Extraordinary: The Life You're Meant to Live

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Extraordinary: The Life You're Meant to Live

4.12 of 5 stars 4.12 · rating details · 151 ratings · 26 reviews

Isn’t it true that we long to see the extraordinary, experience the extraordinary, do the extraordinary? Yet, so often we settle for mediocrity when greatness is within our grasp.

Why are we drawn to stories of heroic triumph over seemingly impossible circumstances? In our fascination with adventure movies, superheroes, and tales of incredible human feats, do we reveal an i...more

Hardcover, 240 pages

Published October 6th 2009 by WaterBrook Press (first published 2009)

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Nov 12, 2012 Heather rated it 4 of 5 stars

John Bevere has a wonderful talent for inspiring Christians to examine their faith. His writing is always a challenging “I dare you to go deeper” approach that will set a spark in your spirit or wake you up to what you could have.
Extraordinary: The Life You’re Meant To Have is a well-written challenge to surrender the simple in search for the fantastic. It’s an attempt to stir Christians to make use of the gifts and abilities God has placed in them. It’s a call to be more than just the average j...more John Bevere has a wonderful talent for inspiring Christians to examine their faith. His writing is always a challenging “I dare you to go deeper” approach that will set a spark in your spirit or wake you up to what you could have.
Extraordinary: The Life You’re Meant To Have is a well-written challenge to surrender the simple in search for the fantastic. It’s an attempt to stir Christians to make use of the gifts and abilities God has placed in them. It’s a call to be more than just the average joe. Extraordinary sparks hope inside the reader and wakes up the dreams we have undermined with doubt and fear.
The first chapter perfectly expresses Bevere’s heart and purpose for writing. This chapter ends with a prayer. Each chapter is written with a very personable voice. Chapters are concluded with questions for review and reflection.

I always feel a little bad when I read books by John Bevere. Somebody worked a lot of hours to create the pages and bind them into this wonderful looking book and there I sit with my pen in hand marking it up from front to back. With notes and underlined sections all over the place, John Bevere books always end up looking more like a spirit-led journal once I’m through with them. The truth is I learn a ton with every sentence.

Extraordinary begins with the definition of the title word. To be ”beyond what is unusual, exceptional, exceeding the common measure.” If we can learn to live this book and the scriptural foundation it’s built on, we could take our world by storm. We could overwhelm them with the talents of God manifested in his children.

Personally, I received the majority of the message God had for me through this book on the second chapter. I re-read it over and over again. Boy do I struggle with concept of how deep God’s love is for me. The fact that God loves and values me whether I am viewed as extraordinary to the world or not just amazes me. It makes me want to do big things, not to gain His love, but to demonstrate the courage His love gives me.

I will be recommending this book to friends. I’ve already mentioned it to my Pastor’s wife who is now dying to read it. She’ll have to get her own copy though. Mine is too marked up with eye-opening notes.(less)

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Nov 04, 2011 Dan Cooley rated it 3 of 5 stars

Extraordinary – the life you’re meant to live by John Bevere The Good. The Bad. The Ugly.

For this book John should have heeded some wise words from my first Camp Director. He said…

“At this camp we do two things. We have fun and we make disciples. If you mess up, then mess up on making disciples. Have fun. At least then the campers will come back next year and someone else can introduce them to Christ. If you try to make disciples at camp and have no fun, you won’t succeed at either.”

The Good:
Ext...more

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Oct 28, 2011 Dan Cooley rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Extraordinary – The Good. The Bad. The Ugly.

For this book John should have heeded some wise words from my first Camp Director. He said…

“At this camp we do two things. We have fun and we make disciples. If you mess up, then mess up on making disciples. Have fun. At least then the campers will come back next year and someone else can introduce them to Christ. If you try to make disciples at camp and have no fun, you won’t succeed at either.”

The Good:
Extraordinary focuses on making disciples. There...more

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Oct 04, 2009 Debbie rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian, non-fiction

I admire that the author uses Scripture in this book and that he exhorts us to search the Scriptures to make sure any teaching we hear (including his) is Biblical in the full context of the Bible. I can only hope that those who read his book take this advice.

Several chapters (chapters 2, 7-10) are very good and give a balanced view of what Scripture teaches about God's love for us and His grace toward us. Other chapters (chapters 3-6) are fairly Biblical as far as they go, but they don't give a...more I admire that the author uses Scripture in this book and that he exhorts us to search the Scriptures to make sure any teaching we hear (including his) is Biblical in the full context of the Bible. I can only hope that those who read his book take this advice.

