Interrupted Review and Giveaway

Time to stop blessing blessed people.

Time to open our eyes to the suffering around us.

Time to read the revised edition of Jen Hatmaker’s book Interrupted:When Jesus Wrecks Your Comfortable Christianity.

Being chosen to read and review this book a few weeks after starting intentional spending was no coincidence. God wants my family to see what we can be doing with our time and money if we give up the things that don’t matter. So many people around us and around the world are starving for food and Jesus, and it is staggering. Closing our eyes and refusing to admit there is a problem helps no one.

Interrupted has Jen’s signature style of writing. What? We’re NOT on a first name basis? Well, she sure invites the readers in and makes us feel comfortable as she makes us look at our lives. Jen (I am just going to go with it. I am sure she wants it this way) has a way of being self-deprecating and deep at the same time. She holds nothing back in the story of how God changed her heart.

One night Jen prayed a dangerous prayer: Raise up in me a holy passion. Modern day American Christians have life so easy. We have a tendency to give the minimum and have lots of stuff, while people everywhere don’t have food and water. We have gotten away from Jesus’ call to serve the last, the least, the forgotten, and the forsaken. We like to bless blessed people instead of the ones who need it, and that leaves us feeling empty. Jen’s words make me feel responsible for change. Just as the title suggests, anyone who reads this will be wrecked, in the best possible way. She gently holds our hand and shows us how.

In the book, we see how Jen and her husband, Brandon, go about figuring out what the interruption means in their family’s lives. I won’t give away the story, but God called them to walk away from consumerism, starting with giving away their boots one Easter. They had to get to a place of total dependence on God before He took them to the next place. One thing that has really stuck with me is “God may be leading you away without a clear final destination yet. Could it be that He needs you to release what was before you can appropriately grasp what will be?”

The Hatmakers’ future led to being more service oriented. They realized we are here to invest in people and show love. We are to go to people instead of expecting them to come to us. “It makes sense to introduce people to Jesus in their natural habitat, where He does His best work.”

When we allow God to make us uncomfortable, it will transform us. When we wake up and realize we have been going about life wrong, there is no room for apathy. Reading a book like this sets our hearts on fire and points us in the right direction. It is up to us to grab the torch and keep running with it.

Where do I go from here? That is up to God. I have asked Him to bring me to the right people. I am more aware of the situation around the world and plan to keep my eyes open to the needs of people that God places in my path. I suggest you read the book and find out what God wants you to know.

As Jesus said after washing the disciples’ feet, “Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” (John 13:17)

I happen to have a copy of the book and want to give it away! Leave a comment, and I will randomly draw a name next Friday, August 22. Yes, I know other people have fancy ways to do contests, but this is how I roll. 

Linking with Saturday Soiree, Holley Gerth, and Jen Hatmaker