The Boundary-Breaking God: An Unfolding Story of Hope and Promise [Hardcover]

Danielle Shroyer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 5, 2009

A fresh, new exploration of who God is and what God wants for creation

A young pastor introduces us to a God who delights in breaking through boundaries, loves to pop up in unexpected places, and favors the outsider over the institutional insider. Written for anyone longing for a more generative and loving God, this book offers a new paradigm through which faith can be understood. This boundary-breaking God engages life at every corner-social, economical, political, intellectual, ecological. Offers a refreshing view of God that is creative and expansive.

• Written by the popular pastor of Journey Community Church in Dallas, this fresh vision of who God can be is enlivened by winsome personal stories and anecdotes.
• Seeing God's story as a story of boundary breaking opens our imaginations and compels Christians to live as people of hopeful purpose who attempt to change the world for the better.
• Opens up the Christian "good news" for those who are tired of the same old, same old

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Praise for the Boundary- breaking God

"I am more than grateful for this book by Danielle Shroyer. It is not only true, it is also beautiful to live with God's promise in the heart and God's enlarging horizon before your eyes. The Boundary-Breaking God is full of memorable stories and quotable sentences, going with us as faithful companions."—Jürgen Moltmann, professor of systematic theology, emeritus, University of Tübingen; author, Theology of Hope and The Crucified God

"Danielle Shroyer loves the stories of scripture and writes with a unique combination of wonder and theological vigor, seamlessly integrating biblical narrative with contemporary theological inquiry. . . . For those newly curious about the Bible, this book provides a clear, gentle, and substantive introduction. For those too familiar and tired, this book offers a fresh and engaging invitation to re-imagine!" —Mark Scandrette, author, Soul Graffiti

"In a lively and engaging style [Danielle Shroyer] invites readers to enter into the story of the boundary-breaking God and experience the liberation, reconciliation, and call to mission announced in the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a way that is fresh and compelling."—John R. Franke, Clemens Professor of Missional Theology, Biblical Seminary; author, Manifold Witness: The Plurality of Truth

About the Author

Danielle Shroyer is pastor of Journey Community Church in Dallas, Texas, a holistic missional Christian community. Danielle has served in numerous roles, including university chaplaincy, youth ministry, contemporary church staff ministry, chaplain of a retirement community, and pastor of one of the first independent emerging communities of faith. She serves on the Emergent Village Coordinating Group, focusing in areas of social justice and theology, and she facilitates the Dallas Emergent Cohort.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (October 5, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470451009
• ISBN-13: 978-0470451007
• Product Dimensions: 5.7 x 0.7 x 8.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #212,404 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Danielle Shroyer is the Pastor of Journey Church in Dallas, Texas (www.journeydallas.com). A graduate of Baylor University and Princeton Theological Seminary, Danielle speaks often on issues of theology, church leadership and emerging communities of faith. Danielle lives with her husband and two children in Dallas, Texas.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A refreshing, challenging book about the nature of God December 7, 2009

By Amy Moffitt

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Danielle Shroyer wants to change the way you think about God.

In The Boundary-Breaking God, Shroyer proposes a central thesis: that God is about expansion, about movement, about breaking down walls and muddying boundaries. In seven brief chapters, she takes this thesis and shows us what it looks like when applied to issues of social justice, diversity, church politics, pastoral ministry and even eschatology. She calls upon the reader to live into the resurrection, and away from bigotry, fear, and passive acceptance of systems of oppression.

The book reads like a series of seven sermons, each chapter a well-constructed little gem with illustrations from Shroyer's own life as well as carefully selected Biblical passages and references to a variety of theologians and scholars. It comes across as a light, easy read, which belies the careful construction of Shroyer's argument and her clear homiletic skill. The reader finds herself accepting the thesis, perhaps without considering the weight of what is being proposed: an alternate view of reality, a new set of spectacles with which to view God's work in the world.

At a quick 125 pages, it's worth picking this up even if you already have a few stacks around the house awaiting your attention ... if for no other reason than to consider how your life might be different if you took the book's proposition seriously.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars amazing, beautiful, and tremendously well written November 27, 2009

By Kelly Burkhart

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is an amazing, beautiful, and tremendously well-written book. Shroyer tells the story of God's interaction with humankind in a way that is both accessible to those who are unfamiliar with story and sophisticated enough for those who are highly trained in these matters. I'm grateful for this insightful reminder of the hope that exists in God's promises and highly recommend this inspiring book.

5.0 out of 5 stars Helpful Witness to a Pastoral Emergence Theology February 4, 2013

By Richard Davenport

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book beautifully illustrates an intelligently heart-felt narrative of Scripture that a pastor could preach and practice in a local congregation. One might hope for that pastor to reflect similar sensibilities as does Shroyer, whose Journey congregation, when I visited, appeared as authentic and open as she presents it in this book. The utility of this work is in its artful presentation that invites the reader to enter into emergence Christianity in all the humanity, biblical context, and life story which the author presents. The book presents a powerful vision of hope and promise that may touch many looking for a practical and grounded approach to seeing a new Christianity that would speak to the contemporary lives of people in the pew.