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I'm OK - You're Not: The Message We're Sending Nonbelievers And Why We Should Stop
 
 
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I'm OK - You're Not: The Message We're Sending Nonbelievers And Why We Should Stop [Paperback]

John Shore (Author)
3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)


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Book Description

January 2007
Everybody feels as if they should be evangelizing someone, somewhere. In fact, most of us probably feel guilty because we're not meeting our evangelism quota for this lifetime. But sharing our faith with nonbelievers can often feel like making a sales call during dinnertime: uninvited, unacceptable, and highly unlikely to get any results. Author John Shore proposes a radical solution: Maybe it's time to take the focus off evangelism. As he builds his case with sound theology, humorous insights, and "me too" moments, John suggests that we move beyond the Great Commission and start living the Great Commandment, because the only thing better than telling someone about God's love is to let them actually experience it.


Editorial Reviews

Review

"Has America been effectively evangelized? Have the non-Christians in our lives already heard the Gospel? According to John Shore, yes! Calling for a cessasion of domestic evangelism (while being very clear, however, about the importance of evangelizing both to people who've never heard about Christianity, and to anyone who has first asked to hear about it), he turns his razor-sharp wit towards exposing the problems inherent with the efforts of modern evangelism. While championing the Great Commandment over the Great Commission, Shore humorously illustrates his experiences as both a non-Christian being 'evangelized' and a Christian trying to share his new-found faith. First-person testimonies from non-Christians' experiences with attempts to evangelize them are supplied to bolster his position, as are refutations of key biblical texts commonly used to support evangelism." (Strictly speaking, this isn't a "review" of the book; it's a description of the book written by Chrisitanbook.com's Evangelism Books editor.) -- Christianbooks.com

" ... a must-read not just for pastors, but for anyone who has a passion for the Gospel, yet lacks the ability to see the Church as others often see it. ... Shore succeeds in presenting a viewpoint worthy of consideration and advantageous for the growth of outreach-focused believers."-- Outreach magazine -- Outreach magazine

"John Shore helps us accept that we aren't OK, and that's OK. As with all of John's books, I'm OK--You're Not is very insightful, and very funny." --Stephen Arterburn, author of Healing Is a Choice and Every Man's Battle; founder of New Life Ministries; host of the nationally syndicated "New Life Live!" daily radio program. -- Stephen Arterburn

"This book gives me hope that Christ's church might become the church Christ intended."--Shari Llyod, co-publisher, tollbooth.org -- Shari Llyod

" .... Shore is a humorist whose work is more comedic than Donald Miller, and his appeal to Christians is more direct. Shore is preaching and teaching under the comedy, and he's very effective as a critic and motivator. Shore turns evangelism upside down and engages in just enough hyperbole to effectively make the point. Readers of this web site will recognize many of the same critiques I've made in posts like Wretched Urgency. The problem in evangelism isn't what we think. The information is there; the credibility of the Christian community isn't. ...

"Shore ends each chapter with sets of extended comments from unbelievers on what they want to say to Christians. Shore calls these sections "Ouch," and that's what they are. These unbelievers are articulate, thoughtful and way out in front of many Christians on the subject of love, respect and dialog.

"Shore appeals to Christians to ponder the nature of love, the importance of honest and mature Christian character and how relationships with non-Christians really look. Shore speaks so much common sense, and skips so much Christian-ese and predictable rhetoric that some Christians will be offended immediately. Younger, thoughtful, humble Christians who know something is very wrong will find Shore saying exactly what they've been thinking.

"This is a great book for a discussion group, and it has questions to stir up those discussions. If you let this book loose "in church," however, the response may be explosive, which would be a lot of fun. ... [An] Outstanding book to stir up thought and conversation. And a good book to show to a thoughtful unbeliever."--The Internet Monk -- Internetmonk.com

"Have you ever wondered why evangelizing doesn't work? It really doesn't matter if you're trying to convert others to Christianity, to your particular political beliefs, or any other kind of evangelizing; John Shore explains why it's so ineffective. Assuming you really want people to listen to you, he then goes on to give some practical suggestion. Along the way he says a lot of things that are important in iife in general. If you read for the "big picture", you'll get a lot more out of this book than if you only focus on the main topic. The author also shares some pretty personal stuff from his life. It takes a lot of guts to be this personal, and it's pretty useful in understanding his perspective. This book is easy to read. Though the title (and the main message) may sound critical, the author uses generous doses of humor to help the medicine go down. -- Janice Meyer, "Can I Change a Life?"

"John Shore is one of those rare writers who can make people laugh and think at the same time. Irreverantly reverant, "I'm OK -- You're Not" is a book perfect for the times we're in. Ministers should read a chapter to their congregations every Sunday. That would be the Christian thing to do, because John offers us compassionate laughter during a most uncompassionate and unfunny period of our nation's history. Non-Christians will love this book, too -- which proves John's point."--Richard Louv, bestselling author of Last Child in the Woods and Fly-Fishing for Sharks. -- Richard Louv

From the Back Cover

In our zeal for the Great Commission, have we forgotten the Great Commandment? Instead of reading the back of this book, shouldn't you be out right now evangelizing someone? It's easy to feel that way, isn't it? Like you're failing to meet your evangelism quota for this lifetime? On the other hand, let's face it: "Sharing" our faith with nonbelievers can often feel like making a sales call during dinnertime--uninvited, unacceptable, and unlikely to get any results. Author John Shore proposes a radical solution: Maybe it's simply time to take our focus off of evangelism. With humorous insights and a wealth of "me too" moments, John suggests that we shift our emphasis from fulfilling the Great Commission to really living the Great Commandment. After all, the only thing better than telling someone about God's love is letting them actually experience it.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 171 pages
  • Publisher: NavPress Publishing Group (January 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1600060579
  • ISBN-13: 978-1600060571
  • Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #630,809 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John is a popular blogger on JohnShore.com and for "The Huffington Post."

