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Teach Us to Want: Longing, Ambition and the Life of Faith
As Christians, we're squeamish about desire. Isn't wanting sinful and selfish? Aren't we supposed to find and follow God's will rather than insisting upon our own? The story of each person is a story of want desires unmet, hopes dashed, passions pursued and ambitions fulfilled. Our wants cannot be ignored. But when desire is informed by Scripture and re-formed by our spiritual practices, it can root us more deeply in the fundamental belief that God is good and generous and can invite us into active kingdom participation. Jen Pollock Michel guides us on a journey of understanding who we are when we want, and reintroduces us to a God who gives us the desires of our hearts. That same good God calls us into a new reality in which we seek first his kingdom and righteousness, and we discover our disordered desires burned away while our truest longings are happily fulfilled and purified. The disciples asked Jesus to "Teach us to pray." This book asks, "Teach us to want.""
221 pages, Paperback
First published June 4, 2014
About the author
Jen Pollock Michel
8 books125 followersJen Pollock Michel is the award-winning author of Teach Us to Want, Keeping Place, and Surprised by Paradox. Her fourth book, A Habit Called Faith, releases in February 2021.
Jen holds a B.A. in French from Wheaton College and an M.A. in Literature from Northwestern University. She's currently enrolled in the MFA program at Seattle Pacific University.
An American living in Toronto, Jen is a wife and mother of five. She is the lead editor for Imprint magazine, published by The Grace Centre for the Arts, and host of the Englewood Review of Books podcast. You can follow Jen on Twitter @jenpmichel and also subscribe to her monthly letter, Post Script, at www.jenpollockmichel.com.
Jen holds a B.A. in French from Wheaton College and an M.A. in Literature from Northwestern University. She's currently enrolled in the MFA program at Seattle Pacific University.
An American living in Toronto, Jen is a wife and mother of five. She is the lead editor for Imprint magazine, published by The Grace Centre for the Arts, and host of the Englewood Review of Books podcast. You can follow Jen on Twitter @jenpmichel and also subscribe to her monthly letter, Post Script, at www.jenpollockmichel.com.
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April 27, 2015
This review first appeared on my blog, Jacob's Café (jacobscafe.blogspot.com).
Desire can be controversial in the Christian world. The ascetic movement shunned desire, and a lot of American Protestantism followed the lines of Puritanism and the Victorian Era of strict self-control. There's something to be said for self-control, of course. Psychology, as well, has a lot to say on desire, with many theories focused on how to shape desire and how drives create problems. Yet modern psychological and theological research and trends have focused on the importance of desire as part of our lives that should not be ignored.
Wanting, longing, and ambition can be great drivers of progress toward God's will. They can also wreck great havoc throughout our lives and the world, of course. Balance is the key. Jen Pollock Michel's book, Teach Us to Want: Longing, Ambition, and the Life of Faith, appears on the surface to follow this line. In many ways, modern American Christians need to be taught to want. Or more accurately, taught to recognize their desire. As it was recognized as Christianity Today's 2015 Book of the Year, I had high hopes.
I firmly believe that God places desire in our hearts for a reason, but identifying the desire and pursuing it with balance can be a major challenge. Unfortunately, I didn't hear this in Michel's words. Rather, much of the book is comprised of lessons about who God is and the things God wants. There was a strong neo-Calvinist refrain throughout, emphasizing the importance of seeing God's sovereignty. Frankly, not much focus on true desire around here.
Toward the end of the book, she finally explicitly said what I had suspected was her thesis: "Holiness... will revise our personal desires." Like many of the neo-Calvinists of today, there is a focus on behavioral "holiness," conforming to certain beliefs about how God wants us to act. This explains her long theological diatribe--set our strong doctrine with which to align ourselves, then our behaviors will follow as holiness, and then our desire will be conformed to God.
This book is not really asking God to teach us to want, but rather to want what he wants. Wanting what God wants is not bad, of course; it is the prayer of many (most? virtually all?) followers of the Lord. However, there is a danger to emphasizing this approach in American Christianity--we've been consistently told our desires are bad, and we must ignore them and want what God wants, which usually matches certain rigid doctrinal statements.
The problem is that this leads to us ignoring, avoiding, and repressing our honest desires. This is not how to appropriately manage them, even if they're problematic. Rather, honestly acknowledging desire is the first step in evaluating whether we should act on it. And what about the possibility that God placed a desire and passion in us to move the world forward? Isn't that part of the role of the Holy Spirit? The answer is not necessarily to reshape our desires, but rather identify true, gut-level, core desire that drives our hearts and souls. These are not impulsive desires, but rather the soul longing. That is the want we need to be taught to recognize.
The saving grace of this book is the narrator, Karyn O'Bryant. She read it with emotion and inflection as if it was her own argument. She made the audiobook engaging.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Desire can be controversial in the Christian world. The ascetic movement shunned desire, and a lot of American Protestantism followed the lines of Puritanism and the Victorian Era of strict self-control. There's something to be said for self-control, of course. Psychology, as well, has a lot to say on desire, with many theories focused on how to shape desire and how drives create problems. Yet modern psychological and theological research and trends have focused on the importance of desire as part of our lives that should not be ignored.
