Book Review: It's Not Your Turn

Okay, so this idea of waiting for my turn to come around resonates with me. How long can one throw oneself into a passion before the lack of fruit causes one to till over the entire garden and erect a chicken coop? Seriously! I agree with this author's main point: It may not be your turn YET, but there is a purpose in the waiting and we must clap for others when they take home the prize and we don't. Moreover, I loved many of the stories and illustrations Heather Thompson Day shares in It's Not Your Turn: her conversation with a man on a plane, her husband's fall from a mountain, and a friend's loss of a husband to an errant wave that broke his neck (unthinkably tragic).

I appreciated her reference to Paul J. Meyer's SMART goal process. Our goals should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time bound. At the end of that chapter, she emphasized friend selection. How important it is to find others who are running in the same direction as you. This was so good, I had to type it out for my teenaged sons to read. 

However, I disagreed with some of her perspectives. She divides Christians into two categories: happy Christians with a loving God and unhappy Christians with an angry God. Somehow progressives believe a HOLY God, who wants more for you than bondage to sin, is NOT a loving God, but an angry God. In reality, God's love demands His holiness, just as His holiness demonstrates His love for those of us who readily admit we fall short. Holiness threatens the status quo and the common desires of sinful man. Thus, progressives delude themselves into thinking a holy God doesn't care about who we are in Him, just wants to smother us with the warmth of His love. 

The author outlines progressive theologian James Fowler's "Stages of Faith." Considering his diagram, they might say I haven't progressed far enough in my Christianity. Again, with Alisa Childers, I ask: Can it even be called Christianity? For example, in looking up more about Fowler, I read this explanation of his supposed Stage 5: when a "Christian" questions "those myths and taboos and standards that we took in with our mother's milk.... We... examine those, which means we're ready for a new kind of intimacy with persons and groups that are different from ourselves. We are ready for allegiances beyond our tribal gods and our tribal taboos." According to Fowler, if I progress far enough, I will arrive at a universal acceptance of everyone and every action, the great equalizer that renders salvation from sin impotent for demanding or achieving any change. 

So, while I enjoyed her Oprah methods, I couldn't agree with her Oprah conclusions. Indeed, it may not be my turn. And I'm fine with waiting for His provision. Truly, I'd rather bank myself in Jordan Raynor's perspective in his most recent book, Redeeming Your Time. He reminds his readers that God doesn't need us to be productive, but the gospel frees us to be productive. He still wants us to show up and leave the results to Him!