Did Jesus come just to give us a ticket out of hell?Jesus said in John 10:10, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."
He came not only that we may have life, but full life. Jesus came to usher in a new era. One where the Kingdom of God is being established on the earth. In the Kingdom of God there is forgiveness, healing and new life; not just for people but for all of creation. Often when we examine the gospel books of the bible, the lense through which we read is only looking for spiritual realities. The Green Good News: Christ's Path to Sustainable and Joyful Life by T. Wilson Dickinson, was written to help us see deeper messages of healing and new life that Jesus taught. This book helps us ask questions like:
The Green Good News digs deep into the social, cultural and economic undertones of many of Jesus's parables speaks to the destructive and extractive nature of the empire (then Roman and now globalized super powers). One of the conclusions that Dickinson shares is that the modern day church has settled for only a portion of the new life Jesus came to bring. He calls out the church to walk into the new way of life Jesus calls us to live. But in order to live this new way of life we must give up the trappings and renounce the lie of the empire. "The kingdom, then, is realized through the acts of love that bring people together and that nurture their bodies... In the kingdom we are all invited to participate in the small and ordinary acts that will transform communities, institutions, and the land." (p. 151). I really loved this book and the message it brings. It felt like almost the environmental counterpart for my own book on health. Dickinson and I reached many of the same conclusions and I love how simple acts of daily life can have effects that benefit individuals, communities, and nations in the areas of spirituality, economics and the environment. If you want to grab a copy of The Green Good News for yourself, check out Amazon. To find out more about T. Wilson Dickinson and his message check out his website. #TheGreenGoodNews Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Speakeasy. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
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What do you do when the unthinkable happens?Life is plagued by crisis and trials. Loved ones die. Eventually everyone experiences the gut wrenching loss of someone close to them passing.
Mom, dad, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, grandpas and grandmas, friends...people we love. The pain is real. It physically tears the lining of your gut, that kind of emotional stress. It also causes short term brain damage- making remembering and concentrating difficult. How can we move forward in the pain and use it as a catalyst for growth? When we look at the natural world, death is a part of the circle of life. When something dies the cycle continues and there is new growth. This can be true for our lives as well. As nature models for us... new growth can come out of death. The book Grief 2 Growth, Planted, Not Buried: How to Survive & Thrive After Life's Greatest Challenges, provides readers with a clear path to success. Brian D. Smith: author and life coach, offers a grief program of simple and effective habits like "start with gratitide," and "feed my mind," to get our brains to process through the pain and emotions. As well as "exercise" and "meditation" to support the physical needs of the body. I love the holistic nature of the program Smith offers. For those of you interested in more of what Smith has to offer you can check out his website. The book is a compact and easy to read guide to dealing with your own grief and Smith shares many of his own ideas about the grief he experienced losing his daughter at 15. Having walked through a season of grief in my own life, I see value in being equiped with tools like Grief 2 Growth discusses. At the time I experinced loss, I was not educated on the grieving process and held onto a lot of anger that was not healthy. I know now that it is important to embrace the grieving process to keep yourself healthy, processing the pain so that it doesn't get stored in your body. This is a great book to educate yourself on how to turn tragedy into a growing experience. The more we educate ourselves, the more resillient we can be in the face of trials. You can pick up a copy of the book on Amazon. #Grief2Growth Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Speakeasy. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. |
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AuthorJessica Mutunga is passionate about good simple living that focuses on relationships, food and creating a supportive healthy environment. She is The Light Way Coach. Archives
May 2022
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