Finished Reading: Resident Aliens & The Tangible Kindgom

One of the things I have been trying to do more of in the evenings is read more.  I can all too easily slip into the: put the kids to bed -> turn on the TV -> Turn on the computer routine.  Next thing I know its 11:30 and I’ve wasted the evening watching bad television and aimlessly surfing the web and refreshing twitter like a helpless addict (not that I am addicted, I can stop whenever I want).  While some nights I do need to just veg in front of the TV and hang out with my wife, I’d rather make that the exception rather than the rule.

So far I’ve done well and, i’ll be honest, it feels really good to get some into some good books.  I’ve gone through two this month already and I’m well into my third.  Here’s a rundown of what I’ve read.  I always like to see what other people are reading so I hope you find them helpful…

Resident Aliens
I read most of this book during my vacation and I really had a hard time putting it down. This book renewed my interest in the Sermon in the Mount (I’ve been studying it on my own the last week or so) and it was a great companion as I’ve sought to think through what it means for us to be an alternative community (i.e. colony), faithful to the Christian story in the Philly Suburbs. I’d recommend this book to anything thinking along those lines.

Tangible Kingdom
This book didn’t grab me quite as fast. I went off the recommendation of a few close friends and while the book started slow for me, I did finish it (which says a lot). I really appreciated reading the story of Hugh Halter’s church and was interested to find out through Facebook that one of my friends from my childhood attends there. This book is full of good stories and I read it much like I read Organic Church by Neil Cole…. it really helped get my imagination flowing for our own community. And, I love books that ignite my imagination so I am glad I read it.

I am in the middle of ReJesus by Hirsch and Frost and am really enjoying it so far. More on that one later.

I can’t wait to crack open The Politics of Jesus by Yoder. It’s sitting next to me in my bag and I am doing all i can to concentrate on taking care of my web projects I need to do today before I open it up.