Are you a HOLY FOOL?

Over the next couple of weeks I am blogging some of the books that I've had the chance to read over the summer. Another book that I got to read while over vacation in Florida was Holy Fools by Mathew Woodley. Out of all the books that I read this summer, this book made one of the more significant impacts on my life and walk with the Lord.

Very few times does a book grab me at the first couple of pages, but this book did with it's story of Alan (you'll have to read the book to discover Alan!).

Woodley shares the stories and experiences of the Desert Fathers and Jesus himself to lead us into a deeper experience of God's grace. These Holy Fools, men and women of the past and of today, are people characterized by their passion, who exuded a "messy" spirituality, were always seen hanging around with other "messy" people, and were always in trouble with the those who wanted to preserve the status-quo.

Woodley writes not as a detached observer, but as a man who has first hand, on his spiritual journey, encountered many Holy Fools and through them has encountered God's wonderful and beautiful grace. Here is an excerpt demonstrating his honesty and candor as he describes his pilgrimage.

Over a ten-year period God has used surprising mentors like Alan, Ezekiel, Paul, Moling, Francis, Mary, and of course Jesus to stir, disrupt, and awaken my heart. This is the story of my unexpected journey with the holy fools. In particular it's the story of how God awakened me in key areas of my life: vulnerability, compassion, spiritual discipline, and spiritual passion.

Twelve years ago as I sat hunched over the steering wheel of the church van, a broken and pierced man, I had no idea that God was taking me on a new journey. It started as an awakening to my own vulnerability. As God awaken my heart, he began to subvert and demolish my walls of self-righteousness. And strangely enough, it all started wit the creeping awareness of a virus that was threatening to suck the spiritual life right out of me if I didn't act quickly.

I am so excited about this book that I am going to use it in my discipleship with the men in my life, alongside the other gospel drenched writings of Tim Keller, Jack Miller and David Benner.

Get this book and read it. And it the words of the great theologian, Mr. T -
"I pity the Fool who doesn't read this book!" :-)