When I first read the descriptions of Invitation to the Jesus Life, I must admit I was skeptical.  I thought it sounded like it would be touchy-feely, me-centered, emergent-church babble.  I’m so glad I decided to read it anyway!  Although it is about personal spiritual growth and, therefore, has an inherent degree of focus on self, it is far from what I would call “me-centered.”  Johnson paints word pictures for her readers of a number of character qualities Jesus possessed and suggests ways that we can become more godly by focusing on and modeling ourselves after Him.

The descriptions of biblical events are, in some instances, unorthodox.  They did not, however, strike me as as the kind of unorthodox that tends toward a perversion of Scripture but, rather, the type of unorthodox that drags us out of our knowledgeable-Christian ruts and causes us to really see these events and absorb their import.

What impressed me most about the book was its practical nature.  While each chapter began with a description of how Jesus exemplified the particular trait under consideration, each one ended with a list of very practical exercises for the reader.  Not every one will be for every reader.  Not all of them are necessarily designed to be permanent practices, either – some of them are more along the lines of experiments.  But every single one is an immensely practical way to work toward godly habits.  As a reader who often finds myself thinking, “I know, but HOW?” I very much appreciated this.  I will definitely be re-reading this one.