Just finished this book. I couldn't put it down and stayed up until 2am. I am going to pay for this in just four hours when my girls get up, but it was worth it.
A true story of a 19 year old guy who immersed himself within the Christian (college) culture in order to gain a first hand, honest experience of life inside the Christian Evangelical world as one who personally was not a Christian"insider" himself.
Genius.
I laughed out loud reading this 19 year old's witty account of experiencing insider church language ("Praise the Lord," Purity rings, Every Man's Battle), corporate church worship hand waving, and "Cold Turkey Evangelism" on Daytona Beach during Spring Break. I thoroughly enjoyed this story because it took me on a journey (where I could look at myself from the outside), once causing me to spit out my lunch laughing at his experience with the strange ways of Christians and Christian culture. And other times I rolled my eyes frustrated by our (the Church's) hypocrisies, lack of grace, and other un-christ-like ways like homophobia, racism, and self-righteous attitudes.
It's a good sign when a book challenges me to think, wrestle, laugh, cry, disagree, and motivates me to love others with God's compassion. That's the essence of a good story.
Read this book and consider how your life might be perceived by those on the outside of Christian culture. Ultimately, I see it as a possible tool of reconciliation with Christians and culture and a great piece for discussion with your believing friends and non-believing friends alike.
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Listen to an interview with the author, if you can get past the somewhat "amateur" interviewer here.
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