The Christian life is a life of listening. In this memoir, lifelong minister of the gospel Leighton Ford tells his story as a personal history of listening for God's voice. Beginning with his earliest memories, he recounts the different ways God has spoken to him, and the different ways he has learned to listen. Through the joys of ministry, first as an international evangelist, often in partnership with Billy Graham, and later as a leader of the Lausanne Movement and a mentor of emerging leaders, he remembers God's voice proclaiming, instructing, reassuring. Through the pain of deep loss, he remembers God's voice calling out to him, even in the deafening silence. What emerges is not just an account of a long and faithful life of Christian service, but a picture of the Christian life―the life of listening. What will it sound like, Ford asks, when God speaks to you?
"My best friend in high school met Jesus while listening to Leighton Ford forty-five years ago. It is Leighton's profound capacity to listen to Jesus that makes listening to Leighton a gift to us. In a voice that is lean and spare and angular and humble, there is great wisdom."
John Ortberg, senior pastor of Menlo Church, author of Eternity Is Now in Session
"How do we hear the voice of God speaking through and apart from those who journey with us through life? And how do we find our own voices in these conversations and callings? Leighton Ford's life embodies the good news of Jesus because he is such an extraordinary listener. And through vulnerable and articulate remembrance, his story leads us more deeply into our own."
Ken Carter, bishop, Florida Conference, the United Methodist Church
"I've learned in life to listen well to those who listen well to God. Leighton Ford is one of those people. You may never have the opportunity to sit down in person and listen to Leighton share stories of hope, heartache, calling, and ever-renewing vision, but I invite you to listen through this book to the voice of that same man who has been refined beautifully through the fire to the blessing of leaders throughout the Lausanne Movement that I lead and throughout the world. I trust it will help you, like me, to listen better to our Lord and have something worth listening to by others."
Michael Oh, global executive director/chief executive officer, Lausanne Movement
"Ford draws readers deep into his own life, a long journey of listening to the one true Voice that quietly yet relentlessly called him to his vocations of poet, artist, writer, evangelist, and mentor. A master stylist, he nudges readers into a rushing stream of arresting verbs, memorable phrases, and gripping stories of loss and redemption. With this book, Ford gives the genre memoir new and unforgettable meaning."
Grant Wacker, author of One Soul at a Time: The Story of Billy Graham
