On the front cover of Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
On the back cover, near the bottom, is a white box containing the words RELIGION/Christian Life/Inspirational.
Inside is a theology book. Inside is a rich, conversational study of God, human suffering & pain, the gospel and beliefs about those things. Theology.
With the depth of C.S. Lewis and the acuity of Tim Keller, Michael Kelley wrestles with his own beliefs about the nature of God in the diagnosis of his then two-year-old son Joshua's leukemia, and throughout the treatment of it. Take God's love, for example. "A little boy with cancer is a situation I would try to keep from those I love... but God? I couldn't say the same for Him." I've thought that... maybe you're thinking that now.
See? Theology. The nature of God.
Sometimes I believe in the Hallmark Hall of Fame movie God, whose sole purpose of existence is to make my life turn out the way I think it should. But, writes Michael, "If all we do is trust God for a positive outcome, we are subtly implying that we... know what is best." He goes on to say that doesn't we mean we don't pray for healing or an end to suffering--we certainly do. But we pray "undergirded with confidence not only in what God can do but in who God is. That's really what we are choosing to believe."
See? Theology. Beliefs about God.
Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal is a book that reads as though Michael, Jana and I are at Starbucks having coffee and conversations about God; and what the Scripture tells us we should believe about Him; and whether or not we really DO believe it and how that plays out whether or not you're in a hard place. And, really, I think that's how theology is best studied, don't you? Maybe that's even the way God wants it to be studied--in heart-felt conversations of truth between stumbling, struggling people who help each other keep walking in faith.
Certainly, this book was written for the person dealing with hard stuff. But, and maybe more importantly, it's also a book written for those who are dealing with people dealing with hard stuff. Ever wonder what to say when a friend tells you they have cancer? Or that their husband is cheating on them? Ever quote Romans 8:28 and wonder how on earth this could actually be true? Me, too... Thankfully, Michael Kelley is honest enough to grapple with it in black and white, and loving enough takes us with him to the mat. What I really appreciate is that Michael doesn't give us neat and tidy answers, because there aren't any. There is only God. And what He wants us to believe about Himself.
Certainly, this book was written for the person dealing with hard stuff. But, and maybe more importantly, it's also a book written for those who are dealing with people dealing with hard stuff. Ever wonder what to say when a friend tells you they have cancer? Or that their husband is cheating on them? Ever quote Romans 8:28 and wonder how on earth this could actually be true? Me, too... Thankfully, Michael Kelley is honest enough to grapple with it in black and white, and loving enough takes us with him to the mat. What I really appreciate is that Michael doesn't give us neat and tidy answers, because there aren't any. There is only God. And what He wants us to believe about Himself.
If you are the kind of person (like me) that does not naturally gravitate toward the RELIGION/Christian Life/Inspirational department in the bookstore, you may miss one of the most genuine theology books shelved there. Please don't let the peanut butter and jelly sandwich cover fool you. There's a lot of meat in these pages.
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