Hello, dear one. I write this now from the back of the wardrobe, hoping somehow it gets to you. You may wonder at the strange paper and perhaps what pen produces ink such as this. Well those are the lesser of the questions you should be asking. Firstly – how did it come to this? Bare three days ago we parted under the oak trees ringing the far field. I left you with a promise and you left me with a kiss. Do you remember the golden light that afternoon as the sun slowly bent down to the earth? In the moment it felt momentous and it felt as if the sun knew it too. And so she curtsied to us two and bathed us with the golden light from her beaming face. And through the rays I looked and saw a rainbow forming in the corners of your eyes. For yes even with my words you could not bring yourself to lie to me that you were happy and I don’t care I said. It’s ok my love to cry. Now I walk under stranger trees and stranger skies and I wonder if we’ll ever meet again. I write this in the hopes that your eyes will brush these papers with the dark fire that blazes forth when your emotions are roused. Please my love forgive me for my tardiness. I’ll forgive you your doubts. For now for certain this has gone far beyond the little matter that we thought it was those three days ago. Or was it four? I can’t be certain anymore. Still please pray for me. I need it, oh I need it. I wish I could say I’ll be with you tomorrow and that we could picnic on the porch. I’d delight to share a few sandwiches with you and some cold iced tea and perhaps a few strawberries. Yet I can’t think on that too much. My focus is demanded here, even writing this taxes me as I let my thoughts drift to kinder climes. Pray for me my love. Always yours.
Tag: faith
Fourth House Down
A few little book thoughts this calm and restful Friday.
41. The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis. I needed an encouraging and fun little vacation read recently in Florida and thought about Narnia…and what better standalone Narnia book than Horse and His Boy? Yes, I’ve read it many times before but it never gets old. I love this one and the encouraging truths Lewis sprinkles throughout. There are some genuinely hilarious lines – I simply love his humour – but more than that, this story simply sings. I love thinking on such things as the sovereignty of God and His presence at the back of all things. Also it is always a good reminder to remember that everyone has their own story. Do I fully understand (or need to know) the depths of another’s longings and despair? Perhaps not.
42. The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman. A remarkable telling of the first month proper of World War I. After reading a relatively recent scholarly analysis of the origins of WW1, this book seemed a proper follow-up. Yes it was written a while back and yes it is perhaps not quite as scholarly or intellectual in style, but you know what? It earns its fame. I was absolutely gripped throughout, utterly fascinated in the sweeps and plunges of the early days of this terrible, great war. Tuchman does a wonderful job of describing and attempting to communicate the various personages (notably generals and leaders of armies) involved and as you read you more and more feel like you understand how they’re thinking and processing. This is a tragic book and though Tuchman does a fine job of describing the broader strategies and distinct moments that changed the course of history, it’s really not a book that’s going to say much about the individual soldier and his thoughts and fears (hm, perhaps All Quiet is next, eh?). Instead, the author focuses on the biggest battles and moments in the early days of this war (notably the Western front and the clash between Russia & Germany leading up to Tannenberg, with an exciting naval interlude thrown in). I appreciated the author’s fine prose (even if a bit overwrought at times) and thought this was a wonderful book attempting to describe a very confusing time from a vantage point barely forty years hence. The author has done a good deal of research and I appreciated reading the fruits of it. Yes there is some bias there (the Germans are dastardly devils indeed, according to this one! But if the author is to believed – which I have no reason to otherwise – the Germans committed some rather shocking atrocities in the name of following standard military doctrine. Helps explain the animus towards Germany a bit more, I suppose). Fascinating reading this one after “Sleepwalkers”, as that book cast Germany in a much more kindly light, whereas in this one (much closer to the actual events) we see Germany in the role of arch-villain. It is interesting reflecting on that which authors choose to focus on. I did very much appreciate this book. It filled in many gaps in my knowledge about the first month of WW1, helping me to understand some of the battles that until now I only knew the names of. I’m slightly afraid this book has done nothing to sate my interest in WW1 matters and now I’m tempted (please save me) from reading a book that covers the course of the war in its entirety. What have I done.
43. The Hermeneutics of the Biblical Writers by Abner Chou. A very interesting and encouraging read. Hermeneutics is one of those tricky subjects that everyone has an opinion on, if they know it or not. In the context of Scripture and understanding what God has said, it is absolutely vital to seek to know and understand how one ought to read and interpret the Bible, even with the understanding that one will never fully understand it in this life (or even the life to come – we Christians will spend eternity drawing closer towards perfect knowledge and communion with our Lord!). But if one does want to know how God communicates to us, would it not behoove us to seek to understand how we ought read and understand the written word that He has given us? That is why a proper hermeneutic matters. If God wants us to know Him and has given us a word that we might know him by, then we absolutely should seek to understand how we might read and understand this word. Long intro. Sorry.
