Book Review--The Hole in Our Gospel: What Does God Expect of Us? The Answer that Changed My Life and Might Just Change the World

Someone close to me saw that I was reading The Hole in our Gospel and said, "Oh great, another book by some rich guy, who, after he'd made his millions, then decided to take his faith seriously..." Richard Stearns is a rich guy, who did radically change his priorities and the lifestyle his family was living, after working as a CEO of a big-wig company for many years. But when he took the position as the President of World Vision, he came to see some truths that are applicable to all followers of Christ, regardless of income or career path.

The thrust of the book is that we have a tendency to take the Gospel (the Good News, that Christ is our salvation, that His Kingdom is real and the life He offers is forever and abundant!) and mold it into what is comfortable, leaving out the parts that require surrender... leaving a gaping hole that is breaking the heart of God. In the introduction he explains that,

"the good news was meant to change the world. Belief is not enough. Worship is not enough. Personal morality is not enough. And Christian community is not enough. God has always demanded more. When we committed ourselves to following Christ, we also committed to living our lives in such a way that a watching world would catch a glimpse of God's character--His love, justice, and mercy--through our words, actions, and behavior....Living out our faith privately was never meant to be an option." (pg. 3)

The book spells out exactly what the conditions are in developing countries, what poverty looks like and how it impacts entire villages and cultures. And Stearns shows lots of ways we can begin to live out the whole gospel, in big and small ways. He tells his own story of how he was confronted with the whole gospel, when he was asked to consider the position of President of World Vision, and how he saw the hole in his own walk, despite his desire to be a fully committed Christian.

I love a section where he explores the debate over faith and works... and how he boils it down: "But faith and works were never meant to be in dichotomy.... Simply put, we are saved by faith, saved for works." (pg 198-9) Our faith is what saves us, but our works are where our faith is demonstrated. The idea of our faith being something just for us is really missing the boat.

Stearns writes honestly and it feels like you can hear his voice. He shares how he was driven to succeed, and when he became a Christian and how that changed his life. He challenges us all to look at our own stories. Who are our neighbors, and how are our lives giving them a glimpse of God's character?


I reviewed this book as part of Thomas Nelson's Book Review Blogger Program. You can get more info about the program at http://brb.thomasnelson.com and more info about the book itself at http://www.thomasnelson.com/consumer/product_detail.asp?sku=0785229183

Loosen My Grip, Lord

A few things swirling around in my head today. Just things that have happened to people we know recently and what I've been reading and watching, it's all got me thinking. I just finished reading The Shack, (took me forEVER), I saw a quirky little movie called Then She Found Me, and have been studying the Psalms of Ascent--15 songs the Israelites would sing on their pilgrimages to Jerusalem, Psalms 120-134--in Beth Moore's Stepping Up. The recurring theme? Betrayal and Forgiveness. Sometimes I go deep.

Betrayal happens. In our imperfect human-ness, we hurt others. Sometimes it happens when we don't mean for it to, and sometimes we know exactly the impact our actions or words will make on another, and out of anger or our own pain, we let them have it. Zing. We have all done it, and we have all had it done to us. But what to do with it when it happens?

I think there have been studies to make this point, and the Bible makes it clear that holding onto your anger wrecks you. Sometimes you take others down with you. Forgiveness is the only way to find relief. In the movie I saw, the main character has to "make peace" in order to move on with her life. I think we all believe in the concept of forgiveness, and making peace, but the practice of forgiving someone else is slippery. Your head may buy the idea, but hearts can be slow to follow.

I love a conversation towards the end of The Shack, where Mack, who has been done wrong by someone else, is talking to God about what it means to forgive them. God gently explains to Mack what forgiveness isn't. It isn't embracing that other person, or deepening the relationship. It isn't saying the actions were ok, or even forgotten. These things might all happen over time, but the initial act of forgiving someone is much smaller, more simple, a tiny step. It is described in The Shack as removing your hand from that other person's throat. Taking your hand off, and trusting that God knows what has happened; who was wrong. And, we may have to peel our hands off one finger at a time, we may struggle, but as we let go of that person's throat, we let go of the weight of the anger.

