I wanted to let you know about Mark Batterson’s new book Primal, which was officially released today.   I received an early copy from the publisher, WaterBrook Multnomah, to read and review and I can assure you that this is a book you definitely want to buy.  I am a huge fan of Mark Batterson who is the pastor of National Community Church in Washington, DC.  I was able to attend his church this summer with my family when we were on vacation and we really enjoyed the hospitality that his church showed our family.  Mark has a great blog at Evotional.com, and his previous two books have had an incredible impact on my ministry. In a Pit With a Lion On a Snowy Day was about seizing the God given opportunities in your life while Wild Goose Chase encourages believers to follow the Holy Spirit on a wild adventure.

In Primal: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity, Mark breaks new ground by returning to the roots of our faith.  We live in a complicated world, but the answer to many of our problems lies in a return to the simplicity of following the Great Commandment. To love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Here is how Mark describes the quest:

The quest for the lost soul of Chrisitianity begins with rediscovering what it means to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength … It’s not enough to love God with just your heart or soul or mind or strength. We are called, even commanded, to love Him in all four ways …

• The heart of Christianity is primal compassion
• The soul of Christianity is primal wonder
• The mind of Christianity is primal curiosity
• And the strength of Christianity is primal energy

I always read books like this with a highlighter in hand. There are so many great quotes and illustrations to capture and think through.  I may be a little strange, but while reading, I keep coming up with new ideas for sermons and series that I could teach.  There is so much here to meditate on, and I urge you to read it slowly.  Mark is a story teller, and he is able to weave you into the story.  I was challenged in the way that I love God, and I think you will be as well.   I enjoyed his use and application of science and I enjoyed how he wove his life story into the book.  I read through it in two days, and I want to read through it again.  You can buy Primal at Amazon (through my affiliate link), or you can find it at your local Christian bookseller. You can also find out more about the book at the official Primal website.  Let me leave you with this challenge from the book.

Do you love God for what He can do for you? Or do you love Him for who He is? In its purest, most primal form, loving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength is loving God for God. Nothing more. Nothing less. Nothing else … Reformations are born out of rediscovering something ancient, something primal. They are born out of primal truths rediscovered, reimagined, and radically reapplied to our lives.

Chapter 7 is titled “your best life ….later”  I’ll let you figure out how he came up with the title.

You have probably heard throughout your life that following Christ is easy, that everything will work out fine once you place your faith in God.  I don’t know how many times I have heard the phrase “the safest place to be is in the center of God’s will”  But is that true?  Is it really safe and easy to follow Christ?  I don’t think it is, and this chapter does a great job of explaining the challenges and possible consequences of following Christ. It’s a great argument against the prosperity gospel that is being spread through the church today.

The chapter starts out with the following statement:

By now you’ve probably realized that you have a distinct choice to make: just let life happen, which is tantamount to serving God your leftovers, or actively run toward Christ. Do you recognize the foolishness of seeking fulfillment outside of Him? Do you understand that it’s impossible to please God any way other than wholehearted surrender?

Chan uses Hebrews 11:35-38 to show that even those who have faith may encounter trials, troubles, persecution, and danger.  Following Christ is never safe, in fact Chan says that we simply cannot live in safety if we desire to please God.  If we want to truly follow Christ, then 1 John 2:6 tells us that we must walk as Jesus did.  Chan uses the rest of the chapter to talk about our responsibilities to live out our faith. This is a challenging chapter to read, because the church in America has become so comfortable and safe that we don’t take all the commands of Christ seriously.  Here are some quotes from the chapter

• We see Matthew 25:45 as a fresh perspective on poverty rather than a literal picture of impending judgment.
• How would my life change if I actually thought of each person I came into contact with as Christ?
• Basically, Christ is connecting the command to “love God” with the command to “love your neighbor.” By loving “the least of these,” we are loving God Himself
• One of the clearest ways we love “with actions and in truth” is through giving to others.
• Imagine if the disciples had simply held onto the food Jesus gave them, continually thanking Him for providing lunch for them. That would’ve been stupid when there was enough food to feed the thousands who were gathered and hungry.
• The concept of downsizing so that others might upgrade is biblical, beautiful … and nearly unheard of.
• Walking in genuine intimacy and full surrender to God requires great faith.
• What are you doing right now that requires faith?
• Life is comfortable when you separate yourself form people who are different from you
• But God doesn’t call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn’t come through.

So are you living a safe life? A life of great faith?  A life of comfort and safety?  I urge you to take seriously the commands of Jesus to completely surrender your life to Him.  Following Christ may not be safe, but it is fulfilling.  If you have read this book, how did this chapter speak to you?  I think it was one of the most thought-provoking and challenging chapters in the book.  It made me want to start selling all my ‘stuff’ and downsize so that I could better minister to others.  Let me know what you think in the comments below.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted an update in this series. We are currently going through this book in our life group for older teens and college students, so I wanted to jump back in and finish the series. Previously I had shared how I struggled through chapter 5 because of the focus on external actions which reflect the condition of your heart.

In order to understand Chan’s viewpoint, I think chapter 5 must be read in context of the entire book. When you read chapter 6, the focus and purpose of the book become much clearer. The entire tone changes as grace and hope are shared. Here is how Chan turns the corner to start discussing the solution to lukewarm living:

My fear in writing the previous chapter is that it only evokes in you fear and guilt.  Personal experience has taught me that actions driven by fear and guilt are not an antidote to lukewarm, selfish, comfortable living.  I hope you realize instead that the answer is love.

He starts out the chapter with a quote that really spoke to me. Chan actually quoted a paragraph from John Piper’s Book, God is the Gospel. That one quote was the inspiration for my sermon God is Enough a few months ago. (here is the link to the sermon mp3) Read this slowly.

The critical question for our generation, and for every generation is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?

After reading this quote, I had to go and read the entire book by Piper. It dives deep into God’s Glory. But the question that kept ringing through my mind was simply this, “Is God enough?”  Strip away all the stuff in life: the good, the bad, the sickness, the success, the failure, the poverty, and the wealth, and simply look at your life. Can you honestly say that God is enough? When God becomes your consuming passion, then your desire is to follow Him no matter the cost and there is no room for half-hearted, lukewarm living. I am so glad that this book is not an angry diatribe against the American church. Instead it is a loving reminder to discover true life in Christ.

Here are some other quotes that I highlighted as I read through the chapter.

• When we love, we’re free! We don’t have to worry about a burdensome load of commands, because when we are loving, we can’t sin.
• But the solution isn’t to try harder, fail, and then make bigger promises, only to fail again.
• we are called to surrender everything for Christ
• While discussing the church in Laodicea, Chan shares “His counsel wasn’t to “try harder,” but rather to let Him in.”
• Something mysterious, even supernatural must happen in order for genuine love for God to grow in our hearts. The Holy Spirit has to move in our lives.
• There is nothing better than giving up everything and stepping into a passionate love relationship with God, the God of the universe who made galaxies, leaves, laughter, and me and you.
• God is the only true Giver, and He needs nothing from us. But still He wants us. He gave us life so that we might seek and know Him.