Book Review:

If obedience to God is considered to be Radical — then that is what David Platt, Pastor of The Church at Brook Hills, challenges.  This is a process that  may mean laying down what some define as the American Dream.

When I first began this book – my hackles were up. How dare someone question the red, white, and blue American Dream?  However, as the pages turned I realized that Platt is thankful the freedoms and blessings we have as Americans.  But, he is committed to challenging our current church culture to use that leverage for the Kingdom rather than our own comfort.  This is a good read – a convicting read.

“God delights in using ordinary Christians who come to the end of themselves and choose to trust in his extraordinary provision.  He stands ready to allocate his power to all who are radically dependent on him and radically devoted to making much of him.”  (52)

Platt reminds us of our desperate need for a savior and for His power daily to infuse our lives. “Our great need is to fall before an almighty Father day and night and to plead for him to show his radical power in and through us enabling us to accomplish for his glory what we could never imagine in our own strength.  And when we do this, we will discover we were created for a purpose much greater than ourselves, the kind of purpose that can only be accomplished in the power of his Spirit.”  (60)

In conclusion, Platt challenges us to participate in the one year Radical Experiment by taking 5 steps:

1) Pray for the world,  2) Read the Word through in a year, 3) Sacrifice finances for a specific cause, 4) Spend your time in another country (somewhere outside your own city), 5) Commit your life to multiplying community.

I am asking the Lord – is that the kind of life I am living… totally dependent on Him?  Lord, that is what I want for me and for the ministry to women that you have entrusted to me.

Radical is a book about surrender — it is about actively engaging in a faith walk.  I recommend reading this thought provoking book.