Customer Reviews

Abba's Child: The Cry of the Heart for Intimate Belonging

5 star:		(48)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

After years of having evangelical education crammed into my head, Abba's Child is a book which challenges what I say I know and believe. Manning's honesty about the terrible sin problem all born-again sinners are acquainted with rings true to the Apostle Paul's lament "the things I wish to do, I do not (and vice versa)". But, instead of talking us out of our bad feelings about our condition, Manning challenges us to begin the journey of intimacy with the God Paul also teaches us is named Abba. Far from the typical modern Christian books which skim the surface of the human experience, Abba's Child is a primer for those who quietly realize that the Christian faith is much more than a call to a system of belief of Absolute Truths-----and that it is a call to the most important Relationship of our lives, that with our utterly "Other" God. Evangelical friends who presently are teaching, studying and ministering at Yale and Cambridge (UK) have thanked me over and over for giving them this book, both saying they must read it over and over----a life changing book! If you are squeamish in thinking God the Father's name is "Daddy", and that he longs for you to address and know him as such, this book probably will make you uncomfortable. If you have arrived at the exhaustion of modernity in the American evangelical experience, this book will remind you that the Gospel is a relationship, not a "plan of salvation" to know, memorize and regurgitate. Great reading for worn-out evangelicals!

Once again Brennan Manning has hit the nail on the head and pierced my heart. For monthes I did my best to read this book but could not. Every word hit me to the core and made me think. Manning has the ability to speak to your heart and make it past all of our defences, opening us up to God's amazing love for us, as broken as we are. In this book he looks at the imposter that we place over our real self to hide from all of the pain and sadness in our lives. Manning reminds us that we were all created special by God and that His love is more than we need. Manning calls for us to understand the imposter and to accept it as part of us, a part that Jesus loves unconditionally and desires for it to accept His love and forgiveness. Manning is wonderful at getting the reader to understand God's love and leads you to God's feet where you can't help but surrender and love Him. Anyone struggling with who they are and realize that teh imposter is alive and well in their lives needs to read this book.

This book is easy to review, quite simple actually, and it can be done in one sentence: This solid book will not allow you to reject the fact that God loves you unconditionally.

There is a lot more to say about this work, but really it is all summed up in the last sentence. Manning consistently writes eloquently for the masses who are hurting, broken, and need love. He is honest with his own journey and leaves no detail spared of his own personal trials and tribulations. He gives hope to those who might not have any hope, and joy to those who might think they have to be perfect for God to love them. I appreciated the honesty from the author, and the risk he takes in sharing his soul with the reader. Not many authors are willing to do this where it will make a difference, Manning obviously will.

This book is a must read for anyone wondering if anyone cares about what happens in their life, read the book, find out why God loves you. Seems pretty simple to me.

A powerful and wonderful book. One of the best I have every read! A great way for people who don't know God to be able to unlike the way we learned in Church. Manning's presentation on God's grace is wonderful. His definition of a "Legalist", (those church people who put the rules above love, mercy and grace) will probably have a hard time understanding this book. For those of you who don't know God, read this book. He is not what you think. For those of you who think you know God, read this book, you may learn somethings. I certainly did.

I couldn't begin to expound on how my Jesus has touched my heart through this book. As one who struggles with seeing myself as God sees me, still struggling from co-dependence and desire to feel loved by others, I found out the main truth God has been desiring to convey to His people since the beginning of time: He wants to commune with His creation. That's it... no whistles, bangs, or bucks about it. Throw away religion, doctrine, and denominations. Every aspect of God I will ever need to know is centered around what Brennan points out: Our self worth and reason for existence is based on what Abba has to say about us! Thank you Brennan for conducting the best book I have read so far aside from the Holy Scriptures.

As I read this book I was struck time and time again by its quaint simplicity and its penetrating truth-telling. Brennan Manning is perhaps the foremost writer of Christian Living books since Henri Nouwen and he shows it again in this magnificent little book. It is short enough for a quick read but deep enough to come back to over and over again as we are attacked by self-hatred. There is perhaps no bigger emotional/psychological plague during our time than self-hatred and Brennan helps us see that this disease comes from every but God. Brennan helps us see that we are God's beloved, his special creation, and that he wants what is best for us. Part of this divine desire is that we love ourselves because God asks us in his Word to love others as we love ourselves. How then can we love others if we have not love of ourselves? Brennan helps us see that we can't, at least not honestly. Reading this book helped me see that I am not alone in my battle with self-hatred. Thank you Brennan for writing it and this is a book that every single Christian should read?I would give it 10 stars if I could!

