In November, I was informed by Random House that I was invited to read and then review Mark Batterson’s book Primal. Let me just say this, I was ecstatic! To be invited to do such a thing is an honor and I count it a great joy to be asked to do such a thing! His two previous (In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day & Wild Goose Chase) were books that have helped shape some of my dreams of what it means to live a life following Jesus. Both these books challenged my thinking on many accounts and so I entered into reading this book with great hope.
Let me just say this: I wasn’t disappointed. I know that sounds like major brown-nosing, but really. I enjoyed almost every page of this book. I wanted to read this all the first day I received the book in the mail (December 11th) but I kept putting it down to write out more dreams I had as a college pastor, as a father, and as a person. The book really isn’t long at all – 192 pages – but they’re small, manageable pages. What I mean is that before you know it – you’ve read a chapter and you’re hungry for the next one!
Here’s a couple of quotes that stopped me in my tracks:
“… our generation has conveniently forgotten how inconvenient it can be to follow in the footsteps of Christ.” (It’s true – our generation is narcissistic enough to the point that we’re out for our own comfort rather than sanctification to become like Jesus.)
“The most important decisions you make are pre-decisions. Pre-decisions are the decisions you make before you have to make the decision.” (There are some things that if unplanned, will never be. So, decide today what you need to do and you’re more likely to do it.)
“Some people spend their entire lives getting ready for what God wants them to do. But they never end up doing it because they never come to the realization that they’ll never be ready.” (This made me stop in the middle of reading and journal for several hours… seriously. I’m always thinking of reasons for NOT doing what God is birthing in me rather than going and doing it! So, GO AND DO IT!!)
All this being said, here are 3 reasons why you should read this book:
- You need to recapture the Great Commandment
- You need to rethink how you currently live your life
- You need to recreate how you communicate the gospel in everyday life
This book will help you along the way…
What does all this mean?
I think this should be the first book you read this upcoming year. No seriously. It could be exactly what you need to start 2010 with some big dreams for the next decade you might be granted from our good God.