Over and over we can read in the Psalms about how David and his people have been mistreated, and how God sees and protects them. And we also see how God forgives the Israelites when they fall short of the mark. We learn from the Psalms that it's ok to complain and cry out to God when we're hurt. I think this is an important step in the peeling away of those fingers. Because when you know God knows, it's easier to trust Him to handle it.

The idea of "making peace" is a funny one to me. Peace is one of the fruit of the Spirit. It's something that grows or flows from the Spirit within us. We cannot manufacture peace on our own. We, alone, with our own head and heart and nothing else, can't make peace. We can unwrap our fingers, though.

Judges and Obama

After I got my Bible Background commentary for the Old Testament, I decided to try reading through these ancient books for the first time. I'm trying to understand all the verses, all the chapters, not just the familiar stories. It's a strange thing. The culture seems so different, the ways of the people so wacky. We don't live in the same world today. And yet, the nature of humans has not changed, we have not evolved into some greater beings. We still ooze jealousy and anger, we still think God would be wise to consider our input in His plans, we still want what we want, and we want it NOW! We live in the same world today.

I've made it to the end of Judges, which is a book full of inspiring stories that show how God will use imperfect people to draw nations to Him. There are stories that show how, when we are stepping out in obedience, we--with God--can accomplish impossible things. Think of Gideon and Samson. But the overall story of the book, I think, is that the people wanted a person to be their leader. they weren't satisfied with having God, the Creator of the Universe, as their leader. And I just keep wondering why?

It happens over and over in the book of Judges. The people do most of what God commands them to do, but not everything. They don't get rid of all the people in these lands as God instructed. And after a while, what do you know, they're worshiping God, the LORD, and saying with their mouths that He is the One true God, but they also just have a little statue for Baal in the backyard, just to sort of take advantage of the rain he might send, in case he's the real deal. And maybe a couple of little charms to give honor to Ishtar, the fertility goddess, you know, just for good luck. Not surprisingly, they find themselves in a pickle, get things really messed up, and then cry out to God. He raises a man or woman up to be a judge for them, they all remember that the LORD is indeed the One true God again, and they have peace in the land for 20, 40, or 50 years. That person dies, and before you know it, another generation of folks start to fudge a little with the other gods, make a mess of things again, and the cycle is repeated.

Is this so different from how we are today? I'm thinking not so much.

And, since I just finished Stephen Mansfield's book about Barack Obama's faith, I'm seeing a connection. I think of how millions of people have set their eyes on him as the great hope... Obama's big on a civil religion, one that will cover everyone's bases. What's the problem with that? His faith will "some allege, give people a watered-down religion of Americanism but insulate them from the raw but healing truth of revealed religion. In other words, it replaces traditional religion with a bland political religiosity that creates a mood without offering power. It is merely faith in faith rather than faith in God."(p.94)

Doesn't that kind of thinking sound familiar? Yikes. Are we being asked to find hope in that? Blech. A recurring statement in Judges is "the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes." Let us not grow too confident in our own eyes. Seems that just leads to big barrels of pickles.

Book Review--The Faith of Barack Obama

You won't typically find me in my spot on the couch with this kind of book, and I found myself skeptical as I began to read it. But that's not Mansfield's fault. I don't watch the news, I read occasional articles in the Sunday paper, catch some stories on line and on the radio. But I definitely steer clear of Hannity, Limbaugh, Beck, Matthews, Colmes, etc., etc. I'm suspicious of all of them. They tell me spun versions of what they want me to hear, and how can I ever form my own opinion? So, I feel I must fess up to the attitude I had going into the reading of The Faith of Barack Obama.

This seems like a brave book to write, in that telling the story of anyone's faith--one who's living, that it is--is like trying to 'catch a moonbeam in your hand.' Our faith is a fluid, hopefully growing, active, moving thing. It isn't easily pinned down. Can you think of what "The Faith of (insert your name here)" would say? How would it end? But Stephen Mansfield tackled the brave task, in writing this book that is part biography, part sociological examination, and part US History lesson.