Several chapters (chapters 2, 7-10) are very good and give a balanced view of what Scripture teaches about God's love for us and His grace toward us. Other chapters (chapters 3-6) are fairly Biblical as far as they go, but they don't give a balanced view of everything the Bible says on the subject and so could mislead people into believing the Bible teaches certain things that it doesn't.

However, my greatest problem with this book starts in chapter 11. He previously defined grace as most people do: "grace is getting what we don't deserve, whereas mercy involves not getting what we deserve. (p. 82)" He also says "[Grace:] gives us the power to live in truth. (p.64)" However, in chapter 11, he re-defines grace as God's empowering all believers with the ability to cast out demons, heal the sick, create food to feed thousands, convert thousands to Christ, and otherwise bring about the conditions found in heaven upon the earth.

However, the verses he uses to try and prove that having God's grace equals all believers having the power to perform physical miracles in other people's lives clearly don't teach this, even out of context. In each example the author gives, both "grace" and "power" are mentioned, with power being the word relating to the miracles. When only grace is mentioned in his examples, it's describing the change of a believer's heart from being self-centered to having God's priorities.

The teaching in the remaining chapters (12-17) is skewed because of this incorrect redefinition of "grace." The author then picks verses on faith that he feels supports his belief that "grace" (which he takes to mean the ability to perform miracles) can be done if you have complete faith in this ability. As in, God's power resides in us (p.146) and we control God's power through believing we can do anything Jesus did. But the Bible doesn't teach this.

Simply put, I can't recommend this book due to the parts that depart from what the Bible teaches or which don't give a balanced view of what the Bible teaches. I'd recommend instead an excellent, Biblical book: "Because He Loves Me: How Christ Transforms Our Daily Life" by Elyse M. Fitzpatrick.(less)

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Sep 22, 2011 Dana Rongione rated it 1 of 5 stars

Extraordinary is a self-help book for Christians who are seeking the to live life the way God intended it to be lived. It urges Christians to reach beyond mediocre living and expectations. It is meant to be a guide for every Christian who has ever wondered, Is this all there is to life?

This book was not at all what I expected. I imagined it to be a book filled with encouragement and reminders of God's promises that we are more than conquerors through Him. I expected a book to lighten my load, st...more Extraordinary is a self-help book for Christians who are seeking the to live life the way God intended it to be lived. It urges Christians to reach beyond mediocre living and expectations. It is meant to be a guide for every Christian who has ever wondered, Is this all there is to life?

This book was not at all what I expected. I imagined it to be a book filled with encouragement and reminders of God's promises that we are more than conquerors through Him. I expected a book to lighten my load, strengthen my resolve and increase my spiritual growth. I was sadly disappointed. Admittedly, there were a few portions of the book that were helpful and a few statements that were profound. Beyond that, the book had several issues.

Red flags went up within the first few chapters when I felt Bevere was dancing around certain issues that are of utmost doctrinal importance. Somehow he managed to discuss these points while making it unclear as to where he stood on the points. But since the book is set up to where each chapter builds on the next, the truth was finally revealed.

After reading the book, this is the impression I was left with on what Bevere believes: First of all, he believes in a health-and-wealth gospel that states that God wants all of his children to be healthy and wealthy. He also believes that if a Christian is not healthy and wealthy, it is because of a lack of faith on the part of the Christian. He also concludes that with proper faith, we can accomplish anything that Jesus accomplished while on this earth. We can heal the sick, cast out demons, and make earth just like heaven. To this statement, I would love to ask why he doesn't have a full-time ministry visiting hospitals, nursing homes and asylums, but I digress. He even went so far as to say that man can and does limit God in what He can do here on earth. His proof was that God couldn't calm the storm on the sea of Galilee; He needed Jesus (in bodily form) to do that. What? Another statement that truly bothered me was when Bevere was discussing the woman with the issue of blood. He stated that Jesus had no idea what was going on until He felt His power leave Him when the woman touched the hem of His robe. That's insane. Jesus knows everything! Jesus knew that woman would come to Him before she was ever born.

In addition to the doctrinal differences, Bevere uses several versions of the Bible and often paraphrases to make the verses say what he wants them to say. I feel this is very misleading and can cause great confusion to the reader. Not only that, but Bevere has a knack for picking and choosing the verses that seem to support his point while leaving out others that would clarify the verse and give its true meaning. For example, in his chapter on faith, he used the verse in James that says, "Ye have not because ye ask not." He goes on to say how we can have anything we want if we only ask and believe. However, if he would read the very next verse in James, he would see, "Ye ask and receive not because ye ask amiss." We must compare Scripture with Scripture. We cannot pick one verse or one part of a verse and use it out of context to meet our needs.

