World Magazine recently asked several Christian authors what one book would they like to see on a list of books read by most Christians. Author Carolyn McCulley chose Paul David Tripp’s Lost in The Middle, ”with its helpful teaching on trusting and obeying God when life doesn’t turn out the way one expects.”
Here is an excerpt from Paul’s book which highlights its value navigating the difficult passages of life.
“Scripture in a very natural way understands people by locating them in four fundamental relationships. The first and most foundational relationship is my relationship to God. Everything I am and everything I do is shaped by the health and vitality of this relationship. No matter where you are (location), what is going on around you (situation), and how you are responding to it (behavior), the most important way of understanding yourself is to examine your relationship with God. For example, Adam and Eve were quite unified as husband and wife when they consumed the prohibited fruit. But they were in rebellion against God. In the same way, like every other period of life, midlife powerfully exposes the true condition of our relationship with God…
Although this book is targeted at those who are struggling with the issues of midlife, it has a much broader net than that. Lost in the Middle can help all who are struggling with life in this broken world and have lost their way. The Bible speaks with power and practicality to everything you are facing, thinking, and feeling. The God who seems so distant to you in this moment is actually near and active. Lost in the Middle is written to give you eyes to see him, to see yourself more clearly, and to find the functional hope you need to carry on.”
Click on the image to purchase Lost in the Middle: