Jesus Freak

In this new book, Sara Miles tells the story of what has happened in her attempts to follow Jesus, to do something real in response to teachings that many people still see as abstract or merely symbolic. It's also a response to the many people she met in promoting her first book, people who were afraid or felt they couldn't possibly do the kinds of things she has done: start a food pantry, love the unlovable, go to dark and scary places to bless and heal. But she holds up the model of Jesus himself: Throughout the gospels, as he roams through Palestine, Jesus repeatedly makes specific calls to action to his followers, tasks that they will have to perform on the spot—- and have to do again and again, when he's gone. They (and we) don't always understand, but he insists. "You can do this stuff," he tells them. "Walk this way. Come on, don't be afraid." It's up to us to take up God's work in the world.