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The Colors of Hope: Becoming People of Mercy, Justice, and Love
The Christian life, says Richard Dahlstrom, should be guided by the intentional goal of blessing the lives of the friends, loved ones, and strangers in our midst. We are called to impact a culture that, for all the rhetoric about hope, is overwhelmingly preoccupied with personal peace, prosperity, protection, and survival. Christians should be artists who paint with the colors of hope in a broken world, embodying Christ's redemptive presence in our personal lives, our work, and our relationships.
This inspiring and practical book offers tools for living out this vision in daily life, with special attention given to the challenges we face in staying focused on the mission of imparting hope to others even while dealing with our own personal issues. Anyone who wishes they could have an impact on the world will cherish this unique book.
This inspiring and practical book offers tools for living out this vision in daily life, with special attention given to the challenges we face in staying focused on the mission of imparting hope to others even while dealing with our own personal issues. Anyone who wishes they could have an impact on the world will cherish this unique book.
220 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2011
25 people are currently reading
297 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
May 13, 2011
Excellent book - gave me perspective on how I view people. Lots to think about. Will need to read again.
December 6, 2024
“The colors of hope will be spilled into the world by broken people, living their broken lives in the midst of a broken world. But right there, in the midst of of all the pain and suffering, those who have taken up the adventure of spilling hope will find colors of beauty, justice, healing and joy being poured out onto the canvas of their families, churches, and cities.”
Just as we are called to be artisans of hope in the world, this book restored my own hope. Thanks Pastor Richard, for always knowing just what to say to inspire the hearts of others.
Just as we are called to be artisans of hope in the world, this book restored my own hope. Thanks Pastor Richard, for always knowing just what to say to inspire the hearts of others.
July 25, 2020
In between a 3 and 4 for me! He is a great writer and brings up some very relevant points that apply to our current climate. However, a lot of the examples were a little too evangelical for me. But I still got some great nuggets out of it and I am glad I read it!
October 14, 2015
"Our collective fixation on justification and being made right with God has sometimes had the effect of clouding out the grand plan God has for a restored heaven and earth, where nothing is left untouched by the glory, beauty, and healing power of Christ."
I don't have much patience for the church's tendency to respond to injustice or crisis with prayer. Prayer is great, but it's not the only thing we can be doing. Richard Dahstrom does not mince words in challenging this tendency, directly addressing those who prefer to avoid action because Jesus will fix everything with the Second Coming and telling them they are "emasculating the gospel into irrelevance."
So yeah, I like this book.
It uses the analogy of becoming an artist to convey its point, but the message throughout is that even our everyday, small tasks, like making a meal, are opportunities to make use of our talents for the betterment of God's kingdom. We aren't all called to become church planters in impoverished areas, but we are all called to do more.
"Real love for God will be seen not in outward shows of religiosity…but in love for, and service to, the poor and disenfranchised of this world."
I don't have much patience for the church's tendency to respond to injustice or crisis with prayer. Prayer is great, but it's not the only thing we can be doing. Richard Dahstrom does not mince words in challenging this tendency, directly addressing those who prefer to avoid action because Jesus will fix everything with the Second Coming and telling them they are "emasculating the gospel into irrelevance."
So yeah, I like this book.
It uses the analogy of becoming an artist to convey its point, but the message throughout is that even our everyday, small tasks, like making a meal, are opportunities to make use of our talents for the betterment of God's kingdom. We aren't all called to become church planters in impoverished areas, but we are all called to do more.
"Real love for God will be seen not in outward shows of religiosity…but in love for, and service to, the poor and disenfranchised of this world."
September 15, 2011
Well written. So quotable. So fantastic. I want to be an artisan of hope.
May 14, 2012
Approaching the christian life more like artists than lawyers...hmmm..yes! That is what I wish do. This is a beautiful book that I will re-read.
