Unchristian - A brief review

...AND I MEAN BRIEF. I finished this book back in feb 09 so going back i am just remembering a few things off the top of my head.

1) being that I took three years of stats in college this book was quite interesting to me. One of my stats professors had a saying about stats...."They don't tell stories, they don't answer questions, they are numbers!" I think this is important to remember when reading this book

2) The nature in which the questions had to be ask to gather the research. To garner the information they did the questions had to be rather direct. A draw back to this is it is really hard to get a general feel. They had to address specific issues in the questions.

3) The book doesn't point out anything no one with a brain doesn't already know. We have an image issue in Christianity. Ghandi replied, "Oh, I don't reject your Christ. I love your Christ. It's just that so many of you Christians are so unlike your Christ."

4) This book tries to claim that it points to an issue, gives statistical evidence to it basis and then provides solutions. You can't get from stats to solutions. Stats are numbers! But even so the solutions are generic and don't really try to address any one issue in a direct front manner. They "beat around the bush". This was a disappointment.

5) I HATE the use of the word "outsider". Because the words saved and unsaved are christian words we can't and or should use them. This might be true but outsider is just as offensive. Why don't we drop labels and just live out the gospel.

Overall the points of the book are quite predictable and generic. I don't disagree with alot of the premise of the book and even some of the solutions/ways to address the problems where ok I didn't come away changed in one way or another by this book. That is a sad fact to me!

Refocusing

....after my last post I felt the need to get away. Get away from religion. Not that I'm renouncing my faith or anything like that but RELIGION. I found myself in a situation that I don't normally get to or enjoy being in. I found myself so wrapped up in the politics of the SBC that I could not see Christ! That is a horrible place to be and it isn't a place I venture very often. Matter of fact it isn't normally religion that takes me away from my focus on Christ but normally worldly things such as family, garden, and music to name a few. So I sat back a few nights ago after reading Crystal's blog about re-gaining her focus and it helped me. I realised I needed to get back to the one goal I was very serious about.....reading! Reading scripture and reading books!

Referencing back to my reading post from a number of months ago I am behind. I finished Unchristian and will post a brief review of it soon but then I feel off the wagon. I started to read 2 different books and for someone like me that was a mistake. I am back to reading one book but the one I picked up was honestly the last one I wanted to read 6 months ago. I have picked up and started reading a book at the request of my Brother-in-Law called "Calvinism: A Southern Baptist Dialog". Honestly I thought I was through with this topic a year ago when I investigated the scriptures for myself and came to my own belief about salvation. I will save that for another post if anyone actually cares else I will leave it alone. But it is amazing that I started reading this book because the point of the book is how can we put down a lot of the things that divide us and help get us back on track of working together for the Gospel. I am very thankful that God placed my family at Sojourn Community Church because it has helped me to be more open to differing theology. Also it is hard to have an opinion on a matter if you don't know all sides of the issue. So for the first time in as long as I can remember I am approaching a book and The Book with an open heart asking God to teach me and not me going in to it with my own motivation.

Am I always going to be successful at this goal....No! But that doesn't mean that I can't and shouldn't try. Here is my list now and if you have any suggestions I am definitely open


Original list:
Unchristian(reading right now)
UnChurced
Whats so Amazing About Grace
Calvinism - A southern baptist dialog

New list
Unchristian (complete)
Calvinism - A Southern Baptist Dialog (reading)
UnChurched
The Shack(I gotta konw what all these people are screaming about)
(another book - any suggestions and it doesn't have to be religious in nature)