Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

Archives for June 2011

Will the real Jesus please step forward?

The title was intriguing enough to make me want to read the book. But then a guy named Pete punched Jesus in the face, and I knew I wasn’t going to put the book down until I finished it.

After I picked my jaw up off the ground, and with astonishment, told my husband, “Jesus got punched in the face!”, I kept reading. I wish I could tell you that’s the most incredible thing that happens in the story, but it’s only the beginning. Pretty tame, actually.

Mikalatos

But before you write this book off as an irreverent (it sometimes is), silly (that, too), pointless (definitely not) read, consider what the author, Matt Mikalatos, is trying to unearth.

His premise is that we often, unintentionally, create a Jesus of our own liking, rather than take time to get to know the real Jesus. And I’ll tell you right now, the Jesuses we meet in this novel (Magic 8 Ball Jesus is one of my favorites) are uncomfortably convicting, and I’ve had to ask myself if I really know Jesus or if I’ve created him in my own image.

It’s been months since I read this book, but I think about the lessons I learned from it often. This statement, in particular, sticks with me:

“If you never confront the imaginary Jesus, he’ll keep popping up, perverting what you know about the real Jesus. You need to look him in the face, recognize that he’s fake, and renounce him.”

Intrigued? Check out the first chapter here.

Overall, I’d call this a fun-yet-challenging book. Mikalatos accurately pegs the numerous fake Jesuses we create to avoid facing the Maker-Savior-Messiah-Way, Truth and Life Jesus of the Bible and does it in a clever, mostly non-threatening way. I never felt shamed by the fake Jesuses I create but called to confront falsehood and seek truth.

I consider this a must-read for Christians today.

And although the following song is not connected to the book, the two remind me of each other. Besides, it’s a great song by Downhere.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xdh9NOEpu8Y&feature=channel_video_title

Dare to discover the imaginary Jesuses in your life. You won’t regret it.

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“Imaginary Jesus” is one of dozens of books on Tyndale’s Summer Reading Program list. You can earn free books and be eligible for prizes for reading books on their list throughout the summer. It’s free to sign up! Check it out here. As a side note, if you decide to sign up before next Wednesday, June 22, let me know either by commenting, Facebook message or e-mail. I could win a spot on the Tyndale Blog if I refer the most people to the program! Happy reading!

A family hike on the Appalachian Trail

The past two summers, we’ve created a Summer Fun List as a way to help us make the most of the time when the weather is favorable and my husband’s class schedule is less rigorous. Last year, we packed a lot of fun into the months of June-September. You can check out last year’s escapades in the summer category at the top of the page.

We’ve been slow to start the summer outings this year, getting adjusted to class schedules and managing extreme heat, but today we wanted to get out of the house and do something fun as a family. Our next two Saturdays are kind of busy, so we wanted to make today count.

Here’s what we decided: We dressed and packed for a hike and headed north to the Appalachian Trail.

Phil and I have enjoyed hiking together since before we were married, but life post-wedding and post-kids hasn’t afforded us as many hiking opportunities as we’d like. A couple of years ago, when we first moved to Pennsylvania, we unsuccessfully tried to find the Appalachian Trail to hike part of it. We had a great hike anyway, but there’s something about hiking the Appalachian Trail that makes me a little giddy. Or maybe geeky is a better word. I kind of want to hike the whole thing eventually someday. This is a start.

We headed south because the map promised us a couple of lookouts. We weren’t disappointed.

Here, we met a nice couple who were part of a charity motorcycle ride to benefit a sick child. They took our picture after we took theirs.

Pictures from the overlook just don’t do it justice. And “beautiful” isn’t a good enough word. Breathtaking. Peaceful. Inspiring. Glorious.

The clouds were hanging low so we couldn’t see a lot. But we weren’t sure where we were looking anyway. Next time, we’ll look for Myerstown.

The kids did awesome. Corban was pulling me along, eager to keep going. The rocky terrain wouldn’t keep him down. We must have worn him out. He slept for 2 1/2 hours after we got home. And Isabelle loved looking at plants, insects, flowers and rocks. When Phil pointed out some ants eating a caterpillar, she looked and said, “Ohhh, cute.” Better she says that than take after her mother and say, “Ew.”

Needless to say, hiking is on our list of summer fun. And after today, we’re planning more trips to the AT.