Practicing the Way: Be with Jesus, Become Like Him, Do As He Did
John Mark Comer
The author of the international bestseller The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry calls us to rediscover the path that leads to a deeper life with God . “One of the most important books I have read in a decade . . more
288 pages, Hardcover
First published WaterBrook
4.73
Rating
1733
Ratings
461
Reviews
John Mark Comer
33 books 2756 followers
I am the director and teacher of Practicing the Way, founding pastor of Bridgetown Church and New York Times bestselling author of Live No Lies. My growing passion is the intersection of spiritual formation and post-Christian culture. The gnawing questions that get me out of bed in the morning are, how do we experience life with God? And how do we change to become more like Jesus? To that end, I can regularly be found reading the desert fathers and mothers, ancient saints and obscure contemplatives, modern psychologists and social scientists, philosophers like Dallas Willard, and op-eds from the New York Times.When I'm not reading, I can be found around a table with my family and friends, attempting to learn how to cook, drinking Heart coffee, and walking the family dog in the forest. Most important, I am husband to T and father to Jude, Moses, and Sunday.
Community reviews
“In both my personal and pastoral experience, the problem is not that people don’t want to change (most do) or aren’t trying to change (most are); it’s that they do not know how to change. We don’t have a good grasp on how the human soul goes from spiritual birth to spiritual maturity. So we have a lot of spiritual adolescents, few elders. ” This is the problem John Mark Comer seeks to address in Practicing the Way, and he thoroughly succeeds. This book is the single best synthesis of the spiritual journey of being a disciple of Jesus that I have ever read. more
What does it mean to be a Christian. Ask 10 different people this question, and you may get 10 different answers that might range from political affiliation to church attendance. For this reason, John Mark Comer begins his latest book, Practicing the Way, with defining the terms. Because "Christian" can mean different things to different people, he lays out a definition of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. You'll have to read the book for yourself for the details, but the short answer is found in the subtitle: Be with Jesus, Become like him, and Do as he did. more
Thank you to Waterbrook/Multnomah and NetGalley for this advanced copy. "Are you a christian or are you an apprentice," John Mark asks. Because your answer matters and changes every move you make. Breezing through his introduction and a scattered synopsis of his last two books, Live No Lies,. and The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (which are not essential pre-reads, but highly recommended), we find the core of John Mark's work: more than 7 years of lived communal (and longer personal) experience in a church practicing the Way together in Portland. more
Very good. It’s funnier and more witty than his other books which I liked. Reads pretty much like a culmination of his most prominent teachings over the years. I am a very active consumer of all things JMC so thats a little bit why I’m rating 4 instead of 5. It wasn’t anything revolutionary or new to me, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t thought provoking and convicting all the same. more
I’m pretty sure I’ve read all of this author’s books at this point, and his commitment to following Christ above worldly ideals continues to impress me. John Mark Comer stays above the culture wars, citing teachings by everyone from the extremely progressive Rob Bell to the extremely conservative Rosaria Butterfield. The common denominator is that all the spiritual teachers he quotes are devoted to Jesus. In this book, the author challenges Christians to go beyond believing in Christ to truly following him. It’s a book that encourages and convicts its readers in equal measure. more
Potentially his best book yet… which, coming from me, is saying a lot. 💯. more
I could hardly put this book down. Comer presents such a compelling and inspiring vision of apprenticeship to Jesus. There is a lot of spiritual and practical wisdom packed throughout its pages, and I will frequently return to it as I craft my own Rule of Life. Highly recommended. more
"Apprenticeship to Jesus—that is, following Jesus—is a whole-life process of being with Jesus for the purpose of becoming like him and carrying on his work in the world. It’s a lifelong journey in which we gradually learn to say and do the kinds of things Jesus said and did as we apprentice under him in every facet of our lives. "Comer has made the process of being made an apprentice of Jesus not only sound desirable, he has simplified it through "Practicing the Way". The language used to describe our abiding with Jesus stirred up in me a deep passion for Jesus's presence. And, it is through our abundant time spent with Jesus that we are transformed to be like him and do as he did, as Comer reminds his readers throughout the whole book. more
In comparison to other John Mark Comer books, this one took me the longest to read and I think that’s because I felt like I had a lot to sit with and reflect on. Comer’s practicality, synthesis of thoughts from theologians throughout the centuries, and use of the scriptures to talk about the Way may sound intimidating, but it all felt very straight-forward. His chapters on surrender and sacrifice particularly gave me a lot to sit with and then take to the Lord. I’d highly recommend this book for anyone who feels like they are stuck in their faith; Comer beautifully discusses that there is so much more to life with Jesus than we tend to believe in our mundane, busy lives. A quote I sat with for a while:“Apprenticeship to Jesus is about turning your body into a temple, a place of overlap between heaven and earth - an advance sign of what one day Jesus will do for the entire cosmos, when heaven and earth are at long last reunited as one. more
Beautifully written, prophetic, timely. more
this book is convicting for a believer in any stage of maturity. comer really challenged the way i think about being a christian & shares a radical way of following jesus that is so biblically & theologically rich. i really appreciated how much comer covers in this book — not only does he give a biblical & theological framework for spiritual formation, but also incredibly practical steps (that are made to be possible for everyone, regardless of life stage or job or personality). i can see this being a book i reference back to & recommend to anyone who wants to take their relationship with god seriously & to live as he’s called us to live — as his disciples. more
