There are very few books that I can say have truly changed my life. Radical by David Platt is one of them. As I read through the pages, my toes were continuously stepped on, as Platt encouraged me to chase God instead of chasing “the American Dream.” I’m not saying this is true for all churches, but in our culture in general, church has become more about OUR preferences and OUR comforts rather than what God is calling us to do… which is actually to get OUT of our comfort zones and share the gospel. Platt challenges us by saying that we have “missed what is radical about our faith and replaced it with what is comfortable.” OUCH! Instead of being about comfort, our Christianity should be about abandoning ourselves.

To sum up the book, one statement that Platt makes is the following: “While the goal of the American Dream is to make much of us, the goal of the gospel is to make much of God.” If we are really sold out to Christ, this should be our main goal in life… to make much of Him and to bring glory to Him. We should not be “selling out” to what the world wants us to do or what makes us “happy.” 

Radical becomes more intense and convicting with each chapter. Platt concludes with a challenge called “The Radical Experiment,” where he encourages us to dedicate one year to doing the following:

1. Pray for the entire world;
2. Read through the entire Word;
3. Sacrifice your money for a specific purpose;
4. Spend your time in another context;
5. Commit your life to a multiplying community.

To find out more about these challenges, read the book! This is truly a must-read for every person who claims Christ as Savior. It WILL change your life… and be prepared, because a lot of Platt’s statements and challenges will not be “easy” or “comfortable.”

I am thankful that I was able to receive a free copy of David Platt’s book, Radical, from Waterbrook Multnomah’s Blogging for Books program. 

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