Book Review: "Max on Life"

TITLE: MAX ON LIFE - answers and insights to your most important questions
AUTHOR: Max Lucado
PUBLISHER: Nashville, TN: Thomas-Nelson, 2011, (260 pages)

This is a book of wisdom given via short snippets in a style that is truly Lucado. The question and answer format makes this book highly readable. With gentle and calming answers to some of the most difficult questions of life, Max comes across like a wise man, a friend, a pastor, and a dear brother in Christ. His words are convicted but not controlling. His insights are served with a dose of imaginative prose that proves again why Lucado is one of the evangelical world's favourite writers.

Lucado uses alliteration to express 7 kinds of questions. Under HOPE, he addresses issues surrounding faith in God, salvation, purpose, and grace. Under HURT, he deals with the tough issues of pain, suffering, and different conflicts people face. Under HELP, Lucado gives his take about Church, Christian disciplines, and Christian practices like prayer. Under HIM/HER, he deals with relationships, sex, adultery, romance, marriage, divorce and others. Under HOME, he tackles the tough issues surrounding parenting. Under HAVES/HAVE-NOTs, he talks about work matters, financial stuff, and dealing with the modern pressures of work life. Under HEARAFTER, he writes about the future, aging and the afterlife.

What I like about this book is the pastoral tone throughout. Lucado manifests understanding of the layperson. He is not easily swayed by worldliness in the world, and encourages readers to hang on to hope in God. At the same time, Lucado is never shallow theologically. While the writings display a high degree of readability, it does not mean Lucado is uninformed about theological doctrines and scholarship. Some scholars may mistakenly assume that Lucado's writings are geared more to the popular audience in mind. I beg to differ. Truth and wisdom can be dispensed in both easy-to-read snippets, as well as heavy and bulky theological compendiums. This book may look like snippets, but then, isn't our life filled with snippets too?

Ratings: 4 stars of 5.

conrade

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"Book has been provided courtesy of Thomas Nelson and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
Available at your favourite bookseller from Thomas Nelson".