How does God reveal Himself to us?

SOMETHINGISM:
Exploring Our Sense of More
By Luke Cawley
The Good Book Co. 139 pages. £8.99
ISBN 978 1 802 543 035

This slim volume can easily be read in one sitting but is worth reading again, slowing down to ask the three reflective questions that conclude each chapter. Time spent in the footnotes with help the reader see the author’s workings and open a rich supply of thought-provoking source material that has nourished him.

So, what is the book about? Somethingism is a Dutch sociological idiom that refers to a posture of openness. This openness, suggests the author, is required if we are to move beyond experiencing things to perceiving the significance of them. In this gently evangelistic book, the author prompts us to respond to the hints of the transcendent that we encounter, often imperceptibly, in our lives. Most of the book deals with how God reveals Himself to us in a person, the person of Jesus Christ. The author does this in a conversational style, as if he is spinning a yarn or speaking in parables.

This subtle book presents a challenge to the church not to use an apologetic sledgehammer to crack a nut. It was no surprise to read in the Acknowledgments that the author had learned from the writing styles of Wendell Berry and Fredrick Buechner how to turn his thoughts and evangelistic talks into a piece of literature. Like Emily Dickerson, Luke Cawley has learned to “tell it slant”. That is the way that Christians can sometimes get a word in edgeways to plant or water a seed of life.

Anyone who is interested in communicating the gospel would do well to read this book, and then think of a non-Christian to whom they can pass it on.