Marked By Love

Marked by Love: A Dare to Walk Away from Judgment and Hypocrisy
by Tim Stevens

What does it mean to be Marked by Love?

“People are done with Christianity. I am done with Christianity. At least the Americanized version that dresses up on Sunday and the rest of the week is gossiping, backbiting, jealous, judgmental, and unethical. It seems at every turn Christians are doing more harm for the name of Jesus than help.”  –Tim Stevens

If you’ve ever been discouraged by Christianity—whether you’ve been a lifelong churchgoer or someone who left religion a long time ago—this book will change your life.

God only spoke twice while Jesus was on earth. (We should probably sit up and pay attention.) Both times He said: Jesus is “marked by my love.” No tattoo. No handshake. No team colors or logos or code words. The only thing that marked Jesus Christ and the only thing that would mark His followers—love.

Consider…
How would I treat someone who I disagree with in a political discussion if I ran everything I said through a filter of love?
How would I care for someone who is contemplating an abortion if I were marked by His love?
How would I help a friend going through a divorce if I really loved him and his family?
What would be different about my social media posts or comments if I really loved the people I was responding to or writing about?
How would I show love toward the gay couple that moved in next door if I was actually following in Jesus’ steps?
How would I treat the Hispanic family who I think may have crossed the border illegally and are living off government welfare if I were marked by his love?
How would I respond to the homeless guy begging on the curb in a loving way?

This is real life stuff. If every follower of Jesus was truly marked by love, it would change the world.

TIM STEVENS

After spending 20 years as the Executive Pastor at Granger Community Church, Tim Stevens is now the Vice President of Consulting at Vanderbloemen Search Group.

Tim has been a thought leader in the world of church and ministry for more than a dozen years and blogs at LeadingSmart.com. He has a passion for helping churches connect with people who think church is irrelevant and believes that finding the right staff is the most important and crucial ingredient to the success of any church. Tim is acutely tuned in to pop culture, and has been instrumental in building creative teams, inspiring artists and empowering leaders.

Stevens has co-authored three books in the “Simply Strategic” series, is author of Pop Goes the Church and Vision: Lost and Found. He partnered with The Blythe Daniel Agency to release Fairness is Overrated, published by Thomas Nelson in January 2015. His newest project, Marked By Love, will be released by Barbour Publishing in October 2018.

Tim has taught more than 20,000 church leaders in person at workshops, conferences and seminars since 2002. You can connect with him on Twitter: @timastevens and Facebook: facebook.com/tstevens.

He has published articles in several publications, including Leadership Journal, Rick Warren’s Ministry Toolbox, REV Magazine, Collide Magazine, Outreach Magazine, and Pastors.com. He has been interviewed on pop culture by the Atlanta Journal Constitution and The Wall Street Journal, written leadership articles for FastCompany.com, Entrepreneur.com and Inc.com.

Tim is married to Faith Stevens and their adult children are Heather Snodgrass, Megan Stevens, Hunter Stevens, and Taylor Stevens.