What do Dave Ramsey, Will Willimon, Brian McLaren, Bill Hybels, and John Ortberg all have in common? Hopefully among other things, they all like Adam Hamilton‘s new book Enough: Discovering Joy through Simplicity and Generosity
Adam Hamilton is well enough known in United Methodist circles that he needs no introduction. His most important contribution, in my view, is the role that he has played in the explosion of the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, KS. Resurrection has grown from a handful of worshipers in 1990 to average weekly attendance of more than 7,500 in 2006. He has also written several other books. My favorites are Leading Beyond the Walls: Developing Congregations With a Heart for the Unchurched
In Enough, Hamilton turns to what is perhaps the stickiest subject for any pastor to try to talk about – money. Enough is characteristic of Hamilton’s other writing. It is concise, engaging, and well written. Hamilton seeks to challenge his readers in a way that will not turn them off or cause them to tune out.
Hamilton describes the problem that the books seeks to address in the first chapter “When Dreams Become Nightmares.” Hamilton suggests that the American dream may actually be a nightmare, describing the illnesses of affluenza and credit-itis which have infected so many Americans.
In the next chapter Hamilton encourages the reader to develop a plan (read: create and stick to a budget) so that they can live with deeper purpose. In the third chapter Hamilton focuses on “cultivating contentment” and “simplifying your life.” In the second and third chapters readers will find advice that is practical and true, but also likely familiar. In many ways this may not be stuff that we don’t know or haven’t heard, but stuff that we have heard and ignored. (Gavin Richardson has a similar take on this in his review.)
Hamilton concludes the book by exhorting the reader to give generously and to avoid the fear which often keeps us from living generously.
There is little in the book that I would take issue with. The main criticism that I have is not what is in the book, but what isn’t in the book. I could be wrong, but my guess is that Hamilton’s audience is primarily a United Methodist one. However, he offers what seems to be an intentionally generic account of personal finance. In other words, he offers no reflection on the contribution that our heritage as United Methodists has to make to this topic. This is unfortunate, because stewardship was something that John Wesley was deeply concerned about.
Wesley was concerned about Methodist stewardship because he was afraid that Methodists would grow rich and, as a result, become more committed to affluence, losing their zeal for spreading the gospel and growing in holiness. Wesley does not pull any punches. Indeed, it may be that he is too blunt about what he thinks is at stake. In the sermon “Causes of the Inefficacy of Christianity” Wesley asks:
Does it not seem (and yet this cannot be!) that Christianity, true scriptural Christianity, has a tendency in process of time to undermine and destroy itself? For wherever true Christianity spreads it must cause diligence and frugality, which, in the natural course of things, must beget riches. And riches naturally beget pride, love of the world, and every temper that is destructive of Christianity….
But is there no way to prevent this? To continue Christianity among a people? Allowing that diligence and frugality must produce riches, is there no means to hinder riches from destroying the religion of those that possess them? I can see only one possible way – find out another who can. Do you gain all you can, and save all you can? Then you must in the nature of things grow rich. Then if you have any desire to escape the damnation of hell, give all you can. Otherwise I can have no more hope of your salvation than for that of Judas Iscariot.”
Has Methodism undermined itself? Is our affluence in danger of destroying Methodism? Maybe these questions wouldn’t sell very many books. They do seem to be relevant and worth wrestling with. Moreover, I have often read or heard Adam Hamilton appeal to the Wesleyan tradition’s continuing relevance for United Methodism. From my perspective, any account of stewardship written by a United Methodist must at some level wrestle with Wesley’s hard, even radical teaching.
Perhaps it is unfair to criticize a book for what is not there, as more could always be said. What Hamilton has said is level-headed and is surely a helpful reminder for all who seek to become deeply committed disciples of Jesus Christ. Ultimately, Hamilton’s argument is implicitly very Wesleyan – Christians find joy when they learn to live simply and give generously, when they love not mammon but the Lord God.
Kevin M. Watson 
Thanks, Kevin, for this. I do appreciate your bringing Wesley more explicitly into the conversation here.
I think the book is a good one. My one disappointment was the illustration early on of the pastor correcting the guest missionary who is in town to preach and who expresses dismay upon seeing a wealthy congregant drive up in a brand new tricked-out Lexus. The pastor puts the missionary in his place by revealing that the congregant gives away 70% of his income — 700K — and lives on 30% — 300K — each year. Message: hey–he’s extraordinarily generous with his income so he can buy whatever he wants. The point Hamilton is making in context is that we must judge ourselves and not others since we don’t know the backstory of others. That point is a good one, but the illustration chosen seems to undercut a NT understanding of the use of wealth—even if we aren’t dropping our coins loudly into the offering plate, are not the widow’s pennies still more than what we are giving so discreetly?
Fortunately, the book itself does not embrace the message inherent in that illustration. And, he gives an exceptionally well written story about the man who experienced great joy in purchasing a “new” car—a used sedan—because he wanted to use his wealth differently. Here he casts a vision for a alternate way of living in a non-condemnatory and invitational manner that retains the forcefulness of authentic testimony. Would that we all handle a prophetic call so well!
Hamilton is a wonderful teacher of the Church. I wish that his excellent work in the second story, and book as a whole, did not have the first one to contend with in the mind of the reader.
Guy – Thanks for your comments. I agree with you on both illustrations that you mention – the one about the owner of the Lexus seemed a bit confusing, while the story of the wealthy man who purchased the used car brilliantly, in my view, illustrated the kind of joy that can come through simplicity and generosity.
I also second your affirmation of Hamilton’s gifts in teaching and leading the Church.
A brief glance at the title of this post made me think that you were tired of of listening to Adam Hamilton, telling him, Enough!
Kevin.,
I’m reading this late, but wanted to make a couple of observations:
Of course we don’t like to talk about money too much if it is going to make people uncomfortable. It seems that either only a few United Methodists know what the word tithe means. I’ve served churches where perhaps 80-90% of congregants told me they tithed but in fact did not. Some seem to regard regular giving as tithing.
Second, we are becoming captive to greater and greater need to maintain buildings, pay for insurance, and offer health insurance. I once had a friendly encounter with a church finance chair who was ready to put down missional giving of”22%” on a charge conference report because he hadn’t looked completely into the spending and also, seemingly, Conference wide there had been an encouragement to view all of apportionments as “missional.”
Even with much of apportionment money going to necessary administrative and support services, in the last few years many United Methodist churches found themselves for the first time in the position of spending more on proprty and liability insurance than on apportionments. And among the apportionments, group health care was increassingly biting heavily into the total. Such has stabilized now, but still leaves us with perplexing challenges of service and love spread wide.
From my understanding of Church of the Resurrection, they have committed themselves that they will advance true missional giving and that gifts and budgeting in that area will far exceed apportionments. I’m not putting down apportionments, but lamenting that they have become the finish line for many, instead of the starting “shot” for giving all they can.
In on-line theology tests, my identity shifts around among Wesleyan, Catholic and Emergent, which reflects maybe, having some idea of the leadership that is needed but not knowing quite how to provide it. Clearly, at least to me, further engagement on the matter of church as sanctuary must engulf the battling understandings of sanctuary as retreat from the world, period and sanctuary as a place of meditation, “safe” dialogue, covenanting and prayer so as to engage the world in imitation of Christ.
Home, storefront, or apartment churches provide anoher opportunity but they run the risk of further retreat and as an excuse to give less of their earnings.