tries too hard, in my opinion, to be inspirational. The overall tone is emotional and reminiscent of a PBS special (she even talks about being a part of a PBS special at one point, to which I nodded my head because it fit her perfectly.)

She tends to try to put herself in the Bible characters shoes and guess at what they were thinking and feeling. Sometimes this brought me new insight, but most of the time I just thought "what makes her think Abraham thought that!? It doesn't say anything about that one way or another". I thought maybe she was reaching, in some cases, to make it poetic and applicable.

In the end, I felt that it was worth the read. It's easy to understand and gives lots of great thoughts to ponder.

[Karen Rettig · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t usually enjoy reading religious books, but this wonderful title enticed me to give it a try. The magnificent obsession is Abraham’s obsession with a new, demanding and very personal God. The author compares Abraham’s relationship with God to that of modern humankind, and she teases a lot of lessons out of the Bible story. Some of them seemed a bit of a stretch to me, but I found many to be worthwhile. After a hundred pages or so, however, the comparisons became tedious and pedantic and I didn’t finish the book.

You should probably take this review with a grain of salt. I want every religious writer to be G K Chesterton or C S Lewis or Dorothy Sayre. I am always disappointed when they aren’t.

[Olivia Knott · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderfully written work of art demonstrating the amazing blessing which is to personally know God! This book beautifully showed that the best blessing, far greater than a son, far greater than an inheritance, far greater than land is a real love relationship with God through His amazing son Jesus. Amazing syntax demonstrated the wonder of God and the depth of His greatness, and the use of rhetorical questions really makes one examine themselves and feel convicted to be real and reverent before God. Amazing read, truly blessed my soul! God bless Anne Graham Lotz and may God continue to use her to make Him known! Amen!

[Sara Brunsvold · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the book that introduced me to the teaching of Anne Graham Lotz and the story of Abraham in a way I never knew. Anne is a gifted teacher, and her storytelling spoke directly to my storyteller's heart. Abraham's life was wrought with little and plenty, disgrace and redemption. And he -- yes, he -- was called a friend of God. That is a story I could read over and over and never grow tired of it.

[Denise Reed · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had issues reading this reading this book because the author made many statements offering them as truth without any biblical facts to support it. I am not sure if because her father was a preacher he implanted those statements and she forgot the source but anyway I felt uncomfortable reading it. I couldn’t get passed the first chapter, it was like reading a Christian fiction book mixed with the type of spiritual advice from a Christian living book. It was so confusing

[Angie Stough · Rating 2 out of 5]

Every. Single. Point. Is belabored. The author comes across as holier than thou when judging a Bible Study lady for using a curse word. Way too long and she added nothing particularly profound or inspiring. The reader would benefit more by just reading the actual Biblical account of Abraham and skipping all this fluff.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anne Graham Lotz is real, down-to-earth and personal. Her examination of the life of Abraham mixes historical insight with practical action steps to deepen your relationship with the Creator. It reminded me that my faith walk can be rich and meaningful as I seek to be like Abraham and truly be one called, "God's friend." This book was a blessing!

[Linda Yezak · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one would be a great read for those teetering on the edge of faith, unsure of themselves or the God they claim to accept. Anne Lotz takes Abraham's journey and illustrates his obedience and his shortcomings, then applies both to our lives today. Wonderful lessons in every chapter.

[Linda K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anne Graham Lotz is one of my favorite Christian authors! I love the way she can weave the stories and circumstances of biblical prophets into our twenty-first century world. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking to strengthen their walk with God!

[Marty Vaughn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A complete discussion of the life of Abraham from the book of Genesis with applications and meanings for our modern lives. Ms. Lotz is a great teacher.

[Dawn Meyers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I would describe it as a meditation on the life of Abraham. It shed a lot of light on the details of daily living, and really brought the biblical text to life.

[Dawn Traylor]

Great lesson but long book

A very good book. It was just very long. I thought about several passages and learned throughout the book. I recommend this book.

[Life’s journey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good nuggets buried in between endless lists. Also a bit too many hypotheticals

[Abigail Hicks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was very wordy. I think it would have been a great read. I think she drew things out in getting the message across

[Tiffani · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very descriptive journey of Abraham and how his faith journey can relate to our own. There are definitely good nuggets of wisdom and I underlined quite a bit. Sentences are often rather long. And when an example is given, it is multiple examples rather than just a couple, which for me, took away from the point being made. Basically, this just wasn't my favorite writing style.