As an author myself, I dislike writing poor reviews. I know how it feels to receive negative feedback. However, as a Christian, it is my duty to point out false teachings, and this book is full of them. If you're looking for a health-and-wealth, supremacy of man resource, this is it. However, if you're looking for the truth, I strongly suggest you look elsewhere. As I mentioned earlier, there were some really good points made in the book; however, there wasn't enough to warrant reading the book.

I received Extraordinary as part of the Blogging for Books program from Waterbrook Mulnomah. The opinions expressed herein are my own. I was not required to write a positive review.(less)

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Feb 13, 2012 Jeremy Barker rated it 2 of 5 stars

I had mixed feelings on this book. On one hand there were moments when I was loving this book and felt he was right on. At other moments it felt like there was just something that didn’t quite set right with me. This book is about how life is supposed to be. This book wants to open people’s eyes to the fact that “extraordinary” is how we were created to live. It was God’s plan from the beginning (loc 126). But this seems to be far from reality for many people, many Christians. It is to confront...more I had mixed feelings on this book. On one hand there were moments when I was loving this book and felt he was right on. At other moments it felt like there was just something that didn’t quite set right with me. This book is about how life is supposed to be. This book wants to open people’s eyes to the fact that “extraordinary” is how we were created to live. It was God’s plan from the beginning (loc 126). But this seems to be far from reality for many people, many Christians. It is to confront this reality that John writes this book.

I think the central premise of his book could be wrapped up in this quotation

The truth is, God not only desires you to live extraordinarily but also has equipped you to do so. (loc 148)

For those who have come to faith in Christ. They have been made alive. They are being shaped into the image of his Son (Romans 8:28-30). The message of the Gospel is not only about redemption from the penalty as a result from our sins against God, but it includes the aftermath of that as well. Being alive to God and living in a way that brings glory to Him (Gal. 2:20). The gift of salvation is all of God’s grace. It isn’t something man can boast in. It includes being made alive to God, going from enemies to sons, and as his children there are good works that he has prepared for us to do (Eph. 2:7-10). This is huge. It is easy to stop at simply explaining that the Gospel is the way that people can be saved from the penalty of their sins. That is huge. There is no denying that. But that also creates the potential of leading people to think life after that is up to them. They are saved by grace but life by effort. This is the error Paul is confronting in Galatians. He wants them to see that life after salvation is the same as life at salvation – all of God (Gal 2:15-3:5).

In relation to these ideas I was hugely grateful for the book. It was very helpful in this sense. What I think the underlying tension was came in the application he makes. It wasn’t prevalent throughout the book, but I just had a feeling it was coming and it showed up towards the end. There were two major things that I struggled with: first, It is the idea that when something you want to be doesn’t come to fruition that it is because in the “critical belief period” your faith wasn’t strong enough (loc 2580). It is the idea that is often abused that comes down to “if it is to be it is up to me.” While there are some elements of truth and the abuse in the other direction is real, this can be crippling and I don’t think squares with the overall message from scripture. The second major disagreement came in some of the areas of application. His emphasis on grace as God’s gift for salvation but also the empowering to live a life that pleases him is helpful. However, the idea that because you are a Christian you should be the most creative architect, the most exciting musician, the most successful businessman I don’t think quite squares with scripture either. Some of his applications for grace’s empowering us to live a holy life as a new creation were great (loc 1661). But others I disagreed with.

Overall, the book was interesting. I greatly enjoyed it. It was thought provoking and entertaining. So for those who are looking for a book to challenge their thinking on what life as a Christian should be this is an interesting one. It would not come as the highest recommended book on the topic but for a critical reader it might be worth engaging with.

DISCLAIMER: I received a free evaluation copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah. I did not receive any monetary payment nor was I required to write a positive review. I hope my comments about the book will help you evaluate whether or not the book is worth purchasing and reading.(less)

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Oct 08, 2009 Clockstein Lockstein rated it 4 of 5 stars

Extraordinary by John Bevere is subtitled: The Life You're Meant to Live. Bevere focuses in on the lack of life in the church today compared to the New Testament church. Our churches have become more of a social club than a force of God within the world. We are a subculture rather than a counterculture, and Satan has been able to use that lack of power to disenchant the world to Jesus. Bevere says, "Here's the sobering reality: godly men and women determine whether or not the will of God gets do...more

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Jun 13, 2012 Ian rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was excellent.

John writes like he speaks. He uses Scripture to support all of his assertions and then illustrates them with examples from his own or others lives. The way John uses Scripture is incredible. He reflects on multiple versions and provides the most relevant version for the point he is trying to support.

