Outlive Your Life is a call to Christianity to write the conclusion of the book of Acts. Max Lucado weaves the call to Christ-like service into the actions and activities of the apostles and the first Christians. There were no needy people among them. They gave and shared what they possessed. Jesus was moved with compassion for those in need and responded with action. I quote for us from the closing chapter, "Salvation is the work of Christ. Compassion is the consequence of salvation." The message of the book can be summed up with this quote from chapter 7, See the Need; Touch the Hurt, "Works done in God's name long outlive our earthly lives."
The numbers given on the back cover of the book of the poor and hungry are overwhelming. Feeding the hungry and helping those in need is a passion of mine. It's seeing those who are suffering through the eyes of Jesus Christ. The author laces Outlive Your Life with Scripture. Christ came with a mission statement straight from Scripture (Isaiah 61:1-2). Jesus read it and I quote from chapter 10 of Outlive Your Life, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed (Luke 4:18)." I come away from reading this book with the thought that if Jesus did it, shouldn't we?
Max Lucado has a style of writing which I describe as "seamless". The words flow from one sentence to the next, from one chapter to the next. The message of the book is given in a clear, easy to read and easy to understand manner. The call to Christian action the author puts forward in this book is highly appropriate for our current time. Oil prices are rising increasing the cost to produce food. It's inevitable, food prices will also rise. The body of Christ is positioned perfectly to put it's faith into action. I highly recommend this book to any who have a desire, an unction to do something for Christ. However, in the words of James, "be doers of the word, and not hearers only (James 1:22)."
I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
One thing a lot of us don't get when we try to do good things is encouragement. Of all the discouragement and telling us we can't do good things, it's good to read a book like this one that actually encourages good things. This is a very inspiring book. It encourages us to actually do good, without just going through the motions or doing it for someone else to see and give us credit. Helping others, not judging, and actually doing a lot in sincerity and for God, not just doing things for others to be impressed.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the comment. I agree wholeheartedly with you when you say we do not get a lot of encouragement when we try to do good. I have been the director of a food pantry/soup kitchen for 3 years now. Discouragement and frustration seem to be everyday occurrences. But when encouragement comes, it is like a vitamin B-12 shot of energy which brings blessing, joy, and hope. God bless...
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