Big God – Orlando Saer

“When you’ve enjoyed reading something, recommend it to your friends.”

That’s a quote I picked up from a bookmark handed out to promote reading at a local library some months ago. That piece of advice is just what I hope to heed now and in subsequent book reviews.

A quick confession though; I picked up Big God, looking for a quick win to kick-start my reading for the year. I’ve not always been an avid reader, but in the last couple of years, I have gradually prodded myself into a habit of reading as a spiritual discipline.

So as I thought of what I could possibly read to get me started for the year, this book readily came to mind. Written with the ordinary person in mind, evident in its accessible language, tone and length (6 chapters in 141 pages, excluding Introduction and Conclusion), Big God is not lacking at all in pastoral insight; no surprises there, as it was written by a pastor!

The theme of the book is about capturing the right vision and understanding of the God of the Bible, as against the one we might have unwittingly conjured up in our minds. It seeks to (re)awaken confidence in the incomparable majesty of the God who sits ably in the driving seat of the world, with hands firmly on the controls.

The author describes the book as an ‘entry level’ primer, and so I found it, as he navigates the ever-present tension between God’s sovereignty and human responsibility, without bouncing much technical jargon off the pages. This, he winsomely does in relation to four cardinal themes of suffering, evangelism, decision-making and prayer. He goes a step further by fleshing out the practicality of an otherwise abstract concept in each of these four areas.

If you’ve ever wondered where God is in the face of personal suffering and world tragedies, or questioned if praying is worth the time and effort, or even struggled with the question of salvation, then may I suggest that this book is that primer that will draw you in and get you thinking through those thoughts. And perhaps you already have the right view of God in mind, reading this book will further help you bridge the gap between ‘life and lip’, or better still match belief and behaviour.

I am aware that book reviews are meant to explore shortfalls as well; as such what I have offered above is more of a book recommendation, than a review.

I’ll close with an excerpt from the book :

“God is as intentional about the course of an individual human being’s life as he is about the course of history as a whole”.

What could be more reassuring?

Thanks for reading!

Sike Osinuga