But anyway – this book. Abner Chou writes an interesting (if at times overly repetitive and dense) book attempting to prove that there is a singular hermeneutic underlying all of Scripture. The apostles and authors of the New Testament books do not engage in a different hermeneutic compared to the Old Testament prophets and writers. This is important because it is all too common (even – especially? – in these days) for one to read the New Testament and feel that it has wiped out everything from the Old Testament – it is only the New Testament that matters. The Old Testament writers didn’t really understand how God works and hence we can safely place their writings aside and focus on the books in the NT. Also, don’t the NT authors use the OT in rather odd ways sometimes? Clearly they have a different way of looking at Scripture that we can’t really understand. The Bible is just a bunch of different authors writing in hyper-local contexts engaging with their own local community, correct? Abner Chou writes this book to prove the negative to the above. Instead of understanding the Bible as a mishmash of tribal laws and oral traditions, he recognizes the Bible as ultimately inspired by God, as a book with a common message and common theme. And as an outflow, he recognizes that the prophets and apostles worked out this common theme as they engaged with the writings that were available to them. Instead of a bunch of texts standing alone, the writers are engaging with one another in ways that a proper understanding of intertextuality reveals. These authors were not primitives making it up as they went along – oh no. Instead, the authors of Scripture were highly intelligent and very deliberate (and yes, divinely inspired) in how they crafted their writings to communicate and proclaim the redemptive plan of God. Understanding the redemptive-historical framework of Scripture enables one to more fully grasp the way the writers of Scripture (in progressive fashion) engage with other Scriptures as God’s written revelation continues throughout the ages.
I feel as if I cannot do this book justice, but I will simply say that this book was worth the read. It is pretty dense and scholarly and many, many footnotes and likely this won’t be worth it for many. Not an easy read. But it was worth it for me. There were a few slight (but veiled) references to the dispensational convictions of the author, but I do not feel as if these interfered with the overall message of the book. I could be wrong here (my low theological education showing, I suppose), but I believe both fully reformed and dispensational camps could read this book and come away nodding their heads in agreement with the vast majority. This book did my soul good and I came away with two major takeaways. Firstly, understanding the full depths of Scripture is a hard and challenging task, one that takes hard work and will never end in this life. Secondly, seeking to understand what God is communicating to us in his word is worth the effort. If we understand who God is (Creator) and who we are (creation) and recognize that there is a crack in the world and that all is not as should be and that there is a distance between us and God – what else should be our response than to ask – how might I be with God? If we see the Bible as God’s message revealing the answer, then ought we not then seek to read and plumb the riches of the Bible in order to more fully know and appreciate and be overcome by God and all He is and all He offers? Yes and forever yes. For at the end of the day, we read this Bible and we see all roads pointing to the cross, that fateful day when the God-who-became-man died upon a cross that all who look to him in humble desperation and simple faith shall be united to him in this death and in his resurrection rise to life everlasting in the presence of the God who is.
Truths and Application
I do not have an overlong time to write this morning, so instead – quick few thoughts on latest read!
39. Redemption Accomplished and Applied by John Murray. Simply staggering in its beauty. I finished this book a bare few minutes ago and so feel still a bit caught in the wonder and love and awe that I felt as I read the last few pages (namely, focusing on the glorification of the saints and subsequent life forever with our Lord Jesus Christ). To anyone who wishes to understand and meditate more on the work of God in salvation and how that is worked out in the lives of those who are his, I would heartily recommend this one. Breathtaking in scope and wondrous in its depth of thought, I found this a most profitable read these past few weeks. When is it ever a bad thing to think and ponder more on the salvation that is ours in Christ? This book is broken up into two parts, firstly – the unilateral and sovereign work of God as it bears out on our salvation and what this means. This part was a bit more academic and at times a touch dry, yet still I appreciated and it was profitable. But the second part? I would read this book again ten times just for the second half of this book. Murray writes and expounds on how salvation is worked out in the lives of those who are the redeemed and walks through a number of chapters examining the different facets of salvation (even what most would call the “ordo salutis” or order of salvation, though some of the concepts are a bit intertwined of necessity!) and how God’s redemption of us is actually seen and born out. I do not do this part justice. It is a simply marvelous study on God’s work of salvation in the lives of sinful men and women and shows most clearly how God works in us to call us from darkness to that light of immortality which will end with us looking into the face of Christ and communing with our God forever. What a delight it was to meditate on such themes as effectual calling, regeneration, faith and repentance, justification, adoption, sanctification, perseverance, union with Christ, glorification! I will of certainty read this book again. A balm and delight to my soul to consider the marvelous truths of God’s work of salvation. Some of the truths expounded are ones that I strain to wrap my mind around and truly comprehend. Yet still I delight in meditating on God’s salvation work and thrill to think that I will be forever meditating on this divine work as I worship God now and into eternity. Never will considering these truths cease to bring delight to my soul.
