I thought this a little slow to get started, but excellent in perspective. Well-written and persuasive; the author looks at both secular and traditional Christian views on the 'new earth' as described in Scripture. He then points out that none is really coherent - that the new earth will be a transformation of all that's best about what we have now.

The consequence of this belief - and I felt that his explanation made a lot of sense - is that we should value all work towards order (in the broadest sense), beauty and abundance.

I found it overall encouraging, positive and thought-provoking. Perhaps a little repetitive in the final pages, and a tad heavy-going in places, but I would recommend it to anyone interested in this topic.

Longer review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/2023/05/futureville-by-skye-jethani.html ( )

Futureville explores a Christ-centered vision of calling and vocation rooted in the Garden of Eden. ( )

BEAUTIFUL CHURCH

For sometime I’ve dreamt about a different kind of church. I’ve had my moments of wanting to walk away from her and try it my own way. I didn’t. I continued to dream of a church that lived and loved like Jesus and brought restoration to the broken. Even now as I search for a pastorate, I long for and dream for the beautiful and for it to show up in and out of the church. Skye Jethani in his book Futureville not only challenges the individual but the church as well to plan for a better today by reimagining tomorrow. Tomorrow is our hope and our purpose is to share glimpses of the beauty in the “ordinary brokenness” of our worlds.

It didn’t take long for me to want to read more when Jethani began sharing how many fail to see the church as relevant to their lives. After several years of working with and teaching young people, I have found that many of them are ready to walk away. We were all created in the image of God and desire meaning and significance, but the problem is how we (or the church) look at the future and our place in the world today.

He spends much of the book giving a well laid out timeline as to how the church’s focus has changed. At one time, the focus emphasized evolving to a better tomorrow through acts of social justice and making a difference in the world. He also portrays the church’s obsession on evacuating – the end times and separation from this world. Both are shown not as evils but rather how both should be working together for good. Left alone they miss the proper future focus.

His book culminates with the possibility that the church should embrace everyone’s story and place in the world – an encompassing vision and mission beyond social justice or clergy calling. The church is called to celebrate and encourage each other’s gifts and “garden patches.”

My favorite illustration in the book shares part of Nelson Mandela’s prison or wilderness chaos story. Mandela could see the beauty of home from his prison cell but could not reach it. Instead of giving up hope, he brought beauty to the prison by cultivating a small patch of ground into a beautiful garden. This act of incarnation rather than evolution or evacuation is how beauty came to his chaotic world.

The church with a proper future focus will then celebrate personal value and every man and woman and the part they play in our world today. Jethani shares that “our faith affirms the God-given value of every person.” He devotes one chapter (probably one of my favorites) to the churches need to affirm the calling of the artist. He suggests that “perhaps Jesus would say, ‘Why do you bother them? They are doing beautiful things for me.’”

This book was a needed reminder to every reader that the church can be a beautiful place if she sets her sights on affirming everyone’s place in their world. The beauty of the church is her diversity and remembering that “everyone’s story matters.” I highly recommend this book, especially for those pastors who do want to make a difference rather than garner praise or a paycheck.

Thomas Nelson provided me a free copy of this book in exchange for this review which I freely give. ( )

In Futureville, Skye Jethani investigates the consequences of imaging the future for life today. Drawing from parent's new hope gotten at the New York World's Fair in 1939, crashed by next year's World War II and the loss of a 6 years old son, there's a tension between the bright future and the crimson present. Many Christians in the past century have been taught that the end was near, Rapture the escape from the late, great planet Earth (the famous book by Hal Lindsey). When that didn't happen, a self-centered, inward American Church and failure to reach out were consequences.Where church size mattered, everything else was of minor importance.
Then what to make of this world? Is there a place for Christians in politics, art, social activities, development work? Shouldn't we all be busy 24/7 in church? Jethani strongly rejects the idea of the overt bias to church ministries and neglecting neighbours, neighbourhood, work, arts and politics. Without the need for a Kingdom Now or theocracy, we are in this world, but not of this world. However we are not supposed to be the back pocket of church leaders, only interested in our money, time and what we do in church.
The author repaints the picture of God, bringing order in chaos, interested in planting gardens en cities, new creations of a different quality, not replacing His creation. Tomorrow's world according to the Bible isn't teaching escapism or everlasting playing harps on clouds. It's restoring and strengthening your place in this world with the commandment of love and the commission to go out and tell the gospel, that Jesus Christ died for our sins, conquered death and raised again, still recognizable for his friends and preparing a room in his big, big house, where the doors are always open for all people.
Futureville is a smart, inspiring call to cultivate the order, beauty, and abundance that reflects the heart and vision of God for our world. ( )