Book Review and Giveaway: Clear Winter Nights: A Journey into Truth, Doubt, and What Comes After by Trevin Wax
Synopsis:
When his life comes apart, will the center hold?
Chris Walker has everything. A career, a beautiful fiancée, a promising ministry opportunity, and a faith instilled in him from a young age. But when a revelation about his family comes to light at his grandmother’s funeral, Chris finds himself facing questions he didn’t even know he had about…well, everything.
Fighting a battle within and without from those that don’t understand his sudden doubts, Chris seeks refuge in a weekend with his grandfather to ask the tough questions and sort through the issues where faith meets life and disillusionment collides with truth.
What happens when a young Christian dealing with disillusionment and doubt spends a weekend with an elderly, retired pastor? They talk. And no subject is off limits.
Review:
The author describes this book as “theology in story”- it's not what we think of fiction- his intention is to have the book- to teach. Through the story and the characters, he wants to learn from the questions and conversations, about "the big questions of life" And as such it works. The book is VERY easy to get into and read. I finished it in 3 sittings, only because I read it while waiting in the car line and at the doctor's office!
The book tackles what I like to call the 'basic problem' of WHY our kids leave their church and faith-kids grow up in a faith, brought upon them by their parents, and they're taught what to think, but not about the hows- they whys and what happens when something seems in conflict. So they go off to college, meet people who grew up in different faiths and religions, and have to compare and try to put all the different theology into a Christian framework. Even theologians have hard times with it, so how can we expect our kids (for that is truly what they still ARE), to NOT suffer and have a crisis of faith, that frequently forces them away from the faith and religion they grew up with.
The author does an excellent job is addressing this issue and through basic tenets, brings the characters to the universalities of Christianity and how the faithful should see it: “A Christian is not defined by the sins of the past or the struggles of the present, but by the vision of the future.” Grace- pure and simple. But even that can be problematic: “Don’t trust in your strength, because there is such a thing as pride. Don’t despair in your weakness, because there is such a thing as forgiveness.”
This is a lovely book, and one that would be great for teens to read, and I highly recommend it for parents to discuss with their teens and college aged children! It would also be a great book for pastors to have to refer to, and use for counseling!
The book tackles what I like to call the 'basic problem' of WHY our kids leave their church and faith-kids grow up in a faith, brought upon them by their parents, and they're taught what to think, but not about the hows- they whys and what happens when something seems in conflict. So they go off to college, meet people who grew up in different faiths and religions, and have to compare and try to put all the different theology into a Christian framework. Even theologians have hard times with it, so how can we expect our kids (for that is truly what they still ARE), to NOT suffer and have a crisis of faith, that frequently forces them away from the faith and religion they grew up with.
The author does an excellent job is addressing this issue and through basic tenets, brings the characters to the universalities of Christianity and how the faithful should see it: “A Christian is not defined by the sins of the past or the struggles of the present, but by the vision of the future.” Grace- pure and simple. But even that can be problematic: “Don’t trust in your strength, because there is such a thing as pride. Don’t despair in your weakness, because there is such a thing as forgiveness.”
This is a lovely book, and one that would be great for teens to read, and I highly recommend it for parents to discuss with their teens and college aged children! It would also be a great book for pastors to have to refer to, and use for counseling!
About the Author:
Trevin Wax is Managing Editor of The Gospel Project, a small group curriculum developed by LifeWay Christian Resources. A former missionary and pastor, Wax is a popular blogger (Kingdom People) and a contributor to Christianity Today and other publications. His most recent books are "Counterfeit Gospels" (Moody, 2011) and "Holy Subversion" (Crossway, 2010).
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