Drawbacks of slick

MAX ON LIFE
By Max Lucado
Thomas Nelson. 251 pages. £15.99
ISBN: 978 0 849 948 121

If you have a question about life or faith, this book may touch on it.

Max Lucado’s latest book brings together a large variety of questions and answers which range from the theological to the pastoral covering the nature of God, heaven and hell, prayer, fears about terrorism, financial pressures, and crisis in family life. It is an eclectic mix, reflecting the myriad concerns that life throws at us. Each answer is brief and easy to read, written with a pastor’s heart, demonstrating his deep faith and compassion. It is like listening to a friend.

I, however, have several problems with this book. The first is practical: it is difficult to negotiate through the sections to find particular issues. The second is more important: the biblical references in the answers are erratic. Some answers point to a few Bible passages, but large numbers of them have none which means there are places where the authority is Max and not the Bible. The questioner is given practical tips and shorthand approaches to some of life’s most complex difficulties, but it is the theological equivalent of fast food. Struggles and pains are often the very things that God uses to bring us through to maturity over a length of time; our questions are the means to bring us to greater knowledge of God. This book has a tendency to simplify, explain and solve, instead of pointing someone to look again at Christ and his Word. The answers provide bullet point solutions, which, despite the best of intentions, are not adequate. The format trivialises concerns: half a page of writing about forgiveness to the victim of sexual abuse cannot begin to address the issues involved, despite the gentleness of the answer. I would suggest that, if you have a serious question, get a book that can deal with it in more depth.

Karen Soole,

Chair of Northern Women’s Convention