Friends In A Broken World

My good friend Soo-Inn Tan has published an excellent book where I had the privilege of writing a blurb for.  The blurb writing experience was interesting for me, because what I was interested was to communicate what was written in the book, and also highlight who the author is and what he hopes to achieve in his writings and work (he does more than writing, like pastors do more than preaching!).

I knew the content of Friends in A Broken World would be good, and I have resonated with all that has been written in various conversations with Soo-Inn before they were put on paper.  The added bonus for me was to notice the quality of the publication in every detail including the design, the fonts used, the paper quality, etc.   Maybe it’s because of those chats my designer dad had with me about fonts when I was a kid, or the chance I had sitting with a printer to talk about printing a book for a friend from USA, or maybe it’s simply because I love buying and reading books … so all these factors contribute to the whole experience. 

The message is no doubt important, the the medium in which the message is carried forth is equally important too, and of course, in this case, I’m happy to know the messenger 🙂

Anyway, back to the blurb. Here’s what I wrote:

"There is an inviting dance between Soo-Inn’s personal narrative and the narrative of Scripture in this booklet. As we eavesdrop on the conversation between the author, who serves as our friend and guide, and the Author of life, who is our ultimate Friend and true Guide, we are invited to join their dance steps of true friendship – spiritual friendship. As a pastor, husband, father, Christ-follower and fellow flawed human in these crazy times and this broken world, I cannot afford to go solo in the way I choose to live and serve. As one who has experienced the rewards of spiritual friendship in spontaneous settings as well as the spiritual friendship groups highlighted in this booklet, there has been no turning back in affirming the core message Soo-Inn is helping us discover or rediscover here. May this booklet nudge us to take those first steps … and for others to keep on dancing!"

In Malaysia, I saw it at Pustaka SUFES (sufes@po.jaring.my) and Glad Sounds (gladsounds@yahoo.com) will have it available soon.  For more information click on the new web site below (I like the way the heart got into the logo, I notice these things, it’s in my blood! :-)):