Others say...

"Puts words to my feelings"
This book was a breath of fresh air. My husband and I left our last church for a number of reasons (some our own misunderstandings, and some valid). However, we sometimes get lonely so decide to go to church for fellowship only to be sorely disappointed every time. I have had numerous relatives voice their concerns that we typically don't go to church anymore, they can't see what see. While the book certainly isn't an anti-church going book, it does show some major flaws with most modern churches today. Most miss out on relationships and become competitive institutions. We love God with all our hearts and feel we are the church. If going to church means listening to others maliciously gossip or make us feel bad about our selves, than of what value does church hold? Although the church we sometimes visit has great sermons and wonderful worship, what we most desire is friendships and relationships, if all we desired was worship and sermons we could stay home and put on a cd or listen to teachings online and remain in the comfort of our own home. Sadly most fellowship opportunities always require the kids one direction the wife in another and the dad in another..we love our family and don't desire to be away from our kids or from each other. We have also tried home churches that were boring and completely uncomfortable, this book really focuses on letting the spirit lead and relationship building. I just really love it!

"I want everyone to read this book!"
This book came at just the right time in my life, tired of religion, tired of working so hard to be accepted by the church system, tired of not having a more vibrant, real relationship with the Lord. As I started to express some of what I feel, I also began to feel the wary and doubting eyes of my church friends who wondered what was going wrong in my life. Then I found the book.

The key issue, in my opinion, is that everything we have is really about and because the Father loves us! It's easy to see this book as an indictment of the modern church, which is fine, but that alone is not the point. The point is HE LOVES US and all this stuff we do in the system of the organized church can easily get in the way of that.

This is one of the most honest, personal approaches to explaining why the systems just doesn't work and why relationship with Him always will. It's not at all condemning, just honest and uses many light-giving questions to get to the heart of the matter. I loved it and want everyone I know to read it!

"A must read"
I have found this book to be an answer to the confusion and discouragement
many people feel about their church experience. The book helped me
put the emphasis of my faith back in proper alignment: on the Lord Jesus
Christ and the Word of God, which are always relevant in any age, any
situation. I recommend this book very highly to anyone.

"Amazing"
Not only did this book point out some of the problems with religion, but it provided focus for what we need to do to fix this problems.

"Some bias, but worth reading"
The strong message that Jacobsen and Coleman work to convey results in an extraordinarily dialogue-heavy novel. Jake Colsen and John are the only two characters described at any length; neither of them achieves personhood but rather serve as mouthpieces for the points of the authors. Other features common to compelling writing are weak as well: scenery, engaging plot, authentic relationships etc. This is a book on a mission, and that mission does not include striving for excellent fiction writing.

As the characters interacted with John, he was often portrayed as an all-knowing wise man; the one with all the answers. I was quite irritated at the somewhat mindless way in which the characters would ask John to reframe their own experiences according to his own understanding of God. They seemed to ask him how they should think, how they should feel, and I saw much more of this than I saw of them turning to Jesus Himself.

Lest we toss the baby out with the bathwater, there are redeeming features that we must catch sight of in this novel. Through the application of Jacobsen's understanding to a specific, fictional Christian we are able to see how these beliefs might work themselves out on a practical level. Jake leaves the organized church and is led to pursue a less formal, more relational, spirit-led walk with God and other believers. The sharing of this message alone - that Christian's are the church regardless of where they fellowship - makes this title interest-worthy.

While setting the stage for Jake's departure from an organized church John points out the ways in which institutional structures tend to bind rather than free; tending towards religion over relationship. These concerns are certainly valid and have been experienced by many seeking to follow Christ. Unfortunately these points are used to build a less than subtle inference that casual fellowship is better than an organized congregation. The door is left open for believers to remain in established, formal groupings but the attitude is that this is a lesser form of fellowship. In truth, Christians are called to many positions in the body of Christ. Whether called to an institutional setting or to casual, small-scale forms of fellowship, the key is to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit above all else.

