By Jesse Jost

In the late 1940s, A.W. Tozer was riding a train and, as was his habit, in prayer and meditation. He started recording his thoughts and by the time the train arrived the first draft of “The Pursuit of God” was written.

Tozer was a man who knew the ecstasy of genuine communion with God. Aides at his church would often hear Tozer alone in his office moaning in wonder and adoration of God. When Tozer wrote of God He wrote with a reverent familiarity few have acquired this side of heaven.

I read “The Pursuit of God” a couple times in my late teens/early twenties and I remember being so impacted by it. I finally revisited it this week. Wow, what a power packed, spiritually challenging and inspiring book.

Whether you have read this book before or have never heard of it, I urge you to read it. Free kindle copies are available on amazon and it’s only 128 pages.

Below are some of the main ideas I condensed from each chapter, along with key excerpts from several chapters to give you a taste how potent Tozer’s pen really was. I hope you are encouraged to pursue God with more vigor and that you find your appetite for Him aroused by Tozer’s thoughts

If you want more information on Tozer’s life I have written some notes HERE that I gleaned from a biography called “A Passion for God: The Spiritual Journey of A. W. Tozer” Written by Lyle W Dorsett

Chapter 1: Following hard after God

Don’t rest content with academic “knowledge of God” pursue the intimate, soul delighting experiential knowledge of God. Knowing God in this way is eternal life, it is what Paul valued more than anything else.

“Come near to the holy men and women of the past and you will soon feel the heat of their desire after God. They mourned for Him, they prayed and wrestled and sought for Him day and night, in and out of season, and when they had found Him the finding was all the sweeter for the long seeking.”

“I want to deliberately encourage this mighty longing after God. The lack of it has brought us to our present low estate. The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire. Complacency is the deadly foe of all spiritual growth. Acute desire must be present or there will be no manifestation of Christ to His people.’ Continue reading…

By Jesse Jost

Leonard Ravenhill, the late passionate revivalist claimed to advise every “Bible student with whom I have contact by phone or letter or in person: Buy all the books Dr. A.W. Tozer has written and digest them.” He said that to know Dr. Tozer was a great blessing. To pray with him was to be in the Holy Place!”

Aiden Wilson Tozer (1897-1963) was a pastor, writer, and passionate God-seeker. His writings continue to stir hearts and light deep desires to really know God. Tozer’s writing played a big role in my spiritual formation, so I was eager to read a biography of him called “A Passion for God: The Spiritual Journey of A. W. Tozer” Written by Lyle W Dorsett.

Tozer had his own blind spots and weaknesses, but he would have been the first to point those out. His desire was not to glorify himself but to point people to God. I found his life fascinating. So if you have been impacted by Tozer and were curious about the man behind his books, here are my notes on his life.

Aiden was born the middle child of Jake and Prude Tozer. His grandmother was his only spiritual influence, but was a pain and critical of Prude.

Aiden’s sister was told to watch the bread in the oven; Gma came over and said the stove needed more wood. The house caught fire, but Gma kept the girl busy saving only Gma’s stuff. The fire fractured the family.

Aiden’s father, Jake Tozer was a stern, depressed caustic, distant man. He worked hard farming but never made any money. When Tozer was 14, the family moved to Akron, Ohio, where Tozer’s oldest brother got their father a job at B.F. Goodrich. Aiden tried to sell things on commission on trains but was no salesman.

He became converted at 17 at a tent meeting. Met his future wife Ada shortly after. Ada’s mother was his spiritual mentor for a while. Aiden soon was revealed as a gifted speaker and discovered that he was called to the ministry of teaching and speaking. Continue reading…