Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Alex and Brett Harris' Do Hard Things: choosing a life of inconvenience to pursue God's agenda

Two weeks ago, I decided to leave my medical books for the moment and read something else. So I grabbed Alex and Brett Harris' book, Do Hard Things, from my brother's library. My original intention was only to finish a chapter or two, but book was—and still is—so relevant that I just couldn't put it down.

First, a word on the authors: Alex and Brett Harris are twin brothers who started the Christian teen website, The Rebelution, in 2005. In case you're wondering, they're the younger siblings of popular author, Joshua Harris ("I Kissed Dating Goodbye").

Their message is clear: rebel against the low expectations of today's culture by choosing to do hard things for the glory of God. The word rebelution has come to mean rebellion against low expectations, a call to the younger generation to step up to the challenges of life by doing the hard things, the things that truly matter. The ideas you'll read in the blog are essentially the ones you'll read in the book.

The book begins by arguing that the young can—and should—rise to the occasion to do significant things, debunking what is otherwise known as the myth of adolescence. Our generation often makes adolescence—this limbo between childhood and adulthood—as an excuse not to accept hard responsibilities or to act maturely.

The authors then proceed to encouraging the youth to leave their comfort zones. They cite true-to-life examples of teens who led massive political campaigns, initiated projects to raise money for the poor, and stood up against violence. I personally had a great time reading this because two of the more prominent examples are Filipinos.

The book ends by encouraging everyone to join the movement, to make a difference in this world. As a final word, Alex and Brett share the gospel, the story of Jesus Christ who did the hardest thing in the world—to die for our sins.

The book is easy to read but hard to digest. It's practical, theologically sound, and relevant. I highly recommend it.

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1 Comments:

Anonymous Jazzy Dytes said...

Hi there. It's great that you have read the book.
God bless you more!

- Jazzy Dytes

Tue Oct 20, 01:19:00 PM GMT+8  

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