Book review: The furious longing of God, Brennan Manning

A friend of mine recently checked out a book from the library. She began reading, and to her surprise, she discovered that a previous reader had done something simply shocking. He or she had gone in and edited the library book-- crossing words out, rearranging text, rewriting the book in the margins. Could you imagine the nerve of that person, defacing the book as well as the author's intentions?

Yet, however, it's just exactly what I want to do with the book, The furious longing of God, by Brennan Manning. Throughout the book, the temptation is strong to edit it just a little. You see, the book is just almost great. It really could be. If only I could read less of the author, and read more about the Author.

The book opens with praise for Brennan Manning's writing-- three pages of praise for him. Followed by a foreword about Brennan Manning, followed by his life story, and it's forty (yep, forty) pages in before "fury" is defined as it relates to God.

Once Manning shifts gears, and gets to talking about God instead of himself, I am enthralled with his descriptive observations of the varied aspects of the character of our God, the intricacies of His mercy, the hope we have in His amazing love, His awesome power. I am fascinated with wonder and awe in the way he describes the furious love of God for me, and I am carried away to a place of worship. Then, every now and then, I trip over sentences which remove me from the place Manning had intended to take me, the sentences where he interjects himself back into the text. Again, I'd just love to edit these out.

Manning's overriding premise, however, is an invitation to accept that God's love is real, intense, intimate, and one to be embraced with the same reckless abandon with which God loves us. Manning got this part right. This I wouldn't dare touch. It's these moments of brilliance and truth that make this a worthwhile read.