A Brief Review of
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O Me of Little Faith: True Confessions of a Spiritual WeaklingBy Jason Boyett Paperback: Zondervan, 2010. Buy now: [ ChristianBook.com ] |
Reviewed by Adam Ellis.
Confession: I am a faithful doubter…or a doubting believer (if you prefer). For me, faith and doubt are like eternal dance partners. It seems to me that “faith” is more closely related to words like “trust”, “confidence”, “hope”, “commitment”, and has less to do with words like “certainty” or “convinced”. I can’t turn off the questions. I don’t generally find most books on apologetics all that helpful. I resonate with the man who cried out to Jesus “Lord, I do believe. Help my unbelief”. On the other hand, not everyone is like me. I’ve found that some people aren’t given to such incessant questioning, and that the things that are issues for me don’t seem to be issues for them.
So here’s the problem: Jason Boyett has written a beautiful, hopeful, gut-wrenchingly honest book for people like me. I can’t even begin to tell you how refreshingly helpful it was, and how much life it breathed back into my faith. But, at the same time, I realize (as Boyett seems to) that for people who aren’t like me, this book could be devastating. He doesn’t shy away from hard questions, and he doesn’t answer them. He doesn’t defend the status-quo. He doesn’t whitewash problems. He makes no attempt to win any debates. He speaks with poignant honesty as one who is deeply committed to hope. In the tradition of Kierkegaard, Boyett seems to have little use for “proofs” but rather seems to mean for his book to function as a sort of confessional invitation to a journey of hopeful commitment. It also functions as a safe space for all of us faithful doubters…a ray of hope that says “you’re not crazy, and you’re not alone.” I can’t recommend this book to every Christian I know. However, I know that I will, without hesitation direct my fellow doubting believers to this beacon of hope. It is a well of living water that I will return to again and again.
C. Christopher Smith is the founding editor of The Englewood Review of Books. He is also author of a number of books, including most recently How the Body of Christ Talks: Recovering the Practice of Conversation in the Church (Brazos Press, 2019). Connect with him online at: C-Christopher-Smith.com
 Reading for the Common Good From ERB Editor Christopher Smith "This book will inspire, motivate and challenge anyone who cares a whit about the written word, the world of ideas, the shape of our communities and the life of the church." -Karen Swallow Prior Enter your email below to sign up for our weekly newsletter & download your FREE copy of this ebook! |
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