There are several ways you know you have read a good book and one of them is how quickly it is read. I devoured Max Lucado’s new book Outlive Your Life as a starving man would devour food placed in front of him. Lucado’s purpose with this book is deceptively simple: teach and/or remind people that their lives are God-given as a gift with a purpose in mind – to serve others and by doing so serve God and "outlive their lives". In the space of 150 plus pages Lucado accomplishes his task with clarity and pragmatism.

Outlive Your Life is rooted in the first 12 chapters of the New Testament book of Acts and blends scripture, real life stories and Lucado’s skillful ability to get to the point. In this case the point is simply that the church and Christians today seem to have fallen into a sleep of apathy and a mindset overwhelmed by the sheer volume of brokeness in the world. Lucado uses the book to remind readers that God is about the business of the church if we would simply trust that he is capable of overturning the evil of the world by using the admittedly imperfect tools who are his followers. As proof he points to the nascent church of Acts and helps the reader to understand that this ragtag group of unremarkable 1st century Jews, once empowered and enlivened by the Spirit of God, then go about the business of transforming of world.

Another clear purpose for the book is to challenge Christians and the church to wake from their apathetic slumber and confront directly the evil of the world which manifests in many ways such as hunger, poverty, war, racism, slavery etc. Lucado wants to make sure that anyone who picks up this text cannot put it down and claim ignorance to the needs of the world – in this he also succeeds.

The book is divided into 16 short chapters, each following Acts as well as tackling a particular practical way of maximizing life for the sake of Christ and the world. This structure as well as a handy Discussion and Action Guide at the end make the book a great tool for Bible Study groups, Life groups and Sunday School or other Christian Education classes.

Ultimately Lucado systematically removes every conceivable excuse a Christian may have for not living out the gospel and provides simple ways of moving into a life that emphasizes cummunity over the individual and the critical importance of prayer. It is important to note that Lucado does not simply present ‘practical’ ways of acting but also ends each chapter with an applicable verse from scripture and a prayer.

I highly recommend the book for Christians of all stripes as well as pastors, teachers and other leaders in the church. It is clear that the book has been written with the Christian believer in mind and from the outset uses language and content that directly addresses this audience. For this reason it is likely the non-Christian audience, while possibly agreeing with the action items, will not fully appreciate the text and the scriptural reasoning behind it and may not find it beneficial.

It should be noted that Lucado is not simply teling others how to outlive their lives. 100 percent of author royalties from all Outlive Your Life products go to WorldVision and the James 1:27 Foundation.

Book has been provided courtesy of Thomas Nelson and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available September 2010 at your favourite bookseller.