January 2, 2025
I first encountered Richard's writing through a recommendation to read his book, "The Map is Not the Journey" from my mother-in-law. She knew Richard's grandmother who served as a cook and baker at Mount Hermon Christian Camp & Conference Center. Continuing to read Richard's blog, SpirtSoulBody.org, led to me to travel from Northwest Arkansas to attend a men's retreat with my adult son last fall at Mount Hermon where Richard was the speaker for the weekend. His shared perspectives of "becoming people of mercy, justice and love" and how to put it to action through "inhaling" simplicity, solitude, fasting, sabbath, meditation & bible study; and "exhaling" service, pilgrimage, generosity, hospitality, truth telling & prayer for others strummed the heart strings the Holy Spirit had been picking in my quite time.
I found "The Colors of Hope" to be an honest, transparent, practical and useful book for those seeking not just read the scriptures but to actually step out in faith and do as Jesus has asked us to do.
January 25, 2023
Any other Capernwray students here? 😂
October 9, 2012
This is a very imaginative, and compassionate book - calling Christians to reassess the meaning and behavior of their faith. Dahlstrom emphasizes the practical meanings of mercy, justice and love and portrays these characteristics as offering hope in a world which in so many ways is gray, washed out, and superficial.
This book is offered, I think, to the audience of believers in affluent circumstances who have access to much, but what they really need is a renewed direction and purpose with which to live out their faith.
Let's not gather on Sundays merely to critique the sermon giver, exchange niceties, and go on about our otherwise normal lives. Instead look at that gray canvas of life we often see, and provide colors of hope, in the shades of mercy, justice and love.
A lengthy quotation from the author in the opening pages says it well, "As I write this introduction, the church finds itself in the headlines once again, for all the wrong reasons. There are revelations about a coverup of sexual abuse in the Catholic church, and there are Christian militias arming in some states. Right in the middle of all this, there's a big argument about the 'emergent church' and whether it's composed of truth or falsehood ...
People are looking at all this and saying, 'Just as I suspected - the church is a waste of time,' or worse, 'the church is less relevant than I even suspected.' I hear it in my city - Seattle - and though I don't agree, I can see how people come to such conclusions. They see the church painting ugliness, arrogance, and lust on the canvas of this world, and so they walk or run away.
... We need to be painting different pictures - of justice, mercy, love, hospitality, celebration, and hope. This book is about learning to be the kind of people who live with this vision, who develop our collective skills as artisans.
It is an urgent work, because splashes of beauty are needed on our world's canvas, now more than ever."
This book is offered, I think, to the audience of believers in affluent circumstances who have access to much, but what they really need is a renewed direction and purpose with which to live out their faith.
Let's not gather on Sundays merely to critique the sermon giver, exchange niceties, and go on about our otherwise normal lives. Instead look at that gray canvas of life we often see, and provide colors of hope, in the shades of mercy, justice and love.
A lengthy quotation from the author in the opening pages says it well, "As I write this introduction, the church finds itself in the headlines once again, for all the wrong reasons. There are revelations about a coverup of sexual abuse in the Catholic church, and there are Christian militias arming in some states. Right in the middle of all this, there's a big argument about the 'emergent church' and whether it's composed of truth or falsehood ...
People are looking at all this and saying, 'Just as I suspected - the church is a waste of time,' or worse, 'the church is less relevant than I even suspected.' I hear it in my city - Seattle - and though I don't agree, I can see how people come to such conclusions. They see the church painting ugliness, arrogance, and lust on the canvas of this world, and so they walk or run away.
... We need to be painting different pictures - of justice, mercy, love, hospitality, celebration, and hope. This book is about learning to be the kind of people who live with this vision, who develop our collective skills as artisans.
It is an urgent work, because splashes of beauty are needed on our world's canvas, now more than ever."
December 31, 2014
This was a FANTASTIC book to end the month and year with. Richard Dahlstrom paints (pun intended) a beautiful picture of artistry as God's people using the primary colors of mercy, justice, and love to paint pictures of hope in this world. As has happened often I got about 2 pages in, put it down and ordered my own personal copy from Amazon. (Yay for Prime 2 day shipping!)
Yes, I knew within two pages it was a book I will want to mark up, read again, pass around, discuss.
