Beyond Ordinary - Justin & Trisha Davis

Beyond Ordinary

Those of you who have been around the blog for a while know I have casually participated in Tyndale Media Center's summer reading program.  It's so hard to find a good reading program for adults these days.  Our library didn't even have one for kids.  This one requires the participant to read five books from Tyndale's list of recent releases; you are then rewarded with a free book.  I've completed books one, two, and three and logged my thoughts here.  Now, book four.

I chose this book from the list because Amazon offered it for free one day at the start of the summer. Most of you know, I am newly married (ten months today!); a marriage book appealed to me.  Beyond the title, I really knew nothing about the text of the work.

Justin and Trisha Davis use their story throughout Beyond Ordinary to explore various aspects of marriage.  The book can be classified as a cautionary tale of "do as I say, not as I do."  The Davis's marriage has been marked by serious conflict, betrayal, and mistrust.  The married young and spent the first decade plus of their marriage in full-time ministry.  Behind the scenes of their church life, their marriage took a back seat to nearly everything else.

I appreciated the Davis's honesty and realism regarding marriage.  They held nothing back.  Each chapter addresses a specific attribute of marriage and how to take it "beyond ordinary."  They tell their own story over the course of these chapters, opening with their history and moving into a section on that topic's biblical support.  The book aims to allow readers to learn from the Davis's mistakes and save their marriages before its too late.

Because a lot of the text spoke to marriages that have disintegrated over time, I could not relate to much of the book.  Kevin and I are ten months in and doing great.  We're not perfect.  I did learn some things from the book and certainly appreciated a few good reminders.  Overall, though, I found the book to be directed toward someone in dire marital straits; we just aren't there.  For that, I am very thankful.  In fact, I can clearly see how we avoided some of the Davis's downfalls right from the start.  We married when we were much older and more stable; they were still in college.  We do not already have a baby on the way, as they did by this point.  We had a lot more premarital counseling from family, friends, and our pastor.  Those things cannot be undervalued.  I recognize that we are just as in danger as any other marriage, but I think we have a good foundation.  We're not ordinary; I hope we never are.

Justin and Trisha are doing much better now.  I mean, they wrote a book about marriage together, so they must be, right?  They've gotten out of full-time ministry and gotten a lot of counseling.  They've fallen back in love.  I have no doubt they have tough days; we all do.  They have a lot of scars to deal with, after all.

They present their story and their thoughts well.  I didn't feel as thought they dove too deeply on this subject.  They kept things pretty straightforward and simple.  This book isn't a recipe for a perfect marriage.  It is a reflection on one couple's journey and what they learned from it.  God clearly has brought miraculous reconciliation to them and and taught them much along the way.  I think it's great that they want to share that with others.

Pages: 256

Date Completed: August 16, 2013