Hi everyone,
I have been laying a little low with regard to blogging lately…still trying to upgrade my site (getting there)…eagerly awaiting our first two grandbabies (within the next 1-4 weeks, most likely)…moving the business I work for to a new location (finally settled in and phones and Internet are working)…general fun and relationships…summer stuff.
Thought you might to look over my shoulder a bit again and watch grace unfold in small wonderful unveilings:
From a Blog:
MY EXPERIENCE AT THE SHACK
I received in an e mail earlier this week and it has inspired me to read this book again. My weekend is planned now…..as I began to read this morning I ran across a line that has been one of my constant traveling companions from the time I first read it while walking through a painful family experience last spring. I use it often.
"GRACE RARELY MAKES SENSE FOR THOSE LOOKING IN FROM THE OUTSIDE."
The thought that precedes this in the book is this:
"I suppose since most of our hurts come through relationships so will our healing."
I have had a few of those relationships this past year that have so helped in the healing I had needed for so long. The author of this book being one of them. The words and stories in this book and his words to me personally have been like dipping my feet into a cool gentle flowing stream on a hot and humid Midwest summer day.
Those other friends I speak of, if you are reading this, you know who you are, and I cherish every moment I have with you all. My prayer and my hope is that we all are so captured by the love and the freedom that our awesome Father has for us and longs for us to walk in.
If you haven’t read this book or if you have and didn’t like it, don’t sweat it……Father is bigger than words on the pages of a book….even the Bible. But let us not forget that great stories written by those that have touched him and even more importantly been touched by him, can reveal something of him and his love that we might not see on our own. With that being said, if you are so moved to read The Shack or the Bible or any other story written by someone who is experiencing a wonderful relationship with Father, you might just be surprised by who you find there?
During the meeting on 29th June 2007, Jody described a picture she had of a blue waterfall. A few days later, as I was writing up the notes for that meeting it seemed a good idea to include a photograph of a waterfall. I have several, but I remembered that my friend Jim from Washington State in the USA had sent photos of a recent trip, and in amongst a set of images of white-water rafting he’d included a wonderful photo of a waterfall. It’s included in the notes of that meeting but repeated here for completeness (and because it is a lovely photograph).
I mailed Jim to ask if he was happy for me to leave his photo in the notes…
I’ve just written up last week’s meeting and your waterfall picture seems
to fit the bill rather well. May I leave it there? If not, I’m sure I can find a
waterfall photo of my own, but nothing even nearly as amazing.
I think it’s a truly great photo. The light in the leaves is just fantastic.
He kindly agreed I could use the photo. Then I wrote back to thank him and asked him where the waterfall is…
Jim, where is that spectacular waterfall? Looks like ‘The Shack’ country for
sure. Now I’m envious about your countryside!
The reason I mentioned ‘The Shack‘ (see also the notes for 30th May 2007) is that Jim had originally told me about the book, and having read it I thought the woodlands and countryside in Jim’s photo looked pretty much as I imagined the setting for the book.
My question startled Jim, and his reply startled me! It turns out that Jim took the photo during a trip with his family, and the very next day he read ‘The Shack’. He read it cover to cover in a single day, which is the effect this book has on many people. That very waterfall figures in the book and the story affected Jim so deeply that he seriously thought of deleting the photo from his phone. I’m so glad he didn’t! He wrote straight back to tell me. We Brits have a word for the sort of surprise that is so big it just stops you in your tracks. We say, ‘I was gobsmacked’. Wow, was I gobsmacked by Jim’s message. In my wildest dreams it would never have occurred to me that the photo would be of ‘the’ waterfall.
What a wonder our Shepherd and King truly is. He knows the unknowable and his works are amazing! Praise him! Bless him! Thanks Lord, for Jim, for ‘The Shack’, for William Young who wrote it, above all for your forgiveness which it portrays so amazingly, and this walk through a sometimes dark world in the knowledge that there’s a mighty welcome at the end of the trail. HalleluYah!
I told myself I wouldn’t tell this story publicly until Heidi (my beautiful wife) had read The Shack, but I now told her the story so I can share it with you.
When I went to the home church conference in April in Salem, we decided to go visit the Imago Dei in Portland and skip the Sunday activities. After Imago Dei, we stopped at Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge on the way back. While there, I snapped a picture of my little girl (Hannah, 7 years old) at the falls, on my cell phone.
The NEXT DAY, I read The Shack. Multnomah Falls is the very place that the family stopped before arriving in the Northeastern Oregon wilderness (where his daughter disappeared). During the two days it took me to read the book, I nearly deleted the picture from my phone a hundred times because of the immediate tie to the pain of the main character.
But because of how the story turned out, and the closeness with the Father that resulted, I decided to keep the pic on there as a reminder.
