A while back I mentioned that I'd recently read three books that subsequently rocked my world. The first book I shared last month started me on this journey of questioning how my life was making a difference anywhere outside of my own family. My heart has been stirred over how I'm called to serve the rest of the world. These thoughts came out of nowhere. But I know it's no coincidence that these books have found their way to my nightstand. I'm still not sure where this is all leading but this next book sure gave me a lot to chew on.
Most of you are probably familiar with Rick Warren, author of the The Purpose Driven Life. But, like me, you might not be aware of the lovely woman he's married to. Kay Warren has rarely been in the limelight over the years but, if more people read her book, it won't be long before she's more recognizable than him.
Dangerous Surrender: What Happens When You Say Yes to God is a book that will leave you, as Kay puts it, "seriously disturbed" and "gloriously ruined." It all began with an magazine article about the world AIDS crisis that disturbed Kay to transform from "housewife to humanitarian" in the blink of an eye. She was so bothered by what she read that, next thing she knew, she was on a plane to Africa to see for herself the reality of this tragedy. The manner in which Kay writes makes you feel like you're sharing a cup of coffee at her kitchen table. She's real, honest, challenging, humorous and vulnerable. Yet she's not suggesting anyone do something she hasn't already tackled.
An excerpt from the first chapter:
Jesus' words "Much is required from those to whom much is given" (Luke 12:48 NLT) began to reverberate inside my mind, taking their place alongside the disturbing images I had seen. I had been given so much—what was my responsibility in return? God clearly tells us that we are "to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with [our] God" (Micah 6:8). I began to wonder how to apply this truth to my life. How does becoming a seriously disturbed person affect the way I live?
At the end of each chapter, Mrs. Warren poses a question for the reader, another question to share with your reading partner and a website address to watch a podcast pertaining to the discussion. Each chapter is even more heart wrenching than the previous. She makes you want to DO something. Anything.
The pages are filled with anecdotes from her personal journey including two bouts with cancer, literally witnessing child prostitution take place and a woman dying of AIDS while laying on a piece of plastic. In spite of all the setbacks and real-life horror she experiences, she never loses her passion for the calling God has engraved on her heart.
An excerpt from the end:
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