Enough: Contentment in an Age of Excess

by Will Samson, Shane Claiborne (Foreword)

How much is enough? In an age of conspicuous consumption-of designer sunglasses, jeweled cell phones, and five-thousand-square-foot homes-is it possible to be content? In a society where children spend more time worrying about their weight than their grades, is it possible to find peace? In a world being drained of its natural resources, is it conceivable that we do nothing? And with a universe of dazzling temptation at our fingertips, will we still seek the God of all creation? Will Samson is good at opening thoughtful dialogue; a recent conversation was about social justice. In Enough , his latest wide-ranging, insightful book, Will addresses the idea of finding contentment in this age of excess. With a casual, accessible writing style, he discusses consumerism, contentment as a Christian discipline, and the notion of stewarding our resources. In four sections, Will outlines the ideas that drive a consumeristic mindset; the effects those ideas have on ourselves, our communities, and the earth; conclusions about the situation; and practical solutions for negotiating everyday life once we understand that our abundant God is, in fact, enough. If you're exhausted from keeping up with the Joneses, or if you're looking for the balance between what is necessary and what is too much, just stop. Enough is enough.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Christian Living, Theology, Christianity, Sustainability, Faith

176 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2009

Reviews

[David Holford · Rating 5 out of 5]

Living for Jesus and not for stuff

Will Samson and I have very similar theological and political backgrounds. And while he now considers himself part of the emergent church movement and I have not moved that direction, we have both asked the same question and come up with similar answers. Samson has articulated them better than I have and lived them out in a more consistent and substantial way.

This book is about living out a life consistent with the New Testament in ways that have been ignored in large part by conservative evangelical American Christianity. In a readable and somewhat anecdotal style, it address both the theory and the practicalities of living in a God-honoring way, which of course includes loving our neighbours as ourselves.

To summarize Samson's summary of his book: 1. as a culture and church we have been consumed with the idea of stuff; 2. we are not consumed by God the same way we are consumed by stuff and don't believe God it's sufficient; 3. Jesus is the best resource to answer the question of what is enough; 4. we have to rethink what we believe about the future and how it shapes out actions; 5. our lack of concern for questions about enough is harming our bodies, the earth, our economy, and our communities; 6. we need "communities of moral formation"/Eucharistic communities shaped by the radical message of the gospel; and 7. we can find wholeness in God.

[Brenten Gilbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

RATING 2.68 STARS

Some good thoughts presented here. Love the emphasis on community and the discourse regarding the effects of over-consumption on our daily lives - physically, communally, and spiritually.

It felt a little like Samson had too many ideas to reign into an entirely cohesive book, however, and there were plenty of times when the text felt disconnected and almost like I had changed books. He would have done well to pick one specific direction and declared, "enough."

Not a bad read, though.

[Lena Denman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was gifted this book and have found it to be eye opening. Samson writes about Christ permeating every aspect of how we live so that Christians don’t simply profess transformation and then look like their culture. He encourages living within community,
being mindful of our consumerism and not buying into the messages advertising sells as providing us with wholeness. As we move to holistically worship, we find that we have enough already.

[Frankslycreative · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I did not agree with all of this book's theology, I found it refreshing as a whole. It is a new perspective, I think, from other books on the same subject. I appreciated the author's take on why we over-consume and the actions he suggests we take to overcome.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

A call to action

This is a timely read in our culture and for all Christ followers. May we all move in this direction and form stronger communities in doing so.

[Eric D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great work. Still relevant for today!

