Lawrence – to Papa

Lord, The Shack, struck a chord deep within my heart.  I heard you speak in such “human” terms I was wildly blessed.  I beliece the portrayal of you, although totally inadequate to your Ultimate Being, was a vividlyu clear expression of your merciful interface with us common folk.  I loved you deeply, emotionally, radically in this book.  Thank You for encouraging Paul to write it.

Papa – to Lawrence

You are right when you speak of the inadequacy of this, or any other book to display ‘all’ of My person, chracter and glory.  I AM…and there is noe beside me.

I am not a kind, black woman, a wraith, or an elderly, rather tall and slim white man.  But Paul touched My being by faith and what flowed out of his collaboration with his friends is definitely a work of the Spirit.  As We watched and heard and saw the oozing out on paper of Our love and joy and laughter; Our power and delight, Our mercy and grace and Our overall creativity, We were delighted with the substance of the text.  So narrow a volume – so wide an expanse of thought and devotion.

It won’t be liked.  It won’t be tolerated.  It will be loved or despised.  As each reader first steps across the threshold of the Shack, they will have an opportunity, granted by Me, to be deeply offended.  As their hearts reel at the possiblity of God stepping down as far as a big black hug, they will either be un-stumbled and touch the Son at Calvry, knowing the wounds also engraved in My wrists, or they will sentence themselves to a bounded vertical relationship; a ‘thus far and no farther’ tension that never squeals with glee as I tickle them unmercifully or never groans deep within as I press my fingers into the open wounds of their own broken souls.

Knowing Me is the goal.  Paul knows Me.  Better still, I know Paul, and I have trusted him enough to reveal a little of Myself to him.  How do you like Me now?

Willie…First, let me apologize for the long email below. I wanted to tell you my story and share with you how Papa has worked in my life since reading The Shack. Sixteen months ago, my life was turned upside down when I was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. The doctors informed me that I would require aggressive dosages of chemotherapy to shrink the tumor and suppress the growth of the cancer. I also underwent surgery to remove the primary tumor. After 7 months of going every two weeks for my treatment, my body had nearly giving up. I reacted very poorly to the chemo and suffered many miserable days and nights from the effects. After taking a break from treatment for 5 months to undergo two surgeries, I was once again facing four more rounds of chemo. After my second round I could hardly go on — all of the side effects I had suffered over the previous year came rushing back in just two treatments. I felt as though my body was going to shut down. About this time my dear friends asked if they could come over to the house and read me a book they thought I would enjoy. That Saturday, the Sundas arrived around 9 AM with a small paperback book titled The Shack. I must admit that I was feeling better that day and really didn’t want to sit on the couch and have my husband and friends take turns reading this book aloud to me. As one began reading the first chapter, I still was wondering why she thought she needed me to hear this book. Another read the next chapter and another the next. Dozens of books about dealing with and living through cancer had been given to me by well thinking friends — The Shack I thought is just another book that I can throw on the bookshelf in the upstairs guest room. I was angry that I was going through this and I didn’t want to sit and listen to chapters being read aloud. When Mack opened his mailbox and found the letter, everything changed. I began to listen intently. They read on to the point where Mack approaches the shack and meets Papa. My friends then closed the book, handed it to me, prayed for me and quickly left as they were late for a lunch appointment. The rest of the afternoon, my husband and I spent reading The Shack, pausing often to laugh or cry or discuss a revelation that Papa brought to our hearts. Nearly forty three years ago, I was born in New York City to Puerto Rican parents who pastored a small independent church in the Bronx. Legalism ruled my life as I attempted to abide by all the rules that I was taught in the church. I quickly rebelled as I knew I could never do enough to please the god of these rules, so at 13 I turned my back on the church and my parents stopped making me attend. Ten years later, I recommitted my life to God and began attending my parents’ church. About this time my friend John and I began dating and were married in 1987. My husband did not know what he was getting himself into. I never talked about the physical and sexual abuse I had suffered as a child by family members and by people in the church. My siblings had suffered like abuse. My parents before us were both abused as children. My family lived one life for others to see and another that no one ever saw. I always hated people telling me that they wished they could be part of our family — if they only knew. My husband had grown up as a missionary kid in Africa to parents that served the Lord for nearly 50 years. I used to joke and call his family “the Walton’s.” We began attending some churches in the many cities we lived in over the first several years. I began to see a different God than the one that I had been introduced to all of my life. But I still only believed in spurts. When times were going well, everything was well. When trouble came or times got tough, I quickly reverted back to thinking that I was being punished because of disbelief or disobedience. You can imagine how I felt when I was diagnosed with advanced stage cancer. Thoughts from my childhood filled my mind — what had I done to deserve this? I remembered thinking as a child about how God and Satan were not much different. At least with Satan, I knew where I stood. I believed that God was watching at all times to strike me down when I messed up. For years I thought that God told my mother when I was sinning. It wasn’t until I was married that my one sister told me that my mother would ask me questions in my sleep and I would answer her. Now that I had cancer and didn’t know how much time I had left to live, I began to revert back to these early thoughts. I knew that I had disappointed God by not being obedient over the years. I didn’t pray enough, I didn’t spend enough time reading the Bible, I didn’t use my voice to sing on the worship team at church. These were just some of the thoughts that raced through my mind. I wasn’t afraid of dying, I was afraid of the disgusted look on God’s face when I would meet him face to face. (emphasis by ‘Willie’) As I read about Papa, Jesus and Sarayu, a sense of relief flooded my heart. I understood that Papa really loved me, mess and all. When he looked at me it was not with disgust, but delight. I was not being punished; He was taking this terrible situation and bringing hope to me. God wasn’t out to punish me; he redeemed me and wanted to have a relationship with me. When Papa tells Mack that he did not disappoint them because they don’t have any expectation of him, a light came on. I realized that I was not a disappointment to Papa, he didn’t have a list of rules that prevented me from pleasing him. The fresh love of Papa flooded over me as I sat on my patio reading. I could go on endlessly about specific parts of the story and what they meant to me, but let me simply say that since reading The Shack (twice now — I broke out the highlighter on the second read), my relationship with Papa, Jesus and Sarayu has become real. I feel a sense of ease in their presence. Thank you for sharing Mack’s story. Besides the Bible, this book has impacted my life more than any other book. I thank Papa for the clarity The Shack has given me and I pray that people everywhere will be impacted by it. ______________________________________________________________________________________