Love Unyielding
A glorious morning is mine. It is but a simple Sunday morning, but already I feel the grace of the Lord this day as I have enjoyed so many fine little pleasures. Woke up at a nice and leisurely hour (comparatively to my normal) and as the sun was already peeking over the horizon, decided to get out of bed and enjoy a long pre-church time of rest and meditation. Well, I say that – but I also decided that a little errand run was important. Dashed off to bakery and got a fresh loaf of sourdough for the week and then went to grocery store for a few little items for macaroni salad contribution for tomorrow’s Monday Night dinner. Back home again, and back to reading and meditating.
How sweet have been these past few minutes. A good cup of strong black coffee. Listening to the ever lovely Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy. Reading in the Word – words of lamentation and of hope as I continue reading through Lamentations and relish the joy-streaked melancholy of Chapter 3 – surely one of the most beautiful chapters of Scripture there is. And then in Luke – onwards we march as we witness the continuing ministry of Jesus as he calls all to repentance. And then what an overwhelming story of love and compassion as he teaches in the synagogue and then notices a woman afflicted with a grievous ailment. She doesn’t say a word, she doesn’t cry out to him, she doesn’t put herself forward. Jesus looks, Jesus notices, Jesus calls to her to come. She comes to him and what does he do? Jesus places his hands on her and pronounces her free from her pain and suffering, free from the chains with which she was bound by Satan. Glory glory – hallelujah and all praise to Jesus King of kings and Lord of lords who is our Sovereign who also has the hands that heals. It is almost too much to consider this Jesus who looks to us and sees us suffering and calls us to him that we might know his healing hands. See those hands marked by the scars of mercy? Look upon Jesus, the one who calls to us to come to him and be forever free from our chains. I love to ponder and meditate on such. Balm for my soul this Sunday to consider the Jesus who has saved me from all my sins and called me into communion with God.
Little Bumblebee in the Field it Plays
A few books this Monday evening!
35. Jesus is Lord – Christology Yesterday and Today by Donald Macleod. A wonderful little book looking at the person of Christ and exploring various beliefs on the person and work of Christ throughout the past two millennia. This book is less of a focused study and more of a collection of multiple articles both positively proclaiming the orthodox view on the person of Christ while at the same time critically examining various views that do not seem to align with such. This is not a work for popular consumption – definitely written with an academic bent and at times slow reading. Still, I delighted in this! While I may not be the target audience, I appreciated the fact that each chapter stood alone and addressed a particular concept or theologian. The author clearly holds a high view of Christ (a Nicaean one) and is diligent in rooting out the inconsistences and sly ambiguities of those who deny certain attributes of Christ while paying lip service to orthodoxy. This is a good work for any who would like to understand why Christians so firmly believe Jesus to be in very substance God. While it can be a bit heady at times, I still think the brevity of this work alone (less than 200 pages!) makes this an attractive book to dig into. Some of the later chapters focused on more modern theologians and I greatly appreciated seeing how even now the person, work and purpose of Christ are still being studied as scholars and theologians seek to understand who is this Jesus who lived on this earth a little over two thousand years ago. Heartily recommend to anyone who wants to understand the orthodox Christian view of Christ and isn’t afraid to get nerdy doing so! Also? For me at least, this book was balm to my soul. Not mere scholastic study or intellectualism, this work provided encouragement for me as I meditated on Jesus Christ and who he is and what he has done and is doing for me. This is not a dead Christ I serve, but indeed very God, the Lord and Creator of the universe.
36. Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. A riotously funny book, this is one I haven’t read in near twenty years…and guess what? Still great!! Adams has one of the most absurd senses of humor I have ever encountered in fiction, as well as one of the most creative minds. They fuse in this wonderful little book that most have heard of, but sadly all too few have read. There are so many laugh-out-loud moments in this and I shan’t spoil by attempting to summarize them here. Just know, while this is a sci-fi book, it’s not just a sci-fi book. It’s really more of a comical commentary on life, the universe and everything. Y’know. I delighted to read this and surely I will read this again, but this time in less than twenty years time.
