Jarrell’s book, A Riff of Love, reads like a melodic tune that touches your heart and empowers you to reach out to others with love.
He speaks to what it means to be in a loving and caring community that has the best interest of all its members in consideration when making decisions. The chapters are arranged like different tracks on an album and to see community at work in the divine within those communities is moving.
His book is also a call to action to be in the community and be with those that live in the community. When writing of preparing for a funeral, he addresses the neighborhood and the churches role. He writes, “The Christians, they worship a dead man come to life on Sunday morning, but cannot bear to be with the dying and broken-hearted during the week. This is a Broken Windows Theology–in America, the churches do things to the poor, but they cannot bear being with the poor.”
What a call for us to come to terms with who we are as a church and even more so, a church in America. May we learn from Jarrell what it means to live in community through being the hands and feet of Christ.
Thanks to Speakeasy for the opportunity to review this book.
a mysterious way 