Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald

Ordering Your Private World (W Publishing, 2017) by Gordon MacDonald is a book for any person feeling tossed around by this crazy world. Is your desk covered in clutter, your oil change way past due, and you feel like your day drives you rather than you driving your day? This book is for you. Ordering Your Private World is a book about spiritual formation, starting at the core.

MacDonald quoted E. Stanley Jones final thoughts on his death bed. Stanley said, "The innermost strands are the strongest" (143). His point was that all the stuff around the outside is could break away so long as the core would hold to the very end. That's the idea of Ordering Your Private World. But MacDonald takes it further, arguing that when the private world (the core) the public world falls into order too.

MacDonald opens every chapter with an illustration. These include that of a submarine jarring around but the deck was under control, a POW holding on to God from what was planted in earlier times, gardens, ropes, and all sorts of other easy-to-see pictures that help make understanding the importance of a well-ordered spiritual core. The first two-thirds of the book offers compelling reasoning for having Christ at the center of one's life, while the latter part of the book offers some simple "how-to" ways to get started with spiritual formation. Most of us do not have an ordered private world. Pastors are no different and this book is good for pastors and non-pastors alike.

This book is filled with gold nuggets and it's like sifting through soft beach sand to unearth the best stuff. It's easy and enjoyable. Even the sand is warm and inviting. In his 70's at the time of the revised and updated version, MacDonald has a lifetime of experience to draw from, making the book rich and more helpful.

Looking to dig into a deeper walk with Christ? Seeking to get centered and stable in an upside-down world? This book is for you. Pick up Ordering Your Private World wherever you buy books (which is probably Amazon.com).