37. Foster by Claire Keegan. I thought I would love this one more than I did. Brooding and darkly beautiful, this short story is widely acclaimed and I can see why. Though I think the texture of this tale is often beautiful – so many little details that paint the story in hues rich and deep – the story itself is teased out so sparingly that I struggled to connect with the person and relationship at the heart of it. There is both light and darkness in this book and at times the veil drawn over the story makes it hard to distinguish what is actually going on. I will freely confess that is an authorial choice and likely I can also be a bit dense at times. So any faults of this story I will lay at my own feet and claim a lack of understanding. But at the end of the day, it wasn’t a story that I loved and that is all I can say. Yes I loved the look at small-village Irish life. But the characters themself (even the child!) all felt so cold and stark that by the end of this short tale, I felt no different than when I started. Perhaps it is just me.
Courtyard
Outside time
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit met
and in full communion and perfect accord
they said
in covenant let us come and
for covenant let us go
and draw near to man
that he may know us
and adore us
and commune with us again
Let me be propitiated
I shall do this thing
I will send
I will go
and I will strengthen
and comfort your soul
Let him come to me and look upon my death
let him come and eat my flesh
let him drink full of my blood
as I have drunk deep of thy wrath
let him come to me and rest
let him come to me and look and in me believe
for as I have arisen so let him with me rise
for to us I have now him reconciled
and surely brought him nigh
and he cries out listen to his plea
skim off skim off
these base impurities
that i might know more
and ever treasure thee!
My Father I am thy child
and in you and you alone find true peace
My Jesus I am thy prayer
and only live through you who intercedes
My Comforter and Helper
I because of you know the words of God
I long to be with my Lord
forever
in the places where you are!
Be near me, indwell me, dear Spirit
show me how I ought to live
your heart is new, your joy is true
see now the strength I give you for each day!
Pray for me, pray for me, dear Jesus
show me the true and better way
it is done, I have done it
only through me will you see the Father’s face
Have mercy upon me my Father
i still feel so cold and full of sin
consider my love, my dear child
the work I did long ago begin
will not falter
for I who chose you and who knows you
will surely keep you to the end
what a wondrous thing it is that i should be called a child of God
as I step through the doorway and above me glance and see
the blood smeared over my head that came from a Lamb who died
and consider that this has been the plan since outside eternity
and now feel the winds of the Spirit rustle through my soul
i tremble to know that i am loved and i am held
and that by divine sympathy and mercy am made truly whole
oh i feel the pulsing of the lifeblood that spills out as these words
the blood that for me was spilled points to the divine reality of God
and now I hesitate to appropriate that treasure of eternity that is mine
but nothing do I want if it is not in actuality the reality of life in Christ
I long to obey the commandments that have been given
I long to be found in communion in the church that is my home
I long to be known by the one who’s for his Father’s glory risen
I long to be a clay temple of the Spirit who somehow fills my frame
and now and forever I lift my voice and whisper glory glory glory
to the Lord God Almighty forever and always glory to your name.
As it is written so shall it always be,
glory to the Father, Son, and Spirit
glory to the Holy Trinity
peace to mankind through the cross of Jesus
and may all who come to him know the bliss
of delighting in our God for eternity.
It is good for us to be here.
It is good to gaze upon the face of God.
