Published by B&H Publishing on November 10, 2020
Genres: Non-Fiction, Christian Life
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Are you a shadow Christian?
Shadow Christians are people who work in the margins, in the shadows created by the spotlight shining on others. We often think they—we—are insignificant. But here’s the good news: God chooses and uses shadow Christians.
There are some names in the Bible that everyone knows: Adam and Eve, Noah, Moses, Mary, Peter, Paul. But the Bible is also full of stories with unnamed characters. People who made a difference not in the spotlight, but in the shadows.
If you’re a shadow Christian, you matter to God, and he wants to use you to make a difference.
The majority of Christians live in the shadows. Not that they’re “secret” Christians. Not that they don’t want to be outed as Christian. Not that they blend in with the world so much that you can’t tell they’re Christians. They’re just…not well known. In the age of megachurches and celebrity pastors, “regular” church leaders can often feel inadequate and lost. Am I really making an impact if the church I pastor only has twenty members? If my small group is just six people? If nobody really knows who I am outside of my circle? In Shadow Christians, Jeff Iorg says “Definitely.”
In many ways, Shadow Christians is simply a book on discipleship. It’s a book on how the church becomes the church. Iorg writes about how it’s the “everyday” and even unnamed people of Scripture who make as much or of an impact on a community than any of the “big name” apostles or prophets. (Samaritan Woman At The Well, anyone?)
Throughout the book, Iorg uses the examples of unnamed believers who effect change in their communities through their obedience to Jesus. They share the Gospel, they give sacrificially, they work behind the scenes, they are pastors and church planters and worship leaders and nursery workers. Iorg shines the spotlight in the shadows to remind us of where the majority of ministry is done: faithfully, quietly, and relentlessly amid the everyday.
Shadow Christians is a must-read for your church’s volunteer staff and elder/deacon board. It’s a reminder that their work matters and is not insignificant. It’s a blueprint for how to work in the shadows—how to work for Kingdom goals and not name recognition, how to be a small light in the margins where the big lights cannot reach. Iorg’s use of the stories of nameless believers puts us in solidarity with those whose stories were told, even as their names were withheld. It’s a reminder that every little bit matters and that God’s sees and knows these names, even if nobody else does.