Book 2

As the second week of January ends, I want to post some thoughts on the book I read this week. It's called "Rumors of Another World: What on Earth Are We Missing?" by Philip Yancey.

My first comment....I've read several of his books already. This was not my favorite. Maybe that's because I was really impressed with some of his others. Particularly The Jesus I Never Knew.

But this book was good, and if I had it to do over, I would read it again.

He divides it into three parts; What Are We Missing, Signs of Disorder, and Two Worlds.

In the first section, what was noteworthy to me as a married person was the chapter on Designer Sex. He makes this comment:

"Marriage as a social construct is arbitrary, flexible and open to redefinition. Marriage as a sacrament established by God is another matter entirely."

I think too often, we in the church are not viewing our marriages as sacraments. This is probably one of our poorest witnesses to the world. We hold this sacred covenant in no higher regard than those outside the church. How can this be?

He also talks, in the first section, about God Loving Adverbs, which I quoted in a previous post. From that chapter, my favorite thought was this:

"One day it occurred to me that perhaps I should look at every human relationship as a tool for character formation, including every encounter with a surly clerk or selfish neighbor or demanding relative."

How different would our lives look, if we practiced this?

Second section....one thought for you. He quotes G.K. Chesterton, one of my favorite writers:

"There are two ways to get enough. One is to continue to accumluate more and more. The other is to desire less."

"The Lord is my Shepherd. I shall not want." Do we really live that???

Third section: Two Worlds. I had more highlighted portions in this section. Maybe that's because I've been mulling over the Kingdom of God stuff. It really is too much to address in one post, or even several, or even in a lifetime of posting, but I want to include two thoughts of his here:

"Jesus spoke of his role before birth and after death and his years on earth as a period of transition. That point of view changes everything. He established settlements of the city of God while living in the city of this world."

And...

"Perhaps that kind of shared secret [a hidden secret-a rumor of another world] was what Jesus had in mind when he told his critics they could not pin down the kingdom of God: "The kindgom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you." In prisons, in catacombs, and even in the corridors of power, his followers whispered the provocative secret that our planet, marked by violence, decay, and death, is not all there is. We will live again, in bodies made whole, in a world made whole."

As I ponder the whole Kingdom topic, this is something I know. As I catch glimpses, my heart beats a little faster. My yearning to see a little more increases. My desire to live in it fully deepens. As that Pearl begins to materialize before me, my longing becomes more unbearable. Maybe I'll someday be willing to sell all I have for it. (Matt 13:45-46) Maybe someday I'll live in such a way that others will see that I truly believe it.