Finding Holy in the Suburbs - by Ashley Hales (Paperback)

About the Book

The author issues an invitation to look deeply into one's soul as a suburbanite and discover what it means to live holy there.

Book Synopsis

Suburban life--including tract homes, strip malls, commuter culture--shapes our desires.More than half of Americans live in the suburbs. Ashley Hales writes that for many Christians, however: "The suburbs are ignored ('Your place doesn't matter, we're all going to heaven anyway'), denigrated and demeaned ('You're selfish if you live in a suburb; you only care about your own safety and advancement'), or seen as a cop-out from a faithful Christian life ('If you really loved God, you'd move to Africa or work in an impoverished area'). In everything from books to Hollywood jokes, the suburbs aren't supposed to be good for our souls." What does it look like to live a full Christian life in the suburbs? Suburbs reflect our good, God-given desire for a place to call home. And suburbs also reflect our own brokenness. This book is an invitation to look deeply into your soul as a suburbanite and discover what it means to live holy there.

Review Quotes

"Finding Holy in the Suburbs is manna for those who believe suburban living is akin to living in a shallow, plastic wilderness devoid of beauty and inspiration. And it is manna for those of us who don't find ourselves in the suburbs but who, nevertheless, have an insatiable longing for meaning and for home. Hales is chock-full of wisdom, gifting us with a beautiful theology of place. Hales is a theologian of our time--heed her."

--Marlena Graves, author of A Beautiful Disaster: Finding Hope in the Midst of Brokenness

"As a suburban dweller myself, I confess I had never given much thought to how my location was shaping my faith. Thankfully, Ashley Hales's book Finding Holy in the Suburbs opened my eyes to both the pitfalls and the possibilities of following Jesus in suburbia. Through a combination of theological depth and simple, practical steps, Hales provides a much-needed path of spiritual formation. I am both humbled and delighted to say I will never look at my community the same again."

--Sharon Hodde Miller, author of Free of Me

"Ashley Hales stands in the bold tradition of the ancient prophets. In her book Finding Holy in the Suburbs, she exposes the tinseled temptations of the suburbs and calls us to Christ and his ways of generous self-sacrifice. The book's vivid storytelling, biblical reflections, unabashed truth telling, and practical applications make it a worthy read for anyone no matter where they live."

--Jen Pollock Michel, author of Teach Us to Want and Keeping Place

"Hales takes on the near hopeless cause of waking up suburbanites like me to see God's larger story for our lives. Finding Holy in the Suburbs is both thoughtful and practical, and I admire her fierce writing, challenging me to seek out what's holy in my unremarkable suburban life."

--Dave Goetz, author of Death by Suburb

"I live on the encroaching edge of suburbia, but, like many readers, I prefer to read books about country life. I opened Finding Holy in the Suburbs assuming it would be a book I needed more than I wanted, but only a few pages in, it became a book I couldn't put down. Ashley Hales writes about life in the suburbs with gentle wisdom, intellectual depth, and refreshing honesty. She offers hope where so many have offered only criticism or cynicism. By weaving clear advice and transformative practices with engaging personal stories, Ashley Hales helps us to become reoriented toward our true spiritual home while sinking our roots more deeply into the ground beneath our feet. Finding Holy in the Suburbs is good news and practical encouragement for all of us, in every place."

--Christie Purifoy, author of Roots and Sky: A Journey Home in Four Seasons

"Not just for suburbanites, this book is for anyone who wrestles against competition or control. Finding Holy in the Suburbs inverts our suburban sensibilities, nudging us away from self-preservation and toward the beautiful catastrophe of kingdom living. Masterfully weaving personal reflection, research, and robust theology, Ashley Hales takes our hand and walks us home."

--Shannan Martin, author of The Ministry of Ordinary Places and Falling Free

"Scripture tells us that God uses the places we live to draw us to him. In Finding Holy in the Suburbs, Ashley Hales connects the dots for those living in the abundance of the developed world. Drawing on theology, sociology, and her own story, Hales shows how houses, streets, stores, and even playgrounds can reveal our hopes, goals, and deeper longings. Whether you live in the suburbs or are responsible for the discipleship of those who do, this book will challenge you to think holistically about the spaces we inhabit and how those spaces ultimately shape our souls."

--Hannah Anderson, author of Humble Roots: How Humility Grounds and Nourishes Your Soul

"With poignant clarity and expansive grace, Ashley Hales assures us that God works powerfully in the suburbs. She lays out the pathway toward a holy and purposeful existence in our neighborhoods, one that is full of wonderful paradoxes: risk in safety, sacrifice in abundance, and shalom in busyness. Finding Holy in the Suburbs will encourage anyone who desires greater, eternal riches far beyond the American dream."

--Dorcas Cheng-Tozun, Christianity Today contributor, author of Start, Love, Repeat

About the Author

Ashley Hales is a writer, speaker, pastor's wife, and mother to four. She holds a PhD in English from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, and she lives in the southern California suburbs helping her husband plant a church, Resurrection Orange County. Her writing has been featured in Books and Culture, Think Christian, (in)courage, The Well, the Englewood Review of Books, and at The Mudroom.