I LOVE God’s sense of humor, and His desire to jump out and surprise. Could someone forward this to Mr. Young, or give me his email address so I can share this story with him? Thanks!
Dear Mr. Young,
I wanted to write you a short note of thanks for this wonderful book,
and also share a few testimonies. I heard your interview with Wayne
Jacobsen on the God Journey and knew that this book would be worth
buying. I was not disappointed. After reading it, I ordered another
dozen books to hand out. I felt that I should give these books to
people who are stuck in the pain of their childhood and living their
relationship with God out of their intellect doing their best to
please God - a God they never feel is pleased with them! So far,
the feedback is amazing. My own brother-in-law has just started
reading the book. He was blown away by the foreword. He totally
identified with Mack! John’s father was an alcoholic who regularly
beat him, shamed him, and preached at him! Needless to say, His view
of God has been very twisted and his walk with God very legalistic.
He feels the call of evangelism in his life and beats himself up
daily for not fulfilling that call.
I gave The Shack to a family who was pushed out of their church
through a misunderstanding with a new, young pastor. They had
faithfully served as elders and one of their children was a youth
minister for many years. They have struggled with the pain of
rejection, false accusations, "homelessness" in the Body of Christ,
God’s plan for them, etc. The mom just finished reading the book and
she cried all the way through it. She ordered a book for each family
member because she plans to reread her copy and didn’t want to give
it out. This family has a true heart for the youth of our city and I
foresee such a healing in their lives that each and every one of them
will impact this next generation with the love and presence of God
that will easily flow from their lives. There are so many
fatherless, abandoned children in our State!
I also recommended The Shack to some friends (a couple) who pastored
a Pentecostal church for 7 years, crashed and burned, and are now
struggling with God, life, people, the future, anger…etc. They had
a hard time believing that God could be that approachable, loving and
kind. Every religious mindset and prejudice within them rose up and
became defensive about their image of God - the old, white, bearded
deity who is holy and sits on a throne demanding their worship. I
challenged them that possibly the book touched every lie, prejudice,
and religious stronghold in order to bring this stuff into the light
so that they could be set free to become intimate with the God who is
also called Papa (Abba). They decided to reread the book along with
the gospel of John and ask God to reveal every prejudice and
religious mindset they have embraced because of years of western
religious indoctrination vs. a true knowledge of God! While they are
not yet totally convinced that they can have an experiential and
intimate relationship with a loving God, they ordered more books to
hand out to their family members!! I can see the Holy Spirit melting
away the layers of religion that have almost suffocated them.
My husband and I have walked with Christ for over 25 yrs. We served
as leaders in the traditional church setting until 5 yrs. ago. We
are now experiencing much healing and are enjoying being the church,
focusing on relationship with God and those He puts in our life. We
know all too many people who have been seduced and wounded by
"religion" (including ourselves.) My husband volunteers his time at
the local rescue mission and we plan to hand out copies of your book
to many who are in the heavenly recovery room.
Thank you for taking the time to minister to all of God’s children
with your story. I pray that many will be set free with the truth
that is alive and powerful in this book.
Dear Willie:
I just came back from a week at the lake. A friend lent me your book to read. I don’t have a lot of words yet to say…only that I couldn’t put it down. So many streams of thought and theology that I have been chewing on, wrestling with came together for me through the medium of story. It was a stunning book Willie…I’m not sure how to express what it has opened for me. I told my husband I have come undone. I can breath much easier now. Thank you so very much.
My good friend has been on me for a long time to read The Shack. I finally picked it up last week and finished it yesterday. I wanted to share with you that I have been born again through this book. I felt like Neo when he realized his strength within the matrix for the first time. If you saw the movie, he draws a deep breath and without speaking you know exactly what he is thinking. I felt God confirm the wonderful, beautiful things he’s been teaching me. I am in awe…..
I don’t know you personally, but if the story is about you, I know you well. We have very similar childhood experiences and although Papa has done a ton of work in me the past few years, this book brought me through to a whole new dimension. I believe in my very gut, to the depths of the core of my being that I am loved and that Papa is fond of me. The freedom this brings me is so overwhelming that at the present, all I can do is cry… Deeply…
Thank you so much for sharing it with the rest of we weary travelers…
Love in Papa!
I just finished reading your book today. (One of my English student’s parents gave it to me at the end of the school year.) It is in some aspects the book I would have hoped some day to write–a novel dealing with the issues of pain and suffering juxtaposed against a God who is supposed to love us. I think this single issue is a huge stumbling block to faith in many people. You have provided a theological primer with reasoned and reasonable responses to serious questions, placed on the bottom shelf. Thanks. I’ll be waiting to see more work from you.
I don’t know what or how to write about this book.
For two days days I’ve been utterly gripped by it, and ripped apart inside by it. It was an anniversary present from our friends, and I’m not sure I’m ready to thank them for it just yet.