Wanting, longing, and ambition can be great drivers of progress toward God's will. They can also wreck great havoc throughout our lives and the world, of course. Balance is the key. Jen Pollock Michel's book, Teach Us to Want: Longing, Ambition, and the Life of Faith, appears on the surface to follow this line. In many ways, modern American Christians need to be taught to want. Or more accurately, taught to recognize their desire. As it was recognized as Christianity Today's 2015 Book of the Year, I had high hopes.
I firmly believe that God places desire in our hearts for a reason, but identifying the desire and pursuing it with balance can be a major challenge. Unfortunately, I didn't hear this in Michel's words. Rather, much of the book is comprised of lessons about who God is and the things God wants. There was a strong neo-Calvinist refrain throughout, emphasizing the importance of seeing God's sovereignty. Frankly, not much focus on true desire around here.
Toward the end of the book, she finally explicitly said what I had suspected was her thesis: "Holiness... will revise our personal desires." Like many of the neo-Calvinists of today, there is a focus on behavioral "holiness," conforming to certain beliefs about how God wants us to act. This explains her long theological diatribe--set our strong doctrine with which to align ourselves, then our behaviors will follow as holiness, and then our desire will be conformed to God.
This book is not really asking God to teach us to want, but rather to want what he wants. Wanting what God wants is not bad, of course; it is the prayer of many (most? virtually all?) followers of the Lord. However, there is a danger to emphasizing this approach in American Christianity--we've been consistently told our desires are bad, and we must ignore them and want what God wants, which usually matches certain rigid doctrinal statements.
The problem is that this leads to us ignoring, avoiding, and repressing our honest desires. This is not how to appropriately manage them, even if they're problematic. Rather, honestly acknowledging desire is the first step in evaluating whether we should act on it. And what about the possibility that God placed a desire and passion in us to move the world forward? Isn't that part of the role of the Holy Spirit? The answer is not necessarily to reshape our desires, but rather identify true, gut-level, core desire that drives our hearts and souls. These are not impulsive desires, but rather the soul longing. That is the want we need to be taught to recognize.
The saving grace of this book is the narrator, Karyn O'Bryant. She read it with emotion and inflection as if it was her own argument. She made the audiobook engaging.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
December 2, 2022
Wow what a phenomenal book!
Jen Pollock Michel is a fabulous writer.
This was a semi-biographical, neo-Calvinist take on longing, God sovereignty, and the life of faith.
It didn’t hit all I was looking for on the topic of desire, but a wonderful book nevertheless.
Jen Pollock Michel is a fabulous writer.
This was a semi-biographical, neo-Calvinist take on longing, God sovereignty, and the life of faith.
It didn’t hit all I was looking for on the topic of desire, but a wonderful book nevertheless.
October 22, 2014
It’s rare for me to finish a book in three days—and then immediately re-read it. Jen Pollock Michel’s new book, Teach Us to Want deeply moved me. Michel manages to get inside of desire, from the framework of orthodox Christianity, without being dogmatic or judgmental. This is no easy task. Because she has experienced profound loss, Jen Michel is able to acknowledge many of the questions/fears we have about just how faith and desire can co-exist.
Jen's writing is at once exquisite and challenging. Without being parental, she urges us to subordinate our longings and desires to the One who loves us best, in full confidence that He will convert both us and our desires. Framed around the Lord’s Prayer, Teach Us to Want will not only encourage and inspire, it will renew your hope and enliven you to pray.
I'll leave you with two quotes:
"How can we allow ourselves to want, especially when we're so infinitely adept at sin?...Can we trust our desires when we ourselves can be so untrustworthy?... Desire, if it is to be made holy, must remain committed to truth."
"To pray 'your kingdom come, your will be done,' we express our desire...that [God] rule over every corner of our lives, even over the entire creation."
Jen's writing is at once exquisite and challenging. Without being parental, she urges us to subordinate our longings and desires to the One who loves us best, in full confidence that He will convert both us and our desires. Framed around the Lord’s Prayer, Teach Us to Want will not only encourage and inspire, it will renew your hope and enliven you to pray.
I'll leave you with two quotes:
"How can we allow ourselves to want, especially when we're so infinitely adept at sin?...Can we trust our desires when we ourselves can be so untrustworthy?... Desire, if it is to be made holy, must remain committed to truth."
"To pray 'your kingdom come, your will be done,' we express our desire...that [God] rule over every corner of our lives, even over the entire creation."
July 30, 2015
I think Christians need to learn how to desire and how to be passionate. That it is possible to be passionate because God created us to be passionate. But this book is not really about passion and desire. It is about holiness and sovereignty. Those are both important topics. But I am tired of only understanding desire in light of a negative understanding of holiness. Holiness is not about absence but abundance. And we can have abundant holiness when we understand how to embrace right desires and right passions.
Maybe I didn't give the book long enough, but I read Half and while there are some good things there it was frustrated more than encouraged.