Despite my reservations, I would like to see So You Don't Want To widely read by members of the body of Christ. Christians are often too hasty to declare that a brother or sister has lost their faith, is a backslider or a prodigal when they fail to establish membership in a local congregation. The body is much larger than we can see and far more diverse than many imagine. What a joy it is to release each other to walk in freedom with the author and finisher of our faith whether that walk leads us to a mega-church, house church or loosely knit community of friends.

  

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  So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore

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What our customer's say!

"Helped me out", This book helped me out a lot! I was one of those people who felt like that. I left a Church where the leadership was controling and prideful and manipulating. I served a on the leadership team there. This book showed me so much. I don't agree with everything but it sure did help.

"Left With a Question", I agree that the american church has a lot to do with power trips as well as being hung up on performance/entertainment, etc but I was left wondering why this book doesn't address the role of pastors, teachers, evangelist, or other servant type offices in the church, etc. This book leaves me with the impression that one should live a christian life outside of any type of any biblical order of authority.

"So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore", This is one of the best books that I have read in a long time. The authors illustrate the problems in the "machine" church in a loving and insightful manner. This book is enlightening without being a threat to those involved in legalism and literalism. I have highly recommended it to several of my friends and relatives; it is a must read for the spiritually hungry.

"An exceptional book!", Another exceptional book by Wayne Jacobsen that addresses one of the most profound issues in modern society: Why does going to church makes us feel so empty and unfulfilled after a while, and why is there so much bickering and coercion in what is supposed to be a haven of Grace and fellowship? Fascinating story of one man's seach for a relationship with God and fellowship with others, guided by a mysterious man with some pretty profound advice. I enjoyed the story and went back and underlined my way through it a second time. Its well worth studying and thinking through the implications for modern religious life and how we can have the relationships we always wanted with both God and other believers. [...]... Great book, outstanding topic, highly recommended!!

"Amazing Book!", This may be a life-changing book for you, especially if you have become somewhat disillusioned by the institutional church. This book was not at all what I was expecting. I was expecting it to be a "church bashing" book, and a proponent for "house" churches, as the only viable way to have church. Man, was I wrong! It's riveting - I couldn't put it down until I finished it! I then gave it to my wife to read. Her reaction was much the same as mine. I have since sent the book to several of my family and friends. I have now read it twice, because the principles are not easy to integrate into life immediately, though they are easily understood. I have to allow them to percolate for awhile to even begin to learn to live them out.

I highly recommend this book, especially for those of us who have been hurt and feel disappointed in our experiences with the organized church - including "house" churches. It makes it clear that the Body of Christ is about relationships, not programs and buildings and "professional Christians." It doesn't condemn any of these. It shows us if we substitute these for authentic relationship, we are missing the mark of what God had in mind.




 
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Read this reviews before You buy...

"Wonderful, eye-opening book for everyone!", This book confirms a lot of what I've come to believe and also provides awesome insight into things that I didn't fully understand. I think everyone, Christian or not, should read this book to get a better understanding of what following Jesus is all about!

"Amazing Insight", This is one of the best books I have ever read. I read it immediately after reading The Shack. My life has been changed. This book gives amazing insight on people just going through the motions of "being a good church memeber". Helps you get to being a friend of Jesus not just a friend of the decon. If you are going to church and still feeling empty, read this amazing book.

"Bad title - fantastic book!", Every once in awhile a book comes along that you just want to shout about from the rooftops and everyone should read and digest and it is a life changing kind of book. They don't come around often enough, but they do come around. This book is like that for me. I think everyone should read it and don't do so unless you have a pen or highlighter in your hand because the wisdom and insight in this book is uncomparable and you will want to be able to go back and catch the highlights over and over.
I feel that I owe it to you to tell you the downsides of this book first though. It should win a prize for the "Worst Name of a Book" contest. Yep, the worst part of this book is the title - it makes it sound like a non-fiction book (but it is fiction) although it is non-fiction wisdom in a fictional scenario. The reason the name is so bad is that it gives the impression that this book is going to be anti-church and it is really not. It is pro-relationship with Father God and definitely about priorities, but not "Don't go to church again!" So now that I have clarified what is wrong with the book, let me tell you a few things that are great about the book...

