A book review of Count It All Joy: The Ridiculous Paradox of Suffering by John M. Perkins with Karen Waddles
Stars: ***
Moody Publishers (2021)
Christian Living/Grief
160 pages
Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This post contains affiliate links.
Summary: Can joy come from suffering? We think of suffering as the worst of all evils. Our culture tells us to avoid it at all costs. But can suffering produce growth in us when we learn to endure it . . . then value it . . . then allow God to redeem it?
John Perkins’ response to suffering at the hands of a white sheriff in a Mississippi jail became the springboard that God used to put him in front of U.S. presidents, international politicians, and evangelical church leaders. Perkins sees endurance in suffering as a virtue that makes us more like Christ and ultimately produces uncommon joy in the heart of the sufferer who trusts in Him. Christ walked the path of love all the way to the cross, and even in the midst our brokenness, we can do the same.
In Count it All Joy, you will be encouraged to lean into suffering when it comes your way, stand alongside others who suffer, and believe that God will repurpose your suffering according to His good plan. God doesn’t intend your life to be free of all suffering. Instead, He wants you trust Him in the midst of it and discover the unexpected joy that trials can produce.
Count It All Joy
The point of this book is to help you find the joy in suffering, whether the suffering found you or your found it. Suffering finding you would be like a family member dying, chronic illness, discrimination etc. You finding suffering would be choosing to pursue a cause that could get you killed or standing up for your religion no matter the consequences.
The book talks about grief a lot too. The author is in his 90s and has lived a life full of grief. So he is able to bring his experiences to the book. If you had to bury your adult child then you especially will identify with this book. However he also dealt with the death of his mother as a baby and being tortured by white police officers (the author is black.)
The book isn’t fun or humourous but it’s not meant to be. It’s a serious book on a serious subject… suffering. It’s a short book but it covers what needs to be said. It the right length. The author teaches you to turn to God while suffering. Keep him in your sights to help you manage the pain. It’s a good book for anyone suffering.
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About Kathleen