"What’s wrong?" Emma’s asked me this question as I’ve arrived home on both of these days, probably a bit worried at seeing the anguish on my face as I’ve stumbled through our front door. It’s the effort it’s taken to contain the ache erupting in my chest, and to blink back the tears threatening to pour down my face as I’ve sat on trains and buses, sandwiched amongst pre-occupied City-workers, and to keep walking and not collapse sobbing onto the pavement - that’s what’s been wrong. I don’t think I’ve ever read anything quite like this before.
Thank you for insisting that I read The Shack… I am in awe. I cannot speak very well at the moment what Papa has done in me through this book… Confirmed mostly what he’s been teaching me, but much more important, I know in the very center of my heart that He loves me and is fond of me. This is a first. All I could do yesterday was cry. A cry I’ve never experienced in my life. I felt peace and hope and joy and healing all at the same time. I was "born again." That is the only way I can describe it………….. There are no words today….
Have an amazing day…
writings of sue berger
One Pilgrim’s Musings
Book Review
The Shack
© 2007 by William P. Young
Published by Windblown Media
At first glance, this book seems to have a familiar theme. Mack’s daughter is abducted during a family campout & evidence indicates she was brutally murdered in an abandoned, wilderness shack. Years later, her body never recovered & prompted by a mysterious note, the still grieving father returns to the shack for closure. The location of his worse nightmare turns into a God encounter that changes Mack’s world forever. The intent is to change ours too.
Hailed by some as the Pilgrim’s Progress for our generation, this book is a provocative read. From chapter 6 on, I was underlining & writing in the margins and am currently on my third read; not my normal behavior with fiction. Through Mack, Young asks hard questions of God & allows God’s nature, love & grace to be revealed in casual outdoor & dinner-table-type conversations.
There are many surprises contained in Mack’s journey. Each needs to be experienced by the reader. Be prepared to rethink many of your preconceptions of God. How God “appears” & interacts individually with us. How the triune God functions. How totally accepting God’s love is. The personal attention God pays to our mind & soul. Law & grace. Forgiveness & judgment. God’s involvement when horrible things happen. Subjects such as fear, submission, trust, reality, power, rights, freedom & expectations are openly discussed between Mack & God.
While not wanting to spoil your personal reading adventure, let me say that you will be changed by the experience. Personally I’ll never look at a starry sky, a dock on the edge of a lake, a wild tangled garden or shrubbery nodding in a breeze in quite the same way. And I can’t help but be profoundly encouraged in the face of tragedy.
God is near, God is real and God cares…deeply.
© 2007 Sue Berger
Sue@OnePilgrimsMusings.com
I am just about through reading for the first time, the book called The Shack, written by William P Young.
I have read more books than I can recall, but nothing like this has moved me so deeply.
I loved this line, an ongoing conversation between God (Poppa) and the main character in the book~Mack…
"Mack, if anything matters, then everything matters. Because you are important, then everything you do is important. Every time you forgive, the universe changes; with every kindness and service, seen or unseen, my purposes are accomplished and nothing will ever be the same again."
This is but one morsel of why I am left speechless…Continue to speak Father, for your son is listening!
The one person who I most respect in life is my mom. She has always been living example of Christ to me. I value the incredible wisdom, insight, and love that come naturally to her, and I admire her passion for God.
My mom is an avid reader, skilled at discovering the incredible treasures of wisdom that are waiting the to be found in the world of literature. The majority the books on my favorites lists have come from her. A couple weeks ago, when she told me about a new book that she was reading, I was intrigued. But when she told me that it was life-changing for her, I knew it was a must-read. My mom is so mature in the Lord, that I am surprised when she tells me about an area in which she’s growing. I mean…I just don’t think it’s possible for her to grow any more! So if this book made her grow, it *must* be good.
So I ordered The Shack by William P. Young. I started reading it yesterday, and finished it today. And can I just say that it was life-changing? My prayer lately, has been that God would make Himself real to me, and reveal His love. This book did just that. It was God’s answer to my prayer.
I finished it yesterday afternoon while my wife finished it last night. We were both blown away! Though my passion is to craft and capture words in order to convey imagery, I have to admit words are failing me at this point. Every page bled with honesty and longing. It made me hunger to know and be known more by our Papa. In reading your novel, I just read the hard evidence that you are one of those rare souls who would be committing some form of high treason if you did not let your words, even your sorrows and struggles spill onto the page. For being obedient to your gift–I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Your book changed me. And while that is what good writing only pretends to do, great writing does. Your story could have been one of those many books I read and made myself pick up again, but because you infused it with rawness and grace—-I ran through the chapters. I look forward to the 2nd reading; slower pace and more long sips of coffee. :)We are already making plans to procure more of The Shack to hand to fellow strugglers and nomads among us.
