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I'm reading a few really amazing books right now! Oh, this makes me so happy! But my favorite of the week is one called Radical by David Platt. But a warning: though easy to read the concepts it addresses is difficult! He quotes Bonhoeffer in chapter one: When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die."

I hope to write more about my impressions about this book later but I just wanted to mention it now. It is a challenging book, and in the end, after writing so passionately that I actually wanted to follow Christ to the level he describes, he invites people to participate in The Radical Experiment.

The Radical Experiment is this: "To commit to a one-year experiment of radical living according to the gospel...and to making myself open to the permanent changes God wants to perform in my life as a result of this experiment."

The Radical Experiment includes committing to:

1. Pray for the entire world. (and asks you to write down how you'll specifically fulfill doing that)

2. Reading through the entire Word.

3. To sacrifice my money for a specific purpose.

4. To spend time in another context. (2 percent of the year)

5. To commit my life to multiplying communities.

If this sounds like a chore, the amazing part is that after reading this book, realizing all that Christ had done, is doing and what we are called to do, one wants to embark on this year long journey!

We sing on Sunday mornings about how our life belongs to Christ, how He is worth everything. This book challenges me to live it. I truly want my life to echo the Hymn The Wondrous Cross:

"Love so amazing, so divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all.

As I sated, I hope to post more about my fascination with this book but couldn't help but highlight it today. It is a short book that is only about 10 dollars on Amazon right now. I recommend reading it, as I'd love to have a discussion with others about the book. There is so much to it and yet...... nothing is "new" or novel. He calls us out to live the Gospel. He calls us to make disciples, have a passion for the Word of God, and, as he quoted Bonhoeffer, to die to ourself..... because Christ is worth it. Making much of Christ and His glory.

As I finished book a song I used to hear when I was in high school kept playing in my head . One by Steven Curtis Chapman:

We will abandon it all, for the sake of the call. No other reason at all, but the sake of the Call. Wholly devoted, to live and to die, for the sake of the call."

This concept is not a new one but for some reason right now it just excites me. I have no idea what this will mean in my life practically. And it is not just because I'm told to do it; it is because after looking at what God has done for me, I want to trust him more, obey him more, share him more and learn to love him more.