Book Review: Outlive Your Life

Fourteen words from the back cover of the book immediately caught my attention. I quote them, "These are devastating times: 1.75 billion people are desperately poor; one billion are hungry." The book is Outlive Your Life: you were made to make a difference, ISBN 978-0-8499-4668-4 (IE). The author is Max Lucado.


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."

Feed the Hungry

Why is feeding the hungry a big deal? Should I feed the hungry? Should I volunteer at the local soup kitchen? Should I give a food donation to a food pantry? Am I responsible to feed the hungry?

The act of feeding the hungry used to be something we heard about happening in third world countries. Today, feeding the hungry is a close reality as people lose jobs due to the economy. Who's responsible for feeding the hungry?

Feeding the Hungry Multitude

"When it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, This is a deserted place, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves food. But Jesus said to them, They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat (Mt. 14:15-16 NKJV)."

This is a familiar Bible story. Jesus is feeding the hungry multitude of 5,000 men, not including women and children. Yes, he blessed the loaves and fishes. Yes, he performed the miraculous increase of the food donation. Yet this command remains, "You give them something to eat."

Another version of this story is found in John 6:5-14. A lad supplies the food donation of loaves and fishes. Jesus could have created bread from rocks, but he didn't. He used available resources. Humanity provided the food donation. Christ blessed the food donation. Humanity distributed the food donation to feed the hungry multitude.

Christian Duty To Feed the Hungry

Jesus' words stand out in the story of feeding the hungry multitude. Every time I read it they hit me, "You give them something to eat." Those who profess to follow Christ are commanded to feed the hungry.

Christians have been blessed for decades with an abundance of goods. We're expected to share this abundance with those who are in need whether they follow Christ or not. Read Matthew 25:14-46. Let the reality of Jesus' words resonate in your heart.

What Can I Do To Feed the Hungry?

"You give them something to eat." Hands-on feeding the hungry requires time and effort. The experience of feeding the hungry can be heart-wrenching. Many opportunities exist to help feed the hungry.

Give a food donation in the form of money to your local food pantry or soup kitchen. This is the most effective donation. If you don't have money to give to a soup kitchen or food pantry, even a small food donation is appreciated.

Many churches already have a food pantry or food ministry in place. Some offer soup kitchen services. If yours doesn't and you can't find one locally, then start a soup kitchen. Open a food pantry.

Hungry people are looking for help. The Christian community possesses the resources to feed the hungry. We're commanded by Christ to feed the hungry.

I implore all Christians to search their hearts. Give a monetary offering, a food donation, or volunteer your services. There is something you can do to help those in need. God can take a food donation of five loaves and two fishes, bless it, and place the food donation in our hands to feed thousands. God bless...

NKJV - New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

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