Matthew West (1)

I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would. I love this CD and the idea behind it, and I love reading the stories in the CD booklet. I guess I just don't care so much about what Matthew West and Angela Thomas have to say about them (no offence...). The stories themselves are beautiful and I enjoyed those, as expected. The responses are sweet... just not what I'm interested in.

On a positive note, West quoted C.S. Lewis two or three times, if I recall correctly, so he gets points for that. :)

But I do want to talk about the chapter on homosexuality. My heart aches for the anonymous author of the letter who is trying so hard to honor God with his/her life despite the temptations s/he faces every day. For the most part, I thought Thomas' response was appropriate and kind-hearted, but there was one comment she made that seemed insensitive and condescending to me. She reminds this person that everyone is struggling along with him/her with their own personal temptations. A good thing to remember, of course. But in comparing them she says "Yours is homosexuality, mine might be insecurity, and the person in the pew next to me at church may struggle with temptations of pornography or drug addiction or rage."

Okay, insecurity can absolutely be a day-to-day struggle, but it is just not on the same level as homosexuality or the other examples. Anonymous has to daily ignore the overwhelming voices insisting that there's nothing wrong with homosexuality. In addition to resisting the temptation to act on his/her urges, s/he has to constantly remind him/herself that those voices are wrong, when it would be so much easier to allow him/herself to be accepted into that community (that includes Christians) and live an openly gay lifestyle. On the other hand, I don't think insecurity is even a sin. And there are so many voices speaking out about self-love these days, a person struggling with insecurity doesn't even really have to look for encouraging messages to find them.

Heck, Thomas isn't actually admitting that she struggles with insecurity. She says her temptation MIGHT be insecurity, which makes it sound like either she doesn't want to admit her actual struggle or she can't think of one. Basically, I think that Thomas should either have elaborated on that to make comparisons more apparent, or she should have left herself out of that completely. I don't mean to sound overly harsh. The rest of Thomas' response was nice. That one phrase just really stuck out to me and this is such a sensitive topic that I think that really should have been edited. Though, as much as I've just written about it, this phrase didn't affect my rating at all.

(Side note: I was also just confused when she referred to Anonymous as a man, when the letter didn't clarify. Maybe she made a guess based on handwriting?)… (más)

Christian recording artist Matthew West collaborated with seasoned author Angela Thomas to create "The Story of Your Life: Inspiring Stories of God at Work in People Just Like You", a devotional book filled with 52 incredible stories of faith and purpose. This project, in addition to West's audio CD of the same name, was birthed from a two-month retreat in which West invited others from around the globe to share the stories of their lives with him. Over 10,000 people from twenty different countries responded to his invitation, and this little book is just a sampling of the victory, the heartbreak, the redemption, and the tragedy that people communicated through their letters to West.

Each short chapter in "The Story of Your Life" begins with one of the notes sent from around the world during West's retreat. What I found to be especially refreshing in this approach is that the authors springboard from vastly diverse perspectives in each separate devotional. We are introduced to families who have been restored...and those who are still staggering under the weight of estrangement. We meet people who have found victory from sin...and those still praying for a way out. We meet successful business professionals...and struggling middle school students.

This blessed peek into how God is working in real-life situations is followed by a succinct, but Scripture-focused response, from either West or Thomas. Over and over, they point us back to Truth no matter where we are in life, making every story valuable and worthwhile. Through her response to the parents of the autistic child, Thomas encourages us to become people "who believe the purposes and plans of God even when we do not understand." And West exhorts us all to "choose sacrifice instead of safety, excitement instead of excuses, and God's purpose instead of your plans" in his response to the woman who gave up her career goals to follow's God call to the mission field in Africa.

While this book would be a great start for a new Christian, or an "older" one who is weary, its theology never goes very deep and there is very little, if any, expository teaching for those seeking to delve into the Bible on a more meaningful level. West and Thomas are heavy on encouragement and feeling good about one's "purpose" but are unable to scratch much beyond this surface.

Through this collection of stories and devotionals, West and Thomas dramatically demonstrate that every single one of us has an eternal story to share, whether our lives are powerful and public or quiet and unrecognized. Through all the narratives in "The Story of Your Life", we are encouraged to submit the stories of our lives "to the true `author and finisher' of our faith."… (más)