Before Amen – Book Review
Praying is one of the easiest things in the world to do – and one of the most challenging. If you could use a primer to recharge your prayer life, Max Lucado has written a prayer guide that even the most reluctant prayer warrior will relate to!
In Before Amen – The Power Of A Simple Prayer, Max takes us on a journey into the heart of prayer and reaffirms why he is one of America’s most beloved pastors and Christian authors.
Prayer is something everyone does, from time to time – usually, when there is a need. Many of us, however, feel we should pray more often, more eloquently, more powerfully.
As if guilt over the quality and quantity of our prayer lives isn’t enough to contend with, many of us are also dealing with a checkered history of prayer issues to get past: unmet expectations, unanswered requests – a perception of God as “the ultimate heartbreaker”. As Max says:
We can barely genuflect for the scar tissue on our knees.
Max opens Before Amen by putting us at ease with a topic that makes a lot of us squirm.
Hello, my name is Max. I’m a prayer wimp. I doze off when I pray. My thoughts zig, then zag, then zig again. Distractions swarm like gnats on a summer night. If attention deficit disorder applies to prayer, I am afflicted. When I pray, I think of a thousand things I need to do. I forget the one thing I set out to do: pray.
Finally! A book of prayer that most people can relate to! A book written by someone who understands what happens when most people pray!
In Before Amen, Max invites us to put all of our prayer pretenses aside and to approach prayer in a new light. In the chapters that follow, he provides new perspective on biblical truths by presenting them in a fresh, contemporary way that we can easily understand and apply to our lives.
For instance, Max notes:
We aren’t the first to struggle. The sign-up sheet for Prayer 101 contains some familiar names: the apostles John, James, Andrew, and Peter. When one of Jesus’ disciples requested, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1, NIV), none of the others objected… In fact, the only tutorial they ever requested was on prayer.
Before Amen takes us on a journey to the heart of biblical prayer. In this book, Max distills prayer down to its simplest form – what he calls an easy-to-remember, pocket-size prayer. It’s not so much the words that matter – it’s the intent behind them – and in this book, he explores the significance of the pattern of this simple, pocket prayer:
Father,
You are good,
I need help.
Heal me and forgive me.
They need help.
Thank you.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
The book I reviewed was an ARC (an Advanced Reader’s Copy) so some portions, like the Study Guide, were not included, but I truly enjoyed the parts of the manuscript that I read.
Based on my review of the ARC, my rating for this book is 5 out of 5 stars.
Video – Max Lucado’s Before Amen
About Max Lucado
More than 120 million readers have found comfort in the writings of Max Lucado – a pastor who ministers at the Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas.
Max lives with his wife, Denalyn, and their sweet but misbehaving mutt, Andy.
Resources
For More Information
- Visit Max’s Website.
- Visit the Before Amen Blog Tour Page.
- Connect with Max on Facebook and Twitter.
- Before Amen is available on Amazon.
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Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from Thomas Nelson for review purposes. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
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I am so glad I came across this post! I really like Max Lucado and want to read this book. I have gotten much better about prayer…but I still need work! I, like Max, tend to doze off when I pray. Or I drift off into thinking about things that I don’t need to think about. Perhaps I should stop praying right after I get into bed, as this is usually a time when I can hardly keep my eyes open.
So glad you found the book too – it’s awesome Laura!
I think most people would really relate to Max’s style – especially those who would normally never pick up a book about prayer!
Have a great week!
I haven’t read Max Lucado in many years, but I was always blessed by his gentle and straightforward style. I’m intrigued by this new book and would love to read it. Thank you for sharing our review. I’m going to find myself a copy!
Thank you for sharing with us at Wake Up Wednesday.