not your typical summer reading.... but there is a theme here

almost amish
by nancy sleeth

(one woman's quest for a slower, simpler, more sustainable life)
does that sound right up my alley or what?!
it was. 
she takes a look at a community that has be able to stay connected to each other while remaining somewhat "out of touch" with modern culture. sleeth a makes the case that current american culture [and even modern church culture] are the ones that are out of touch not the amish.  sleeth takes ten tenants of amish culture and in a way deconstructs it, finds the merit, and challenges her reader to see what they have that we don't.  her ten things: home, technology, finances, nature, simplicity, service, security, community, families, and faith.  the ones that i really loved:  homes - aren't cluttered. technology - serves as a tool and does not rule. [i have stopped checking my cell phone or email on sundays....so mom, call my home phone] finances - save more and spend less.  simplicity - small and local leads to saner lives. service - service to others reduces loneliness and isolation. [and looks more like jesus] 
i found her to be so refreshing and motivated for looking more like jesus....not just simplicity for less stress or happier kids..... but because we can see god and know him better when we get rid of the clutter, the hustle, the need to do, do, do..... i will pass this along.  
let me know what you think.
here is a good summary.


7: an experimental mutiny against excess
by jen hatmaker

okay, caveat.... i would want to be her friend. 
she is SO, SO, SO different from sleeth. i would sit and listen to sleeth talk and respect her.... but hatmaker.... i just want to have coffee with her. 
another warning.... she is extreme!!
first, i love that it is a mutiny. it is extreme. it is a fast for seven months from seven things that we don't even realize we are over-doing....and it is ruining us. it is a wake-up call for her, her friends, her family, and me. i loved that it is about god confronting her with her greed, her consumerism, her materialism...... and um, my materialism, my greed, my consumerism. OUCH!!!
what i love most is her brutal honesty....okay, and that she is totally self-deprecating and funny but she is full of repentance.
her seven things: food, clothes, possessions, media, wast, spending, stress.
conclusion.....we are missing it. we are missing what jesus was about. he was about people NOT things. he was about walking lightly on the earth so that he could love people with abandon. i see how much i am tied to my "things" that i fail to see the privilege of loving people more.  she takes the challenge to make big changes in her life and sees where god shows up.....

love god most. love your neighbor as yourself. this is everything.is we say we love god, then we will care about the poor.this earth is god's and everything in it. we should live like we believe this. what we treasure reveals what we love.money and stuff have the power to ruin us.act justly, love mercy, walk humbly with god. this is what is required. 

and that just about summarizes it. 

also, skimmed fed up with frenzy: slow parenting in a fast-moving world.  her point is good. we are moving too fast and making our kids move too fast with us. what they are losing and what we are losing costs too much. too much activity, too much frenzy. she is all about hitting the pause button. but what is missing is the why?  she says it is for successful children, happy kids, valuable downtime, connecting with our kids.... i think it falls short. i want all these things for my kids.... but i mostly want them to know how to worship.... slow down and see god's creation; slow down and love others more than yourself because that is what jesus did; connect with elders because they are wise; and slow down to be reminded that it is not about what you do.... but about who created you. so there you go..... 

see the theme?
there is more to come!
happy reading.