In Light of Eternity: The Life of Leonard Ravenhill

(*REVISED AND EXPANDED EDITION - 2019)

Though at first this book appears overwhelming (over six hundred pages), it is easy and very beneficial to read. Readers have been deeply affected by this book, especially changing the way they view prayer and its impact on their life. The author does an exceptional job of setting forth those things which made Ravenhill so well-loved and respected as a man of God. Chief among these was his life of prayer, his dependency on the Lord, and his zeal for the truth of God. But rather than merely telling us about these realities in the life of Leonard Ravenhill, we are continually impressed with our own need to imitate Ravenhill on these points. Avoiding the pitfalls of spiritual hero-worship, the result is the most powerful and eloquent sort of preaching, a holy, pure, and zealous life. Moreover, this book is not merely a telling of things he did or what happened around him, but a vivid and stirring account of his character and how he became who he was, giving God all the glory.
 
Leonard Ravenhill was a man who was centered on prayer. His wife once told a close friend that Leonard regularly spent eight hours a day in prayer. This inward passion for God caused an outward cry for truth and holiness. He preached with a passion for revival all over the world, but especially in the United States, where he was especially burdened about what appeared to him to be a generally lukewarm "church". He longed to see a mighty move of God in his day, and this passion came out in his preaching.
 
Ravenhill had a great impact on countless men, including Granted Ministries favorites like Paul Washer, Charles Leiter, and Mack Tomlinson. He was not the greatest theologian ever, nor even the greatest preacher, but he had a passion grounded in the reality of his remarkable prayer life. Many who cannot now meet him will still be impacted through this biography, which will stir up a desire to make prayer and personal holiness central features in their lives.

672 pages

"My father lived daily in light of eternity, always seeking to please the one who enlisted him as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Before he ever stood in the pulpit, he stood before God. He was a man of prayer. Prayer was his life and his preaching reflected the fact that he had been alone with God."

--David Ravenhill

"The truth is, even though I am known now as an apologist for the Christian faith, dealing with the intellectual issues of Christianity, I really owe any passion for God, for prayer and for true revival that initially began in me, to Leonard Ravenhill. He, by God's grace, was the catalyst that has caused the passion to know God to continue to this day."

--Ravi Zacharias

"Those who know Leonard Ravenhill recognize in him the religious specialist, the man sent from God to battle the priests of Baal on their own mountain top, to shame the careless priest at the altar, to face the false prophet, and to warn the people who are being led astray by him. Such a man as this is not an easy companion. He insists on being a Christian all the time and everywhere. This marks him out as different. Why do we have men of such fiery swords as Ravenhill? They are sick inside when they see the children of heaven acting like the sons of earth. To such men as these, the church owes a debt too heavy to pay."

--A. W. Tozer

"Leonard Ravenhill was one of the few men I have ever known who was a true prophet. I am glad this book has finally been written."

-David Wilkerson

"I was introduced to Leonard Ravenhill at the very beginning of my Christian pilgrimage and the impact of his life upon mine remains until this day. He lived as one who dwelt in the shadow of the Almighty and he preached as one sent from God. He knew God's presence, wore His mantle, bore His burdens, and spoke His truth. He was the rarest of commodities in his day and ours - a man of God."

--Paul David Washer