by Henri Nouwen
Reviewed by Dan Hood
The recent Beloved e-news (10.19.06) looking at the population of the United States and church attendance made me wonder what needs to change. I continually look outward to find solutions to this issue of church attendance. Is this a heart issue with Christians? Is the answer, more programs, more visible leaders in the church? A “new” way of packaging the gospel to attract youth? Something else?
Recently, I finished a book by Henri Nouwen called “Life of the Beloved” and I realized I had been looking in all the wrong places. Real and authentic change in the Christian community has to start with me. It is going to take a heart change, and a perspective change to impact the culture in our city. I need to be “taken, blessed, broken, to be given”. These are the ideas that Nouwen brings up in this book. The language is that of a letter or a discussion with a close friend and offers a unique insight to the spiritual life.
An analogy that comes to mind is one of your morning cup of coffee. That first sip seems to warm the soul and awaken the mind, allowing you to breathe deep and start your day. The coffee has to be just right, containing the right amount of cream and/or sugar, just the right temperature and flavor. What do you do if your coffee is bitter or cold? You spit it out. Now how are we to our colleagues and friends? Are we the perfect cup of morning coffee? Do our thoughts, words and deeds echo Christ or do we just blend in? The change comes with a different perspective, a realization that we are “taken, blessed, and broken to be given”. Worth the read!
by Henri Nouwen
Reviewed by Dan Hood
“Turn My Mourning into Dancing” by Henri Nouwen is a look into how we handle hard times and what to do about them when they come. This book isn’t a how to, step by step guide to fixing your problems, but more of an examination of the heart. The most profound section of the book for me was the look at “the beloved”. We are God’s beloved. Jesus spent time alone and in prayer often, and acted on the knowledge that, ”This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17). How would our lives be different if we only lived with this idea in mind? How would we handle the times when we feel broken down?