If you are one who doesn't understand how radical God's love must be, Manning will straighten you out. I'm learning that God's love is ferocious and tenacious. As a Christian, our love is intended to be the same. We are called to love painfully - with risk of disappointment and with disappointment fulfilled. Love must hope, trust and endure even when we don't see how. But we are the ones who let us down the most.

By bringing me to a greater awareness of my brokeness, this book helped me in a struggle with how to be compassionate to those who's lives have been broken - who have been rejected and cast out by family, friends and even the church. Lesson one, whether you believe it or not, you ARE broken - and your sins are not less than anyone elses. This is basic Gospel that is forgotten by many Christians (discerning by our actions).

This wonderful book by Brennan Manning has radically changed how I view myself and how I view God. God loves me unconditionally, even on my worst days when I feel I have really blown it. This book exposes the lies of the imposter and urges us to live authentically - just as God created us. So take off the mask and step into God's abiding love. He is waiting. This book is a must for anyone struggling with low self-esteem, addiction, and codependency.

It's been a decade since Brennan Manning wrote ABBA'S CHILD, and the book as a whole is every bit as fresh and powerful in the 21st century as it was in the 20th. In the intervening years, many Christian authors have added an "amen!" to Manning's message about the need for authenticity and vulnerability before God and other people. His, however, is one of those rare books that stands up to repeated readings. The addition of a thoughtful study guide, written by the author, should make this particular edition attractive not only to new readers but also to longtime fans.

Manning begins by beckoning Christians to come out of hiding, the place to which we retreat out of shame or guilt in the misguided belief that God is berating us as harshly as we are berating ourselves. In that place of hiding, we further nurture our false self, which the author calls "the impostor" --- also the title of the chapter that has generated more responses than all the other chapters combined, Manning writes in the preface to the revised edition. Apparently, it's an image that resonates with a lot of readers.

Our masks, our pretenses, our hypocrisy, our outward displays of saintliness, Manning contends, rob us of the thing we crave the most: intimacy with God the Father. That intimacy is far more attainable than we can possibly imagine as we refuse to come out from hiding and expose our true selves to God, to other people, and most of all, to ourselves. It is only when we shed our false identity and accept the unconditional love of our Abba --- our heavenly "Daddy" --- that we can experience the passionate love relationship with Him that we have long craved.

Manning's gift as an author lies in his often brutal honesty about his own failures. That's what sets his works apart from those of so many other Christian leaders, the ones who preach authenticity but admit only to their prettier and pettier and less frequent "mistakes." Manning is unafraid to expose in print his own sins, including those that are ugly, major and chronic. As a result, he has earned the right to speak into the lives of people who need to be equally transparent with God about the ugly, major and chronic sins they try so hard to keep hidden.

Now for the "I wish he hadn't written that and I suspect he does too" part: Manning uses the term "inner child," which was a whole lot more acceptable in the early '90s, although there were plenty of us who cringed whenever we heard the phrase even back then. And while it may rankle our present-day sensibilities, it's easy enough to get past. But newcomers to ABBA'S CHILD --- particularly those who are unaware that the original text is 10 years old --- need to understand the context of the time in which it was written. "Inner Pharisee" is another term that might sound a bit dated. However, since the inner Pharisee is still very much alive and kicking and doing its dirty work in us --- don't ask me how I know this --- that phrase probably warrants continued usage.

Those who have come face to face with their own brokenness --- and those who need to --- will find both comfort and hope in ABBA'S CHILD, particularly through its many memorable anecdotes and illustrations, such as the story of the "rabbi's heartbeat" --- which became the title of another Manning book that was released earlier this year. Saturated with the themes of God's grace and love, ABBA'S CHILD is one of those treasured books that manages to be profound, challenging, convicting and delightful, all at once.

It's hard for me to describe this book; it's been instrumental in my own personal growth. Suffice to say, Manning has nailed the single-most pervasive problem in today's church: the utter lack of self-worth in the presence of a perfect God.

Manning showed me that there the idea that I can somehow be good enough, or smart enough, or holy enough to justify God's love is at best, a fantasy. The truth is, God loves us utterly and completely, and there's nothing we can do to change that.

I would recommend this book for anyone who seeks a genuine relationship with God.