A Passion for God is certainly an appropriate title for a book about A.W. Tozer as that is what the man certainly had. Thinking back about the book, I would say that that passion was most clearly manifested in Tozer’s life of prayer. The man prayed to the God he passionately adored.
He also proclaimed the truth. Interestingly, Tozer did not think of himself as a pastor or preacher, but as a modern prophet. In his Prayer of a Minor Prophet he asks, “Anoint me with the oil of a New Testament prophet. Forbid that I should become a religious scribe and thus lose my prophetic calling. Save me from the curse that lies dark across the face of the modern clergy, the curse of compromise, of imitation, of professionalism. Save me from the error of judging a church by its size, its popularity or the amount of its yearly offering. Help me to remember that I am a prophet; not a promoter, not a religious manager - but a prophet. Let me never become a slave to crowds. Heal my soul of carnal ambitions and deliver me from the itch for publicity.” A prophet who declared God’s Word and discerned the times. A prophet who was sometimes misunderstood, yet he continued to pursue God.
There is one other facet of Tozer’s life that was unexpected. He was lonely. He said so himself near the end of his life. Why? It seems that this passionately prayerful prophet was somewhat alienated from his wife and family. His wife said, “My husband was so close to God, a man of such deep prayer, always on his knees, that he could not communicate with me or our family. No one knew what a lonely life I had, especially after the kids left home.” It is sadly strange that these two who were one, serving the Lord, both led lonely lives.
A passion for God. If someone read a book about my life or your life, would they come away thinking, “That person passionately sought God in prayer”? I think most of us would have to answer, “No.” Do we have the heart of a prophet, dedicated to declaring truth? Perhaps.
Do we have flaws? Tozer did. A lonely life and a lonely wife and children who felt like they hardly knew their father. Yet, our merciful God still blessed this man’s ministry.
Is our God that merciful? Are we that merciful?
