Book Review

7: an experimental mutiny against excess - Jen Hatmaker

B & H Publishing / 2012

Reviewed by Diane Busch

Love, love, love this book.  Love Jen.  Love her heart.  Love her writing.  Love the challenges she places before us.  Now, let me tell you why.  Many of us in America have too much.  We own too much, we buy too much, we spend too much, we consume too much, we throw away too much.  We often don’t even think about how we spend our money or how much we accumulate or how much we waste.  She challenges us to rethink how we live.

Jen is married to Brandon Hatmaker.  They have 3 biological children and 2 adopted children from Ethiopia.  They are founders and leaders of Austin New Church, whose mantra is: Love your neighbor; serve your city.  Taking a cue from Francis Chan, they take the scripture "love your neighbor as yourself" seriously - they give away half of all they receive. They won't spend more on themselves than on their poor neighbors.

Jen took 7 months to focus on 7 areas of her life (1 per month):  Food, Clothes, Possessions, Media, Waste, Spending, Stress.  The first month she reduced her food intake to only 7 items. The second month she only wore 7 items of clothing.  The third month she gave away 7 belongings each day.  You get the idea.  It was her way of fasting from excess.  She journaled her seven-month-long journey in this inspirational book, revealing her honest thoughts, experiences, and lessons learned.  

You will be greatly inspired to rethink how you live.  I highly recommend this book to all Christ followers in America.