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Carl has been a personal friend for many years, and I’m really grateful for all the ways that I’ve grown to understand Jesus and his relationship to religion because of his time with me. He is a true friend, someone that I have laughed and cried with. That’s why it feels funny to recommend his book. I always feel this way when I recommend my friends to others. It feels like I’m compromised, and simply doing them a favor because I like them. But in this case, to not recommend this book would mean I’m just being stubborn. Carl’s book is simply beautiful.

In this book Carl tries to simultaneously free people from the pressure of needing to share their faith, while challenging them to simply speak of Jesus. The distinction is essential, and makes all the difference in WHAT you share, but more importantly HOW you share about WHO you love, and WHY you love Him. It is a simple plea to stop trying to represent a religion, and start talking about an amazing man that can change everything: Jesus.

There’s no doubt that some of what Carl shares is controversial to the classic “Evangelical Christian”… but I think that anyone that is paying attention would have to say that the classic evangelical methods of “evangelism” have caused some very strange aberrations of faith and practice. Without questioning any of the intention of classic evangelicals and their desire to evangelize, I think we can all say that some of the results have been less than favorable. Our culture at large is increasingly suspicious of religion, and yet increasingly open to spiritual experience. Furthermore, I think that many in our culture are open to studying and talking about Jesus of Nazareth, but are suspicious of Christianity and those that represent it.

That last paragraph is problematic for many, but I think it’s pretty accurate.

Maybe we need to just go back to basics:

Love God, Love people, period.

Or maybe:

“When I was with you, I resolved to know nothing except Jesus Christ and him crucified.”

Part of loving people is talking about what we love… and if that love is informed by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus… it’s only natural to speak of that.

I’m learning more and more to simply speak of Jesus… not because I have to, but because there’s nothing more interesting to talk about.

I’m grateful that Carl wrote a book that reminds us that we should be speaking up… and who we should be speaking about.