Today I had lunch with a very good friend of mine, Michael Moore. We hadn’t seen each other for quite a while so we had a long conversation just catching up with what had been happening between thought excursions in which we “solved” the problems of the world. He wrote the forward to Good Faith Hunting which I’ve included in this blog post
It had already been a long day, but Henry wanted me to go with him to visit the midweek service of the predominantly Iraqi congregation meeting that evening near the center of downtown Amman, Jordan. So we hailed a cab outside the hotel and soon joined up with our Arabic-speaking brothers and sisters for what we naively imagined to be a one hour service or so. After a couple of hours, though, the singing began to wind down a bit and one of the pastors stood up to introduce “our American guests,” thereby proffering us the opportunity to hand over to them the gift we had brought over from the States—a brand new, state-of-the-art, video projector. Pulling it from the bag, we saw one of the worship leaders jump down from the makeshift stage in the corner of the room and start hugging us. Unable to respond to him in his native tongue, Henry and I just smiled and beamed and drank it all in.
Invited for tea and biscuits afterwards, we meekly protested that we were too tired to stay, but our hosts would have none of that. So, not only did we drink tea with our new friends for another hour or so, we also listened to their stories—some joyous, some routine, some comical, some heartbreaking. Most of the members of this predominantly male congregation, you see, were recent Iraqi refugees forced to flee their families as multinational forces invaded their country. Many didn’t know if they were ever going to see their loved ones again, and they desperately wanted someone to pray with them about it. So Henry and I listened and prayed and drank tea with these members of the Body at this holy moment. It was an unforgettable experience.
Riding back to the hotel in the cab, I still remember the excitement in Henry’s voice as he helped us process what we’d just experienced. How often do two white boys born in the suburbs of the Virginia Tidewater region get to do what we’d just done?
The book you’re about to read is designed to help you process what you’re experiencing, particularly if you’re part of the growing nation of disciples which finds itself increasingly fed up with the “counterfeit community” and “club Christianity” now masquerading as the Body of Christ in North America.
So put the kettle on, put your legs up, and enjoy the ride back to the hotel . . .
Michael S. Moore
Director, Arizona Research Center for the Ancient Near East
Faculty Associate, Arizona State University, Fuller Theological Seminary
Author of The Balaam Traditions (1990), Faith Under Pressure (2003), and WealthWatch (2011)
You can read further by clicking on the book picture and buying the paperback or Kindle version from Amazon. You can also obtain the book from the publisher’s website, from other bookstores.
