Gods at War by Kyle Idleman

Well, I definitely cringed and winced and twinged at quite a few pages in this book...

Idleman definitely is not the most eloquent writer out there--and he is not aiming to be. His words hit bluntly, and they hurt. His call for the audience to re-evaluate his or her life based on the things that take the most of their time, efforts, money, and thoughts really aims spot-on at the central problems in my life. Though it took me a very long time to get through, for the sheer amount of time I needed to chew my way through some of these challenging and convicting chapters, I feel that every page was worth my time, even those that did not directly apply to me.

What is a god? It is something you worship, something you revere, something you sacrifice things to, often very valuable and important things. Kyle Idleman takes this familiar concept--something that even non-Christians would agree is a pretty standard, well-rounded definition of what a 'god' is--and replaces the word "god" with other things: your money, your spouse, your work, your schoolwork, sex, love, material possessions, even your pursuit of simple pleasure or success....all of these things, and many more, can become a god. You put your time into it, often sacrificing other things in your life just so you can devote more energy into that ONE thing that you simply can't do without. Your life doesn't feel complete without this. You need it. You revere it. And Idleman calls this idol worship.

It's not a nice book by a long run. Heck, it's pretty mean. But the heart of the author comes out here, in his desire that no man or woman should be wasting time, money, energy, and their very lives going after stuff that isn't as valuable as we make them out to be. He states pretty clearly that all of that, it's a waste. Period. Wow, what a way to think about all those times I spent during summer breaks back in high school reading comic books or playing video games. But he is also uplifting in his repetitive exhortation that the reader turn to Christ, the one God that is actually worth everything we might give Him, and so much more. I won't go into the nuances here, but let's just say Idleman rams this point home by giving it a good mention at the end of every, single, chapter. Yeah, the point gets across all right.

The checklists and examples given at the end of every chapter were really nice. They were formatted into pretty boxes, so it felt like I was reading something new every time, and it kept my mind from wandering too far from the topic at hand by presenting a fresh look at the chapter's main argument. It also gave some questions to think about: these were the things that had me thinking on them long after I inserted my bookmark and closed the book for the day. Little details and extra touches like these can really go a long way.

There's nothing quite like a light Christian read to get myself back on my feet. I think taking a break from my normal reading list for this was a very good choice, and if there are any Christians out there, I would recommend this book to them as a way to get their life prioritized and re-focused onto the truly important things.

And for those of you who aren't Christian, it's still a helpful read. Admit it, we all have something in our lives that we spend way too much time on. Here's an entire book that'll help you convince yourself that it's not worth it. You have better things to do with the 100 years or so that you have to spend as your life.