Maybe I didn't give the book long enough, but I read Half and while there are some good things there it was frustrated more than encouraged.
March 29, 2016
4.5 stars. Desiring the Kingdom by James K.A. Smith has had a profound impact on me. In many ways, Teach Us To Want is Jen cathartically wrestling with the idea of desire as found in scripture and Desiring the Kingdom (and Augustine) and how it plays out in our prayer lives and faith when the rubber meets the road. The book doesn't tie the tough issues up into nice theological bows, and that, in fact, is what's great about it. Teach Us to Want challenges us to put our hope in the Lord and boldly to ask of him that which we long for, even in the face of life's most discouraging moments.
November 22, 2021
I wasn't a fan of all the personal anecdotes or even biblical exegesis, which was mostly mediocre. But the topic is a good one, and she writes well and has some valuable insights. Study materials available at Right Now Media.
Forward (by Katelyn Beaty, Christianity Today)
book about desire; renaissance of a theology of desire (e.g., Smith's Desiring the Kingdom); Augustine and Lewis
Ch. 1: Afraid to Want: Fear
swing from licentiousness to too-strict limitations
responsibilities of motherhood
how to determine which desires are okay (not simply signs of selfishness)
literary examples of bad desire (including Anna Karenina)
Kant: good is naturally difficult; we know we're doing good if it's hard
Pieper (via Aquinas): good ≠ difficult; grace perfects nature so that we want to do the good, and it becomes easier / more natural
Ch. 2: Aperture of the Heart: Courage
The Ragamuffin Gospel
"wantology" psychology [see here]
Annie Dillard's Pilgrim at Tinker Creek: cataract removal didn't always result in joy (often the result was disorientation)
Hosea 14:3: no longer say "my God" to the work of our hands
Ch. 3: Precipice of Hope: Grace
became high school French teacher—slide (and stop) toward marital infidelity
N. T. Wright
Ch. 4: Project Kingdom: Good News
Kuyper: every square inch
Bonhoeffer
L'Engle's Wrinkle was rejected many times.
moving east = curse
Ch. 5: Visions of Sugarplums: Scripture
Joan Didion
Voskamp
Hauerwas
Tolkien's "On Fairy-stories"
Ch. 6: The Business of Holy: Prayer
Eugene Peterson, N. T. Wright, C. S. Lewis
Barth on prayer: it affects God's actions and existence (that's what "answer" means); Lewis: the plot is fixed, but minor details are up to us minor characters ["Work and Prayer" in God in the Dock] <— Jen: not sure that these guys are correct
Ch. 7: Bread and Butter: Petition
Gnostics denied Incarnation (purity issue)
Col. 3:1–3 can sound a little gnostic
Chesterton's The Everlasting Man: Buddhism wants to erase desire
Kathleen Norris
meals/dependance
N. T. Wright
Buechner's Whistling in the Dark
Ch. 8: If the Shoe Fits: Confession
Andy Crouch
Tim Keller
The Scarlet Letter
Sinful to ask for too much and too little
Eugene Peterson's Eat This Book
Piper's Desiring God
Ch. 9: Be My Neighbor: Community
marriage (Keller's book)
Wendell Berry
David Brooks
church
James K. A. Smith: Desiring
Bonhoeffer
children's ministry
Ch. 10: Ruby Slippers: Commitment
stories
death of father and mother
James 4:1–3: problem isn't desire, but rather wrong/misplaced desire
Keller's Counterfeit Gods
Karen Swallow Prior's Booked (re: Great Expectations)
Forward (by Katelyn Beaty, Christianity Today)
book about desire; renaissance of a theology of desire (e.g., Smith's Desiring the Kingdom); Augustine and Lewis
Ch. 1: Afraid to Want: Fear
swing from licentiousness to too-strict limitations
responsibilities of motherhood
how to determine which desires are okay (not simply signs of selfishness)
literary examples of bad desire (including Anna Karenina)
Kant: good is naturally difficult; we know we're doing good if it's hard
Pieper (via Aquinas): good ≠ difficult; grace perfects nature so that we want to do the good, and it becomes easier / more natural
Ch. 2: Aperture of the Heart: Courage
The Ragamuffin Gospel
"wantology" psychology [see here]
Annie Dillard's Pilgrim at Tinker Creek: cataract removal didn't always result in joy (often the result was disorientation)
Hosea 14:3: no longer say "my God" to the work of our hands
Ch. 3: Precipice of Hope: Grace
became high school French teacher—slide (and stop) toward marital infidelity
N. T. Wright
Ch. 4: Project Kingdom: Good News
Kuyper: every square inch
Bonhoeffer
L'Engle's Wrinkle was rejected many times.
