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Eldredge, J. (2003). Waking the dead: The glory of a heart fully alive. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.
Rarely have I read a book that I immediately re-read, but that is what I did with this book. While written in engaging and understandable language, this book is deep. And tremendous. Upon finishing it the first time, I read most of it out loud to my wife. Then I went out and bought a copy and gave it to my pastor. Since then, I have bought and given away several other copies, and led a several-months-long church class on this book. In two different churches! In other words, I highly recommend this book.
Eldredge presents three central truths:
- Things are not what they seem
- This is a world at war
- Each of us has a crucial role to play.
According to Eldredge, the battleground begins in our hearts. He asserts that Christians have been taught to believe that the heart is wicked, rather than understanding that the unredeemed heart is wicked, but the redeemed heart is not. He contends that the devil wants us to believe that our hearts are wicked, for then we will not be able to effectively fight the devil.
Eldredge teaches that there are four great streams that help bring our hearts fully alive. The streams are:
- Walking with God (discipleship)
- Receiving God's intimate counsel (counseling)
- Deep restoration (healing)
- Spiritual warfare
When the four streams are both experienced and integrated, our hearts are set free. To do so requires what Eldredge terms “fellowships of the heart,” where we come into authentic, deep, accountable relationships with other Christians. According to Eldredge, these groups must be small, must be intimate, will be messy, and will require tremendous amounts of effort.
Eldredge concludes the book with “A Daily Prayer for Freedom,” which is a tremendous prayer (pp. 223-226). I keep a copy of it in my daily Bible to read on a regular basis
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