Book: A Kingdom Called Desire

Title: A Kingdom Called Desire: Confronted by the Love of a Risen King

Author: Rick McKinley

What’s it about: This book is about the Kingdom of God! It looks at the desires we have - how those desires can sometimes appear in ugly ways but they, at their deepest, are desires that can only be met in God. It talks about how we often try to do the right thing only out of a sense of duty but when we truly encounter the love of God we obey Him because we love Him and we see how deeply He loves us.

Why did I read it: It's been on my bookshelf since 2011! It was good to finally pick it up and read it. 

Favourite idea: Oh goodness. I don't think I could pick one so instead I'll leave you with some quotes.

"But if God called us to His love freely by grace and apart from works, then that love changes everything, because God called us to love us, not simply to use us."

"The creation drama is the most passionate love story ever told, and God is the pursuing lover. We are invited to respond to love that so furiously and recklessly has come after us in Christ."

"They [people of God] have been captured by a vision of another world, and they are sustained by a love that comes from somewhere else. They are Jesus' people. They are the fragrance of life to a dying world... They are a people who have found what their hearts are made for."

"Next time you want to quit loving and serving and giving yourself away for the sake of the kingdom, remember: you're playing offence, not defence. Hell will give way to heaven. Death will give way to life; we know it is true because it has already come true in Jesus, who conquered hell through His own death and brought heaven to earth through His resurrected life."