Let’s Talk
Do you hear the whispering around the corner or is it just me? She asked softly and eagerly with her eyes she hinted more. I knew not how to respond for it was one of those questions that didn’t really need an answer as you knew it was just a lead-in to a grander theme. But really, she said, isn’t it something how we all go through life as if this was just the beginning, an opening to a play that’s far grander than we could hope to do justice to? Or is it just me? Even those who carpe their diems and proudly proclaim their yolos seem to in an undertone admit that even so there is a faint whiff of dissatisfaction and that the meaning of life is not quite fulfilled. I hesitate to say all is vanity but do you not think that just about sums it up? I lean back and take a sip of my cold drink and let the luscious bitterness roll across my tongue and ponder the truths of what she’s just said. Or are they truths? Or perhaps just grand philosophical statements of the unexplained phenomena that the firing neurons in our brains frantically seek to connect in the patterns that we love to caress once they are defined and neatly boxed? I think sometimes the latter yet she speaks with such fervent adoration for the mystery that she almost understands. I for one cannot understand her fire yet I cannot doubt there is a fire there. So that is the question. From where does that spark come? And is it an eternal predestined flame or is it just a random outshoot of the conflagration of the universe in all its infinite randomness that must in its ways produce a moment such as this? And she as she sips her drink peers back at me, understanding the moment demands a silence and a question as that demands a pondering. What shall I say? I do know that there is something beyond the veil but sometimes I wish someone would tear it down and tell me that all is done and dusted and that here you go – the truth of it all is plain to see. I startle as I realize I have said this aloud. So yes she said slowly, the beautiful real smile dawning upon her face. You do hear the whispering. And you are more fortunate than you know, for your wish? Granted. We cannot see with eyes now but still yet there were some that have. That veil has been torn down and that true answer granted. All in one it was done and now all eternity lies bare to see. No, I say, in sudden realization. You tricked me. And here I thought it was an innocent philosophical digression. Is there ever really such a thing she mused. If you play at seeking answers you do indeed run the real risk of facing truth. Simply taste and see. Look at the words that were written. I choked in fear. Dare I go on another step. If so I may be caught and unable to escape. Or perhaps it was already too late. Those words that were written. They were written in blood, were they not? Veritably, she replied. Blood and water and spirit. The historical accounts all agree. History I muttered. It would be my nemesis. I cannot resist a good story. Well she smiled once more. Let me tell you one.
Marvelous
And we come to it at last, a Sunday almost worthy of all the acclaim. I wish my pen had ink sufficient to write all that I wish to describe, my mind thoughts clarified sufficiently to impart them to the page here and now. Alas my pen is dull and my mind distracted and so I feel most ill fitted to the task to talk of that which most fills my heart. Is that not the way of it at times? Alas, alas. Yet still I must write. For my soul burns within me as I consider this day that is used as a fitting marker to celebrate the reason for which I live. Some call it Easter, some call it Resurrection Sunday, some have their own reasons for not celebrating it at all. For me, I simply delight that there is a day still commonly known as a day we look back to the point in time – real time, defined time – in which a man that was dead came to life. And this was not a cheap trick or temporary reprieve from that most ghastly enemy death, nay, this was a conquering triumph, a resurrection that was a turning of the tide, a proclamation that the grave no longer had any power, death no longer had any sting. For on a certain day on this very earth not that long ago as one reckons time, the man Jesus Christ rose from the dead with the power and authority that verily spoke to the fact that he was not simply a man, but God Himself, the very essence and fullness of God who had been made flesh and now walked upon this earth in a body the like the world had never seen – a resurrected body in all its glory – pointing to a hope that for those who call upon the name of Jesus will never fade nor fail. Indeed – we all who call ourselves Christians rejoice in the verity of the resurrection and delight in the hope that is ours – bought with the blood of Christ and set aside as a people to the very Lord of the universe, we too have a future that is free of death and pain, better than that, a life that will be lived forever with our Lord. Oh what glory, oh what joy! I cannot proper do justice to the song that fills my heart. All I can say now is glory hallelujah. Sometimes I cannot quite believe that God died for me. Sometimes I cannot quite believe that to accomplish this fact, my God hung bleeding on a tree. Yet I look back and sing of resurrection story and cannot deny the truth. My God loved me, my God chose me, my God set his hand upon me and declared me beloved son. What can my fickle heart say in response? Perhaps my pen isn’t quite dry, not yet. Perhaps my mind isn’t quite empty, not yet. Perhaps my song this eve is one granted to me by the God who made the stars who sing along in triumphant harmony. Perhaps – nay, for truth – I am one who can now rest secure in my God’s promised eternal security. It is a thing of beauty that my God hath wrought. I can but look upon it and cry out in praise, that my God has seen fit that justice and mercy might kiss each other at that cursed tree. Jesus Christ is my risen Lord – for now and all eternity.
Oh how Wonderful
On this day I sit and think and ponder on all the fingers that point at me and signal with their urgency – it is you! And thus do I walk forward now on this path and as the relaxed posture of the flowers show, it is hot outside and so it is not surprising that a drop or two of sweat slowly slides down my brow. To return to the theme, perhaps I am a bit too self centered in my musings so I consider that all I see is concerned with me when in reality I know that this cannot be. For true, if I were the center of this world’s play then would not I perhaps inhabit a more prominent role? Or am I just doomed to be the bit character, the one with a single line in the third act that perhaps isn’t even heard over the shrill whistling of the birds perched overhead on the balcony. Perhaps so. Yet if I have a line and if this line must be said, should I not practice the all important art of elocution to ensure that at least there is a chance the few words I have fall gracefully upon the ears of those still perked towards the stage? That is my attitude and hopefully it is not arrogant to assume such, especially if I have manfully resigned the expectation that the central part is mine. In fact it never was. Grateful for that I am for it means I can rest in the shadow of another.
