This book hits a tender spot in every reader, for we’ve all had pain, trauma, or some sort of suffering where we ask ourselves, “Where is God in the midst of my suffering?” Dr. John Townsend spends the first few chapters of Where is God? presenting the theological problem and premise of the book: Why do bad things happen to good people? Why do people, who faithfully serve God and genuinely love Him, experience loss, pain, and suffering? Though the question sounds like your going to be in for a quality treat as you tackle these issues, the author quickly skims over these weighty matters like the wind. He in no way tries to answer them as one might think from the way he presents them, but is content to live in mystery.
However, the thing Dr. Townsend does well is teach us to be honest in the pain, suffering, and trial we are undergoing. Many try to cloak their real feelings they’re experiencing with feelings they know they’re supposed to have. But he reassures us it is going to be okay when we’re honest while inspiring hope in the midst of all we’re going through. It’s okay to be honest with God, talking to Him about everything that is going on in our hearts and lives. He cares for us and wants to comfort us in the tough times as well as the good. If there was nothing else to take away from this work, the author did a wonderful job of inspiring hope in the midst of pain, which he states as his main goal a great deal into the work (Chapter 6).
Dr. John Townsend is a Christian psychologist. First and foremost he writes as a Christian. The book is filled with Scripture and peppered with various real-life stories and practical applications. He writes as an easy to understand Christian, for the average layman one might say. He is writing to ordinary Christians in the midst of suffering and pain.
Secondly, he writes as a psychologist. The great majority of the book is filled with practical tips and ways to engage with God in the midst of trials and pain. More than anything, Dr. Townsend teaches us to be real with ourselves, not covering up our pain because we know we have to trust God. It is okay to be hurting, to doubt, and to question God in those times. Pain isn’t healed by ignoring it, but by confronting it and being vulnerable with it. He is ultimately trying to get us past our pain and suffering to see God for who He really is: “The last thing He wants is for you to pretend with Him, act as if it is all OK, see Him as a duty, be afraid of Him, or to avoid Him altogether. He wants all of you, even the anxious parts, so that He can continually stretch and strengthen your life and your perspective to something more closely approximating His viewpoint” (195).
The book was pretty good overall; not the theological work that he tries to present in the opening chapters, but a Christian psychology book that gets you to deal with your real emotions, thus leaving you more liberated to love God and enjoy life.
However, the thing Dr. Townsend does well is teach us to be honest in the pain, suffering, and trial we are undergoing. Many try to cloak their real feelings they’re experiencing with feelings they know they’re supposed to have. But he reassures us it is going to be okay when we’re honest while inspiring hope in the midst of all we’re going through. It’s okay to be honest with God, talking to Him about everything that is going on in our hearts and lives. He cares for us and wants to comfort us in the tough times as well as the good. If there was nothing else to take away from this work, the author did a wonderful job of inspiring hope in the midst of pain, which he states as his main goal a great deal into the work (Chapter 6).
Dr. John Townsend is a Christian psychologist. First and foremost he writes as a Christian. The book is filled with Scripture and peppered with various real-life stories and practical applications. He writes as an easy to understand Christian, for the average layman one might say. He is writing to ordinary Christians in the midst of suffering and pain.
Secondly, he writes as a psychologist. The great majority of the book is filled with practical tips and ways to engage with God in the midst of trials and pain. More than anything, Dr. Townsend teaches us to be real with ourselves, not covering up our pain because we know we have to trust God. It is okay to be hurting, to doubt, and to question God in those times. Pain isn’t healed by ignoring it, but by confronting it and being vulnerable with it. He is ultimately trying to get us past our pain and suffering to see God for who He really is: “The last thing He wants is for you to pretend with Him, act as if it is all OK, see Him as a duty, be afraid of Him, or to avoid Him altogether. He wants all of you, even the anxious parts, so that He can continually stretch and strengthen your life and your perspective to something more closely approximating His viewpoint” (195).
The book was pretty good overall; not the theological work that he tries to present in the opening chapters, but a Christian psychology book that gets you to deal with your real emotions, thus leaving you more liberated to love God and enjoy life.
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