Primal by Mark Batterson

Christianity has a perception problem. At the heart of the problem is the simple fact that Christians are more known for what we’re against than what we’re for. But the real problem isn’t perception. We as Christians are often quick to point out what’s wrong with our culture. And we certainly need the moral courage to stand up for what’s right in the face of what’s wrong. But before confronting what’s wrong with our culture, we need to be humble enough, honest enough, and courageous enough to repent of what’s wrong with us.

So what’s wrong with us?

The answer is simply this: We’re not great at the Great Commandment.
And in too many instances, we’re not even good at it.

That, I believe, is our primal problem. That is the lost soul of Christianity. If Jesus said that loving God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength is the most important commandment, then doesn’t it logically follow that we ought to spend an inordinate amount of our time and energy trying to understand it and obey it? We can’t afford to be merely good at the Great Commandment. We’ve got to be great at the Great Commandment.

The quest for the lost soul of Christianity begins with rediscovering what it means to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength

In Primal, Mark Batterson discusses how all too often we have drifted away from the passion we had when we first became a Christian. He shows how necessary and possible it is to get back to that place. I enjoyed the book, yet was convicted by it. I have never read anything by Batterson, but found his writing enjoyable and easy to read. A must-read for any Christian, whether you have lost your passion or not.

About The Author:
Mark Batterson serves as lead pastor of National Community Church in Washington, DC. NCC was recognized as one of the 25 Most Innovative Churches in America by Outreach Magazine in 2008. One church with eight services in four locations, NCC is focused on reaching emerging generations. Nearly 70% of NCCers are single twenty-somethings.

The vision of NCC is to meet in movie theaters at metro stops throughout the metro DC area. NCC also owns and operates the largest coffeehouse on Capitol Hill. In 2008, Ebenezers was recognized as the best coffeehouse in the metro area of D.C. by AOL CityGuide.

Mark has two Masters Degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Chicago, Illinois. He is the author of a best-selling book, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day. And he is a daily blogger at http://markbatterson.com.

Mark is married to Lora and they live on Capitol Hill with their three children: Parker, Summer, and Josiah.

Thanks to Waterbrook/Multnomah which provided this book for me to review.

Primal is available from Waterbrook/Multnomah at http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/catalog.php?isbn=9781601421319