moving east = curse
Ch. 5: Visions of Sugarplums: Scripture
Joan Didion
Voskamp
Hauerwas
Tolkien's "On Fairy-stories"
Ch. 6: The Business of Holy: Prayer
Eugene Peterson, N. T. Wright, C. S. Lewis
Barth on prayer: it affects God's actions and existence (that's what "answer" means); Lewis: the plot is fixed, but minor details are up to us minor characters ["Work and Prayer" in God in the Dock] <— Jen: not sure that these guys are correct
Ch. 7: Bread and Butter: Petition
Gnostics denied Incarnation (purity issue)
Col. 3:1–3 can sound a little gnostic
Chesterton's The Everlasting Man: Buddhism wants to erase desire
Kathleen Norris
meals/dependance
N. T. Wright
Buechner's Whistling in the Dark
Ch. 8: If the Shoe Fits: Confession
Andy Crouch
Tim Keller
The Scarlet Letter
Sinful to ask for too much and too little
Eugene Peterson's Eat This Book
Piper's Desiring God
Ch. 9: Be My Neighbor: Community
marriage (Keller's book)
Wendell Berry
David Brooks
church
James K. A. Smith: Desiring
Bonhoeffer
children's ministry
Ch. 10: Ruby Slippers: Commitment
stories
death of father and mother
James 4:1–3: problem isn't desire, but rather wrong/misplaced desire
Keller's Counterfeit Gods
Karen Swallow Prior's Booked (re: Great Expectations)
May 21, 2016
This is another of those books that it's hard for me to assess as a whole and assign a star rating because I stretched it out over the space of 2 1/2 months. :/ The fact that it took me so long, however, in no way reflects how much I enjoyed it.
It was more memoir than I expected--I think I expected more clarity or direction with regard to the subtitle. I was intrigued to pick it up because I wanted to hear more about "longing, ambition, and the life of faith." And Michel talks about those things a lot, but just sort of in a personal, reflective, meandering and asking questions sort of way rather than in a "I've studied this out and here's how to think about it" way. Not that that was bad--just not quite what I anticipated.
I don't know that she really said anything new, but the *way* she retold familiar stories was fresh and compelling. I found her extremely likeable and her voice really resonated with me. Tons and tons of underlining. (Though I will say that the obtrusive pull quotes on every other page begging me to "Tweet this!" from my Kindle were annoying. There *were* a whole lot of tweet-able lines, to be sure, but for some reason this just bothered me.)
Anyway. Those are my rambly, off-the-cuff thoughts--probably the least helpful book review ever, but that's all I've got brain space for today. Suffice to say I did find the book worthwhile and would recommend it.
It was more memoir than I expected--I think I expected more clarity or direction with regard to the subtitle. I was intrigued to pick it up because I wanted to hear more about "longing, ambition, and the life of faith." And Michel talks about those things a lot, but just sort of in a personal, reflective, meandering and asking questions sort of way rather than in a "I've studied this out and here's how to think about it" way. Not that that was bad--just not quite what I anticipated.
I don't know that she really said anything new, but the *way* she retold familiar stories was fresh and compelling. I found her extremely likeable and her voice really resonated with me. Tons and tons of underlining. (Though I will say that the obtrusive pull quotes on every other page begging me to "Tweet this!" from my Kindle were annoying. There *were* a whole lot of tweet-able lines, to be sure, but for some reason this just bothered me.)
Anyway. Those are my rambly, off-the-cuff thoughts--probably the least helpful book review ever, but that's all I've got brain space for today. Suffice to say I did find the book worthwhile and would recommend it.
July 20, 2016
This is a very well-written defense of the role of desire and "want" in our lives as Christians. Pollock Michel is sharp and insightful, and I thought she laid a robust theological foundation for her argument. My complaints are minor and two-fold: 1) she includes WAY too many quotes from other people. As someone who loves quotes with near-religious fervor and would love to share all my quotes with everyone, I get it-- but the amount of quoting she did even got on MY nerves. At some point your reader can start to question if you're offering up original thought or just synthesizing everyone else's. 2) I think she gets distracted and discursive at times with topics that are a little tangential to the topic at hand (e.g. I think she spent an unnecessarily long time talking about the importance of being part of a local church.) Those 2 things aside, I did think this book was excellent and thought-provoking.
November 11, 2016
Part-memoir (I feel like I know her life story after listening to this) and part-theological work, Michel pieces together her own story of learning to embrace how our desires motivate and shape us. I found my interest lagging the longer I read, though the first few chapters were very engaging. I'm looking forward to reading James K. A. Smith's take on this concept and anticipate I will find more to like about his book. Interesting concept, engaging writing, but probably longer than necessary to convey the idea.
To be fair, some of her ideas may have been radically new to me even a few years ago, but I've been reading other books in this vein and found Michel's words reinforcing things I've read before. Also, I listened to it on audiobook and I found the narrator a bit... unenthused.
To be fair, some of her ideas may have been radically new to me even a few years ago, but I've been reading other books in this vein and found Michel's words reinforcing things I've read before. Also, I listened to it on audiobook and I found the narrator a bit... unenthused.
January 26, 2019
“My story is a struggle between the space of acknowledging God’s sovereignty and calling it good. It is a story of laying down desire—and taking up surprise” pg 195
This book connected with my heart in a way that few do—not just agreement with her thesis, but a calling out of my own desires. Reading, I felt understood and affirmed. Our beliefs shape our desires, our desires shape our actions. The need is to be rooted in Christ, His Holy, good truth forming the desires in me.
