Beginnings by Steve Wiens

"This book is about finding hidden beginnings and pursuing the endless adventures of becoming,” Wiens writes.

He uses the creation story to help us understand how our lives are unfolding. We learn God is in the beginning chaos. We see new life come forth from seeds God has placed in us. We learn to give away what is really true of us. We learn there are seasons we go through and how we can celebrate them. We experience opposition we must overcome. We look at where we've come from and that helps us know where we are going. We find that there are rhythms and a time to stop.

This is a book about stories, stories from the Bible, from Wiens' life and from the lives of others. Wiens hopes we will find our place in the bigger story.

For some reason, this book just did not grab me. It really epitomizes the current idea of the importance of story, of one's own story, and of finding one's place in a bigger story. In the spirit of the emphasis on story, Wiens tells many of his own. He gives an extensive description of his Grand Canyon rim to rim run, a story I thought was unnecessary. And did I really need to know he was conceived on a white, hide-a-bed couch?

Nonetheless, I found some really good ideas in Wiens' teaching. I liked the message that we don't have to have our life together before God will come in. I liked the idea that there are seasons we go through, that there will be new beginnings, and that there is also a time to stop.

Wiens says this book is like a midwife, providing a process for becoming. I think that will happen mostly through the spiritual practices and questions for reflection and discussion at the end of each chapter. This book would work best in a lively discussion group where people can share their own stories and discuss the suggested practices and questions.

My rating: 3/5 stars.

Steve Wiens is the founding pastor of Genesis Covenant Church. He and his wife and their three young boys live in Maple Grove, Minnesota. You can find out more at www.stevewiens.com.

NavPress, 240 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher for the purpose of an independent and honest review