[Marian Hartman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book a conflict of emotions for me. It is well known that people tend to feel and be influenced by recent "reading", and this is no different as my mind was constantly challenging my decisions as I read Lotz' parallel of Abraham's journey with the same decisions and journey we can make. The analysis of Abraham's life was tremendous and insightful.

Lotz' interpretation of some of the material is not in agreement with my own, but I think that has a lot to do with personal belief, background, and opinion. The more I speak with people, I find it amazing how the same scripture can be interpreted with full belief in several different ways. This leads me to the strong belief that our connection to the Bible as a guide and path is only dependable through prayer and a personal relationship with Christ.

This is something that I appreciate very much in the book also is that the focus on Abraham's /personal/ journey with God, not what everybody else thought his journey should entail. Again, not in agreement with everything in the book, but the essential message was excellent and causes you to challenge yourself and humanize Abraham.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think that she wrote this book based on a series of lectures (sermons) on the life of Abraham in the Bible. The first half is stronger than the second half and I wonder if that is because she was encouraged to make her lectures into a book and had to add to the main texts.

She does inspire me to continue to study the Bible. She has a lot of depth from her meditation on Scripture and is a natural teacher. She is very good with application, good questions.

She particularly inspired me to study the servant of Abraham in Genesis 24.

She and her brother Franklin bring great honor to their parents in how they have lived their lives.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book while participating in a 7-session summer bible study complete with a DVD series. Anne Graham Lotz (Billy Graham's daughter) is a fabulous teacher who encourages us to develop a personal relationship with God. She provides an in-depth view of Abraham's relationship with God through many challenging times. Anne wants us to "embrace “The Magnificent Obsession” by leaving everything behind, letting everything go, trusting everything completely, lifting everything up, and casting everything out. You must lay everything down – especially your most precious possessions." My takeaway? It's easy to say and very hard to do!

[Susan Merkle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an outstnding book and I ws introduced to it because of a Bible study I signed up for and took.

I loved the name because of my knowledge of and association with 12 step recovery and obsessive/compulsive disorder. And of course the author's name got my attention - Anne Graham Lotz - as she is one of Billy and Ruth Graham's daughters.

Anne is an outstanding author and many things make her so but the ones that truly got my attention waas her honesty, authenticity, and transparency.

I highly recommend this book to anyone! Enjoy!

[Carolyn Matthews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read and encouraging

Great read and encouraging

I would recommend this book to everyone, especially those desiring a closer, more personal relationship with God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The way Anne presented Abraham's story was truly amazing. The connection she made with his life and her desire to know God inspires me to do the same so that I too will know him.

[Shirley Kummer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found myself reading this book a little at a time. I wanted the insights she receives from the scriptures to minister to me as well as teach me. I have much to learn. She makes me want to take my time when I read my Bible and try to glean as much as I can from it. I am happy that a friend wants to read this book so I can gladly pass it on. Anne allows vulnerability as she openly shares many personal things in her life throughout the book.

[Kim Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a disarmingly honest book about the Christian journey. Anne Graham Lotz is encouraging without being patronizing and brutally frank about sin without condemnation. Her genuine love for scripture comes through loud and clear through a study of Abraham's faith walk with the Lord. A must read for anyone wishing to get serious about serving the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and most importantly, JESUS. What a magnificent obsession to declare as your life-long theme.

[Reader57 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anne is truly a gifted writer. However, this one is too much information in one book. She follows the story of Abraham from God's first calling for him to leave Ur to his death and makes comparisons to our own lives. She can get so much out of one verse that, in this book, you want to tell her to be a bit more general than detailed in her lesson.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took a while for me to read this book because of a lot of other study and reading I have been doing. But, the book was very good. It's just not one of those "quick reads" and I wanted to take in every word without missing anything. The story of Abraham is an amazing story and this book was helpful with some study and teaching on his life that I have recently done.

[Lucy Bilik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am still working on this one,,, it is hard for me to read it thru, I have to take this in small doses since I have been going thru some things in my life. However it challanges me every step of the way, every chapter has something to learn from and inspire me. The Parallel that Lotz draws with Abraham's life is amazing and insightful.