In the course of the rest of the book Chase lets go of lots of mental and spiritual baggage in terms of what he expects of himself. He gets to the heart of what he wants his church to become, since he left it in some disarray by running off to Italy. He wants to get away from the materialism that his congregation has taken for granted as being important, and he moves toward a simpler faith, one that embraces the individual and their needs, and incorporates some aspects of the ancient church.
As he heals, he grows close to a small group of Franciscans who are colleagues of Kenny's. And there's such an appeal with these men who embrace Francis of Assisi's lifestyle and beliefs. Francis wasn't just the Saint who graces people's lawns with animals crawling over him. He was a believer who desired a faith that reached out from the heart.
My only hesitation in reading the book is that while I'm not a tree-hugger, I was uncomfortable reading about saving the environment and caring for folks I'd prefer to allow someone else attend to. Chase seems to believe that self-sacrifice is the route to reaching others for Christ. Bottom line is, maybe he's right.
Read the book with a pencil at hand. I underlined so many wonderful phrases. I've yet to work on the 'pilgrim's guide' at the end of the book, but will in time. This is a book I'll refer to again; it's just that sort of story.
(i received this book free to review from thomas nelson/booksneeze)
