Customer Reviews

Soul Revolution: How Imperfect People Become All God Intended

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Soul Revolution reads like a daily devotional or small group study book, tracing what Burke calls the "60-60 experiment" through discussions of various aspects of the Christian life focused on loving God and loving others. Burke uses illustrations and stories from the church he founded in Austin , Gateway Church, offering examples of the kind of transformation that took place when the church practiced the 60-60 experiment. The experiment was essentially a challenge for people to turn their focus to God every 60 minutes of their day for 60 days. The goal of this practice is "to stay consciously aware all through your day that God is with you and desires loving, trusting relationship" (43).

Obviously this is an extremely simple practice and nothing terribly new, yet the book is filled with stories of people who feel their lives have radically changed through regularly turning their attention to God throughout the day. I did not find the ideas Burke presented as particularly radical or revolutionary looking back on Christian history, but the stories of change in the book are both radical and revolutionary. Burke describes a community struggling with addictions, violence, abuse, greed, selfishness who were able to find a new freedom from these vices through the community of Gateway journeying together.

At times, the stories Burke shares makes the 60-60 experiment seem like a kind of magic cure for the problems that plague us in life. In the chapter on tithing, Burke warns that no one should "give to get" (240), but each of the stories recounts people who have decided to begin tithing for a period of time and experienced unexpected material or financial gain. While I respect the way that Burke frames his discussion of wealth and the Christian journey as a whole, it is hard not to feel like the 60-60 challenge is in some sense being pushed as the miracle cure for addictions, poverty, depression, etc.

I have been having several ongoing conversations with different people in my life about what spiritual growth looks like. It is easy to say that the goal is to 'look like Jesus' or to 'keep your focus on God,' yet difficult to make any kind of broad generalizations about what that might actually like in someones life. I found Burke's approach to be helpful, particularly in it's simplicity, but I think there needs to be more discussion about what it means to grow spiritually when you don't see radical changes or results in 60 days.

We have lost the ability to see and hear and understand how to truly follow the way of Christ moment by moment, according to John Burke in this book. As a first step to reconnecting, John invites us to try a simple experiment: for a period of sixty days, have your watch set so that it beeps every hour to remind you to abide in the presence of God.

A major problem with the way Christianity is lived in western countries today is that Christians do not resemble the disciples of Jesus as described in the New Testament in the ways they think and act, and the priorities they hold. The book invites us to imagine ourselves as being loving towards unlovable people, increasingly generous, relishing the gift of life and making a lasting difference in the lives of others.

A soul revolution is what we need, and we can gain it by practicing the presence of God each moment in our lives. The book is divided into five sections: Preparing for a soul revolution; Loving God; Loving people; Building character; and Being the Body. Each section contains fresh and insightful commentary and moving testimonies. I found it to be one of the best written and most inspiring Christian books that I have read in recent years.

John Burke is the founder of Gateway Church in Austin TX. Soul Revolution is a roadmap through an experiment that he tried with his congregation. He basically asked a "what if" question and discovered tremendous results.

Burke asked the question, "What if we improved our relationship and communication with God?" From there he developed the 60-60 experiment. The experiment is based on the concept that our deepest longing are fulfilled in our relationship with God. Thus, we need to be in constant contact. Burke had his congregation attempt to connect with God at least every 60 minutes for 60 days. People filled their work areas and homes with reminders. Many people carried timers that sounded every hour.

The book chronicles the results. It is filled with testimonies of how people, through frequent communication with God, broke addictions, restored relationship, and grew by spiritual leaps and bounds.

It is a great reminder to pastors that spiritual growth can take place in a congregation without million dollar budgets or buildings.

If Brother Lawrence's Practicing His Presence was written by a group of people who failed and succeeded together, instead of an solitary believer, it might look something like Soul Revolution. Burke's book is the story of a community of people who tried to consider God every hour for 60 days. Are you interested? All you need to do is buy a cheap watch with an every-hour beeper, and you're off to the races.

While I'm pretty sure this book lacks the simple staying power of Brother Lawrence's effort, there were a number of things about it that I enjoyed:

1. The stories fit the message perfectly. You can tell Burke is a preacher--he has the perfect anecdote for every situation. I even used one of these stories to challenge our congregation here in Bracebridge.
2. The sidebars contain testimonies of people who took the challenge and learned from it. The honesty of these messages drive the point of the book home.
3. There is a ring of authenticity here. You will finish this book with hope that you can grow in your Christian life, because other people have broken the trail.

Full disclosure: I didn't take the 60-60 test, I just read throught the book. Even so, I was challenged and encouraged. If you're looking for something to help you beyond the making and break of of annual resolutions, give Soul Revolution a try.

It isn't an accident that Dr. Henry Cloud wrote the foreword to Soul Revolution. Like Cloud & Townsand (authors of 'Safe People' and 'Boundaries') Burke's main focus is relational. Referencing Laubauch's experiment (in 'Practicing His Presence'), Burke challenges readers to live "in moment by moment continuous conversation with God." Burke is quick to point out that this does not come naturally, but that this relationship is the answer to what we all long for most. The latter part of Soul Rev. focuses on relationships with others. Especially helpful to me was the solid advice (I wished I'd known 36 years ago) on how to deal with conflict in ways that have the potential to heal relationships and help them grow. The chapter "God Has a Body" really helped me bring Jesus a little closer down to earth by thinking about the church as Christ's very tangible body today. One final thought: I don't think that my experience of this book would have been a 5-star rating if I had not read it as it was intended, with others who took the challenge.

I really enjoyed the concept behind this book. It truly does connect me more with God. The writing style and stories of those the author knows wasn't really for me, mostly because I couldn't identify with their stories and I don't enjoy little tidbits about others. So for me, 4 stars because of the writing style. It just wasn't for me. But the idea and concept behind it are wonderful and I plan to continue putting it into practice.

I received the SOUL REVOLUTION by John Burke as a giveaway on Eric Michael Bryant's blog. The book is about how imperfect people become all God intended and he challenges you to do a 60/60 plan. What he asks is for you to set the alarm on your watch or phone for every hour for 60 days to think about God. I usually think of Him throughout the day and often whisper prays when I do. However I took the challenge.

The book is basically written for new Christ followers or someone struggling with keeping focused, or having some type of addiction. However there is enough in it to get even the most seasoned Christ follower to think and grow. The book dragged a few times for me but there was enough testimonies and stories as well as challenges to draw me back in.

Over all I would recommend this book and think it would be a good discussion group activity.

This book was so excellent that I've purchased copies for family and friends. It's hard to narrow down what specifically was so good because it addresses so many areas of the Christian faith, in very powerful ways. John Burke knows how to get down to earth and get real with Christian living. This book is a great way for newbie Christians to jump-start their faith - and old timers to invigorate their faith. I loved the workbook style layout at the end of every chapter.

I really enjoyed following this book, overall it had it's up's and down's but as the examples proved this helped my connection just following the 60-60. Was fun and helped me relay current thoughts to God. =] Just ordered No Perfect People alowed!

I am still reading this book, but so far it has really opened my eyes to a new way to think about God. Not just a condemning god who is watching for you to stumble so he can "catch you", but a god who wants to connect with you because he loves you and wants a relationship with you. I can't wait to finish it.