Mansfield asserts that Obama's faith, like everyone's, "is a work in progress, and no man can be accurately portrayed by a portrait frozen in time."(p.58) I agree with that, and it was interesting to get a picture of where Obama came from, where he might be now, and what he might be after--faith-wise. It helps me understand the appeal, and how people are so drawn to him. And I think I've gained understanding into why Obama's faith should be of any concern to me, and that is because Obama himself insists that our faith can't be held separately from how we govern, so we need to find a way to make it pleasing or acceptable to all. Mansfield describes this as a civil religion, "using social justice concerns as a call to religious neutrality in honor of the secular American way."(p.95)

This scares me, but a book review isn't the place to go on about that. I recommend you read the book yourself and see what you think. It comes across as a pretty objective look at Obama and sheds light on the black church in America, as well as the opportunity that sits before us to move toward healing in this country.

Summer Reading

Thanks to my friend April, I've been given the opportunity to review a book on my blog. I emailed the publisher saying I'd like to do it, and they sent me a copy of the book, and ba-da-boom, ba-da-bing, I'm gonna' be the writer of a book review. It came in the mail today, Stephen Mansfield's new book, The Faith of Brack Obama.



So, I'm busily reading, and will let you know what I think post haste!
Thanks April, for thinking of me and this little blog.

Reading Good Writing

Wow, this business of blogging in the summertime is not easy. The thoughts and the time to capture them don't seem to flow together very nicely. Not only have I not had the chance to sit down and write, I'm also way behind in reading other blogs. I think it's a combination of having to share my computer (in addition to my time) and just not being in the house as much. I'll probably get it figured out just in time to transition back into a new school year.

I have gotten to read books, however. It's a lovely thing to sit in the back yard with my coffee and my book. And I loved this passage from Leif Enger's new book, So Brave, Young, and Handsome. He's talking about his marriage:

Recently, it often seemed as if Susannah were looking at the moon while I looked somewhere else--say, at a lake. If I saw the moon in the lake I believed we were looking in the same place, but let anything disturb the water and we were two people standing alone. We needed to look at something the same way, as we once had, or as it seemed to me we once had. I didn't know how to do it. (p. 245)

Isn't that a beautifully written description of their relationship? I remember feeling that way toward the end of my pregnancy with Luke. It was soccer season, and Scott was the Varsity Girls' coach, so the sport owned him. Luke was our second baby, it wasn't as novel or urgent. I went to most appointments alone, unlike the first time around. I was all wrapped up in being a mommy to Lars, preparing to rock his world with a sibling, and Scott was hardly ever home. I longed to go into labor so that we would, for a few hours, be in the same place at the same time, working on the same thing. But I could never have thought of such a poetic way to put it into words.

Deep Thoughts this Stormy Morning

Yesterday I finally finished the Jon Krakauer book about the Mormon faith and some of the fundamentalist groups that have sprouted off of the main church. It was a well-written book, but the subject matter is truly disturbing. I couldn't wait to be done with it. Throughout the book, but especially at the end Krakauer throws in some questions about what faith really means, and how is one religion any different than another when they all, at some point, require that "leap" of faith? I say, bring on these tough questions. I want to know why I believe what I believe.

At the same time, I'm working on a study of the book of Colossians. I think Paul's letter could tackle some of Krakauer's queries. My faith is not in a religion with rules and restrictions about how to live or practice that faith. I don't have to do certain things to gain entry into heaven. My ticket to heaven is not jeopardized by my actions. Jesus died for me, (in my sinful, imperfectness) and I have accepted His saving gift of grace. My faith is in Christ.

As Paul wrote to the believers on Colossae about what he hoped his letters would do for their recipients, he said, I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ Himself. In Him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Colossians 2:2&3

In following Christ, it becomes less and less mysterious, and our knowledge increases. We know God more and more. And this is accessible to any and all who want it! Here's some more verses that get right to the heart of the difference between accepting that salvation and going the next step--what it means to be a follower of Christ:

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow Him. Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:6&7

Paul explains why the following piece is important, why it's imperative to do more than just accept the gift. We need to continue following Him because Satan is working hard to confuse people. He's the Great Manipulator and King of Lies. He takes bits of the truth, and weaves lies, and selfish, human-driven ideas into it. He presents twisted versions of the truth that can sound good at first, if you aren't rooted in The Truth--Christ. That's been Satan's playbook throughout the ages. In the next verse, Paul says:

Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. Colossians 2:8

I can't help but think of the Mormon church, and the wackos that have taken Mormonism to extremes, or even of some of the ideas Oprah has helped to disseminate, from The Secret or Eckhardt Tolle. These are all empty philosophies, that come from human thinking and are not of God, they are of this world. How do we know the difference? We have to be rooted in Christ and let our lives be built on Him; not a religion, not a church, or ideas, but in and on Christ.

