Weird by Craig Groeschel
Reviewed by Dale Lewis
"Weird is an excellent follow-up to Groeschel’s The Christian Atheist! They are both challenging and complimentary exhortations."
From my first days of Sunday
School and flannel graph lessons to my spiritual upbringing at home,
it was ingrained with my ever expanding mind that as
Christians we were supposed to be different from those who have not received
the gift of salvation. As I look back with maturing hindsight, sadly that
difference was only defined in a list of do’s and don’ts, us
and them. The line drawn was distinct, but it certainly wasn’t inviting
and it was definitely confining to those who lived by the list.
Yet the opposite extreme is that we are just as normal as the person next
door who doesn’t go to church or claim to be transformed by the amazing
power of God’s grace! The distinct way in which we intentionally
live our lives based on Christ's life and the words of Scripture should
set us apart.
Craig’s thesis in Weird is that when it comes to God, the majority
believe in him, but the teachings of Scripture rarely make it into their
everyday lives. Purity, virginity, and a healthy married sex life doesn’t
even register a blip in our realities. Normal is living for a paycheck
and spending our free time stressed, exhausted and overwhelmed. Living
the normal life isn't working!
Groeschel knows how to present his message in a digestible and easy-to-swallow
manner. He is a gifted communicator. It is not always comfortable, nor
will you jump up and down in agreement with everything he states, but you
will be spurred on to reconsider all the ramifications of “normal” versus “weird.”
He uses a balanced approach as he deals with “all people” issues
like time-management, responsible financial decisions, marriage, parenting,
sexual purity and having a relationship with God. His conversational writing
style presents real-life, practical solutions through personal stories
and biblical insights.
Here are a few memorable quotes: “One of the foundational lies we’ve
absorbed about the value of busyness is that it indicates our spiritual
worth. If we work hard and get our lives together and do as many good and
valuable things as possible, then God will be pleased.”
"Therefore we’re never satisfied, always wanting more and never
appreciating all that we’ve been given. Once again, being normal
is killing us.”
"The reason people fall into any sexual sin is because
they get too close to the opportunities.”
Weird is an excellent follow-up to Groeschel’s The Christian
Atheist!
They are both challenging and complimentary exhortations. Being a nerd
or geek in high school, not so good . . . being weird because normal is
not working . . . very good!
