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Every once in awhile, a book comes along and just the perfect time. That was the case with Mark Batterson’s newest release, Primal. I was sent a free copy of this book a few weeks ago with the agreement to blog about it once I was done. I planned to share my thoughts, good or bad.

What I didn’t expect was to have the book impact me the way it did. In fact, few books have ever stirred me up the way this one has. It’s that good. It’s that inspirational.

Batterson focuses on one verse in the Bible, Luke 10:27, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.” What would it be like to love God in each of the four areas? How would you live differently if you did?

As I launched into the book, I didn’t expect much from it, to be honest. After all, as a pastor, I’ve read that passage a thousand times. I simply didn’t expect that Batterson could offer a fresh perspective on the verse.

Boy, was I wrong.

I couldn’t put it down. It challenged me on so many levels. Perhaps it’s because I’m going to be doing a sermon series called Extreme Faith in January. My focus for that series is similar to the focus of Primal. Maybe that’s why it struck such a nerve with me. I don’t know. All I know is that I would continually find myself putting the book down at the end of a chapter, and praying that God would ignite that kind of love in my heart.

I have Batterson’s other books, but haven’t read them. With Primal, he has become one of my favourite authors. It’s that good.

Primal is being released today. You can find it at Amazon.com. It’s a must read.