Book Review: Wide Awake
I am probably one of the few young, evangelical ministers in the United States to have never read a book by Erwin McManus. Having heard good things about McManus from a wide spectrum of people, I happily agreed to read the advanced preview copy of his forthcoming book, Wide Awake: The Future is Waiting Within You. On the back cover of the preview copy, McManus is described as a “husband, father, writer, futurist, activist, artist, and spiritual and cultural leader.” After reading such a flattering litany of titles, I dove into the content of his new book with high hopes. Unfortunately, I was sorely disappointed.
If you could sum up Wide Awake in two words, it would be something like this: “Wake up!” People are going through life with unfulfilled dreams, experiencing a “little bit of sadness” every morning (xii). McManus wants to “awaken humanity.” He believes that in every person there is a hero “waiting to be awakened.” He looks at every human as “pre-great” (xiii). The little bit of sadness we face in the morning is our “soul searching for its hero (xv).”
How can people be awakened? McManus turns to eight essential attributes that characterize people who live their dreams (Dream, Discover, Adapt, Expect, Focus, Create, Enjoy, Invest) and every one of the attributes is something that people must discover from within. Each chapter unpacks one of the eight attributes, usually with illustrations that help readers picture the kind of life that McManus is describing.
Wide Awake contains some helpful advice. McManus doesn’t sacrifice character in order to emphasize the principle of adaptability. He emphasizes the importance of integrity and the necessity of living according to firm principles. Occasionally, he offers good insight into certain stories from Scripture. For example, in the story of Peter walking on water, McManus points out the fact that Peter was distracted by something he couldn’t see (the wind) instead of firm in his belief in Someone he could see (Jesus) (128). Preachers will benefit from some of his memorable illustrations, like this one that compares coconuts and peaches:
“Some of us are more like coconuts – hard on the outside and hollow on the center. But we need to be more like peaches – soft and fuzzy on the outside but solid as a rock in the middle.” (77)
But even McManus’ good insights are often mixed with theological affirmations that leave the reader perplexed. In the space of just two paragraphs, McManus can say something terrific (like “The way God changes your life is by changing you”) and then something out in left field (“The only future you will give yourself to is the one you believe can happen”) (95).
The main problem with Wide Awake is that it bounces back and forth between pastoral counseling and motivational lingo that borders on Gnosticism (your power is within, etc.). The problem McManus’ readers are dealing with is not sin and depravity. In fact, McManus thinks the church talks too much about sin and guilt (143). The main problem is unfulfillment and sadness (22, 28). Salvation and satisfaction are found in your living out your story (160).
McManus’ writes much about the importance of dreams, but he leaves them undefined. Wide Awake needs more eschatology. The “dreams” that McManus wants to awaken within us are not grounded in anything other than our own minds. The dreams we have are of “a life, a world, a future so beautiful that it takes your breath away” (116). Yes. Our vision of the coming Kingdom should inform our dreams for today, but McManus never links our dreams to the Kingdom of God. Readers will pour whatever meaning they want into his vague category of “dreams” and “a beautiful future.”
My advice to pastors and church leaders? Skip Wide Awake. If you’re looking for motivational thoughts to push you ahead in the direction you already want to go, then Wide Awake will do the trick. If you’re looking for challenging biblical teaching that will ground your dreams in Kingdom reality, you’ll have to look elsewhere.
Trevin,
I have to say, I love Erwin McManus. I have read every book that he has put out. Out of thankfulness for how God has used him in my life I will go ahead and read this one as well. I am not sure where he stands on a few issues, but he is definitely a conservative missional/evangelical. His book, “An Unstoppable Force” is one of the best books I have ever read! It is his philosophy of ministry and I do encourage all pastors to read it! I hope that I am not disappointed when I read Wide Awake, but I definitely think I might be. I can’t wait to give it a try!
Matt
Comment by Matt Svoboda — May 15, 2008 @ 3:17 pm
Hey Matt,
Have at it! I had heard good things about him too. That’s why I was so disappointed in this book. Who knows? You might see it differently.
Comment by trevinwax — May 15, 2008 @ 3:21 pm
I just read his book “The Barbarian Way” and I have to say the guy is right on in many aspects. Paul said it best, “we know in part, we propehsy in part” Paul understood we only have pieces of Yahweh’s truth and what we have we share. Of course you don’t have to agree with everthing he writes. and if there is something wrong with what is being shared, there is something in us if we are connected to Yahweh that will recognize the “prophetic parts” where Yahweh speaks to our spirit and says “yeah, I said that” and other things we may read or hear from the same person where your spirit cringes and we know Yahweh is nowhere in the room on that one. We do have to discern the fine line between deeper revelations and Gnosticsm. But also remember that Yahweh said that his ways are not our ways and his thoughts not out thoughts. There are things Yahweh will say to us that will jar what we learned in church or in seminary if we sit still and not try to put him in a boxand make him like us. Y’shua (Jesus) was notorious for saying thigs that were out in left field like “tear down this temple and I will build it up in three days” or “If you don’t eat my flesh and drink my blood, you have no part of me” he offended alot of people when he went around saying things like that. So I think that the closer we get to the creator of the universe we may find that alot of the Gnositcs borrowed things from Yahweh without giving him the credit and mis-used the information. John said at the end of his gospel that the things that Y’shua shared with them in the 40 days following his resuurection, the world could not hold the books.I am sure what he shared was amazing and Mind Blowing!
Comment by Queen Ahuva — June 11, 2008 @ 10:05 pm
Thanks for the review. I was looking forward to reading this book and really knew nothing of the author. I am a Christian but not too connected into the world of “Christian Authors”, because it is sad to say that this is such a loose term as of late. Your review matches up with my gut feeling upon reading the blurp. Can we say “The Secret” with a Christian twist? That is what it sounds like to me, and if that is the case, I will stay far, far way! Thanks again for your keen insight.
Comment by rachel — June 30, 2008 @ 6:59 pm