TOM and the Goldfish Bowl: A Kingdom Allegory

by Ben Pasley

This fascinating book combines fictional allegory and hard hitting insights on the Kingdom of God, the Church, and the institutions of modern Christian culture-the traditions of men. Anyone struggling to reconcile their love for Jesus with modern Christian culture and all its conflicted systems will jump up and down on the hood of their car after reading this book. It is entertaining and enlightening! Why does Jesus only mention Church twice in all the Bible? What is the difference between a father and a manager? Is the institutional Church really headed for extinction? Just what is the Kingdom of God? Why do we say "your church" and "my church" if there is only one Church? This book takes a serious look into these questions about the nature of the Church. It challenges the very forms and functions that the people of God have assumed in the name of Christianity, but it does so in a positive, solution-minded manner. This is not a cynical book, nor an angry author, but rather a challenging introspective that allows the reader to share some laughs and some prodding humor along the way. TOM and the Goldfish Bowl is part of the Churchthink series. Written with the apostle, prophet, pastor, teacher, and evangelist in mind - the entire Churchthink series is focused on equipping leadership. Pioneers will find this book extremely helpful in calibrating their vision for the Church. Ben Pasley is known for the creation of the popular Enter The Worship Circle series of tribal-folk recordings, but he also enjoys writing and encouraging people as love-pioneers. His leadership in the Kingdom IQ training school is helping believers discover a whole new way of life. He resides at 8,500 feet above sea level in Colorado with his wife, two children, woodworking shop, and fly fishing gear. Foreword by Jack Taylor.

117 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 2009

About the author

Ben Pasley is a published author, song writer, music producer, performer, public speaker, creative coach, pastor, leadership equipper, and fly fisherman. He might be best known for the worship music series Enter The Worship Circle, which has sold hundreds of thousands of albums since its debut release in 1998. As an author he has focused on themes like: living in the Kingdom, receiving the spirit of sonship, and re-imagining the family of faith.

Reviews

[Fred White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nailing the Kingdom: Ben nailed the kingdom. The kingdom of God is the environment in which God’s sons thrive. His contrast between the Church and the kingdom is so compelling that readers will never again mistake the two. This book will help people live and move in the kingdom. They will no longer have to apologize for their intolerance of the religious system. Instead, they will be free to pursue their deep inward hunger for the King.

[Jeff Clifton · Rating 5 out of 5]

The format and allegory made this feel fresh and different and really stick with you.