• Keri Wyatt Kent. Simple Compassion: Devotions to Make a Difference in Your Neighborhood. 272p., paperback, $12.99. Zondervan.

At first, Simple Compassion was a challenge I had to be drawn into. Perhaps it was because I tried to cram reading it into an already packed schedule, or because I began reading it as a novel instead of allowing it to steep into my daily life. But as I stepped back and changed my approach, I came to appreciate Keri Wyatt Kent's passion for compassion.

Kent shares personal stories in an intellectually challenging context. She's not content to stay where she is, likewise isn't content to let her readers do so either. Her desire for women to take an honest look at themselves, especially attitudes and sacrificial service, challenges women to reflect and act.

Simple Compassion is a compilation of 52 brief essays organized into four categories intended to product a ripple effect of compassion, beginning with self and spreading through neighborhoods and communities to impact the world. The concept reminds me of Steve Sjogren and Dave Ping's Outflow, but while Outflow is designed as a six-week study, Simple Compassion is a 52-week commitment. Depending on the needs of a group, 52 weeks might prove daunting, but the content here is worth the effort

Each weekly study of Simple Compassion is followed by a Compassion Step and Community Step. One is an individual challenge; the second a challenge to show compassion within community. If a small group commits to Simple Compassion, sharing weekly compassion and community steps will deepen their community ties and commitment. Additional leader's tips are available in the Leader's Guide at the end of the book. Learn more about Keri Wyatt Kent's ministry at www.keriwyattkent.com.

Susan Lawrence is a Women's Ministry Consultant for Group for Women and coordinates Women's Ministries in central Illinois. Her first Bible Study, Pure Purpose, released in April 2010. http://purepurposebook.wordpress.com.