I have been laying a little low with regard to blogging lately…still trying to upgrade my site (getting there)…eagerly awaiting our first two grandbabies (within the next 1-4 weeks, most likely)…moving the business I work for to a new location (finally settled in and phones and Internet are working)…general fun and relationships…summer stuff.

Thought you might to look over my shoulder a bit again and watch grace unfold in small wonderful unveilings:

MY EXPERIENCE AT THE SHACK

I received in an e mail earlier this week and it has inspired me to read this book again. My weekend is planned now…..as I began to read this morning I ran across a line that has been one of my constant traveling companions from the time I first read it while walking through a painful family experience last spring. I use it often.

"GRACE RARELY MAKES SENSE FOR THOSE LOOKING IN FROM THE OUTSIDE."

The thought that precedes this in the book is this:

"I suppose since most of our hurts come through relationships so will our healing."

I have had a few of those relationships this past year that have so helped in the healing I had needed for so long. The author of this book being one of them. The words and stories in this book and his words to me personally have been like dipping my feet into a cool gentle flowing stream on a hot and humid Midwest summer day.

Those other friends I speak of, if you are reading this, you know who you are, and I cherish every moment I have with you all. My prayer and my hope is that we all are so captured by the love and the freedom that our awesome Father has for us and longs for us to walk in.

If you haven’t read this book or if you have and didn’t like it, don’t sweat it……Father is bigger than words on the pages of a book….even the Bible. But let us not forget that great stories written by those that have touched him and even more importantly been touched by him, can reveal something of him and his love that we might not see on our own. With that being said, if you are so moved to read The Shack or the Bible or any other story written by someone who is experiencing a wonderful relationship with Father, you might just be surprised by who you find there?

   I've just written up last week's meeting and your waterfall picture seems

   to fit the bill rather well. May I leave it there? If not, I'm sure I can find a

   waterfall photo of my own, but nothing even nearly as amazing.

   I think it's a truly great photo. The light in the leaves is just fantastic.

   Jim, where is that spectacular waterfall? Looks like 'The Shack' country for

   sure. Now I'm envious about your countryside!

