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A review by shansometimes
Even If He Doesn't: What We Believe about God When Life Doesn't Make Sense by Kristen LaValley
emotional
inspiring
reflective
5.0
I've followed Kristen LaValley online for years after seeing her video about her twin daughters' potentially fatal situation during her pregnancy. Since then, I've watched her children—including both of her twin daughters, who were born under what I'd call miraculous circumstances—grow up and come to trust and admire Kristen as a fellow Christian and writer.
EVEN IF HE DOESN'T is a bold and honest book. It's essentially a theology of suffering in the life of a believer. But Kristen doesn't take the route you'd expect (if you've read a lot of Christian nonfiction like I have), and I was so grateful for that. It was a breath of fresh air, truly.
Kristen acknowledges that she's writing about suffering from the other side of a miracle, the side where her prayers were answered. But rather than use her answered prayer to say, "If you just pray, everything will work out!" or "Be encouraged that you're suffering for God's glory!" she offers raw and convicting words about how crisis reveals what we genuinely believe about God and how our beliefs about God's character and sovereignty often don't align with our actions in the face of tragedy.
She shares how her faith was full of doubts and cracks and, frankly, falling apart. And she doesn't tie a bow on it to make the reader think all her doubts have fallen away and her trauma has been resolved. Instead of focusing on having the perfect theology when our lives are in shambles, Kristen points to a perfect God. She doesn't write prescriptively about what other people should do in suffering. Instead, Kristen writes about suffering with the confidence and validity of someone who has suffered and the humility of someone who knows she doesn't have all the answers.
EVEN IF HE DOESN'T is one of the better Christian nonfiction books I've read in a while (from a traditional publisher), and I wholeheartedly believe it's because of the author's candor and experience walking through fire herself. I'd recommend this book to believers who are walking through something hard. I'd suggest it even more strongly to those who aren't—this read can help you develop a helpful theology of suffering before tragedy strikes.
*This review is based on a digital advance copy provided to me by the publisher.
"Suffering reveals the prosperity gospel in us. When God doesn't hold up his end of the bargain even though we held ours up, we get angry. We expect a return on our investment. And when we suffer anyway, we believe God has betrayed our contract. But that's not faith, that's not a relationship; that's a transaction. When we embrace this way of thinking (often unintentionally), we reject the sovereignty of God and try to put some element of control into our own hands."
EVEN IF HE DOESN'T is a bold and honest book. It's essentially a theology of suffering in the life of a believer. But Kristen doesn't take the route you'd expect (if you've read a lot of Christian nonfiction like I have), and I was so grateful for that. It was a breath of fresh air, truly.
Kristen acknowledges that she's writing about suffering from the other side of a miracle, the side where her prayers were answered. But rather than use her answered prayer to say, "If you just pray, everything will work out!" or "Be encouraged that you're suffering for God's glory!" she offers raw and convicting words about how crisis reveals what we genuinely believe about God and how our beliefs about God's character and sovereignty often don't align with our actions in the face of tragedy.
She shares how her faith was full of doubts and cracks and, frankly, falling apart. And she doesn't tie a bow on it to make the reader think all her doubts have fallen away and her trauma has been resolved. Instead of focusing on having the perfect theology when our lives are in shambles, Kristen points to a perfect God. She doesn't write prescriptively about what other people should do in suffering. Instead, Kristen writes about suffering with the confidence and validity of someone who has suffered and the humility of someone who knows she doesn't have all the answers.
EVEN IF HE DOESN'T is one of the better Christian nonfiction books I've read in a while (from a traditional publisher), and I wholeheartedly believe it's because of the author's candor and experience walking through fire herself. I'd recommend this book to believers who are walking through something hard. I'd suggest it even more strongly to those who aren't—this read can help you develop a helpful theology of suffering before tragedy strikes.
*This review is based on a digital advance copy provided to me by the publisher.
"Suffering reveals the prosperity gospel in us. When God doesn't hold up his end of the bargain even though we held ours up, we get angry. We expect a return on our investment. And when we suffer anyway, we believe God has betrayed our contract. But that's not faith, that's not a relationship; that's a transaction. When we embrace this way of thinking (often unintentionally), we reject the sovereignty of God and try to put some element of control into our own hands."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma and Pregnancy
Moderate: Miscarriage