If you grow up in a church that believes Sandi Patti’s music is evil, you are more than likely going to end up with enough fodder for a book.
Matthew Paul Turner did, and his results are hilarious. In Hear No Evil: My Story of Innocence, Music, and the Holy Ghost, Matthew shares his passion for music actually pokes a bit of fun at Christian subculture, although his love for Jesus is definitely evident. It might be cringeworthy in a few places but his honesty and humor is refreshing, and it makes you think…I love books that make you dig a little deeper into your own thoughts and and actions. One of my favorite lines is toward the end of the book; it’s a bit like the journey that I’ve been on over the past few years:
“But by that time I was beginning to rethink what it meant to be Christian. My faith was becoming less of a get-out-of-hell-free card and leaning more toward a way to live. Because of Jesus, I wanted to love people, which meant I didn’t want to engage in relationships with an agenda.”
Any book that encourages me in that pursuit is absolutely a book I would recommend. He also authored Churched: One Kid’s Journey Toward God Despite a Holy Mess, which is now on my “to be read” list!
Matthew’s book can be purchased here and this book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.