I have been struck with the truth that God is more intimately involved in the dailyness of my life than I recognize. It is his tenderness and care that carefully guides me. This frees me to follow him more closely and makes me want to, recognizing that he is trustworthy and good. And those qualities are not boring.
This book connected with my heart in a way that few do—not just agreement with her thesis, but a calling out of my own desires. Reading, I felt understood and affirmed. Our beliefs shape our desires, our desires shape our actions. The need is to be rooted in Christ, His Holy, good truth forming the desires in me.
I have been struck with the truth that God is more intimately involved in the dailyness of my life than I recognize. It is his tenderness and care that carefully guides me. This frees me to follow him more closely and makes me want to, recognizing that he is trustworthy and good. And those qualities are not boring.
April 20, 2016
Her writing isn't easy to follow--rambling at times, with only tenuous connections between thoughts. She quotes often from her reading, both from Scripture and other texts (which range greatly, from literary classics to old preachers and contemporary Christian nonfiction), but (1) some of the authors she quotes as authoritative are suspect and (2) I often disagree with her conclusions. Having said that, I don't disagree with her premise--just her exposition.
September 19, 2021
Such a great nudge to lean into desire as a path of spiritual formation. I wasn’t sure about Jen’s application via the Lord’s Prayer at first, but waddaya know, that prayer is relevant to all topics :)
Only thing missing is a bit more about HOW to shape our desires. Looking forward to some of her other books for more on that!
Only thing missing is a bit more about HOW to shape our desires. Looking forward to some of her other books for more on that!
December 27, 2021
Jen Pollock Michel's prose flows like a cool river, gurgling in and around ideas, pausing and swirling slowly in the eddies of truth, leaving one refreshed.
This is the second of her books that I've had the pleasure of wading into. The woman is an artist of the craft, a delight to read.
But its more than lyrical. Her thoughts and ideas reveal a woman who has spent much time thinking through the scripture and how it applies to the subject at hand.
In this book, that subject is "wanting", or more expansively, it is on the desires, the longings of our soul (and body) and how all of that is wrapped up in the gift of faith.
She uses the "Lord's prayer" (Our father, who is in heaven...) as her map, and this came as some surprise to me. Each chapter is a deep meditation on each part of the prayer and as she unpacks it, I found myself surprised at how the prayer really does address our "wants", our "desires" ... or, to be more specific, how the Lord wants to fashion our "wants."
So the book is not a diatribe against materialism or crass consumerism. Rather, it's a meditation on how following Jesus should (and does) impact our wants, how the Creator refashions, repurposes and redirects the "wanting" we all come pre-programmed with.
There were at times I wondered, "where is Jen going with this...?" but as the pages turned, I found that what she's attempting to do is find the "want beneath the want." She digs beneath the surface, just as the truth of scripture does. Case in point, page 69: Desire, in all of its complicated forms, is not removed from grace. There is indeed hope for selfish sinners because Christ has died, Christ is risen, and Christ will come again. This is the victory that the church has long been proclaiming over the enemies of sin and death and the disease that takes up residence, even in our own hearts
It's that nuance - sinners who desire, grace that redeems - that is stitched throughout her look at "the Lord's prayer." This is not so much a book about getting our priorities of "want" right. It's a book at allowing the grace of God to work in our physical, emotional, relational and spiritual longings. Its about learning to recognize the "sly maneuvers of selfishness that mask themselves as prayer" and yet to ask of God even still for our daily bread and for his kingdom to come.
Beautifully written, deeply thoughtful and personal.
This is the second of her books that I've had the pleasure of wading into. The woman is an artist of the craft, a delight to read.
But its more than lyrical. Her thoughts and ideas reveal a woman who has spent much time thinking through the scripture and how it applies to the subject at hand.
In this book, that subject is "wanting", or more expansively, it is on the desires, the longings of our soul (and body) and how all of that is wrapped up in the gift of faith.
She uses the "Lord's prayer" (Our father, who is in heaven...) as her map, and this came as some surprise to me. Each chapter is a deep meditation on each part of the prayer and as she unpacks it, I found myself surprised at how the prayer really does address our "wants", our "desires" ... or, to be more specific, how the Lord wants to fashion our "wants."
So the book is not a diatribe against materialism or crass consumerism. Rather, it's a meditation on how following Jesus should (and does) impact our wants, how the Creator refashions, repurposes and redirects the "wanting" we all come pre-programmed with.
There were at times I wondered, "where is Jen going with this...?" but as the pages turned, I found that what she's attempting to do is find the "want beneath the want." She digs beneath the surface, just as the truth of scripture does. Case in point, page 69: Desire, in all of its complicated forms, is not removed from grace. There is indeed hope for selfish sinners because Christ has died, Christ is risen, and Christ will come again. This is the victory that the church has long been proclaiming over the enemies of sin and death and the disease that takes up residence, even in our own hearts
It's that nuance - sinners who desire, grace that redeems - that is stitched throughout her look at "the Lord's prayer." This is not so much a book about getting our priorities of "want" right. It's a book at allowing the grace of God to work in our physical, emotional, relational and spiritual longings. Its about learning to recognize the "sly maneuvers of selfishness that mask themselves as prayer" and yet to ask of God even still for our daily bread and for his kingdom to come.
Beautifully written, deeply thoughtful and personal.
January 12, 2016
Michel tackles the confusing issue of the place of desire in those who have been redeemed. After all, God created us with desires. Does redemption mean that our desires are nullified or… heightened…or purified? If God grants us the desires of our hearts then where does suffering and disappointment fit in?
Using examples from her own experience and profuse quotations from important writers, Michel seeks to craft a theology of desire. She uses the Lord’s prayer throughout as an informal template that can keep us from straying too far from God’s desire to give us true joy.
This is a helpful book that bears reading. I found much to commend but did sense a certain choppiness that clashed a bit with my own rather regimented sense of order in theology. However, we can only benefit from reading Michel's book.
Using examples from her own experience and profuse quotations from important writers, Michel seeks to craft a theology of desire. She uses the Lord’s prayer throughout as an informal template that can keep us from straying too far from God’s desire to give us true joy.
This is a helpful book that bears reading. I found much to commend but did sense a certain choppiness that clashed a bit with my own rather regimented sense of order in theology. However, we can only benefit from reading Michel's book.
January 23, 2020
This is the second book I read by Jen Michel. I think she has gotten better at refining her chapters and making them more pithy and concise. Her book Surprised by Paradox is excellent.
This book is wonderful, nonetheless. She is poetic and her non-fiction Christian books are so different from a) theology or b) 'Christian' self-help. If you need a breath of fresh air in your Christian reading life, go for this one.
This one takes on the idea of desire and pairs it, perfectly, I think, with the Lord's Prayer. It is wonderful. I also recommend this book for Christian women who want to write.
This book is wonderful, nonetheless. She is poetic and her non-fiction Christian books are so different from a) theology or b) 'Christian' self-help. If you need a breath of fresh air in your Christian reading life, go for this one.
This one takes on the idea of desire and pairs it, perfectly, I think, with the Lord's Prayer. It is wonderful. I also recommend this book for Christian women who want to write.
January 26, 2015
Meh. I saw this book on a must read list for 2014 and without research I purchased it and decided to read it. I had a hard tile relating to the author, all her stories were about motherhood with five kids, and I am career oriented. Her theology was strange for me at times too. It was ok but not a book I will read again or reccomed to anyone else.
January 11, 2017
Excellently written piece of literature. Well reasoned. Not written to teach you, but to lead you to think about issues by yourself, giving you a protestant (old-school) grid to think about desires from manifold points of view (human sinfulness, Bible, Lord's prayer...).
Author writes as a hybrid between Ann Voskamp and Tim Keller making it both enjoyable and intellectually rewarding.
Author writes as a hybrid between Ann Voskamp and Tim Keller making it both enjoyable and intellectually rewarding.
May 4, 2015
This book is simply outstanding. Everyone should read it.
I consider it a modern version of Augustine's reflections on desire.
Extremely biblical and wise, with a knack for turning beautiful phrases and adding just the right amount of personal story.
Very thankful for Mrs. Michel's work.
I consider it a modern version of Augustine's reflections on desire.
Extremely biblical and wise, with a knack for turning beautiful phrases and adding just the right amount of personal story.
Very thankful for Mrs. Michel's work.
December 13, 2016
If read in pursuit of spiritual formation, Teach Us to Want is enjoyable and offers a helpful perspective on deepening one's relationship with Christ. One of its endearing qualities is the author's openness about her own temptations and struggles.
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June 25, 2015Interesting thoughts, but didn't feel like I needed to finish the book.
July 7, 2017
In "Teach Us to Want," Jen Pollock Michel reflects that desire appears to be the enemy of the Christian life. But what if desire wasn't our enemy. What if desire wasn't the result of the fall, but something God made us for from the beginning? "Desire is primal," Pollock Michel says, "to be human is to want. Consider that wanting is the easiest language we learn."
As a pre-teen and teenager, I wrestled with what I believed was God's call on me to be a missionary. Part of what formed the conflict in my heart was my perception that because an open calling to missions was something I feared and resisted, it must be something that God was calling me to. Doesn't God call us to hard things? Even the hardest things?
But what if God desires for us have our hearts shaped by his desires and his desires are the most pure, true, and beautiful, Pollock asks. Virtue isn't increased by difficulty. In fact, we are most virtuous when our hearts align the easiest with God's heart. "Coming easier to our obedience means coming into holiness," Pollock Michel offers. The goal isn't to stop wanting, it's to want what God wants.
We ought not fight against who we are, Pollock Michel says. Borrowing from James KA Smith, Pollock says that we are born homo liturgicus -- we are born lovers and "we orient our lives not according to our belief systems or worldview, but according to our desires." When the Bible refers to our heart (as it often does), it refers neither to just our mind or our feelings, but a combination of our mind and feelings -- our gut.
