The Blurb on the Back: 

We all long for homes where we can thrive and flourish. What does it take to have a spiritually vibrant household?

Don Everts invites us to contemplate what the Bible says about households and consider what a new research project has revealed by pulling back the curtains on everyday households of faith. Original research from the Barna Group and Lutheran Hour Ministries shows that some of the healthiest, most vibrant homes extend beyond the nuclear family and include people who may not be biologically related but feel like family. These households have vital practices of spirituality, hospitality, and community that makes them delightful places for living and thriving. You might just be surprised by how God wants to work in and through your household. Discover practical steps for nurturing a vibrant household of faith, no matter what stage of life you are in. 

My Review:

TL;DR: Good book for Christian discipleship at all stages of life. Would be especially beneficial for a small group or church to read in community. 4/5 Stars

First things first. While I picked this book up because I want to glean more wisdom on raising my kids in an environment that will help them form an enduring faith in Christ, this is not a book on parenting. It is a light on the path for every Christian who wants their own relationship with God to be vibrant and energizing. The introduction captures it well:

“If you are still reeling from the less-than-perfect home you grew up in, keep reading. You may find that God has compassionate hope and healing for you.
“If you are a frenzied parent who feels ill-equipped to pass on the faith, keep reading. You may find that God’s recipe for spiritual vibrancy is much more attainable than you’ve guessed.
“If you are single, keep reading. You may be surprised by how God defines a household, and you may feel empowered to take your important place in helping shape your own household and the household of others.
“If you are an empty nester or grandparent wondering if your home is now resigned to quietness and boredom, keep reading. You may be thrilled by how hungry people are for your influence and discover practical ways to invest in your lasting legacy.”

The subtitle of this book is “The Power of Messy Prayers, Loud Tables, and Open Doors” which is Don’s way of saying if you want a spiritually vibrant home (be it an apartment with your roommate, a single-parent family, or a retired couple who never had kids), you’d do well to find ways to relate to God together, stoke casual conversations about God, and practice hospitality. But the way Don says it captures the adaptability and lack of rigidity expressed in his book. It's less about implementing specific methods and more about adopting a lifestyle that organically integrates these. 

The book, published in 2023, is based on fresh research and filled with infographics to help you process it. Everts organizes the book by first outlining a biblical definition of a household which (surprise!) is different from our modern western conception of isolated nuclear families dependent only on themselves. Then, we get a look at how the research defined vibrancy in the first place. And finally we get the meat of the book. The breakdown of what the research found is that households– comprising more than just people who live under the same roof–  with an active, compelling faith practiced spiritual disciplines together, had regular conversations about God and spiritual matters, and extended hospitality on a regular basis. The fact that the household goes beyond those who live in a space was equally as important as the three common activities. And spiritually vibrant households had all three factors, but not in a “duty-bound checklist” as Don repeatedly puts it. 

I found this book helpful. The number of times, Everts says, “and the research supports it” made me chuckle. I appreciated that the book wasn’t prescriptive. Instead, mulling over and discussing the findings will allow readers to fit them into our lifestyle and relationships. 

I’m really encouraged by the thought that all the different people we have in and out of our home and lives is a huge benefit to the future faith of our kids– and this wasn’t just about having Christians in your home. Extending hospitality to all kinds of people is a boon to the faith of the whole household– the research supports it. 

I was challenged by the consideration of “who is your household?” and I really hope that the singles in our life, whether through reading the book, our own encouragement, or plain observation, can see the important role they play in our household. In fact, I think that was one of the aspects that makes me most want to do a book study of this in my Church. I want the unmarried Christians to see what an important role they play in the Body of Christ right now, as they are. 

Another thing I’m personally challenged by is how Everts describes creating spaces for seeking God together like starting a fire. First, you have to arrange and light the kindling. This requires patience as you may need to give it a few tries and cultivate it. If you just throw a log on right away, you’ll snuff any spark out. In other words, not only is it okay to go slow and ease in with trying spiritual disciplines together, but in fact, it’s far more likely to yield the result you want! I’m prone to starting too fast with too much structure which typically overwhelms people instead of compelling them to lean in. This felt like a consistent theme throughout the book, even though the analogy was only used in the “Messy Prayers” chapter. I think that makes the book more approachable for everyone and can help people envision a sustainable integration of the ideas, starting wherever they're at.