How Good Is Good Enough - a review of my first book to read in 2015!

I completed one book already in 2015!  Okay, so I was halfway through it when the ball dropped on New Year's Eve.  And it is only 92 pages, so that it really not much of an accomplishment.  But I really am planning to read a lot more this year.

Andy Stanley is my favorite preacher.  He just does a great job of communicating God's Word in fresh, relational ways.  This gift-book sized book is a perfect introduction to the biggest question of Christianity.  While preachers, teachers and thinkers might want to start with the question of the person and work of Jesus (which is the central theme of Christianity), we often forget that the people who most need the work of the person of Jesus to become real in their lives don't yet know that the solution is Jesus!  And while Stanley uses classic arguments from the domain of apologetics, he does so later in the book.

The best part of this short work is his argument against the "just be a good person" position.  Basically, he ends up asking, "how do you know how good is good enough?"  His argument centers on the point that if the "be a good person" position is true, and if God is truly good, then he should have told us exactly how good is good enough!  Other than his absolutist command to obey perfectly, he has not!  Therefore he is very unfair, and his judgment is unjust, or the "be a good person" position doesn't work.  Of course, Stanley argues this very skillfully and with a lot of grace.  He then proposes that the death and resurrection of Jesus provided forgiveness from God and justification of sinners.

I read this book for a reason.  A few weeks ago I read a blog from a pastor in California who gives a free copy of this book to every first-time guest at his church.  I thought it sounded like a good idea, and after reading the book, agreed that it is a great idea!  I believe that this question of "how good is good enough," stemming from the "be a good person" position, is the biggest false gospel in our culture.  This is the big thing that keeps people from experiencing God and his grace and mercy through Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit. 

So  bought 12 copies and am praying over them, asking God to lead to our church 12 families who need to hear this message and, who after reading this book, will come and talk to me about what Christ might be able to do in their lives!

The Art of Neighboring - a great book about building relationships with your neighbors

"These guys are reading my mind!  Or, maybe I am reading theirs since they have been doing for years what I have been thinking about for months!"  While seeking some counsel for our mobile home community ministry from missional thinker and coach Lance Ford, he recommended that I read Jay Pathak & Dave Runyon's book, "The Art of Neighboring."  A very quick read, I loved it!  As I read it, I was glad I already had a rough outline for an upcoming sermon, because I could easily have been accused of outright stealing their insights.  But I really didn't!  I was already discovering their thoughts on the application of the second-greatest commandment, ("Love your neighbor as yourself").  My neighborhood "map" sat in our kitchen junk drawer, on which we wrote the names of our neighbors after moving into our house a few years ago.  We organized a neighborhood block party last summer!  The connections were unbelievable!  I, however, was not living in the depth of relationships of these two authors enjoy with their neighbors.  I still have a lot to learn.  No, wait. I still have a lot to practice.

But this isn't about me.  I don't want you to look at me.  I want you to read this book.  These guys are up front with the fact that this is no evangelism program, or strategy to merely get a chance to tell your neighbors about Jesus.  It is about learning to live in community with your neighbors, loving and serving each other, building real relationships.    (We know, however, that the best spiritual conversations happen inside of genuine relationships).

The Neighborhood Map - Genius!

If you have ever waved at your neighbors while pulling into your garage, wondering what exactly they do for a living, this book is for you.  If you have ever driven to the grocery store for a sack of sugar, really only needing 1/2 cup but too embarrassed to ask the lady across the street because, honestly, you don't really know her), this book is for you.  If you nod to your neighbors while driving to church, as they mow their grass, and wonder what it would take for them to join you, this book is for you!  If you look to see what the neighbors are doing while peeking through the blinds of an upstairs room, this book is definitely for you!

Pathak and Runyon combine Bible teaching, practical steps and personal stories to help make their case for building relationships.  For instance, the remind us that we might not be the best person to actually host a neighborhood block party.  They tell us not to organize one all on our own, but to get at least another couple of help.  Good suggestions!  They teach how to set up appropriate boundaries so that we don't let neighbors take advantage of us.  Very helpful!  And they tell their story of what happened in theirs and other cities around the nation who have taken the "neighboring" challenge.

Pick up a copy today!  You will be done reading it by next week.  You will be inspired for months!  But be warned:  you will never again drive down your street seeing things as you do now!