Momentum by Colin S. Smith

Momentum by Colin S. Smith ISBN-13: 9780802413864 Paperback: 208 pages Publisher: Moody Publishers Released: October 4th 2016

Source: review copy from the publisher through Amazon Vine.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
In the Beatitudes, the Son of God tells us about the life that is blessed and about the people who are blessed. But Jesus does more than just describe a blessed life, He gives us a way to actually pursue it. If you want to make strides in overcoming sin, growing in godliness, abounding in good works, and enjoying intimacy with the Lord, this book is for you. And if you have lost hope that any of these things are possible, this book is especially for you.


My Review:
Momentum is a Christian living/spiritual growth guide. He provided step-by-step suggestions on how to get unstuck in your spiritual life. Basically, you recognize your need for God, mourn over your sins, place your strength under God's control, and these things lead you to long for righteousness, forgive others, want God to free you from habitual sin, and make peace when in a conflict with others. Wholeheartedly following God can lead to persecution, so he also talked about whether you should stand or flee persecution. For each step that I mentioned above, he had a series of actions to help you achieve that step. Like for forgiveness, he provided actions that you can do that will prepare your heart to offer forgiveness to another.

His steps are loosely based on the Beatitudes, and I didn't always agree with his interpretation of them. For example, he mentioned mercy ("Blessed are the merciful"), but his focus was on forgiveness because that worked best for his overall theme. I also didn't agree with his argument that we don't have to forgive someone unless they repent first. Also, I believe that the "Blessed are those who mourn" includes mourning over the effects of a fallen world, not just our own, personal sins. Overall, though, I thought that he made some good points and that his step-by-step suggestions were useful and usually God focused (rather than a "just try harder" to-do list).


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.