As I said Dahlstrom draws from the artist pallette for his book about the people of God painting hope on the canvas of this world. What a perfect metaphor. His thoughts could be summed up in the idea that we color our worlds grey when we are known for what we are against instead of what we are for. When we boldly brush on the canvas of this world what we are for we paint in vibrant and beautiful colors. As a whole the church has squashed creativity in favor of consumerism and that has led to dull, grey canvas. It's time, past time, to squash consumerism in the Church, which has killed off much more than creativity, and begin to infuse hope into the world once again using mercy, justice, and love.
Fantastic book. I marked up the majority of chapters. There was so much practical application and so much biblical sense presented. Dahlstrom also talks about the pastels versus the bold colors of faith. I really resonated with this discussion as I think most anyone who was birthed into the church would. At some point my pastel faith got washed out and when bold colors were introduced it changed my entire world.
Dahlstrom has laid out a gracious and practical plea to be Artisans of Hope.
Yes, I knew within two pages it was a book I will want to mark up, read again, pass around, discuss.
As I said Dahlstrom draws from the artist pallette for his book about the people of God painting hope on the canvas of this world. What a perfect metaphor. His thoughts could be summed up in the idea that we color our worlds grey when we are known for what we are against instead of what we are for. When we boldly brush on the canvas of this world what we are for we paint in vibrant and beautiful colors. As a whole the church has squashed creativity in favor of consumerism and that has led to dull, grey canvas. It's time, past time, to squash consumerism in the Church, which has killed off much more than creativity, and begin to infuse hope into the world once again using mercy, justice, and love.
Fantastic book. I marked up the majority of chapters. There was so much practical application and so much biblical sense presented. Dahlstrom also talks about the pastels versus the bold colors of faith. I really resonated with this discussion as I think most anyone who was birthed into the church would. At some point my pastel faith got washed out and when bold colors were introduced it changed my entire world.
Dahlstrom has laid out a gracious and practical plea to be Artisans of Hope.
April 2, 2014
Every follower of Jesus has been given an invitation "to paint with the colors of hope by stepping into the story God is writing across the canvas of history", Dahlstrom writes. This thesis might be articulated with unfamiliar or post-modern sounding language, but the author is fundamentally challenging us to embrace life in the Kingdom. And not just a future Kingdom, but a Kingdom that has already been inaugurated through the work of Jesus. A Kingdom which is already being made visible in small ways through the lives of the faithful.
A favorite quote from the book: "The same dissonance between vision and fulfillment of vision that afflicts junior high art students afflicts most of us trying to follow Christ. It's not that we don't know what the Christian life ought to look like - its that we know, but in spite of our knowing, we find ourselves unable to live it or create it accurately."
In this journey towards participation in the Kingdom we will fail, embarrass ourselves, and make crappy art. But along the way God can use these seeds and God can help us find our voice - our unique creative contribution to God's redemptive purposes in the world.
A favorite quote from the book: "The same dissonance between vision and fulfillment of vision that afflicts junior high art students afflicts most of us trying to follow Christ. It's not that we don't know what the Christian life ought to look like - its that we know, but in spite of our knowing, we find ourselves unable to live it or create it accurately."
In this journey towards participation in the Kingdom we will fail, embarrass ourselves, and make crappy art. But along the way God can use these seeds and God can help us find our voice - our unique creative contribution to God's redemptive purposes in the world.
June 13, 2012
Dahlstrom has this incredibly disarming authenticity, like he could submerse you in a sea of despair and raise you up to dry off in the radiant and blinding sunlight of idealism before you realized that his words had reached your consciousness. Instead, though, he constantly deflates the romanticism of a perfect Christian world and provides seemingly mundane, but substantially realistic and sustainable, guiding principles.
I can imagine that somebody struggling or learning would easily grant a five-star rating. I'm not renovating walls in my life, though, only patching up loose bricks. When I come to that day where I need it more desperately, I'll inevitably promote my rating.