What a wonder our Shepherd and King truly is. He knows the unknowable and his works are amazing! Praise him! Bless him! Thanks Lord, for Jim, for ‘The Shack’, for William Young who wrote it, above all for your forgiveness which it portrays so amazingly, and this walk through a sometimes dark world in the knowledge that there’s a mighty welcome at the end of the trail. HalleluYah!
 

 
I told myself I wouldn’t tell this story publicly until Heidi (my beautiful wife) had read The Shack, but I now told her the story so I can share it with you.

When I went to the home church conference in April in Salem, we decided to go visit the Imago Dei in Portland and skip the Sunday activities.  After Imago Dei, we stopped at Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge on the way back.  While there, I snapped a picture of my little girl (Hannah, 7 years old) at the falls, on my cell phone.

The NEXT DAY, I read The Shack.  Multnomah Falls is the very place that the family stopped before arriving in the Northeastern Oregon wilderness (where his daughter disappeared).  During the two days it took me to read the book, I nearly deleted the picture from my phone a hundred times because of the immediate tie to the pain of the main character.

But because of how the story turned out, and the closeness with the Father that resulted, I decided to keep the pic on there as a reminder.

I LOVE God’s sense of humor, and His desire to jump out and surprise.  Could someone forward this to Mr. Young, or give me his email address so I can share this story with him?  Thanks!

Dear Mr. Young,

I wanted to write you a short note of thanks for this wonderful book,
and also share a few testimonies.  I heard your interview with Wayne
Jacobsen on the God Journey and knew that this book would be worth
buying.  I was not disappointed.  After reading it, I ordered another
dozen books to hand out.  I felt that I should give these books to
people who are stuck in the pain of their childhood and living their
relationship with God out of their intellect doing their best to
please God – a God they never feel is  pleased with them!  So far,
the feedback is amazing.  My own brother-in-law has just started
reading the book.  He was blown away by the foreword.   He totally
identified with Mack!  John’s  father was an alcoholic who regularly
beat him, shamed him, and preached at him!  Needless to say, His view
of God has been very twisted and his walk with God very legalistic.
He feels the call of evangelism in his life and beats himself up
daily for not fulfilling that call.

I gave The Shack to a family who was pushed out of their church
through a misunderstanding with a new, young pastor.  They had
faithfully served as elders and one of their children was a youth
minister for many years.  They have struggled with the pain of
rejection, false accusations,  "homelessness" in the Body of Christ,
God’s plan for them, etc.  The mom just finished reading the book and
she cried all the way through it.  She ordered a book for each family
member because she plans to reread her copy and didn’t want to give
it out.  This family has a true heart for the youth of our city and I
foresee such a healing in their lives that each and every one of them
will impact this next generation with the love and presence of God
that will easily flow from their lives.  There are so many
fatherless, abandoned children in our State!

I also recommended The Shack to some friends (a couple) who pastored
a Pentecostal church for 7 years, crashed and burned, and are now
struggling with God, life, people, the future, anger…etc.  They had
a hard time believing that God could be that approachable, loving and
kind. Every religious mindset and prejudice within them rose up and
became defensive about their image of God – the old, white, bearded
deity who is holy and sits on a throne demanding their worship. I
challenged them that possibly the book touched every lie, prejudice,
and religious stronghold in order to bring this stuff into the light
so that they could be set free to become intimate with the God who is
also called Papa (Abba).  They decided to reread the book along with
the gospel of John and ask God to reveal every prejudice and
religious mindset they have embraced because of years of western
religious indoctrination vs. a true knowledge of God!     While they are
not yet totally convinced that they can have an experiential and
intimate relationship with a loving God, they ordered more books to
hand out to their family members!!  I can see the Holy Spirit melting
away the layers of religion that have almost suffocated them.

My husband and I have walked with Christ for over 25 yrs. We served
as leaders in the traditional church setting until 5 yrs. ago.  We
are now experiencing much healing and are enjoying being the church,
focusing on relationship with God and those He puts in our life.  We
know all too many people who have been seduced and wounded by
"religion" (including ourselves.)   My husband volunteers his time at
the local rescue mission and we plan to hand out copies of your book
to many who are in the heavenly recovery room.

Thank you for taking the time to minister to all of God’s children
with your story.  I pray that many will be set free with the truth
that is alive and powerful in this book.