In fact all my hope for a better life lies not in what I can do for myself for all my own strivings show is – in proven fact – how inept I am at bettering myself in the attributes that have that certain something – oh you know what I mean – that aspect of the infinite, that piercing rhythm of eternity. So my ineptitude points to the fact that I cannot in and of myself contribute anything of lasting value to the novel whose pages so rapidly are flicking flicking towards its close. But why yet does my finite sluggish mind grasp so much for the beauty that it cannot in itself define? If I cannot so define, how do I know that there is such a possibility? This concept has stubbornly embedded itself in my mind and perhaps is an original feature of my soul, that idea that the infinite exists and that it is beautiful beyond compare. Where is this treasure, where is this pearl of great price? Perhaps oh if the infinite would bend down and say a word or two to give me that glimpse for which my soul longs. Oh for this word to come down and in itself give me such life that in comparison to it all else is merely grinning death. Oh for this word to stretch forth a hand and say that which my soul aches to hear. Where is this treasure, where this pearl of great price? Perhaps it truly is found in that song of grace and truth which I so casually dismissed so long ago. Perhaps it truly is found in that old worn story that says that man or god or perhaps both came to bring peace to earth. Where is this treasure, this pearl of great price? I shiver as I say aloud that name that rings redemption in divine majesty. I weep as I sit at the foot of the cross and ponder he who is called Jesus Christ.
Tower of the Moon
Quick book thoughts this Monday morn.
25. How Long, O Lord? by D.A. Carson. A superbly brilliant book on evil and suffering. Carson looks at a topic that is not an easy one and with a pastoral heart and incisive mind attempts to put forth a Christian framework for understanding the horrors we daily see around us in this world in which we live. I would argue that Carson succeeds and my heart was very much encouraged reading this one. This is one of the biggest problems many people have with the idea of God or of Christianity. If there is a God that is so loving, then why evil? Then why suffering? Then why so many horrible things do I see on the news each and every day? Carson does not diminish or downplay the evils we see in this world, if anything, some of the examples he gives of severe suffering and loss are almost too much to read. Yet Carson also very much wants to look at this hard topic from a Biblical perspective and explore what the Bible has to say about suffering and evil but most importantly of all, what does the Bible say about the God who is in the midst of us, even now sustaining and holding this world together through his sovereign power. Does the presence of God in this world mean he smiles upon the darkness that swirls over the face of it? May it never be. Does the presence of evil upon the world that God has made mean God is incapable of holding it back? May it never be. Does this impinge upon the nature of God and the love that we so rightly ascribe to Him? Absolutely not.
This book is one that I shall revisit. Carson does not write this book as a balm or aid for those currently going through suffering (a fact that he reiterates), but rather – he writes this book as a preventative, a book to aid the Christian in understanding the problem of evil and suffering and how the God we worship yet reigns, rules and loves us still. This book is written to give us a higher idea of God and yet still encourage us that we have a Father who cares for even the smallest concern we have. The author acknowledges and leans into the mysteries that we cannot now fully understand (if ever) and is so concerned to rightly place those mysteries, which he locates in the very nature of God which our limited minds cannot fully grasp. The author is very much concerned that we not assign to God that which is not assigned to Him in Scripture and he is very much concerned that we do not contradict that about God which is fully asserted in Scripture. I very much appreciate Carson’s reliance and leaning into the Scriptural text and how it informs us of the God who is.
This is not a book written for those who do not know and love God, though I think it would be an interesting book for a non-Christian to read as it gives an insight into the Christian perspective on evil and suffering and how we as Christians grapple with such. For myself, I found myself profoundly encouraged by this one and seek to use it as Carson intended, strengthening and buttressing my understanding of this topic so that even as I go through trials and tribulations in my life yet to come, I will have a Biblical understanding of suffering and the God who is yet present. The chapter on Job alone was worth the price of admission. Very grateful for authors who write with such clarity of thought yet also such an overflow of empathy and compassion, even seeking to show us how we can best be with those who are suffering even now. It is rare to find such a balance. I cannot recommend this one enough.
Something Weird 