Unfortunately most of pop culture won't get past more widely known and superficial and short-lived fads that come in the forms of books. But those few that manage to stumble across Dahlstrom will certainly cherish his writing for a far longer time.
I can imagine that somebody struggling or learning would easily grant a five-star rating. I'm not renovating walls in my life, though, only patching up loose bricks. When I come to that day where I need it more desperately, I'll inevitably promote my rating.
Unfortunately most of pop culture won't get past more widely known and superficial and short-lived fads that come in the forms of books. But those few that manage to stumble across Dahlstrom will certainly cherish his writing for a far longer time.
October 8, 2013
It's weird to review a book by the pastor you've heard preach for 500+ hours over the past decade and a half. So I approach The Colors of Hope by Richard Dahlstrom with the two sides of familiarity: sure, I've heard a lot of it before, but it's really cool to see people you know in a book! This book actually has more new stuff to me in it than Richard's first book did, mostly as expanded conversations with people in my church, which is an excellent direction to go in for a book (and should continue to bear fruit for future books). It's these extended conversations that really make this book shine, including one with the married couple who runs Seattle's Taproot Theater, and one with Richard's own dead father. It's a bit of a limb to go out onto, but it works, or perhaps I should say, it holds. Plus, I love the cover art. This book captures more of Richard's style than the last one, perhaps because it has more of other people in it? Lots of good paradox there.
January 18, 2016
Dahlstrom has this incredibly disarming authenticity, like he could submerse you in a sea of despair and raise you up to dry off in the radiant and blinding sunlight of idealism before you realized that his words had reached your consciousness. Instead, though, he constantly deflates the romanticism of a perfect Christian world and provides seemingly mundane, but substantially realistic and sustainable, guiding principles.
I can imagine that somebody struggling or learning would easily grant a five-star rating. I'm not renovating walls in my life, though, only patching up loose bricks. When I come to that day where I need it more desperately, I'll inevitably promote my rating.
Unfortunately most of pop culture won't get past more widely known and superficial and short-lived fads that come in the forms of books. But those few that manage to stumble across Dahlstrom will certainly cherish his writing for a far longer time.
I can imagine that somebody struggling or learning would easily grant a five-star rating. I'm not renovating walls in my life, though, only patching up loose bricks. When I come to that day where I need it more desperately, I'll inevitably promote my rating.
Unfortunately most of pop culture won't get past more widely known and superficial and short-lived fads that come in the forms of books. But those few that manage to stumble across Dahlstrom will certainly cherish his writing for a far longer time.
August 2, 2012
I really liked Chapter 11 about resistance to God's will for our lives. I've used the phrase to myself, "God will open doors if this is the right path," but Richard reminds me that the Bible is full of stories where the doors and right path are not so clear. But the good news is that there is a path and despite all obstacles we are called to be faithful to it and follow it with God's help. The rest of the book was full of his personal life examples, but didn't seem to fulfill for me the idea of offering hope to others through service. I was equally hopeful before and after reading, and was not inspired to do any more service than I already am.
June 17, 2013
When I began reading this book, I was turned off by the negative assessment of the western Christian and the western church. I think the author somewhat redeemed himself in my eyes in part 3 but my overall impression was still low. There were some excellent points made but I had troubled hearing them because of my strong aversion to the beginning. The artistic metaphor was stretched pretty thin by the end of the book.
September 13, 2019
For me, this book is like a pastor getting an idea, a framework for a book (artist, canvas, colors etc.) and then follows it and fills it with good stories with some artistic words and phrases as an analogy. Textbook. I can see past that, the framework is not too bad, and neither is the writing. I liked it as a Chrisitan Inspirational book, some people are guaranteed to love it, although it won't be a book that will stick deep in my mind.
August 28, 2011
I nodded a lot in agreement, but wanted more....
January 9, 2016
I'd like to hang onto this and revisit in the future.
April 20, 2012
Good book...makes you think!
Want to read
May 1, 2012[free nook book]
August 23, 2013
great book...especially the last few chapters. thankful for authors like this
October 1, 2014
Brilliant, challenging, truthful.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews