That Girl's Bookshelf....

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I am dying to tell you of a book I'm reading. I haven't had much time to sit down over the past week, but when I do, it's what I pick up. The book is called "Holy Roller" and the author, Julie Lyons, is so artful in her seamless weaving of details of things like crime scenes and depictions of the characters in her book along with her faith journey that took place when she went looking for a story and found the story and the God who changed her life.

Julie Lyons was working as a crime reporter when she followed a hunch into the South Dallas ghetto. She wasn’t hunting drug dealers, but drug addicts who had been supernaturally healed of their addictions. Was there a church in the most violent part of the city that prayed for addicts and got results?
At The Body of Christ Assembly, a rundown church on an out-of-the-way street, Lyons found the story she was looking for. The minister welcomed criminals, prostitutes, and street people–anyone who needed God. He prayed for the sick, the addicted, and the demon-possessed, and people were supernaturally healed.
Lyons’s story landed on the front page of the Dallas Times Herald. But she got much more than just a great story, she found an unlikely spiritual home. Though the parishioners at The Body of Christ Assembly are black and Pentecostal, and Lyons is white and from a traditional church background, she embraced their spirituality–that of “the Holy Ghost and fire.”
It’s all here in Holy Roller–the stories of people desperate for God’s help. And the actions of a God who doesn’t forget the people who need His power. (from a summary I didn't write.)

Julie Lyons is an award-winning writer, editor and investigative reporter who for more than 11 years served as editor-in-chief of the Dallas Observer, an alternative weekly newspaper owned by Village Voice Media. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University and a B.A. in English from Seattle Pacific University. She and her husband, Larry Lyons Jr., live in Dallas with their son. I would sure like to be her friend, too.

I am reading this book and I feel like the people are changing right smack-dab in front of me because of the way Lyons tells the story. No matter what denomination with which you identify, no matter what worship style you love, no matter where you are at in life, this book will encourage you as you see the transforming power of Christ at work. It gives hope and encouragement and has challenged me as a believer. God can do anything, and if He wants to use a tiny Pentecostal church tucked away in Dallas Texas to help people get freedom from addiction, I wonder what He can do with each of our churches if we commit to serving Him even if it gets awkward or uncomfortable from time to time.

Please read this book--it is enjoyable and challenging! You can go here to Random House or to your local Christian Bookstore (I hear Blessings in Loogootee is nice...) to order the book.

And just because I want you to read it this badly, I am giving away a copy thanks to my friends at Random House! Post a comment and you are entered to win! I will "Random"ly draw the winner of a brand-new copy of "Holy Roller" by Julie Lyons.

It will look good on your Bookshelf and even better with you on the beach.