Does God Really Like Me? : Discovering the God Who Wants to Be With Us

Reviewed by:

G. Connor Salter, Professional Writing alumnus from Taylor University, Upland, IN.

Title:

Does God Really Like Me? : Discovering the God Who Wants to Be With Us

Author:

Cyd Holsclaw and Geoff Holsclaw

Publisher:

InterVarsity Press

Publication Date:

January 21, 2020

Format:

Paperback

Length:

224 pages

OVERVIEW

Most Christians know that God loves them as any good father does, but is that all there is? After all, as the authors point in this book’s introduction, good parents always love their kids but they don’t always like them. Even the best children let their parents down sometimes. Does God feel the same way? In fact, the Bible makes it clear that nothing could be further from the truth. Cyd and Geoff Holsclaw unpack God’s relationship with humanity throughout the Bible, showing how God interacts with key Biblical figures. These interactions – from God talking to Adam and Eve to how God describes the early church – paint a vivid picture of God’s intimate love and delight in the people he created. Each chapter centers on a key question (such as “Is God Angry with Me?”) and encourages readers to think deeper through:

– an activity (such as prayer or meditation)

– a moment to reflect on the key idea

– a song that fits the chapter’s key theme

  – an illustration that gains more and more details with each chapter

One challenge to writing about God’s attributes is it’s easy to write in a way that sounds technical and cold or overly abstract. When you’re writing about the idea God delights in you, that becomes a real problem. To know God likes you and deeply cares for you is an intimate idea, and the book needs to feel intimate to convey that. Fortunately, the Holsclaws make a point to make their ideas personal and accessible. They draw on plenty of scholarly ideas, but always relate those ideas to readers’ key concerns. They humbly look at their own struggles to describe the pain of not feeling wanted and the freedom that comes with gaining new peace. On top of that, the reflection exercises and illustrations push readers to see these ideas in new ways and apply them to their own lives. This book pushes past dry academic responses, giving a powerful sense of God’s delight in his children.

ASSESSMENT

Rating (1 to 5 stars)

4 out of 5 stars

Suggested Audience

People at any stage of their spiritual development who struggle with knowing whether or not God truly cares for them on an intimate level.

Christian Impact

This book will help readers understand the incredible truth that God not only cares about them, he takes great pleasure in their existence.