I've decided to evaluate THE SHACK, a novel where tragedy confronts eternity. It's an astounding story where a young girl gets kidnapped and murdered and her dad, Mack, who blames himself, gets to meet the Holy Trinity; God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. You get to follow his journey trough sorrow, disbelief, gratitude and forgiveness. This novel has brought many tears in my eyes and has giving me wisdom about several questions in life, in particular when it comes to faith and my belief in God. Based on that I would like to share a collection of quotations from THE SHACK and explain for you why I love them so much.
"Will you at least consider this: When all you can see is your pain, perhaps then you lose sight of me?" (p.96)
- A quote from God, also known as Papa
Life is not always easy, everybody knows that. It contains struggles, pain and sorrow. And many times we forget the beautiful things in life, like love and friendships. When we hit the ground, maybe when someone in our family gets sick, we lose sight of the good things. We only focus on the terrible occurrence. But I think it's then and there, when we need to not lose sight, to lose sight of God. I believe it's where we need God the most.
"Growth means change and change involves risk, stepping from the known to the unknown." (p.115)
- Author Unknown (Opening for the eighth chapter)
When we grow up, we change a lot, not only in our appearance, but as human beings. During my years at Brinellgymnasiet, I feel that I have grown so much. And for me to do that, that involves taking risks, "Stepping from the known to the unknown" as the quote from this brilliant unknown author writes. Growth requires stepping out of the comfort zone and facing obstacles that are meant to overcome. And when we actually overcome these obstacles we discover our growth.
"And besides, you have judged many throughout your life. You have judged the actions and even the motivations of others, as if you somehow knew what those were in truth. You have judged the color of skin and body language and body odor. You have judged the value of a person's life by the quality of your concept of beauty. By all accounts, you are quite well-practiced in the activity." (p.158)
- Sarayu (The Holy Spirit)
This quote teaches us a lesson. We all judge. It doesn't matter what, the point is that we judge. And we really don't have any right to judge others. If we don't want to be judged ourselves, then we can't require the power to judge others. I don't know about you guys, but I think this is a lesson to learn.
"The darkness hides the true size of fears and lies and regrets," Jesus explained. "The truth is they are more shadow than reality, so they seem bigger in the dark. When the light shines into the places they live inside you, you start to see them for what they are." (p.175)
- Jesus
God said: "Let there be light!" And there was light. Before God created the light, the earth was coal black. He brought light to the world, but he also brought light into our lives. And when darkness comes upon our minds, we tend to lose sight of the light we once had. The darkness makes everything much bigger and scarier, and we think it's impossible to meet the light again. But if we fight to see the light God gave us from the very beginning, we are going to comprehend that the darkness never had a chance.
"Let's say, for example, I am trying to teach you how not to hide inside of lies, hypothetically of course," she said with a wink. "And let's say that I know it will take you forty-seven situations and events before you will actually hear me- that is, before you will hear clearly enough to agree with me and change. So when you don't hear me the first time, I'm not frustrated or disappointed, I'm thrilled. Only forty-six more times to go. And that first time will be a building block to construct a bridge of healing that one day- that today- you will walk across." (p.187)
- Papa
This is my favorite quote, by far! It brings so much hope and longing to my heart. To hear to words; "I'm not frustrated or disappointed, I'm thrilled", gives me the chills. God never gives up on me, on you and on us. And if we don't hear Him, He won't be mad, he will be THRILLED.
If I had the time, I could go on and on and on. It would be possible to make a book only by quotations, because THE SHACK contains so many of them! Since THE SHACK is not mine, I have written down every quote I like, so I can look back whenever I need it, whenever I need some answers or comfort. I could read this novel over and over again, that is how exquisite it is.
This novel may or may not be reality-based. The author never tells us readers if it is. I believe it is.
Ps. I know my entrie is very, very detailed, but it's sooooo hard to leave the good parts out. Ds.
// Ida
Inga kommentarer:
Skicka en kommentar