Book Review - Max Lucado: Cast of Characters

Every once in a while, a book comes along that is totally different than you expect.  Such is the case with Max Lucado's Cast of Characters: Common People in the Hands of an Uncommon God, a new book released by Thomas Nelson Publishers.

Max Lucado is an excellent author, and a wonderful storyteller, so I expected nothing less than excellent writing.  What I didn't expect was how completely I was drawn into this book. Lucado takes 22 biblical figures and explores who they are, what they did, and what their motivations might have been, all while weaving in great personal stories and experiences.  Some of these people you might know well; Matthew, John, Peter, Moses.   Others you might not; Jairus, Abagail, Mephibosheth.  Still others don't even have names we know of; The Paralyzed Man or The Two Criminals.

In each case, Lucado takes what we do know from the biblical narrative, and adds his own personal brand of introspection and discernment, to see beyond the simple tale and discover who these people really were, and how their stories can help us find motivation, purpose and hope.

This book arrived at the perfect time for me.  I've been working on a message for an upcoming weekend, who's theme is the relationship between fathers and sons.  I had decided to base my message on the story of Mephibosheth, King Saul's grandson.  The chapter on this young man gave me new insights and ideas, and a new depth to the struggles he was faced with.  I will preach a better message because of it.

There's something for everyone here.  I highly recommend this book to anyone - young, old, man, woman, confident or unsure.  Because, after all, we're all characters, too.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I recieved a copy of this book for free from Thomas Nelson Publishers' BookSneeze program in hopes I would mention it on my blog.  Nevertheless, the opinons stated are my own.  I was not required to write a positive review. (16CFR Part 225)