A New Book...to me, anyway...

I started reading "Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith." It's an investigative look at a 1984 double murder committed by two brothers who believed they were ordered to kill by God...they grew up in a Mormon home, and somehow as Jon Krakauer will tell the story, there is a connection to the FLDS, the Fundamentalist Mormons who were raided in Texas a few weeks ago.

We've had this book in our home for about a year now. I picked it up at a used book sale, and Scott read/skimmed most of it. I decided to read it now because of the news tories about these people in Texas and because Oprah had a show about them recently. I remembered we had this book, so found it and started it the other night. It is really disturbing, how sick and twisted the thinking is in the FLDS. They have "compounds" or whole towns, basically, in Arizona, Utah, Texas, and Canada.

This business of plural marriages--young, young girls being "married" to men twice, or three times their age--it's commonplace for them. It's just the way they live, the life they've been born into. I woke up in the middle of the night with some tummy trouble, and I first thought through everything I had eaten during the day, and then thought of the book I was reading right before bed and thought maybe the stories of these people had literally made me sick to my stomach.

So, I'm early into the book, but here's a couple of things that made me go Wow! out loud as I was reading:

Polygamy is illegal in both Utah and Arizona. To avoid prosecution, typically men in Colorado City [one of the towns they pretty much own in AZ] will legally marry only the first of their wives; subsequent wives, although 'spiritually married' to their husband by Uncle Rulon [the leader...father of Warren Jeffs], thus remain single mothers in the eyes of the state. This has the added benefit of allowing the enormous families in town to qualify for welfare and other forms of public assistance. Despite the fact that Uncle Rulon and his followers regard the governments of Utah, Arizona, and the United States as Satanic forces out to destroy [them], their polygamous community receives more than $6 million a year in public funds....33% of the town's residents receive food stamps--compared to the state average of 4.7%. Currently the residents of Colorado City receive 8 dollars in government services for every dollar they pay in taxes; by comparison, residents in the rest of Mohave County, AZ, receive just over a dollar in services per tax dollar paid....Fundamentalists call defrauding the government 'bleeding the beast' and regard it as a virtuous act.

and:

For all their fecundity, Mormon Fundamentalists are strangely squeamish about sex. Boys and girls are forbidden to date, or even flirt, before marriage. Sex education consists of teaching children that the human body is a shameful vessel that should be veiled from the eyes of others at all times....In spite of--or more likely because of--the atmosphere of repression in Bountiful [the town in Canada], incest and other disturbing behaviors are rampant, although the abuse goes conspicuously unacknowledged....because the mayor, the police, and the judge in Colorado City are themselves polygamists who are absolutely obedient to the prophet, there is 'nowhere' for victims of abuse to turn.

I can't believe that what I'm reading about is something that is happening right now, today, in our country. I'm not sure what to do about it. Religious freedom is one thing, but these folks are involved in criminal activity.

What Are You Reading?

I am still trudging through the Shel Silverstien biography...with a stack of books I'm looking forward to starting. The only reason I keep reading it is because I don't know when he dies, or what the cause, and I've already invested this much time....Hopefully the car ride to the water park today will be my chance to finally finish it. I think I've mentioned why I'm not enjoying the book, but in case I haven't, there's two reasons:
1) It's not organized in any way that I can follow. Shel was a poet, a cartoonist, a songwriter, playwright....He was a Renaissance Man, they say. He could do it all. He had residences all over the country, Chicago, Nashville, New York, Martha's Vineyard, Sausalito, CA, and Key West FL. This book could be organized by the different mediums he worked in, different parts of the country, or perhaps chronologically, but no, it's just kind of all over the place. One chapter ends on page 145 talking about someone he knew in Key West in 1980 saying, "but first, Shel had to deal with the biggest tragedy of his life." When is this tragedy revealed? 14 pages later!! (and it occurred in 1982!) With no building up to it....She just didn't get around to writing about it until then.

