THE YADA YADA PRAYER GROUP, by Neta Jackson

a group of women are thrown together in a prayer group at a women's confernce in chicago, and decide to keep the group going after the confernce is over. they support each other through crises in their lives.

i'm still reading this, about two-thirds of the way through, but i'm liking it, so i'm blogging about it.

so far, so good. i'd seen it at a bookstore several months back, and was tempted to get it... because of the hot pink cover with daisies and funky socks. yes, i'm a marketer's dream. but, alas, i was broke, so i left it there and forgot about it. then, the other day, i was on the phone at the library, wandering around, and stumbled upon the christian section, tucked way back in the corner with the science fiction and fantasy reads. (i'm choosing the ignore the implied - or perhaps more accurately, inferred politics of that... for now, anyway.) well! i recognized the book on the shelf and decided to borrow it. i figured, at best, it's a nice, light, fluffy, mindless read. at worst, a poorly-written, light, fluffy, mindless read.

to my surprise, i'm actually liking it! i'm really enjoying the characters, who all have such real problems in their lives. one is an ex-con who is raising her younger brothers. one is a recovering drug addict. another is a messianic jew on her third marriage. one woman owns her own salon and cares for her aging mother. the list goes on. it's a motley crew, that's for sure, but they're all such real people. a rare find in christian fiction, i'm sad to say, but it's just so refreshing!

i'll admit, this book has me thinking about my own spiritual journey, what i have been through, what i'm dealing with now, where i've been with God, where i'm at with God now, and where i'm heading with God. it's pretty cool that way, and i never in a million years would have thought this book would impact me this way, truth be told. but it's good.

i'll post more when i'm done the book, but i had to let you know about it now while i have the time. i highly recommend it so far, if you're into christian fiction. and i'm not, usually, so this is pretty high praise from me.

THE SHACK, by William P. Young

Mack's daughter was murdered, and since then, well, he's had some issues with God. then a note arrives in his mailbox, inviting him to the very shack where his daughter died. the note is from God. he spends the weekend with the Divine and learning about Love.

a.

ma.

zing.

seriously, EVERYONE needs to read this book. i devoured it! inhaled it and couldn't put it down!! you can ask my friends, i dog-eared every page where it blew my mind, and yeah, it's about half the book. by the time i was finished, i felt like it had ripped my heart into a thousand tiny pieces and put it back together as something new, something whole, something full of Love and grace and peace. absolutely the BEST book i have read in years. and given how much i read (you can't tell from this blog, admittedly, but i read a lot), this is really saying something.

i have to say, i've been on quite a journey with God over the years. not all of it fun, either. and i think that, at least a lot of that would be my own fault. i had lost sight of God's love for me. but over the last six months especially, i've been learning more and more about God's love, and that really, all God really wants is me. ME!! that's it. just a relationship. God doesn't actually want us to do anything. just relationship. and yes, we'll be asked to do things in our journey, but those are to come more out of Love than obligations. there are no expectations in this relationship. just expectancy. just love and joy and intimacy. incredible. and that's what this book is about. it's about getting to know God, who truly has your best interests at heart, who is especially fond of you, who makes the sun rise every morning just for a chance to be with you.

yeah, this book blew my mind. it's amazing.

now, i'm aware that, especially among more, um, shall we say "conservative" christians, there is a lot of controversy surrounding this book. i think a lot of it has to do with their discomfort over God manifest as a larger-than-life black woman. and Jesus' comment that he's not a christian. and the manifestation of the holy spirit. to these people i say, boooo!! get over your hang-ups!! God is not some big old man with a long white flowing beard. God is Love. pure and simple. and if you open your heart to this book, and read with discernment (which really isn't even necessary, b/c i'm a theology nut and i didn't encounter anything wrong in there) you will understand. and be changed.

that being said...

don't read this book if you don't want to be changed. because it will change you. i've said it before, and i'll say it again,

a. ma. zing.