everPresent: How the Gospel Relocates Us in the Present

everPresent: How the Gospel Relocates Us in the Present

For many, the call of the Great Commission to “to go and make disciples” conjures up images of tireless, ceaseless activity. Evangelism programs can be robotic; sharing the gospel with strangers on the street can be terrifying; mission trips overseas can be expensive. In our efforts to go and make, we often forget that the very places we already inhabit are places that we have been sent with the good news of Jesus. Many Christians hear the missional call, but there is still a mystique around practice. When missional practice is shaped by the Bible story, we begin to see every aspect of the world through the gospel lens, and our missional imagination flourishes. In everPresent , Jeremy Writebol models this approach. By retelling the bible story through the theme of place and presence, we can see the places we live through the gospel. We will see opportunities for sharing the gospel, and how the gospel makes sense of every aspect of ordinary life. DR. JONNY WOODROW Associate Director, The Porterbrook Network, Pastor, The Crowded House, Loughborough, UK Jeremy is one of those writers that other writers want to be like. I know saying that he presents theological ideas in a fresh and new way is like saying a motel in the back woods has "clean rooms" . . . but in this case it's true. everPresent does something that most books don't achieve in today's theological landscape. Most focus either on who God is or what we should do. Jeremy's efforts start with who God is to walk the reader down the path of what God has done, who we are because of God, and then, logically and succinctly, points us to naturally understand what we are to do because of this. I highly recommend picking this book up to better understand both the why and how of the life of those that follow Jesus. SETH MCBEE Executive Team Member, GCM Collective Phoenix, AZ I talk with church planters and pastors every day who are struggling to create a culture of engagement among their church in their communities. In everPresent Jeremy paints a picture of the Biblical sending and practical living of sojourners dislocated by rebellion yet strategically placed for restoration in our homes, work places, social gatherings, and cities. This is a book that not only encouraged and challenged me, but that I will use to encourage and challenge those in my church with our calling to be everPresent. JOSHUA HEDGER Director, Center for Church Planting & Partnership, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary Kansas City, MO The Lord Jesus calls us witnesses, the Apostle Paul calls us ambassadors, and the Apostle Peter describes us as apologists. Every Christian is a representative of Christ wherever they are. In Jeremy Writebol's everPresent , he engagingly writes about the believer's responsibility of living out and sharing the Gospel. It is refreshing, readable, thoroughly biblical, and very practical. Be prepared to be recharged and then go "rep the King." CHRIS BAUER Senior Pastor, Santa Rosa Bible Church Santa Rosa, California everPresent does an excellent job of explaining the gospel message as it relates to the places we inhabit everyday. As a homemaker I was given a new understanding of my home as a mission field to care for, train, and send my children to live on mission for the Lord in the places they will inhabit someday. I found encouragement for my husband in his workplace and challenges for my family in every visit to the coffee shop, the grocery store, and the gym. JENN MOLEN Homemaker Wichita, KS Jeremy Writebol's book everPresent gives a helpful introductory biblical theology of place. The first step in living on mission is to see opportunity in the spaces where you spend your time, or, before even that, to reenter those spaces with gospel intentionality. Writebol helps us see how God could use us in those ordinary, everyday places. I picked up the book to help a friend and found myself helped. I recommend everPresent highly. KEVIN P. LARSON Lead Pastor, Karis Church Columbia, MO In this concise, powerful read, Pastor Jeremy Writebol calls readers to re-examine what it means to live a "sent" life as an ambassador of Christ. everPresent calls readers to consider the value of taking the hope of the gospel to the world through a re-envisioning of and a radical commitment to being truly present wherever we are. This book will challenge you, theologically and practically, to be the everyday missionary God calls you to be. Jeremy Writebol has been training leaders in the church for over fourteen years. He is the author of everPresent: How the Gospel Relocates Us in the Present (GCD Books, 2014) and the forthcoming Inner-Rings (GCD Books 2016). He is a staff writer at Gospel-Centered Discipleship and Christ and Pop Culture and writes at jwritebol.net. He is also the pastor of Woodside Bible Church's Plymouth, MI campus.