How do we reshape our desires? Pollock Michel suggests that the Lord's prayer is a wonderfully reorienting prayer for our desires, calling and inviting us into a realignment with God's desires. "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." "Prayer, in fact, is never only about getting what we want from God." Pollock Michel shares, "It is a bold invitation to meet with God in our authentic human experience, which is to say doubt and desire, praise and perplexity, fear and failure." Real prayer engages a real God in the midst of the real world and real desires. It is not sanitized, it neither dilutes the heart of the requester nor the reality of the God who we offer the requests to.
Ironically, it is not that the Lord's prayer is too formulaic and shallow for us. It is too powerful and deep. It invites us to engage all of God with all of who we are. We are "afraid to pray as boldly as the Lord's prayer invites us to pray. Our prayers are weak. We expect so little of God. Our petitions are hesitant, and our courage for asking God and expecting answers falters."
Pollock Michel invites us into prayer and into community. Both invite our honesty and transparency and both help us form our desire. I'm so grateful for Pollock Michel's Teach us to Want." She is a wise and transparent teacher with much to offer. May my desires be shaped by his and may our church's desires grow in conformity with our perfectly desiring God's.
As a pre-teen and teenager, I wrestled with what I believed was God's call on me to be a missionary. Part of what formed the conflict in my heart was my perception that because an open calling to missions was something I feared and resisted, it must be something that God was calling me to. Doesn't God call us to hard things? Even the hardest things?
But what if God desires for us have our hearts shaped by his desires and his desires are the most pure, true, and beautiful, Pollock asks. Virtue isn't increased by difficulty. In fact, we are most virtuous when our hearts align the easiest with God's heart. "Coming easier to our obedience means coming into holiness," Pollock Michel offers. The goal isn't to stop wanting, it's to want what God wants.
We ought not fight against who we are, Pollock Michel says. Borrowing from James KA Smith, Pollock says that we are born homo liturgicus -- we are born lovers and "we orient our lives not according to our belief systems or worldview, but according to our desires." When the Bible refers to our heart (as it often does), it refers neither to just our mind or our feelings, but a combination of our mind and feelings -- our gut.
How do we reshape our desires? Pollock Michel suggests that the Lord's prayer is a wonderfully reorienting prayer for our desires, calling and inviting us into a realignment with God's desires. "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." "Prayer, in fact, is never only about getting what we want from God." Pollock Michel shares, "It is a bold invitation to meet with God in our authentic human experience, which is to say doubt and desire, praise and perplexity, fear and failure." Real prayer engages a real God in the midst of the real world and real desires. It is not sanitized, it neither dilutes the heart of the requester nor the reality of the God who we offer the requests to.
Ironically, it is not that the Lord's prayer is too formulaic and shallow for us. It is too powerful and deep. It invites us to engage all of God with all of who we are. We are "afraid to pray as boldly as the Lord's prayer invites us to pray. Our prayers are weak. We expect so little of God. Our petitions are hesitant, and our courage for asking God and expecting answers falters."
Pollock Michel invites us into prayer and into community. Both invite our honesty and transparency and both help us form our desire. I'm so grateful for Pollock Michel's Teach us to Want." She is a wise and transparent teacher with much to offer. May my desires be shaped by his and may our church's desires grow in conformity with our perfectly desiring God's.
May 2, 2020
A beautiful combination of personal memoir and careful theological reflection on the nature of human desire. Reminiscent of the work of James K.A. Smith (someone cited multiple times in the book), but much more raw and personal (whereas Smith tends to be more philosophical and academic).
I found the memoir aspects to be the most emotionally resonant and memorable, though the reflections on scripture are much deeper and thoughtful than the lighter, devotional-type reading that one tends to find in similar books. The theological-exegetical work is firmly in the Reformed stream of thinking - though much more the Kuyperian stream (a la Keller and James Smith) than the hyper-Calvinist, Neo-Reformed stream, for which I am thankful! But "Teach" is not a theological treatise at its core, rather, it's a poetic-meditative work that is soaked in both scripture and theology. Personally, the chapters on grace, the Kingdom, and prayer were the most impactful for me.
Finally, it's important to point out that the writing is simply beautiful. Almost every chapter contained a sentence or paragraph that stopped me in my tracks, and demanded re-reading, just because of the beauty of the prose. This is an easy recommendation for anyone who is wrestling with understanding their own desires, especially within the conservative-Evangelical tradition, but who may not be looking for an intense, academic, philosophical tome. "Teach" is approachable, but thought-provoking, while remaining emotionally engaging.
I found the memoir aspects to be the most emotionally resonant and memorable, though the reflections on scripture are much deeper and thoughtful than the lighter, devotional-type reading that one tends to find in similar books. The theological-exegetical work is firmly in the Reformed stream of thinking - though much more the Kuyperian stream (a la Keller and James Smith) than the hyper-Calvinist, Neo-Reformed stream, for which I am thankful! But "Teach" is not a theological treatise at its core, rather, it's a poetic-meditative work that is soaked in both scripture and theology. Personally, the chapters on grace, the Kingdom, and prayer were the most impactful for me.