I’ve read The Shack, 5 complete times, and many parts over and over. (Please don’t be concerned that it is becoming an idol of sorts, it is not.)
In the past 4 years, Father has used many voices to confirm truths He has imprinted upon my spirit, and has used many of those same voices to teach me new truths, altering my
paradigms until they are not anything I recognize.
I thought the end result of all these changes was a healing of my spirit. I am a 54 year old widow, mother of 4 (my youngest daughter is forever 9), and a survivor of incest. Those three things pretty much tore a Christ sized hole in my heart, a hole that never got filled no matter how many Sunday services I attended, or how many hours I spent reading scripture and praying.
In the past 4 years Father has walked with me on a journey that is defined by His love and as I said, I thought I was healed. Now I know I was at the point of healing where torn flesh begins to knit back with itself, but is so very fragile. While I’ve been reading The Shack, and then celebrating with Father what He has taught me through your words, He has filled that hole in my spirit completely, and has knit together anything that was torn.
I read where you said you wrote the book initially to give your children a better understanding of you. It feels to me like Father gave you the words for this book, for me, personally. I could write for hours and never begin to describe how I’ve been blessed by reading The Shack.
Every time I finish a George McDonald book I feel like a child nestled in the arms of my heavenly, loving Father. The Shack has had the same effect except it walked me through the pain of losses. Hard as the scenes of Missy are they began to tell the pain of betrayal that only those who have experienced it can imagine. It feels like murder because part of innocence dies, childhood is kidnapped and emotional torture perpetuated. The sting of the pain is gone. I have been reminded in your book not to read the world through my pain but through the victory of God’s simple and unmeasurable love. Thanks
2 Comments on The Shack - Responses Part II »
April 16, 2008
Ed Criswick @ 1:18 am:
AS AN ATHEIST - but one who is really interested in religion and its personal and societal effects on people - I was drawn to read the book by recommendations of some Christian friends of mine - it was a considerable topic of conversation on our recent French skiing trip.
I have to admit I found the literary framework a bit irritating - that someone could claim to recall such complex conversations in sufficient logical detail to relate them to someone else to turn into a book is a device which lacks credibility; no doubt the author had his reasons for the device, but it strikes me that a more linear storytelling would have served his purpose better.
But the important stuff is, of course, in the meat of the story. I found it a thoughtful and well-argued exposition of the ‘Why does God allow such horrors’ train of thought and put forward some convincing argumentation to allow people to continue to take comfort in their belief and reconcile themselves to the bad stuff that happens in their lives. And I liked the linked arguments for proffering forgiveness to those who you believe have offended you in some way. All in all, a useful and well-written junior high school guide to Christian theology, and I found it well worth reading.
It’s a pity that some of the BIG questions that Mack would inevitably have asked were sidestepped:
- Why pick on me (ie how many others get this special treatment)? What about all those left to suffer alone - doesn’t God love them too?
- At what point did the eternal and unchanging God change his mind and decide to become a trinity? There is only one God in the Old Testament; suddenly there are three?!
- There is no discussion of the interesting dichotomy between the Old & New Testaments, ie God of Wrath, Anger and Revenge vs God of Love & Forgiveness (although more modern Jewish writings stress the loving and forgiving nature of Jahweh, clearly moving Judaism away from the figure depicted by the Old Testament prophets). Similarly, the stress between the ‘Eye for an Eye’ philosophy and the ‘Turn the Other Cheek’ one. Perhaps this would have taken us onto the shifting sands of who actually wrote the New Testament, and why so many gospels were omitted by the church powers of the fourth and fifth centuries.
- And finally, of course, if God knew that humankind was going to be disobedient and choose ‘independence’, with the concomitant ’sacrifices’ required of God, doesn’t this call into question God’s original design template for humans - ie why build such a flawed creation. Doesn’t say much for God’s perfection.
Perhaps these issues could be explored in a follow-up, in which case I would read the argumentation with great interest.
Thank you for having written this book, and thank you to anyone who bothered to read this.
Enjoy life!
Ed
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July 15, 2008
Lorna @ 11:40 pm:
God exists because this beautiful world and everything in it could not have just popped up by chance; there had to be a creator! God made man in his own image and Eve as a help meet for the man. He made the garden with the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the snake made that sound like a ‘good’ thing.
God must have known that would happen and the reason has to be that God gave mankind free will to choose.
I wonder about the difference in the God of the old testament and the God of the new testament, and also wonder why many gospels were omitted from the Bible, but would rather understand God’s purposes than church politics.
Surely God as the father and creator would want all his children to find their way to him; even those who can’t read or indulge in theological argument.
People tend to make everything more complicated that it is. God is as superior to man as man is superior to his dog. There’s no way to understand him unless he wants us to.
Lorna