A great number of seekers find themselves in the seemingly unreal world of the suburbs. They read spirituality books but find themselves in carpools and coaching soccer, not in monasteries. Dave Goetz, a former pastor, shows that the suburbs are a real world, but a spiritually corrosive one. The land of SUVs and soccer leagues can truly be toxic to the soul. Suburbanites need to understand how the environment affects them and what spiritual disciplines are needed for their faith to survive and thrive. Goetz identifies eight toxins in the suburban life, such as hyper–competition and the "transactional" friendship, and suggests eight corresponding disciplines to keep the spiritual life authentic. Goetz weaves sociology studies, his own experiences, current events, wisdom of the spiritual masters, and a little humor to equip spiritual suburbanites for how to relate to God amidst Starbucks, strip–malls, and perfect lawns.
Author: Dave L. Goetz
Publisher: HarperOne
Customer Reviews
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Numerous Lessons for any Suburbanite
My church recently featured a series of very effective service messages based on the book Death by Suburb. I figured if the church services were this insightful, well, the book itself must be fantastic. My assumption was right.
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<br />The subtitle of the book is "How to Keep the Suburbs from Killing Your Soul." While Goetz's message is important to hear it's most effective when you project his observations on your own life. Some of this stuff was pretty darned painful to read but 100% accurate.
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<br />For example, chapter 6 is called "Shirker Service" and he defines Shirkers as people who "are always on the move for the next spiritual plane." A Shirker tends to say things like:
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<br />"I want to make a difference with my life. I want to make my life count. I want more from my life than investment banking. I'm weary of making money; I want to help poor people become suburbanites just like I am."
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<br />He goes on to say that "the Shirker Life is full of service activities, mostly to and with other Shirkers." Ouch.
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<br />Here are two other nuggets of wisdom that resonated with me:
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<br />"If you want to be a sweet grandfather and not a bitter old man, then you must learn how to embrace suffering."
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<br />"Frustration and conflict are the fabric of spiritual development."
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<br />Those are the kind of statements I have to read several times to truly appreciate them. Putting them in practice and living them are a completely different challenge. This book is full of pearls like this and well worth the reading investment.
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Life-giving practices!
This is a great book--Goetz, who lives in Wheaton, where I used to live and went to school, describes suburban life to a tee.
<br />He trains a keen eye on both the struggle and irony of the competitive, consumeristic, pressured, hurried life that is not only the typical suburbanite's life, but his own life. (He admits to being a sometimes over-enthusiastic soccer dad, and to owning both the quintessential suburban vehicle, an SUV, and the quintessential suburban dog, a Golden Retriever).
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<br />He recommends eight spiritual practices to counter-act the "environmental toxins" of suburban life; practices that range from the traditional solitude and self-examination to ones that address specific suburban problems. For example, he writes, to counter the toxin of "My church is the problem," a common malady of the suburban consumer mindset, he recommends the practice of "Staying put in your church."
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<br />As a writer and speaker who teaches often on spiritual practices (see my book Oxygen: Deep Breathing for the Soul), I know I will be not only recommending this book but quoting from it often!
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