Practicing the Way of Jesus: Life Together in the Kingdom of Love
Mark Scandrette
InterVarsity Press, 2011
$15.00
Reviewed by Kevin Book-Satterlee
Practicing the Way of Jesus by Mark Scandrette is nothing new among Christian literature, but Scandrette’s creativity in setting experiments for spiritual formation is powerful for helping others align their lives to Christ and the Christian life. Scandrette is a social artist, asking people to challenge themselves. His experiments are so practical they could almost elude spiritual formation. Yet, these experiential practices cut at the quick of a lifestyle unaligned to Christ and lead to nothing but a deeper relationship with God.
The book discusses the purpose of Scandrette’s spiritual formation program called the Jesus Dojo. He explains that the word dojo refers to a training center and it is an adept description of the experiments that Scandrette discusses. What I liked about the book regarding the training is the sheer variety and contextualization of the experiments. The book does not outline a “how to” list of experiments that must be done for spiritual formation. Rather, he provides examples of what the Jesus Dojo has done. Scandrette doesn’t write as an expert with the perfect plan. He writes as a creative thinker invested in the lives of people who want to invest their lives into God.
Practicing the Way of Jesus is an easy read and inspiring. I will find myself returning to a number of concepts that brought light to my imagination. The true power of Scandrette’s work will come as it gets passed around among a small group or community within a congregation, within an intentional community or among close friends. As a social artist Scandrette’s work will motivate discussion among peers on how to truly be reaching people, especially post-Christian urbanites.
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