Shattered Dreams

I just finished Larry Crabb's Shattered Dreams: God's Unexpected Path to Joy. It was just what I needed.

Many times Crabb's books -- Connecting and Inside Out -- started out strong, really describing my itch, but they failed to scratch it. This book scratched and scratched. I don't want to be too strong, but this book really describes the foundation of my Christianity.

It describes the purpose of life as having a relationship with God, not trying to have a comfortable life. It is honest about the fact that God doesn't always act in the relationship like we want Him to act. But it is full of hope that He is going out of His way to be sure we end up (after death) with an unimaginable relationship.

Probably the biggest "aha!" I had today was why I feel so tense when I release everything to God. The reason is because I know where He is going to take me. He is going to take me straight into the midst of turmoil and chaos. Why? Because that is where the Son is working, and that is where He wants me to work. And that is where we will find unimaginable joy even here on earth and that is where we will see miracles and that is where we will be able to "Ask whatever you want in His name, and it will be done."