[Jocelin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I often like to read the introduction/acknowledgements of books, because it gives a little insight to who the author is and a small preview of things to come. In this case, we were encouraged to read the introduction for this very reason,this is unusual in itself because your normally don't see that in a book. The thing that I learned was that I really didn't learn anything substantial about the author. The one thing that I was not sure of was what this book was about. The title says that it is about contentment in an age of excess. Was this book about the environment, decreasing debt, or Christ-centered living? He presented lots of facts about our obsession w/consumption. There was never a clear cut answer given of what can be done. He did touch on this subject on pg. 150 about our need to consume but, it was too little too late. The book only has 167 pages and I have to wait until 150 before you discuss it and then you make a statement "the longing that we have" this is the reason as to why we consume. Then he says nothing about what we can do to fill this longing. Earlier in the book he talks about suggestions that one can do about finding contentment and one was planting a garden, really? This book was supposed to be a book about finding contentment and this book really never found its focus. It was all over the place with facts and data from legitimate sources but he never talked about what we need to find true contentment. I know that the original approach was to find contentment in Jesus, but he never touch on this subject. He laid out many suggestions about finding contentment: Plant a garden, Eat together, spend locally, etc. I think that he should have developed a better book around focusing on Christ instead of throwing around a lot of facts about the environment, finances and political theories. I think the movie WALL-E did a better job of finding contentment in age of excess. The lessons in that movie will stay with you longer than this book.

[Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't find this book to be, well, enough. I wanted a more in-depth analysis, and this is just a brief overview. It works well as an introduction, though, and for a vestry or church mission commission, it would be a good short read to discuss and use for making plans to serve those in need.

[Michaiah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I almost gave this book 3 stars, because I think he had some good things to say about the US not being a "Christian" nation, God not being a capitalist, and the need for less individuality and more community. However, the overall message I got from the book was a moralistic, "we need to act better and do better and just be like Jesus" message, with the motivation being the same as the message. In other words, no real motivation at all. Not that we shouldn't be like Jesus, but I have a real problem with anyone who places more emphasis on Christ as an example than on Christ as Savior, which is what I got from this author. There is no reason for me or anyone else to be fulfilled or content, or to change any part of life, without an understanding of God's grace and what the cross accomplished. And, in my opinion, de-emphasizing that won't result in any meaningful or lasting changes. I never feel less motivated to "act right and do right" than after I've heard a moralistic message highlighting the good examples I should be following.

I also thought the author's approach to an understanding regarding the "end times" or second coming of Christ was insufficient and erroneous. He seems to believe that the earth will be destroyed when Christ returns, but essentially says that there's a good chance the world is going to be around for hundreds or thousands of years to come, and therefore, we should all be doing things to take care of it. While I have no idea how long it will be until Christ returns, I believe that scripture teaches that when He does return, it will be to restore the earth and all creation, not destroy it. And therefore, we should take care of the earth because we have been commanded to do so, and because anything we do will be used by Christ in the ultimate restoration.

[marcus miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book I may try to have some of my Economics students read. This is one of those books that shares lots of Anabaptist ideas about the church, community and what it means to be Christian living in the U.S. It is a bit more intellectual than Living-More-With-Less but it fits well. The thing is,it is not written by a Mennonite, but to me it reflects many of the positive parts of being Mennonite. Another way of saying this is, I really didn't learn anything new, though I did like the way he put the book together and the way he shared his ideas about faith, consumerism, and how we should try to live responsibly. Sometimes when people do this I find them to be preachy but this guy didn't come across that way. I only hope some of my Mennonite friends who are buying new cars and building bigger houses or are contemplating a new boat read this.

[Robin Groothuis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, and I very much appreciate the practicality of his suggestions to live contentedly with enough and not more. It is a big stretch for so many of us to live in intentional community, but Samson helps the reader to search somewhere in the middle to just begin to make change. Rather than beating us over the head with how terrible we all are in living so selfishly in this country, Samson states it matter of fact and urgently directs us (Christians, especially) to where we need to look scripturally for a "new" directive with grace and forgiveness. I'm glad he's not afraid to call out the Christian community for buying into western consumerist culture in our own isolationist way. I've read other books about this topic that are more academic. Do not dismiss this one because it's easier to read.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's a lot here to like. Samson makes some really good points. I found myself wishing I could do a lot of underlining, only it was a library book, so I couldn't! Even though Samson and I come from differnt Christian denominations with different doctrine (He being an evangelist protistant, myself a mormon), I agreed with him on his ideas of consumerism and how much of this keeps us from following Jesus, how consumerism does not just pertain to material things, but to ideas, entertainment, information and the like. I appreciate this truely Christian book as I struggle with this subject. Thank you to Will Samson for tackling a sometimes touchy and tricky subject from the stand-point of a Christian seeking to be a better follower of Jesus.

