Practical Justice: Living Off-Center in a Self-Centered World

By Kevin Blue

You know the world is full of injustice. You know that God calls Christians to work for justice on the earth. But what can you do? Do you have questions like this? You're well-intended, but stuck in the rut of the everyday. You want to make your life matter. But you don't know where to start. You wonder about everything from whether to give a dollar to a beggar to how to participate in the political process, from whether to shop at Wal-Mart to how much to spend on a car. Kevin Blue has spent his adult life answering these questions for himself and for others. He lives in the heart of Los Angeles, where these questions can't be set aside. And he has led college students through experiences in urban ministry as well as international treks to the poorest parts of the world. In Practical Justice he combines what he has learned with the experiences of others to answer your questions. Right thinking. Right action. Just living. God calls you to step up and get involved. This book will help you get started.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0830833684
• ISBN13: 9780830833689
• Release Date: November 2006
• Publisher: IVP Books
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.6" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Decent

I enjoyed the book a lot. As a freshman in college I started getting interested in this new Jesus that wants you to do stuff with your faith. This book was a great intro into the world of social justice. I found the suggestions offered throughout somewhat helpful, and at least a little challenging to me. There are lots of good quotes and ideas to be had, and I appreciate avoiding mere commentary and giving concrete ideas for directions to head.

Balanced Yet Prophetic

Another home run in the new series of Likewise books from InterVarsity Press, Practical Justice introduces a balanced yet profoundly prophetic voice into the discussion of the role of the church and the role of the Christian to justice issues. Kevin Blue, director of the Los Angeles Urban Project with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, states in the first chapter, "No one who encountered Jesus was able to just ignore him. All went away disturbed." Reading this book disturbed me to the point of actually pondering for a few short moments if I needed to stop being a pastor and go back to working on Capitol Hill in order to really advance the Kingdom of God in the world around me. Kevin speaks from lots of personal experience and years of thinking through these issues, and I find his voice to be a refreshing addition to the mix of personalities involved in these discussions. I especially like the three chapters that explored the idiom, "Give a man a fish and he'll eat for a day. Teach him to fish and he'll eat for a lifetime." Kevin demonstrates that both are necessary and gives practical advice for how individuals can participate in both steps of that process. More importantly, he includes a third vital component-- fixing the pond-- to address larger systems and structures that must be changed in order to make a more complete and permanent impact. While Kevin seemed to slip in and out of teaching, encouraging, and preaching, in general, I enjoyed his tone and easy to read writing style. I feel like I know a bit about his heart and personality after reading this book. The chapter on race and class seems awkward in its placement in the book. And his advice that Christians should have no political leanings seems impractical and impossible for those of us in DC who worked (or a currently working) within places in government that have the power to fix the pond. With the exception of those two minor things, I really enjoyed this book. Kevin is balanced in his approach and yet prophetic in his call to make a change in our generation. The practical steps he offers seem valuable to anyone at any point on their journey into understanding and working within justice and compassion issues. I also appreciate the value he places on making changes in our culture within the context of community and the chapter on not becoming what you hate. Practical Justice propelled my thinking on this topic forward, and it gave me a new outreach idea for the community of groups that I lead. It would be a great book for a small group.