Finally, it's important to point out that the writing is simply beautiful. Almost every chapter contained a sentence or paragraph that stopped me in my tracks, and demanded re-reading, just because of the beauty of the prose. This is an easy recommendation for anyone who is wrestling with understanding their own desires, especially within the conservative-Evangelical tradition, but who may not be looking for an intense, academic, philosophical tome. "Teach" is approachable, but thought-provoking, while remaining emotionally engaging.
October 1, 2023
I ended up enjoying this a lot, and plan to read Jen Michel’s other books. But it was confusing… First, I mistakenly thought when I bought this that it was her latest book. It’s her first book, almost 10 years old, and predates many other books I’ve read about want/desire (Dr. Curt Thompson etc), so it wasn’t really what I thought it was: It’s more an exploration of the role desire has played in the author’s life with Jesus. It’s framed around the requests in The Lord’s Prayer, which I liked but isn’t mentioned anywhere on the cover or description, so I spent a lot of time wondering where we were going. She also takes the Lord’s Prayer out of order (lead us not into temptation comes in chapter 3, before daily bread or forgiveness), which is FINE but I found it confusing.
I went to a writing workshop with JPM (which was FANTASTIC), where I learned this was her first book, was birthed out of things she explored while blogging (this explains the structural oddities), and she herself considers it young writing. That made me pick it back up again and finish it. Worth reading as a memoir, and I look forward to reading more (I have her time book on my bedside table.)
I went to a writing workshop with JPM (which was FANTASTIC), where I learned this was her first book, was birthed out of things she explored while blogging (this explains the structural oddities), and she herself considers it young writing. That made me pick it back up again and finish it. Worth reading as a memoir, and I look forward to reading more (I have her time book on my bedside table.)
January 20, 2017
I'm not sure that I got exactly what I wanted from this book... but then that seems to fit the larger narrative, not only of Teach Us to Want, but of the author's story, and of my own. There is a bit too much self-reflection here, though personal examination surely cannot be divorced from any proper contemplation of desire. Perhaps I fit outside of the target audience (this was not clear) - if I was reading as a middle-aged mother, I might have had a greater connection with the personal element. Though there were some fits and starts, Michel lands in the right place. There are helpful insights here on desire and the life of faith. Stay with it - and I think in the end you'll be glad you so aspired.
March 5, 2019
I read this very slowly, savoring each piece. I really appreciated the author's honesty, and how she constantly turned the focus back on scripture rather than personal feelings. Most of her stories focused on her role as wife or mother, so I definitely see this as a book for women. I also really appreciated her emphasis on community, and how God uses his church as a tool for honing us.
There are no simple platitudes here. Life is hard and the struggle will be lifelong, but God IS good. Rooting ourselves in that goodness shapes our desires.
Close to a 5 star, but sometimes the stories/lessons got a bit muddled.
There are no simple platitudes here. Life is hard and the struggle will be lifelong, but God IS good. Rooting ourselves in that goodness shapes our desires.
Close to a 5 star, but sometimes the stories/lessons got a bit muddled.
July 29, 2019
I thought overall this is a good book that bravely tackles a tough subject -- what role does desire play in a Christian's life? What about ambition? While I took away some new thoughts on the subject, I think the book as a whole wasn't very well-organized. Even her use of the Lord's Prayer as a framework was strange as her chapters were not sequential to the prayer, and sometimes random ideas were inserted in one chapter, and then dealt with in another chapter. (Her story of her nephew's move to their home is an example of this.) The best part of this book is the writer's honesty, and her use of Scripture in her examples.
August 5, 2017
Good but not great. I loved many of the elements running throughout this book as the author aimed to tell personal stories and bring to light the whole idea of desiring and wanting from a Christian perspective. Once again, as I've found with quite a few books like these that attempt to do something new, I found the author pulling together too many outside sources, readings, books, and authors that I began to lose interest and wondered "whose story is this if not hers?" SO much attention was driven toward others' perspectives that I felt almost like nothing new was added. Great idea for a book but it never reached my full expectations for it.
February 11, 2018
A beautiful narrative of a woman coming to understand the place of want and desire in Christian life. Michel writes using honest examples from her own life entwined with The Bible and many other theologians and writers works. The book shows her coming to an understanding of how to make sense of the role of desire and gives plenty of time for personal reflection. She writes openly and her writing style makes you feel like you’re spending the afternoon discussing with a highly intelligent and very kindred spirit.
March 25, 2022
We want, that’s the condition of our humanity at its core. We want faithful marriages but also emotional freedom. We want the wellbeing of our neighbour but we also want to see him suffer a bit for his rudeness to us the other day. With arresting honesty and gorgeous prose (a signature of this author!) this part memoir, part Biblical reflection, helps see deep within without staying there. Really enjoyed this, and the thoughtful questions at the closing of each chapter. Thoughtful and helpful resource.
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