[Nathan Trevivian · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK, so I think this book is for a particular person, and that person isn't me.
My review may not be completely fair, because I only read the first two-three chapters and skimmed the rest, but it basically was telling me stuff I'd already figured out years ago.
In fact, the introduction was more inspiring than the book, and even that was only really down to writing style.
Nothing new here folks...move along...(that is, unless you're chasing the American Dream or similar, are an advocate for current economic markers, or similar).

[Kelly Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read for those who like to know why and what causes people to be obsessed with buying and keeping up with the Jones'. A look at what religious history has fueled many of the materialism found not just in society, but in churches too. The answer as to why some Christians you observe do what they do and what ideas influenced them. This is a book of philosophy more than a practical guide. It examines why over zealous shoppers think the way they do and offers a better alternative to the shop til you drop mentality.

[Doug · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yet another conservative Christian finding new life in the way of the cross. He nicely aims to ground his vision in the Eucharist, and overall he provides many helpful arguments. Still, something was lacking. I think it might have been that the book lingered in the autobiographical too long or the overall vision still seemed self-focused. It didn't seem driven by a passion for others, just for getting oneself situated correctly. Maybe I had unfair expectations.

[Maggie · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars... While this book was well-enough written and did manage to make me feel justifiably guilty, I felt like the general premise was much more for a "new Christian" or someone with major life changes to be made.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were some great nuggets in this book, but overall, I think he spent too much time and energy on the background information and lost steam toward the end. Nonetheless, it was worth the read!

[Mike & Mandy Laning · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. Caused us to cut back on our newspaper from everyday to just Sunday and Thursday.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Theologically I don't like much of this guy's substance (what substance there is), but it provided much for reflection on how I use my resources, community, etc. Definitely recommended!

[Susan Price · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title tells the whole story. This is a book worth reading.

[Laurie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was pretty much nothing like I expected from the title.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is wonderfully written with additional parodies of ways we misinterpret scripture to have it fit into our world view of consumption

[Mike Hipp · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shared some good thoughts, and is worth the read.

[Tiffany · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a lot of food for thought in these pages. While I found it interesting at times, other times I found myself reading this when I needed to be lulled to sleep. I've lived in more than a comfortable American culture, and I do not come to some of the same conclusions as the author.

Concerning the idea of "buying local", I believe this book needs to be updated. You can help support many good causes by buying things from across the globe, responsibly. From Etsy.com to websites that help distribute used books -- it's actually easier to be responsible stewards when one uses the Internet as a tool and not a vice.

Much of this book resonated with me in parts, especially the call for us to step out as followers of Jesus Christ and live with authenticity. Amen!

Understanding that we will have much to answer for - in our own immediate circles of fellowship, but also the global fellowship we share in Christ.

It's not a book about foreign missions, but I took some offense in that the author seemed to downplay our responsibility to bless others by sharing toward the cause of Christ. Local missions are important, but when we keep our eyes only looking within the small circle where we find ourselves, danger lurks. Jesus sent forth His disciples and not just within the confines of the Roman empire -- to the very ends of the earth.

Missionaries are not just Capitalist Specialists who "do missions". They are often people who willingly sacrifice far more than this book recommends the average American Christian to attempt.

I did enjoy this read, but I couldn't give it more stars. I know I read it with my own biases, but I belive there are some gaps in the theology this author prescribes. May God bless him for stepping up and sharing his journey, though.