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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Take a look at your motivations, June 30, 2009
This review is from: Christianish: What If We're Not Really Following Jesus at All? (Paperback)
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Steele has done an excellent job in this book of presenting a strong message in a fun way. Simply put, he shows how good deeds and the right words don't make you a true Christian. He presents a detailed and honest look at the life and teachings of Jesus in a way that moves beyond the tradition or popular myth of what makes a person a true Christian. Instead, he shows you what a person truly must do to be a follower of Christ.
Going to church, knowing the proper catch phrases, and even carrying a Bible isn't what makes you a Christian. Unfortunately, the majority of people who call themselves "Christian" are just going through the motions of what they believe they should do rather than allowing a true relationship with Christ to motivate them and change them. This is the message of Mark's book, and it's presented well. Mark is humorous when need be and deep when the moment calls for it.
Be ready to question your motivations for your actions. Get ready for a deeper walk as a true Christ follower.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Our Own Worst Enemy, July 30, 2009
This review is from: Christianish: What If We're Not Really Following Jesus at All? (Paperback)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Mark Steele puts his finger on a problem that has plagued me for some time. In our attempt to be "correct" with the culture of church, we lose sight of Christ's message for a hurting world. Our efforts to appear flawless, to look like we have every answer and never stumble, wall us off from those who most need Christ's grace. Steele says that we Christians are our own worst enemies: we know what we ought to do, but we don't do it. Worse, we do what we know we ought not to do. And when the world watches, it doesn't judge just us. The world judges Christ.
Nobody has to look far to find people who call themselves Christian, but act in ways that oppose Christ. Steele looks to his own life and finds himself at fault. He recalls times he had to win, regardless of cost; times he diluted the message in the false hope that it would be more palatable; times he let his wants get in the way of other people's needs. He links each of these to Christ, showing how so many of us make these same mistakes, getting in the way of the message we are called to serve.
Steele makes his uncomfortable point with friendly language, using earthy humor and punchy cultural references to stress that Christians don't have to be stuffy and no-fun. Some of Steele's anecdotes run long, feel shapeless, and don't always precisely support the point he hopes to make. A little judicious editing could have shortened this book by eighty pages without losing his gist. But the book is thought-provoking and fun at the same time. Of course, a tough message goes down more easily when the audience is laughing.
Reading Mark Steele, I saw many points that I've seen recently when reading Jacques Ellul or Dietrich Bonheoffer, only written in non-seminarian language. Steel challenges Christians to question what motivates our actions. Are we trying to be "Christ-like," as Scripture calls us, or are we trying to be good in church? Only you can answer that for yourself, but Mark Steele calls you to think hard about these questions, because when people hear you call yourself Christian, they use you to judge Christ.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Your Life Is Ministry, July 6, 2009
This review is from: Christianish: What If We're Not Really Following Jesus at All? (Paperback)
Instead of bashing and browbeating the Church, Mark Steele encourages and challenges believers to move away from lukewarm spirituality--to make their lives out-and-out ministry and not just "Christianish."
Using funny and deeply personal stories from his own spiritual journey and by examining the way Christ lived and spoke during his time on earth, Mark shares that a Christian life is "a healthy life, a life worth observing. A life that is truly ministry. A life that is empowered to carefully locate the cancer of sin in those around it--in order to gently love the cancer out."
A great read that inspires readers to open their hearts for God's radical, life-changing transformation and to be agents of change in the world around us by loving others.
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