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The Faith Of Leap: Embracing A Theology Of Risk, Adventure & Courage (2000)

by Michael Frost(Favorite Author)

3.95 of 5 Votes: 3

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review 1: So much of our lives is caught up in the development and maintenance of security and control. I know mine is all about feeling safe. That is best compliment I ever give my Dear Hubby. That with him I know I am always safe. But as Helen Keller observed, "Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing." And when our only experience of Christianity is safe and controlled, we miss the simple fact that faith involves risk. Sometimes we have to have the faith to know when we jump out there to do our good deeds that we will not fail. I know that in those moments I have made the leap. Most peo... moreple do not know of my 'revolving door' on my home. As long as I have a place for one to lay their head, I have had someone living with us as they get back up on their feet. These are people that most would never consider. I loved meeting and becoming friends with a hara krishna couple that was traveling through the area. They were looking for a farm and where low on their funds. We were able to give them a bed, meals, ability to clean up and they gave me laughter and a joy of dancing with me. We still keep in touch by email. I have had homeless and those who are out on the streets suddenly without a clue as to where to find help. Families with children, beautiful ladies and yes even currently our Gentleman who is fighting cancer. I know that in all of these relationships I had to take a Leap of Faith or more so the Faith to leap!In The Faith of Leap, Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch challenge you to leave the idol of security behind and courageously live the adventure that is inherent in our God and in our calling. Their corrective to the dull, adventureless, risk-free phenomenon that describes so much of contemporary Christianity explores the nature of adventure, risk, and courage and the implications for church, discipleship, spirituality, and leadership. What would be the leap for you? Where are your security nets at? How can you challenge yourself to set out to do for others?
review 2: Drawing on sources as diverse as J.R.R. Tolkien, sociology, anthropology, mythology and Disney films, authors Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch take a close look at ideas of adventure, heroism, and risk-taking as a means of both missional outreach and fostering deep community within the church. They outline elements of hero myth to illuminate the desire and need for adventure, for breaking out that lies deep within each person and describe how these yearnings find their source in the life of Jesus Christ who exemplified this idea of adventure and risk-taking.In contemporary society, risk is an enemy and we work sedulously to remove it; we have become a risk-averse people, insulating ourselves from many experiences that might otherwise have proven beneficial. The authors predict the end of the Western Church as we know it if it continues to embrace the false idols of comfort and security and is unwilling to get out of its insular building and into the lives of the community in which it is placed. A bold and sobering claim to be sure, but one eminently worth considering.Using as an example Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and the deep community forged among the members of the fellowship through shared trial and hardship, the authors offer a solution that explores how the church can and must embrace risk and adventure by consciously placing itself in risk situations that foster liminality. Liminality is a place of disorientation due to loss of familiar context, where members of a community must rely on each other in order to survive, thus creating bonds that run much deeper than is the case with ordinary acquaintances or passing friends; in fact, creating the type of community that people long for. Much church community these days looks more like a mixture of sharing, Bible study, and support group. These have their necessary place, but far deeper and more meaningful community can be accessed through shared adventures and risk-taking.What does such risk look like? The authors suggest that it is the missional risk of being neighborly, of meeting people where they are in their lives; of being rooted in a community and becoming part of it; learning who its leaders, advocates and outcasts are; working there and living there; saying yes to all invitations; listening. In short, willingly casting aside comfort, being okay with unknown outcomes and casting aside the need to control of such outcomes.If you care about the future of the church or creating deep community, I would highly recommend this book. less

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