Justice In The Burbs by Will and Lisa Samson

Feeling like your faith is kinda shallow these days? Well, reading this book may just help you diagnose the problem!

Each chapter opens with a fictional family as they make the journey from what matters to what truly matters. This is reminiscent of Lisa's story, and I'm sure she wrote these sections herself! These vignettes are easy to read and pack a real punch.

Following the fiction is the examination of what it means to truly serve as we are commanded in Scripture, as well as critical view of how we normally live our every day lives. With chapter titles such as "Living In An Ordinary World" and Finding God At Starbucks", our materialistic American view takes a hard and well deserved hit.

Finally, meditations from some well known authors in the Emergent Village community round out each chapter, and some of them are quite piercing. This is not light reading by any means, but I truly believe it is necessary reading if the church of today is going to have any genuine impact at all for God's Kingdom.

However, I must add my usual caution. Read your Bible along with any non-fiction title you choose. Many of today's Christian living books are not including Scripture, but merely ideas...and that can be a very dangerous thing. Bounce EVERYTHING you read off of Scripture BEFORE you take it to heart...regardless of the author or his/her credentials.

Having said that, while I don't agree fully with all the Emergent Village proposes, I do find myself nodding quite a lot as I read this book, and I can feel the Holy Spirit prompting me to not just read it, but to do as Audio Adrenaline once sang: "I wanna be Your hands/I wanna be Your feet/I'll go where You send me."

And that's not something I say lightly. All too often I find myself as a typical American Christian, writing a check or making a donation and thinking I'm all that...when I could do far, far more than I do.

"Justice in the Burbs" makes a great non-fiction companion to Lisa's last contemporary fiction release, "Quaker Summer". This book continues the theme of genuine Christian service and what truly matters in this life. So, I'm giving "Justice In The Burbs" five out of five bookmarks...as I find this book thought provoking and insightful.

Happy Reading!

Deena

P.S. To read more about "Justice in the Burbs", click on the book image above!!