Your book changed me. And while that is what good writing only pretends to do, great writing does. Your story could have been one of those many books I read and made myself pick up again, but because you infused it with rawness and grace—-I ran through the chapters. I look forward to the 2nd reading; slower pace and more long sips of coffee. We are already making plans to procure more of The Shack to hand to fellow strugglers and nomads among us.

This is all about the grace that is pursuing us all, to the praise of his glory.

Here are a few recent ones:

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I almost quit before the end of the first chapter– not because it wasn’t good, but because it was– well written, literary, easy to read– and smacking me right up against my worst fears. Which, obviously, is why I had to finish, but didn’t make it any easier and about the time your character, Mack winds up at the shack lying on the floor next to his daughter’s blood stain, I was wanting to smack *you* around for putting me through the agony of my own pain, which I have also been avoiding for years

I didn’t put this in my comment yesterday, but I want you to know that The Shack has been really instrumental in helping me forgive someone that I’ve been angry towards for years. I’ve prayed for so long that God would help me forgive that person, and I never felt like I could. While reading The Shack, I realized that that person is special and so loved by God, and I started feeling the anger in me drain away. I now think of that person with affection, which I never thought could be possible. How Sarayu works! This truly is a miracle.

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Ist off , I am still having a hard time with the book … so many places you confirmed what God has been speaking to me in the past year … weird … and not only that , but in the early 80’s the Lord gave me an unexpected and quite scary vision , that to this day seemed like an acid trip of some sort , but then , after reading the book , it makes more sense … the book had many similarities of that vision … 2 months ago , I had written some things to my son that you covered “exactly” almost to the word … which I told him I was hard pressed to Theologically prove , but was certain of … and again , I was overwhelmed to read the same experiences … I wished I could say that all this has had an overnite change in me … but I am still struggling to live life … as most days it would seem to be to my advantage to go home and give up the struggle …… Thank you very much for sharing your life with me …It leaves me with a lot more answered questions … which for some reason … raise even more questions , if you know what I mean … and , so , here we are … somewhere in the middle , wishing daily for a closer walk with Jesus … learning to trust Him in all things … feeling so alone most days … yet knowing that Christ is there always… thank you thank you thank you

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Hi, I just listened to the podcast on Waynes sight and heard your story. It touched me deeply and gave me hope! I am in the middle of a process much like yours. Being abused as a young child, I have lived behind my “lies” as a safety net also, but my Father is so loving, He is slowly revealing to me the lies, so I can let them go, and let Him and my family embrace me. It is a very “prickly” time now, especially when I can’t “let” my husband “in” because of the lies. He is very understanding, but it’s painful for him also. I can teach, preach, counsel others and give out, but not really recieve in.
Thank you for sharing your journey alittle, It helped me to know freedom is coming as I just keep facing it with Him! I loved the poem about the wind also, wow you put it into words what my heart is for all of them, My Father, His Son and His Spirit. It’s amazing through all the pain, He placed such a burning for Him in our hearts! I love HIm, and can’t wait to let Him in more and His family in too.

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Oh my goodness, what a story!- Wayne sent us "The Shack" – we got 4 copies. One has disappeared to my friend; my 18yr olddaughter is reading one;my 16yr old son another;& my husband the other one! Thankfully I got to read one first before they all disappeared.  I wanted to cry (and I did) so much as I read it; there are so many goodies in it, so I plan to reread it as soon as a book emerges again.  And of course, I will have to get some more to give away!
 The only thing my "religious" side of me struggled with was "Papa"!  I could see it, and yet, my religious hackles rose up! How could Papa look like a woman??? Sigh………….it’s good to have stuff in me exposed to the light!  I’ve just never thought of that before.  So thank you.
I’m finding I’m chatting to Dad during the day, and in my heart of hearts, I’m calling him "Daddy", and that’s kind of cool.
To see people coming into more freedom from reading this book – wahoo!  I’m in!
thank you thank you!

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I appreciate your book  and some of the teaching in the conversations are  still sinking in . Over the last couple of days since I finished the book I feel a weight gone from me as I consider that I am not under responsibility or expectation. I am to "be" as Christ lives through me. I have over the last few years considered and tried to apply the New Covenant teaching that I am not under Law, but the way you put it has made a fresh, powerful impact on me.

For more responses to The Shack, explore the comments section.