I started the book and got about 3 chapters into it before I finally said to myself, "Would you just grab a pen and start underlining already?!?" So I did. I thought I could share a couple highlights with you in this review - except that by the end of the book I had highlighted so much that I'll have to read through it a couple more times to even be able to highlight the highlights!

One quote from the book is in the context of trying to get Father God to approve of us so we can be fully loved -
"You think you can earn Father's approval. We're approved not because of anything we can do, but because of what He did for us on the cross. Honestly, there is not one thing you can do to make him love you any more today, and there's not one thing you can do to make him love you any less, either. He just loves you."
There is another section about Sunday School and a fork that is fantastic and the part about the journey and the paragraph about the caterpillar from the inside out... you get the picture.

Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to this book - you will not regret it!

"Not Enough to Grab My Attention", So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore is the second fiction title by Windblown Media, which is most famous for publishing The Shack. Like The Shack, this book has been criticized for bad theology. It would be easy for me to say that this book is purely fiction, but that would be a lie. This book is merely a vehicle for Wayne Jacobsen and Dave Coleman's views on Christianity. I would hesitate to call it bad theology, because the authors really do not delve into standard theological issues. They are more concerned with relational issues.

The plot centers around a man named Jake, who is an associate pastor at a popular church in California. He becomes disillusioned with church after meeting a man named John, who tries to explain to him the type of life that God wants people to live. This life is not even close to the way Jake is living, and his self-discovery during his conversations with John lead to a series of events that completely changes his world.

The main problem I have with this book is the fact that it is a work of fiction, and with that in mind, it is terrible fiction. The characters are bland and one dimensional. There is way too much dialogue. The plot is generic, and the prose is weak. There were times when I would skip over the extremely long paragraphs because they would just repeat the same rhetoric that I've heard before in other books.

The message of this book is good; however, it is poorly written. There's not much original about it. I've haven't read any of the critiques of it, because I wanted to remain objective. But as far as theology, there wasn't anything that jumped out at me. Bottom line: I wouldn't pay much money for this book.


"Don't miss the forest for the trees", I finished the book in about two days. A very good and intriguing read. Perhaps the greatest thing that I have taken away from the book is a reminder of both the complexity and simplicity of Father's love.

I have read several of the comments written about this book, and I can't help but wonder if the majority of them have still missed the central message of the book and the gospel itself: Everything is about the Father's love.

A search of scripture will quickly reveal that the Father is much more interested in our unqualified fellowship with him than making sure that our ecclesiology is correct.

I read the book and immediately wanted my wife and all others I know to read it too. My hope was that they would get the same revelation that I did. Unfortunately, Father doesn't work that way. Father understands that this thing called "Christianity" is a journey not a destination. As He leads us, He desires intently that we remain in fellowship with him. His holiness is not subverted merely because we we forsake structure and seek him as a loving father, rather his holiness is magnified the tighter we cleave to him.

Paul wrote in Galatians that is was for freedom that Christ set us free. Not so that we can be burdened again with the yoke of the law; or as this book alludes, institutional religion. To be sure, in nearly every body of believers there are those who love the Lord with abandon and who deem it a privilege to be on this journey, seeking more and more about His person. But there are also those who seek their own gain and labor to perpetuate the institutionalism of the establishment. Serving the "church" for the sake of the "church." Doing away with "church" was not the goal of this book; rather it was about focusing on Father's love and leading--however that may look.

Let's not miss the proverbial forest for the trees. Gal 5:6 (NIV) "The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love." If we remain focused on Father's love for us, then our motives, actions, speech and direction will follow his leading and will be centered upon him. We won't need regulations, bylaws and rules because the driving factor is Father's love. When we miss the mark (sin) his forgiveness and grace readily abound. We then use our forgiven, grace-infilled lives as testimonies of Father's love.

If a fictional book can shift our focus to Father's love--great! If a Sunday morning service can shift our focus to Father's love--awesome! If a movie, car accident, children's book, documentary, tragedy, illness, or whatever can shift our focus to Father's love than praise be to God! The goal is Father's love. Period.

Look for Him to reveal His love as you read this book and know that He has promised that He will reveal it to you. Blessings on your journey!

  
 
 

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