The Hole in Our Gospel: Book Review

As I began reading The Hole In Our Gospel, I was hooked before I'd finished the Prologue. Author Richard Stearns drew me in as he shared his personal views, from his youth when he arrogantly declared he would "never become a Christian!" to refusing to register for wedding gifts, stating, "As long as there are starving children in the world, we're not going to own fine china, crystal and silver," to the irony of, years later, becoming president of a fine tableware company. Then later, feeling a call from God, as well as a call from a staff member, he joined World Vision. His experiences in seeing the poor, the sick, the dying in Third World countries led to his realizing the hole in his own gospel and to the writing of this book.

The author shares from his heart as he shows us his struggles to accept the position as president of World Vision. It's a real struggle about a real person and his readers begin to identify with him as he lets his failings be known. After comparing himself to the Biblical rich young ruler, he relates the events that took place to bring him full circle and caused him to let go of what he had once considered precious-and prestigious-and accept what God has in store for him.

In the book, we learn that the gospel is more than just sharing a 'fire insurance' plan with like-minded people. The gospel should be more of a social revolution, a venue for reaching out to others on their level, in their circumstances. Throughout the book, Stearns uses his own personal experiences to give us a perspective on the failings of our own gospels. Rather than preach at us, he shares with us. Stearns states, "And yet God uses broken and imperfect people to challenge and inspire others."

As I read further, I found snapshots of poverty, of children in circumstances beyond belief. I found that my own view of the poor and needy was skewed by a limited view of the poor here in our United States. They are everywhere, in masses. They are not just 'them' or those people on the other side of the world. They are individuals, real children, real parents, in desperate need. This put helped me to put faces to those faceless masses.

As Saint Francis of Assisi put it, "Preach the gospel always; when necessary use words." Reading the words of Richard Stearns may move you to tears, but the intent is to move you to action, to fill that hole in your gospel, to bless others and, in turn, be blessed yourself. This book turned out to be more than a 'good read.' For me, it's a good challenge.