Sometimes it just feels like our lives are a mess. That no matter how hard we struggle in our relationship with God, that we can't seem to make any progress. We'd like to believe that we are continually growing, but there are so many ups and downs that we wonder.

This is the place where Jesus meets us: right in the middle of our mess. Mike Yaconelli subtitles his book Messy Spirituality, "God's Annoying Love for Imperfect People". This book is great in dealing with the frustrations of our spiritual life. He tackles the saboteurs of spirituality and the issues from our past that block us from simply coming to God and fully accepting his grace.

He also provides Four Nonprinciples of Spiritual Growth:

1. Spiritual Growth Encompasses a Lifetime of Decisions
2. Spiritual Growth Looks Different for Each of Us
3. Give God 60 Percent
4. Reluctant Growth Is Still Growth
   

He tells many stories of grace, growth, and God's love that can bring tears to your eyes as you see God working in people's messy lives to grow them in unique ways.

All in all, this book shows you that God has an amazing fondness for imperfect people: "the burned-out believers, moral misfits, and religious incompetents".