Sermon Central
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When God Shows Up
Contributed by Kerry Haynes on Feb 3, 2019 (message contributor)
I just finished reading a book called, “The Shack.” I read it about ten years ago, and something made me read it again, and I’m so glad I did. I commend it to you as a book that captures the very essence of a God who wants nothing more than to have a loving relationship with you. What an incredible message in a very powerful and at times gut-wrenching story.
Do you know how the book came together? Paul Young wrote it based largely on 11 years of his own life struggle. His wife had been on him for a while to write down his unconventional views about God for their six children, so he finally did, in the form of a story. He shared it with a friend, who shared it with a few other friends. They believed it would make a powerful movie, but thought it should become a book first. 26 publishers turned it down! The Christian ones thought it too far out there, and the secular ones thought it talked about Jesus too much. (Remember the false dichotomy between sacred and secular?) So finally, he and three friends started their own publishing agency, and “The Shack” became their first book. With only about $300 of publicity, people pre-ordered and kept ordering more copies for their friends, and the book ended up hitting #1 on the New York Times fiction list. In interviews, Paul says the book and movie is clearly a miracle. What was intended for his kids, God got ahold of and drew uncountable numbers closer to him in relationship.
Paul Young saw God show up and he, like Peter, like Isaiah, was sufficiently humbled to give God the glory. That same God wants to show up in your life, and not necessarily in your church life. Don’t be surprised if God shows up in your card game, or a Super Bowl party, or in the pool hall, or on that next trip, or at dinner. You never know what part of your life he will invade. Because, if we’re honest, God doesn’t just own part of our lives. He owns it all!
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