Here is what others have said about him:

"For the record: John Shore is the opposite of a NALT. ('NALT' stands for 'not all like that,' the phrase you hear from liberal Christians whenever you bitch about conservative Christians, i.e., 'We're not all like that!') Liberal, progressive, and tolerant Christians who wonder what they can do to counter the power and the hatred of the religious right should follow John's example. At the very least all you NALTs out there should be reading John's blog." -- Dan Savage, Savage Love, and founder of the It Gets Better Project.

"John Shore is awesome. The minute I started reading his stuff, I knew he was a brother from another mother." -- Rob Bell, author of "Love Wins," "Sex God," and "Velvet Elvis."

"Shore is a humorist whose work is more comedic than Donald Miller, and his appeal to Christians is more direct."-- Michael Spencer, a.k.a. The Internet Monk, and author of the bestseller "Mere Churchianity."

"John Shore is funny as hell and smart as hell, which is good because I've heard that we're both going to spend a long time there." -- Tony Jones, Theoblogy; The Tony Jones Blog; author of The New Christians; The Sacred Way; Postmodern Youth Ministry; Divine Intervention; Ask, Seek, Knock; and others.

"John Shore is one of those rare writers who can make people laugh and think at the same time. He's one of the most talented, funny, and deeply thoughtful writers I know. He's a sincere pleasure to read."-- Richard Louv, author of international bestsellers "Last Child in the Woods," and "The Nature Principle."

"John Shore is a remarkably gifted writer who knows exactly what he is doing." -- Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of "The Deep End of the Ocean" (an Oprah's Book Club selection), "Twelve Times Blessed," and "The Breakdown Lane."

"John Shore, the legitimate son of Kurt Vonnegut and Dave Barry, writes with a freaky energy and humor and imagination that illuminate his characters' and readers' hearts. He's the real thing."-- Richard Lederer, author of more than thirty books on the English language, including the bestselling "Anguished English" series and "The Miracle of Language."

"Shore is a madman and a genius."-- Eric Metaxas, author of bestsellers "Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery," and, "Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy," the Christian Booksellers Association 2011 Book of the Year.

"John Shore's unique, honest, and passionate writings draw us to dig a little deeper, to listen with the intention of truly hearing and understanding each other. He gives voice to those without a platform; he puts into words our latent questions/ observations about today's topics that are begging to be addressed from the viewpoint of an informed Christian"-- Spencer Burke, founder of TheOOZE.com

 

Customer Reviews

21 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
3.8 out of 5 stars (21 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Negative reviewers just don't get it, May 20, 2009
This review is from: I'm OK - You're Not: The Message We're Sending Nonbelievers And Why We Should Stop (Paperback)
After reading negative reviews, I'm wondering if those reviewers even read the book at all. The author is not saying to not evangelize those who haven't heard the Gospel. His point is that most people in America have already heard it ad nauseum, so shoving it down their throats is unnecessary, ineffective and--most of all--unloving. In addition, he does not say that we shouldn't evangelize those who HAVE heard the Gospel. In fact he gives tips on how to do that at the end of the book. Finally, his suggestions and methods are not a cop-out as some have suggested. They are a call to truly love others as Christ intended.

Now, to my actual review: while his writing style can be hard to get used to initially, the points he makes are very salient and challenging. It has really helped me see how I have hurt people and pushed them away over the years under the guise of evangelizing them. In addition, I feel more free to love others than I ever have in my twenty-five years as a believer.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Evangelize or love without pushing?, November 25, 2007
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This review is from: I'm OK - You're Not: The Message We're Sending Nonbelievers And Why We Should Stop (Paperback)
As you can see from the other reviews, people are very polarized over this book. Some absolutely love it, while others abhor it. It is very polarizing because it tells Christians to love neighbors without being so forceful about it. The author recommends to get to know non-Christians instead of simply telling every non-Christian you know that they need to be Christian.

If you think that evangelizing is the most important thing a Christian can do, then you will dislike this book. If you are uncomfortable evangelizing or think Christians need to be more loving to non-Christians, you will like it. The author does not make many points that are overly persuasive, so you will likely leave the book thinking the same things that you thought before reading it.

Since everyone else just wants to argue over Christian theology, I will stay away from that and focus on the book itself. I thought the author was hard to read because his writing was very choppy. It had no flow. Although he probably would have been very funny in person, I found many of his jokes not all that funny in book form. Personally I did not find the book all that good even though I agree with a lot of the author's general principles
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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Courageous Point of View, May 22, 2010
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This review is from: I'm OK - You're Not: The Message We're Sending Nonbelievers And Why We Should Stop (Paperback)
Rumor has it that this book is being targeted for censureship by a few angry Evangelicals (or others?) who want to destroy John Shore's exercise of his rights of freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

GIVE ME A BREAK!

John Shore isn't advocating anything that the Catholic church hasn't been teaching for years!

'Evangelize by BEING a Christian'

'Preach the gospel; if necessary, use words.'

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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
WHETHER YOU'RE A CHRISTIAN or not (and, let's face it, if you're reading this book you probably are), you're already familiar with the Great Divide that exists in this country between Christians and Normies. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Holy Spirit, Great Commandment, Great Commission, Jesus Christ, Rescue Mission, State of the Church
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