Have always been a huge fan of anything JMC writes, and this book is no different. One of the best I’ve read on spiritual formation that provides a deeper look at what it means to be an apprentice of Jesus, and how that can/should play out in our lives. I basically underlined the whole book so I’m limiting myself to two (albeit, long) quotes:“Apprenticeship to Jesus- that is, following Jesus -is a whole-life process of being with Jesus for the purpose of becoming like him and carrying on his work in the world. It’s a lifelong journey in which we gradually learn to say and do the kinds of things Jesus said and did as we apprentice under him in every facet of our lives. ” “As far as I can tell, not one time in the entire New Testament is disciple used as a verb. more
Really loved this. Summary of a lot of JMC’s teaching and work over the last 10 years in apprenticeship and spiritual formation. Deeply inspiring and really helpful. . more
I think this book will be outsized in its influence on the upcoming Christian generation. John mark is is just so compelling and clear and winsome in his urgency to commit to becoming a disciple was wonderful. His astonishment that we’ve “created” a category of “Christian” that doesn’t desire to be a disciple of Jesus makes the book. The rest is immensely practical and gracious. Read this now. more
It's quite hard to summarise this book in a few lines for review purposes, simply because it is such an excellent piece of work. But here goes. I expect this is the book Comer has been wanting to write for years. The deepening of his faith, his experiences at Bridgetown Church and then his business 'Practicing the Way' and his ferocious appetite for learning and reading have all led to the book. Comer writes in an easy to understand manner. more
For me, it was the culmination of Comer’s teachings over my past four or so years of following him on spiritual formation and discipleship. There was a lot here though that was new and fresh. That stuff really inspired and reminded me of the importance of being intentionally formed by Jesus - to follow him daily with real practices. Will recommend it for sure - especially for those who are struggling with what it means to tangibly follow Jesus or are thinking about spiritual formation in general. . more
My favorite of JMC’s work. This book challenged me so much & i’ll definitely be reading again. My favorite take away is “Am I becoming more loving. ” A really good gauge of my growth in actually knowing Jesus deeper & living like him. “Come, follow me. more
It’s very possible that I’m just a John Mark Comer fanboy, but I loved this. It’s more or less a standard and straightforward book about spiritual formation, a life of following Jesus, and the practices that create space in our lives for those two things to take place. Comer himself will say that he’s more of an aggregator and synthesizer of content than he is a creator or generator of new ideas. That’s true in this book as it is in his others. Many of the ideas are quoted, referenced, and not groundbreaking, but stated clearly succinctly. more
I love all of John Mark Comer’s teachings, and this book distills his most important thoughts about incorporating the spiritual practices of Jesus into your daily life. It’s really good and helpful. more
Practicing the Way delves into the transformative journey of discipleship. This insightful book centers around three goals: being with Jesus, becoming like Jesus, and doing what Jesus did. With advice on establishing a Rule of Life, Comer guides readers through practices such as sabbath, prayer, and community. This book will be well received by seekers and seasoned Christians alike. One takeaway from Practicing the Way is the importance of having a Rule of Life lived out in community. more
JMC does it again. I’m convicted, challenged and encouraged all at once. This will be a book I continue to go back to as I continue to learn what apprentice to Jesus looks like. I can’t recommend this book enough. So good. more
In many ways a culmination of Comer’s writings in one book. The ask of discipline and liturgies of Ruthless Elimination paired with the sold out vision on life with Jesus of Live No Lies, just a super encouraging book on what it truly means to follow Christ. . more
Loved this book. As usual John Mark has written a book that is easy to read, very enjoyable, and accessible to all no matter where you're at in your discipleship. At the same time he doesn't shy away from the harsh reality that comes with living a life of apprenticeship to Jesus and what it costs. Go read it. more
One-of-a-kind primer on Christian discipleship and spiritual formation. more
Such a compelling framework for discipleship to Jesus. Definitely the most succinct book of Comer's that I've read, which makes it all the more powerful. more
I love how passionate Comer is to help guide the modern church to truly follow Jesus. We are all being formed by something. The question is . are we being formed by Christ. Or something else. more
a disappointment on three levels: form, content, and practice, and one redeeming quality. form. i love patterns, therefore rituals, so i thought about why i love some artists more than others. why do phoebe bridgers or lizzie mcalpine’s voices take me where they do. why jon foreman and leonard cohen, but absolutely not beyoncé or hillsong. more
Classic Comer. While not necessarily my favorite of his books (that would be “Live No Lies”), this one is incredibly challenging and thought-provoking. The main idea is that we are all disciples of someone or something and to be a disciple is to be an apprentice, to learn a way of living from a master. For Christians, our master is Jesus. Comer pulls from a wide array of traditions, time periods, and teachers to show how practicing the way of Jesus has always been at the center of what it means to be a Christian. more
Read this ahead of the release date thanks to being a part of JMC’s book launch team. I’ve read all of this books and this one felt different than any of them. Thicker, gritty, and deep, but yet, he always makes it practical to anyone reading. Lots of takeaways. This would be a good one to read with a small group. more
John Mark is one of my favorite teachers. Practicing the Way offers an honest, practical, challenging, and compelling vision of life in the Kingdom of God. Whether you’re a new Christian or have been one for decades, this is a refreshing picture of how to apprentice under Jesus in 21st century America. more