Losing God: A Review

This morning I set aside some time to read my friend Matt Roger's new book. I have been carrying it around in my backpack for a little over a week, and i really wanted to be able to enjoy it. It's one thing to read and review books, but it's quite another thing to read and reflect upon something a friend has written. To start, I really enjoy Matt's writing because it's personal, it's vulnerable, and it's real. Too many people write books that look at problems clinically, or share their struggles from a distance, or talk about an issue in abstractions. Thankfully Matt doesn't write this way.

But sometimes reading authors like this is hard. Honestly, I felt like Matt was so transparent with his depression that it gave me new insights into the struggle. I have a few friends who each deal with depression on many levels. Because of Matt's book, I have a clearer picture of what it looks like to deal with the darkness of depression. Because of Matt's book, I can make a hearty recommendation of it to my friends. I have to warn you though if you read it that it is a bit serious and somber.

I learned a lot through it. I also thought it was cool to read his comments about my friends JR Woodward and Jim Pace as well. He really captured their personalities well, and the fact that both of these guys break the schema of what it looks like to be "pastors" or "ministers". JR and Jim have been great friends to me since I went on staff with GCM, and I loved his description/first impressions of both of 'em.

If you know anybody, family, friends, etc. who are struggling with depression I highly recommend you check out this book. At times I have grown easily frustrated with people I know who struggle with depression. This book helped me to have a better picture of how incredibly difficult it is for those who struggle. It also filled me with hope for others as well. There are some things in this world, and about God that we will never fully understand this side of eternity, and we need to learn to be alright with that.

I highly recommend this book, but I have to warn you that it won't leave you with warm fuzzies. If you or someone you know struggles with depression, this book might just be able to offer a ray of hope in the middle of a very dark time. I hope matt can produce an audio version too. I think his story would be great for someone to be able to listen to as well. The tone of his book is vulnerable and conversational. If you want to order a copy, you can probably find it locally, or you can order it here.