An inspirational handbook about the courage and careful planning required to make the most of a Christian life.
Arkoh and Korley begin their forthright and heavily allusive nonfiction debut on somewhat rocky interpretational ground: they assert that God didn’t create mankind for pleasure; Adam, they say, was created to till the earth. However, in the Book of Genesis, God’s motivation for creating humans is never stated. The authors have a larger point, though, which they reiterate throughout the book: that finding one’s true purpose in life is the primary duty of a faithful Christian, and that God is one’s foremost ally in finding that purpose, if one only aligns one’s will to his: “Stop seeing yourself as others view you,” the authors write, “and begin to see yourself as God sees you.” The book elaborates a step-by-step battle plan for becoming this aspirational figure—by developing a courageous attitude, a prudent approach to life, an attractive personality, a fighting spirit, and so on. The authors present their bracing theme with a strong, plainspoken optimism: “The world is waiting to hear from you,” the authors write in a typical passage. “You have lots to deliver.” Some advice verges on the saccharine or self-evident, though, such as “Continue doing the right things. Do not use your liberty wrongly. Choose and decide on things that will be profitable to you and your dream.” There are also factual errors: Thomas Edison was not knighted, for instance, and Helen Keller was not mute.
A simple and often powerful collection of spiritual and pragmatic advice, despite occasional flaws.