Prophetic Untimeliness

From Time to Time I like to let you know about books that catch my interest but that I have not read. Prophetic Untimeliness: A Challenge to the Idol of Relevance is one such book. The material below is from the publisher and Amazon.com.

There is a desperate quest for the Good News (Gospel of Christ)in our soul and therefore in the gatherings we call church. I like Os Guinness's clear and non-sugar coated approach to things and I am looking forward to reading this book completely. I will let you know if I am as interested in what he says after I have finished reading it.

Product Description
The buzz among evangelicals today is about relevance and reinvention, about new ways of "doing church" through revising, innovating, borrowing, mixing, and experimenting. Yet, says Os Guinness, in our uncritical pursuit of relevance, Christians have actually become irrelevant. By our determined efforts to redefine ourselves in ways that are more in line with the modern world than are faithful to Christ, we have lost not only our identity but our authority and significance. Prophetic Untimeliness addresses this issue by giving practical, constructive solutions for living with integrity in the midst of modern pressures. Guinness explores what it means to be both faithful and relevant, and how to be truly relevant without being trivial or trendy. Readers will be challenged to develop "resistance thinking," an approach inspired by C. S. Lewis that balances the uncomfortable truths of the gospel with the pursuit of relevance. Only by being true to Christ and living with integrity and wisdom will we meet the needs of a world that is hungry for some really good news.

From the Back Cover
An immensely thoughtful and provocative book, challenging some trends in our Christian culture and inviting us to reconsider and rediscover. A powerful read. Alister McGrath
Prophetic Untimeliness brings a timely warning. The temptation to dress the faith in today’s fashion guarantees that it will look out-of-style tomorrow only the eternal can reach every time and culture.--Frederica Mathewes-Green
Never have Christians tried to be so relevant. But never have Christians ended up so irrelevant. How can this be? The problem, says Os Guinness, is that our views of relevance and our efforts to redefine ourselves are captive to the seductions and pressures of our modern clock culture. Ironically, we end up as neither relevant nor faithful. And in the process we are in danger of losing not only our identity but our authority, our significance, and even our very soul.
Prophetic Untimeliness is a hard-hitting critique written with deep love for the church. It offers constructive suggestions for living with integrity in the midst of modern pressures and explores how to be truly relevant without being trivial or trendy. Inspired by C. S. Lewis, Guinness outlines a creative approach-resistance thinking-through which the pursuit of relevance is balanced by the disturbing truths of the gospel. Only by such prophetic untimeliness can we be faithful to Christ and speak with integrity and wisdom in a world that is hungry for some truly good news.

Os Guinness is an internationally renowned speaker and author of numerous books, including Time for Truth, The Call, and Long Journey Home. An Englishman, he was born in China, graduated from the universities of London and Oxford, and currently lives in Washington, D.C., where he is Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum.