Book Review -- "Why?"

     Today, I am reviewing a book entitled "Why?" written by the Rev. Adam Hamilton.  Hamilton is the senior pastor of the Church of the Resurrection which is the largest Methodist church in the United States. 
     In this book, Hamilton delves into the questions of why there is suffering, why is there evil, and why are prayers unanswered?  He also tries to shed light on the question of does God have a specific plan for each person's life?
    I must say that I found myself in much agreement with this book which surprised me greatly.  Adam Hamilton is not an extremely liberal minister, but he is by no means a conservative.  With that being said, he presents in this book ideas which are very similar to the one's I expressed a few blog posts ago.
    Hamilton agrees with me that God does not send suffering, pain and horrible things on people.  We both agree with the idea that God does not have a plan for each person's life that somehow includes little children starving or dying of some terrible disease.  Like Hamilton, I am tired of hearing this whole notion that God caused everything to happen and everything happens for a reason.
     I would disagree with Rev. Hamilton on his idea of how we collaborate with God through our decisions to create our future.  I understand the point that he is trying to make, but this kind of thinking leads to open theism in my opinion. 
    I would highly recommend this book for those who struggle with the why questions.  You may not agree with all that Adam Hamilton says in this book, but it will make you think outside of the box of much of current evangelical thinking on the subject which I believe to be highly flawed.