Contrarianism

I just finished reading one of the most important books I've ever read.

"If you don't fit the mold...
If you're tired of adjusting to other people's definitions of spirituality...
If traditional spiritual disciplines just aren't working for you...
If all the standard answers aren't good enough...
...but your deepest desire is to know God...
Here's spirituality for the Rest of Us"
—Larry Osborne

Yup, that's me. I don't fit into the mold. I'm sick and tired of other Christians judging me because I'm not a clone of themselves. I read the Bible on occasion, but NOT every day. I'm tired of trite little answers to the most pressing questions of my life.

I do want to know God.

For years I've carried around a load of guilt because I just didn't match up to what "everybody" expected a Christian to be. I've just been freed. Thanks Larry for writing this book.

A few thoughts from the book:

• You probably don't need more faith.
• Spiritual zeal isn't nearly as important as we've been led to believe.
• Extra rules and regulations undercut genuine spirituality.
• Projecting our calling onto everyone else ticks God off.
• The quest for balance is a goofy idea.
• Why accountability groups don't work.
• Being all we can be might be a dumb idea.
• Putting God first might be a bad idea.

Sound outrageous?

"It does what every great book has always done: It causes some of us relief, it causes some of us great consternation, and it causes all of us to stop and think about what we're doing and why we're doing it.
—Toby Slough

This book has caused me great relief. If it causes consternation among church leaders, then so be it.

Click here to get the book. (I don't get paid for the referral–and the book is really cheap!)