What was most significant for me in reading this book was I now have a full understanding of grace. I've been living naively believing that grace is mostly provided for salvation...more

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Jan 05, 2012 Katherine rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: waterbrook-multnomah-publishing-rev

- I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. –

This book was one I had a hard time reading. The author and I just disagree on so many things - sin, Satan, hell, judgment, fearing God, prayer, etc, etc... We have a different way of understanding the message of Jesus, the point of Christianity. We may agree every now and then, but it's never quite a complete agreement, it's only a half agreement. For example, I do believe that Jesus' mercy provides us...more

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Apr 13, 2011 Erin rated it 5 of 5 stars

I read this as part of a Bible study. It made me look at some things in a whole new way. Especually the issue of God's grace. It doesn't just save us, it empowers us to live life abundantly. The same Jesus who died on the cross lives in me. I need to live my life accordingly.

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Dec 28, 2010 Jason Cooksey rated it 5 of 5 stars

I think this book was great! It gave me the much needed reminder that living an extraordinary life comes from living in the grace of God and not my own strength. A must read to for those of us needing to be energized by good solid teaching and exposition on grace.

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Dec 19, 2010 Lacie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Excellent book. I will never be the same again! This book shed a whole new light on how Christians are supposed to live and the empowerment we have been given to live an extraordinary life. Highly recommended!

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Dec 31, 2009 Molly rated it 5 of 5 stars

Can't say enough about John and Lisa Bevere. I am always challenged. This book is about grace - but not weak grace, the empowering Grace that God gives us to do His will.

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Aug 14, 2012 Kim rated it 4 of 5 stars

Read this book in a small group study at church and it is excellant! Really helps you to discover your true purpose God has for your life.

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Mar 27, 2013 John Weston rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book rocked me. It made me realize I am the only ceiling for my life and the Lord's desire to use me. Absolutely amazing book.

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Apr 28, 2010 Cafelilybookreviews rated it 3 of 5 stars

Read my review posted here:

http://redlilycafe.blogspot.com/2009/...

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May 14, 2011 Re rated it 5 of 5 stars

An awesome book! John Bevere focuses on the heart of Christianity, Faith! Not just faith for salvation, but faith for Holy Living, divine healing, resources to meet needs, and ruling in life. He shows us God's plan through scriptures, including many, many examples in the Bible. But, we must put our hope in the God of Hope. Faith, hope, and compassion is what Jesus taught us, and that is how we should live. John B. reaffirms what the Bible teaches that we cannot do this on our own strength, but o...more

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Apr 30, 2012 Chris Ballantyne rated it 5 of 5 stars

A great book and study resource. We did this as a small group and were blessed.

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Mar 15, 2012 Justin Farley rated it 3 of 5 stars

http://justinfarley.blogspot.com/2009...

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Mar 11, 2013 Sumitra Naidu rated it 5 of 5 stars

Ready to live that extraordinary life.

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Mar 29, 2013 Debra White rated it 5 of 5 stars

Phenomenal!

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Feb 15, 2010 Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars

I've learned I can live extraordinary because that is what I am meant for. God gives us a life that far surpasses the usual definition of success or fulfillment.

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Jul 25, 2011 Rebecca Barkus rated it 5 of 5 stars

What a wonderful book explaining God's grace and how by accepting that grace we can live in so much more freedom and loving acceptance of a God who loves us THAT much to give us unmerited favor, undeserved pardon, so that we can live more balanced, fruitful lives by embracing this concept!

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Jun 02, 2012 Zari rated it 5 of 5 stars

Phenomenal.

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Apr 22, 2012 Empyrean Opulent rated it 5 of 5 stars

Great book! A life changer. God is good.

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Jul 29, 2011 Tina rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: christian

Good insight on how we should live

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May 21, 2013 Emerson rated it 2 of 5 stars

May 18, 2013 Nicolette marked it as to-read

Shelves: books-i-own

May 17, 2013 Randy Ehrler marked it as to-read

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About John Bevere

Marked by boldness and passion, John Bevere delivers uncompromising truth through his award-winning curriculums and bestselling books, now in more than 60 languages, including "The Bait of Satan," "Drawing Near" and "Driven by Eternity." He is an international speaker and co-host of "The Messenger" TV program broadcast worldwide.

John enjoys living in Colorado Springs with his wife, Lisa, also a b...more

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Books by John Bevere

The Bait Of Satan: Living Free from the Deadly Trap of Offense

Under Cover: The Promise of Protection Under His Authority

Driven by Eternity: Making Your Life Count Today & Forever

Drawing Near: A Life of Intimacy with God

The Fear of the Lord: Discover the Key to Intimately Knowing God

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