The Barbarian Way
I've already read this book twice ... but just can't help thumbing through it again. It truly challenges me to live and see life differently. It makes me feel passionately and fully alive!
"The civilized build shelters and invite God to stay with them; barbarians move with God wherever He chooses to go. The civilized Christian has a routine; the barbarian disciple has a mission. The civilized believer knows the letter of the law; the barbarian disciple lives the spirit of the law. The religiously civilized love tradition; the barbarian spirit loves challenges. The civilized are satisified with ritual; barbarians live and thrive in the mystical. For the civilized disciple, religion provides stability and certainity; for the barbarian, a life in God is one of risk and mystery.
And maybe even a little insanity. There's no way to escape that barbarians can appear out of their minds. No reasonable person would ever fully follow God everywhere He calls. God is simply unreasonable."
I pray that I always live in the mystical ... live a life of risk and mystery ... and appear out of control to all those around me!
"The civilized build shelters and invite God to stay with them; barbarians move with God wherever He chooses to go. The civilized Christian has a routine; the barbarian disciple has a mission. The civilized believer knows the letter of the law; the barbarian disciple lives the spirit of the law. The religiously civilized love tradition; the barbarian spirit loves challenges. The civilized are satisified with ritual; barbarians live and thrive in the mystical. For the civilized disciple, religion provides stability and certainity; for the barbarian, a life in God is one of risk and mystery.
And maybe even a little insanity. There's no way to escape that barbarians can appear out of their minds. No reasonable person would ever fully follow God everywhere He calls. God is simply unreasonable."
I pray that I always live in the mystical ... live a life of risk and mystery ... and appear out of control to all those around me!
posted by Lisa Stucky at 2:15 PM
3 Comments:
good reminder. i too am so challenged by that..more often than I would like I fall into the "civilized" category.
How quickly what God intended to be an exciting adventure becomes a walk on the treadmill- so predictable and somewhat beneficial, but how much I miss!
I wish I could say I'm truly a barbarian ... but I'm pretty darn civilized. After all, I LOVE routine. But I'm a barbarian wanna-be!
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