Shannan Martin has a unique way of making you feel right at home with her words while also dropping some deep truths in the middle and changing everything you thought you knew.
When I read her first book Falling Free two years ago, I was scared about the impact it would have on my life. This time around, when I had the chance to read an advance copy of her second book, I was excited to apply whatever teaching she had to offer to my life.
I was drawn to The Ministry of Ordinary Places: Waking Up to God’s Goodness Around You because of its appeal to the everyday. I no longer believe “ministry” is something reserved for a special few and I wholeheartedly believe that some of the most ordinary things we do can be glimpses of the Kingdom. I underlined so many words in this book, but I don’t just want to collect quotes and share statements: I want to live them out. This is a book of right-where-you-are making a difference and I dare you to be uninspired by her stories.
I will share a few snippets, though, just to give you a sense of what this book is all about.
On what it means to live sacrificially:
“But I had seen enough to understand that growth often requires death, and sometimes death looks like losing that extra fifteen minutes of sleep. Sometimes it asks us to surrender our softest pajama pants and lace up our walking shoes for the greater good, even if we’re not quite sure why it matters.”
This stunning sentence: “The world would not feel so impossible if each of us committed to truly knowing five of our nearest neighbors.”
And this, a sort of benediction for the daily work:
“This is my prayer, that as we look around and locate pain, widening our scope when necessary, we’ll have the guts to take swift action. I pray that we’ll all go down together, arms linked, hoarse from shouting on behalf of those found at the short end of justice. I pray that down at street level, we’ll feel the tremor of God’s power and decide, once and for all, that our feet were made for low places and worthy battles. We’ll hang a scarlet cord from the window as our promise to keep meddling for the sake of the kingdom.”
I think this would be a good choice for a church or neighborhood book club. Lots of discussion potential and practical application.
Disclosure: I received an Advance Reader Copy from Harper Collins Christian Publishers.
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