Crazy Love

I just finished reading Crazy Love by Francis Chan. Chan pastors Cornerstone Community Church in Simi Valley, California.

This book will, hopefully, rattle lots of cages within the ranks of American Christianity—at least it needs to. Radical? Yep. Biblical? Painfully so. There may be some divergence of opinion about his understanding of lukewarm Christians in Revelation 3:14-21, but don't let that side-track you.

This book challenges us to put our lives where our Christian mouths are. It isn't pretty. It isn't easy. But it is worth it. Chan calls us to put ourselves in a place where we have to trust God, the if-God-doesn't-come-through -I-am-toast kind of trust. He lives it and, and his church lives it.

Example (I paraphrase): "Jesus said to 'love your neighbor as yourself.' We decided, then, about a year ago, that it was logical to spend as much on our neighbors as we do ourselves. then our church should give away half of what it takes in."

Now this will resonate with young readers, but it gives great pause to those of us who have been a part of church forever (I am, see profile, late fifty-something, and my earliest memories include church). Most churches struggle to tithe their own income. That is only 10%. But 50%? I personally believe that churches need to tithe their income if they honestly expect their members to do it. I think if we give away to glorify God, then God will see to it that the income is there to sustain the giving away along with sustaining the church.

When I was a seminary student I served a small church in Southeastern Oklahoma on weekends as their youth guy. I remember being in a deacon meeting when one of the men said that "God began blessing our church when we decided that 5% of everything that came in would go to a benevolence fund for the poor." They still gave to other causes and to the denomination (Yes, they were SBC.) But here was a small church, on the corner of two section lines (a "section" is a square mile of land, I learned), situated six miles from "downtown." By the way, "town" had a population of 3200. The whole county's census was around 11,000. It had lots of sections. and plenty of poor people. It was so joyous to be able to give in Jesus' name to someone who needed His touch.

Cage rattled yet? Well, this thing about giving is just an example of a radical, Biblical, really Biblical faith. Check out the book. Pray over what you read.

Also, check out the videos on the crazylovebook website. Some of them are awesome. I haven't looked at them all, but I think you'll enjoy them, and maybe be challenged by them.