I am still identifying plants from Kartchner caverns in Arizona. It will probably be Monday before I get that post up. So here is a book review from one of the many books I read on our trip. You will get several of these I enjoyed.
This one is "For The Love" by Jen Hatmaker. I also listened to a book by her, that she read, called Of Mess and Moxie. I did like "For the Love" better, but I am not sure if that is because I like reading better than listening. "Of Mess and Moxie" did have me laughing while driving. I saw that she also has a podcast. I need to learn to start listening to podcasts.
I put a lot of quotes from this book into my evernote notebook. I am not sure if it is ethical to quote long sections of a book, it was a free library book from Houston Public Library, and I make no money from this blog, but I will shorten the quotes and leave you to read the book.
When talking about self-love and criticizing yourself, Jen Hatmaker wrote...
"Folks who thrive in God’s grace give grace easily, but the self-critical person becomes others-critical. We “love” people the way we “love” ourselves, and if we are not good enough, then no one is.
Scripture instructs us to live presently and joyfully, resisting worry and believing Jesus set us free for freedom’s sake. We have an abundance of good and perfect gifts that often look like a messy house full of laughter, a ten-year-old running through a sprinkler, a heart unburdened by comparison, an afternoon nap, joy in using our gifts and leaving the rest to people better suited."
She also talked about prosperity preaching preachers who say if you follow God properly, he will make you rich, etc. I have read a couple of those, they don't tend to quote the Bible much. She said that if the theology being preached doesn't apply to everyone around the globe, it isn't accurate. Her quote...
"If it isn’t also true for a poor single Christian mom in Haiti, it isn’t true. Theology is either true everywhere or it isn’t true anywhere."
People often want to wait and do "big things" for God. She gave examples from the things Jesus did throughout his ministry and said,
"A worthy life involves loving as loved folks do, sharing the ridiculous mercy God spoiled us with first. (It really is ridiculous.) It means restoring people, in ordinary conversations and regular encounters. A worthy life means showing up when showing up is the only thing to do. Goodness bears itself out in millions of ordinary ways across the globe, for the rich and poor, the famous and unknown, in enormous measures and tiny, holy moments."
When we wish for skills or gifts we don't have and wonder why we went through different life events she said,
"It all counts. There are no throwaway qualities. In fact, those qualities might point you in just the right direction. Nothing is wasted: not a characteristic, preference, experience, tragedy, quirk, nothing. It is all you and it is all purposed and it can all be used for great and glorious good."
She spends a chapter reminding us that Jesus was humble and subversive, not loud, aggressive, and demanding.
She talks about how we let people treat us and how we treat each other, reminding us that how Christians treat each other reflects how others will see Christ.
In "Of Mess and Moxie" she talks about her family life, how she and her husband built their relationship, raising her kids, and church relationships. She also criticizes some of her earlier books, she says she has grown and learned through the year (as have we all hopefully) and would like to rewrite them with what she knows now. I will be reading more of her books and will go back to read "Of Mess and Moxie" instead of listening to it.
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