I remember reading my first paragraph of Chan's several years ago. I was hesitant because I already "had" my favorite Christian authors who wrote about God and our relationship with Him. What a tragedy it would have been had I not picked up Crazy Love!
Along with Chan's excellent videos--i.e. "Just Stop and Think"--Crazy Love continues to help the church live the love that Jesus taught. And now Chan has taken it a step further by writing this workbook, which is "meant to help you think through God's intense, relentless love and how that love should transform every aspect of your being."
Living Crazy Love: An Interactive Workbook for Individual or Small-Group Study uses an inviting format that works hand-in-hand with Crazy Love the book and the
Crazy Love DVD Study Resource. While Chan notes that you can learn a lot just from the workbook, he also writes: "Ideally, you will read the relevant chapter from Crazy Love, then go through the corresponding session in the workbook, watching the appropriate video from the DVD when prompted."
The workbook includes helpful sections on:
* USING THE WORKBOOK ON YOUR OWN
* USING THE WORKBOOK IN A SMALL GROUP
* USING THE WORKBOOK FOR A WEEKEND RETREAT
Other helps within these sections range from being a discussion leader to setting up an effective small group meeting area.
The workbook chapters mirror
Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God exactly, which is a tremendous help. Also, the start of each chapter features a paragraph dedicated to how you or your small group can best dive into the section (i.e. watch this video; read this chapter).
Here is a bare-bones summary of each chapter covered by the workbook:
* Chapter 1: Do we realize how crazy God's love is for us?
* Chapter 2: Do we live as though today is just a "normal" day?
* Chapter 3: Do we believe God is the greatest thing in the world?
* Chapter 4: Do we assume that we're the good soil?
* Chapter 5: Do we give God our everything, or just serve Him leftovers?
* Chapter 6: Do we act because of guilt and rules, or because we're in love?
* Chapter 7: Do we live lives that stand out among nonbelievers?
* Chapter 8: Do we get obsessed with Jesus and His Kingdom?
* Chapter 9: Do we learn from others who live out crazy love for Jesus?
* Chapter 10: Do we live our lives in a way we want to be remembered for?
If you want to biblically examine yourself and radically obey Jesus, Crazy Love and all of its material is a wonderful motivator and encouragement. Chan is easy to read and communicates God's Word in a way that's biblical, humble, and very passionate. His critique of the church and how we ought to live our lives is soaked with humility and grace. He isn't into stirring controversy--he's into discussing biblical solutions. What a difference this tone makes!
It was this book that drove me to mentor young believers and eventually start an online community for those who are passionate about putting their faith, hope, and love into action [...]. None of it would have happened had I not read that first paragraph of Chan's.
If you've been moved to action as I have by Crazy Love, then I'd also highly recommend his book about the Holy Spirit,
Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit--an excellent read.
