Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith QUOTES

1 " God does not change, but He uses change—to change us. He sends us on journeys that bring us to the end of ourselves. We often feel out of control, yet if we embrace His leading, we may find ourselves on the ride of our lives. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

2 " The starving, the unwanted old and unborn, the criminal, those of wrong color, ideology, sex, nation, class—whatever category renders a person least in our minds—bear the face of Jesus. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

3 " It is not your responsibility to explain what God is doing with your life. He has not provided enough information to figure it out. Instead, you are asked to turn loose and let God be God. Therein lies the secret to the “peace that transcends understanding. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

4 " Believer, your life is too essential to waste on pettiness or word wars, greed or ladder climbing, anger or bitterness, fear or anxiety, regret or disappointment. Life is too short. We must run, not walk, the way of Isaiah 58, embracing authentic faith manifested through mercy and community. Living on mission requires nothing less. It is a grand adventure, a true voyage into the kingdom of God. Would you lose days, months, years pointing fingers and quarreling, or would you rather break yokes of oppression? Imagine what would happen if we all chose the latter. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

5 " Do we really need to be fed more of the Word, or are we simply undernourished from an absence of living the Word? Maybe we love God, but are we loving others? If our faith is about us, then we are not just hungry—our spirits are starving. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

6 " We don’t get to opt out of living on mission because we might not be appreciated. We’re not allowed to neglect the oppressed because we have reservations about their discernment. We cannot deny love because it might be despised or misunderstood. We can’t withhold social relief because we’re not convinced it will be perfectly managed. Must we be wise? Absolutely. But doing nothing is a blatant sin of omission. Turning a blind eye to the bottom on the grounds of “unworthiness” is the antithesis to Jesus’ entire mission. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

7 " My people are crumbling and dying and starving, and you’re blessing blessed people and serving the saved. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

8 " People in America are not ignorant of Christianity. They’ve heard the message, seen our churches on every corner, they flick by our Christian TV shows, they see our fish symbols on the backs of our cars. They’ve seen so much of pop Christian culture that they have a programmed response to us: Ignore, ignore, ignore. What’s needed is a change of parameters—something that will alter their emotional response. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

9 " Jesus always colored outside of the lines here, extending grace and healing to those well beyond His people group. He often healed people first; they believed second. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

10 " If people around me aren’t moved by my Christ or my church, then I must be doing a miserable job of representing them both. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

11 " Let no one be discouraged by the belief there is nothing one man or one woman can do against the enormous array of the world’s ills—against misery and ignorance, injustice and violence. . . . Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation. . . . It is from the numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.—Robert F. Kennedy18 "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

12 " This is what God taught me through Judas at Jesus’ table, eating the broken bread that was His body: We don’t get to opt out of living on mission because we might not be appreciated. We’re not allowed to neglect the oppressed because we have reservations about their discernment. We cannot deny love because it might be despised or misunderstood. We can’t withhold social relief because we’re not convinced it will be perfectly managed. We can’t project our advantaged perspective onto struggling people and expect results available only to the privileged. Must we be wise? Absolutely. But doing nothing is a blatant sin of omission. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

13 " I worry the Christian community has accepted an insidious shift from laboring for others to prioritizing our own rights. We’ve perpetuated a group identity as misunderstood and persecuted, defending our positions and preferring to be right over being good news. We’ve bought the lie that connecting with people on their terms is somehow compromising, that our refusal to proclaim our moral ground from word one is a slippery slope. It has become more vital to protect our own station than advocate for a world that needs Jesus, who came to us, wrapped in our skin, speaking our language. If we were not too beneath Christ, who died for us while we were still sinners, then how dare we take a superior position over any other human being? How lovely is a faith community that goes forth as loving sisters and brothers rather than angry defenders and separatists. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

14 " If we’ve been in church for years yet aren’t full, are we really hungry for more knowledge? In our busy lives, do we really need another program or event? Do we really need to be fed more of the Word, or are we simply undernourished from an absence of living the Word? Maybe we love God, but are we loving others? If our faith is about us, then we are not just hungry—our spirits are starving. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

15 " We cannot think our way into a new kind of living. We must live our way into a new kind of thinking. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

16 " However, if you’re navigating the tension between your Bible and your life, or Jesus’ ancient ideas and the modern wayward church, or God’s kingdom on earth and reality, then welcome. Sometimes it’s better to wade through murky waters with a fellow explorer than with an authority. Questions can still be investigated with another learner instead of with one who has only answers. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

17 " I want the church to be great because we fed hungry mommas and their babies. I’d like to be great because we battled poverty with not just our money but our hands and hearts. I desire the greatness that comes from seeking not only mercy but justice for those caught in a system with trapdoors. I hope to be part of a great movement of the Holy Spirit, who injects supernatural wind and fire into His mission. My version of great will come when others are scratching their heads and saying, “Wow, you live a really different life. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

18 " With the resurrection of Jesus and the salvation of humanity, we are no longer identified by nation, race, gender, or any group dynamic. We don’t get to stand behind the shield of church or denomination or political party. There is no “us” and “them” anymore. “Us” is the worldwide assembly of the rescued who have been transformed from hopeless humans to adopted sons and daughters of God through faith in Jesus. The end. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

19 " Never once did Jesus charge them with something they did wrong. His entire indictment was on what they didn’t do right. It was a sin of neglect, a crime of omission. And it went far beyond ignoring poverty. Jesus explained that when we ignore the least, we ignore Him. "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith

20 " Our only hope is to follow the example of Jesus and get back out there, winning people over with ridiculous love "

― Jen Hatmaker , Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith