In When the World Breaks, Jason Adam Miller has written a guide in helping readers to rediscover hope and that all is not lost in the world. The world around is hurting and breaking. We are still recovering from the side effects of a global pandemic and the politics are out of control. We are dealing with racial injustice, climate change, sickness, divorce, religion falling away. He shared a personal story of witnessing the violence in the Middle East. He heard of stories of families shot and killed. He went to Gaza and saw that every playground has a bomb shelter. They have 15 seconds to make it underground before the rockets will land. He saw a video of children being tear gassed. All of this led him to feeling hopeless and at the end of his faith. He passed by a church that contained engraved words and blessings on the steps. There were known as the Beatitudes. He felt an urgency to study them. In the book he explored all eight of the blessings referred to as the Beatitudes which are found in Matthew chapter 5. These included blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, meek, people who strive for righteousness, merciful, peacemakers, just to name a few.
One of my favorite chapters discussed mourning and how it can turn into praise. He shared a story about one of his friends named, Alex. They met in college and they were roommates with some other guys. One day, he saw his friends discover his calling and passion for life. He wanted to join a nonprofit that helped children who were exploited to become soldiers in Joseph Kony’s war in Central Africa. He travelled the world and helped others and found happiness. He eventually got married to Beth and they were expecting their first son. A few months went by and he received a phone call telling him that Alex committed suicide. He explained the grief he felt and heartache. He revealed how he was a part of his memory at the ocean and how he found healing. He compared it to finding the glory and praise in the pain.
I would recommend this overwhelming book about the Beatitudes and the blessings that we can experience in scriptures. This book provided a new fresh look at the passages and they were very eye opening. We can learn a lot about Jesus and His teachings and the hope we can still reply on today. I really liked how open he was in his own struggled with clinical depression and even went into a psychiatric ward. He was dealing with childhood trauma and feeling despair. He also shared how he was able to connect more with God. I really connected with the Everyone an Icon story about Jenny and the Snotty Lady. Readers will really get a taste of how noteworthy it is to see the Divine in other people. This will be life changing if readers will begin to see God in others.
"I received this book free from the publisher, Hachette Book Group/Faithwords for my honest review.”
If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:
https://www.amazon.com/When-World-Breaks-Surprising-Subversive/dp/1546003509/
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