The Secret Place of Thunder


As mentioned in a previous review, as I turned 45 I was looking for some wisdom on how to enter midlife (or well after that) strong and finish the same. John Starke is a pastor in New York that made a public recommendation for another book that helped in that thinking and here he has his own new title that actually perpetuates the pursuit of Christian maturity. 

The Secret Place of Thunder, with the subtitle: Trading Our Need to Be Noticed for a Hidden Life with Christ, calls us to see Christ in ways that help us think of setting aside the performative obsession of our age with something more steady and life-giving. 

The book is a quick read near 180 pages but it is packed with helpful insight and wisdom. It's about setting aside what the world suggests we must be after for a hidden life in Jesus. "This isn’t a book on escapism or living a more secluded or private life. Actually, it’s about how to live more fruitfully with others..." 

Starke challenges our assumption about where our lives are rooted, forming our identity around something substantial and not fragile, considering what life Jesus wants for us and how all of this is best experiencing in a paschal life - a life of dying to live. "If you want to continue on with Jesus, from this day onward, what are the things that must die? What needs to fall from your life and decay so that life with Jesus can continue fruitfully and joyfully?"

For these questions and more, and finding home in Christ, this is a gem of a book. Highly recommend. 

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