2) This man who had it all and could do it all was really kind of a selfish pig, and I don't think I like him very much. He had hundreds of women, never stayed with anyone for more than a week or so, and would just get up and go wherever he wanted whenever he wanted. His friends never knew when he would turn up, or when he would leave. This was not in the day of cell phones.....

OK, so, I'm finishing this biography soon......
What are you reading right now? Anything good? I want to read something good!

Getting My Groove Back

What a whirlwind of a week and weekend. I'm thrilled to have a normal day, with only the mundane tasks on my list. Laundry, what to do for dinner, cleaning the house.

My birthday party was great fun. Scott's idea of a private room at a fabulous Italian restaurant was really wonderful. The space was warm and lovely, the food and wine delicious. It was something we'd never done before, and so we were nervous about it, but it turned out great.

I've got some things on my mind for this here blog, but my brain is feeling so scattered. I've mentioned here before that I really appreciate a routine, and there was none last week. I kind of feel like my brain is bruised, from working through logistics and trying to remember everything I needed to....Can a brain get bruised by that kind of activity? anyway....Some unfinished thoughts I hope to delve into more deeply later this week:

1) Parenting a middle-schooler....feels like there are lots of opportunities to just screw the kid up. How do I know how far to push, how much to guide, how loose to hold him, what to let him do, what to not let him do...Keeping in mind all the while that this boy is a gift on loan to me from God. He's not mine, He's God's. I said to a friend yesterday, this part of parenting presents a new and different kind of fatigue.

2) Reading the book of Joshua, and trying to figure out what God is teaching me through these stories of battles and conquering entire towns, kings, armies, and all. God told Joshua the land would be theirs...and He helped them fight and conquer all these people. But Joshua still had to go out there and fight. Still had to kill people. God totally delivered in regard to His promise to the Israelites, but there was still work to be done.

3) Still reading Shel Silverstien's biography and blech. He was not a happy man. It's interesting, his story, and all of the things he did and people he knew....but his life was so empty. Full of all the world has to offer, and yet empty.

4) So, I'm 40 now. Am I using the things God has given me in the way that He wants?

New York City!? (with the southern twang...can you hear it?)

I just finished "Rise and Shine" by Anna Quindlen this morning, and last week I finished (finally!) "A Year of Living Biblically" by A.J. Jacobs. I think I'm about sick of New York City.

I always enjoy reading Anna Quindlen, and I did this time. The edition I bought is a Reader's Cirlce....so there are discussion questions in the back, and also an interview of the author. Quindlen said that the theme of this book was "the disconnect in modern American life between appearance and reality....how we've all come to believe that what looks good is good." I think she hit it spot on, and introduced me to a family of characters I fell in love with.

How do we find the blurred line between appearance and reality? In this book, a famous morning news show anchor and her sister deal with this question. We know when we're looking at famous people that we don't really know them. We know when we watch politicians that we aren't getting a dose of reality. They're telling us what they think we want to hear, selling what we'll buy. This is not surprising.

But what about the ways we blur the lines ourselves? We all work every day to appear a certain way, to make our homes appear a certain way, to persuade our children to appear a certain way, and on and on. We can get lost in the whole appearance thing without even noticing, we can buy our own sales pitch. And find ourselves one day wondering why we're doing what we're doing. Why we've spent so much of a life on something fake.

Of course, the Bible has something to say about it. First about giving air time to what others think: "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2...and for those of us who are believers, Paul has some words about what we do with our lives...."For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ. Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames." I Corinthians 3:11-15 It's not like your salvation is at stake here, it's just that you're missing out on what is available.

Is the stuff I'm working on, is the way I spend my days going to burn up? Am I being purposeful and intentional about what I'm doing? Do I know why I'm doing what I'm doing? What is my motivation? These are some nice light thoughts for the weekend.....