Surviving A Bad Review
It was inevitable, but it still stung like a scorpion.
I received my first negative book review on Amazon.
Really negative.
I handled it pretty well…I swore off writing for the rest of my life, then poured two fingers of good whiskey to ease my pain.
Whoever those fingers belonged to had huge hands…
The reviewer was a pastor and his pastoral objection was that if you are going to call a book a devotional, you must cite the Scripture, then exegete it for the reader.
It’s our job to tell people what the scripture means and how to apply it.
Leaving something open for personal interpretation and application can evidently lead to all sorts of mischief.
It was “foreign” to his way of thinking.
I understand…but I don’t agree.
Yes, it’s the teachers job to exegete and teach the Word.
The problem is that if you take five different teachers they will often teach the same passage five different ways.
My job is to give you not just interpretation, but the tools to interpret on your own.
The Word of God is no longer chained to the pulpit.
The pastor is not the only one in the house with the Holy Spirit, though it provides job security to convince people that he is.
His other objection was that some of the stories had no scripture at all.
When the point of the books is that God is always speaking to us, that probably shouldn’t be a surprise.
I could find a Scripture for each story…but that would defeat the purpose for writing them in the first place.
My hope in writing these stories is to empower people to think for themselves and to see God at work in the mundane occurrences of daily life.
God is active, present, and speaking, to all His kids, not just the ordained ones.
They are free to hear Him and “make their own application”.
The conclusion of the matter is that the swelling has gone down and I’m still pecking the keyboard.
Like black coffee and Calvinism, I’m evidently an acquired taste.
Thank you all for reading and being part of what we do.
I give this post two stars. Should concluded it with “make your own application.”
Just kidding of course. Sorry you didn’t meet the unwritten criteria of the random amazon reviewer. I like your MYOA stuff. But I’m just another random guy on the net, so I doubt I have any more weight than he does.
Eric,
Thank you.
Positive reviews have much more weight. 🙂
Everyone’s a critic, even myself of myself. I am my own worst critic.
The only review that matters is going to come someday, and may I be found worthy, not on my own righteousness, but that of Christs.
When someone objects to “that some of the stories had no scripture at all”… point out the Book of Esther. No mention of God at all. And yet, He is there.
Papias,
Critics tend to affirm our worst fears about ourselves.
I am wildly insecure about writing and I need to get over it or take up animal husbandry or some such safe vocation.
I just started The Ragamuffin Gospel last night, and as I have the tendency to do, I checked out the one star reviews on amazon. Turns out there are some people of there that are absolutely terrified of grace. Doesn’t surprise me that those same people, or perhaps just relatives, would be offended at the idea of people being allowed to make their own application. 🙂
dswoager,
That’s a great book…
It took me about three pages to figure that out.
Writers and Pastor’s will never leave everybody happy.Don’t let it get to you.I have a number of books in my library I wanted to burn.As the years have gone by I’ve grown to appreciate those authors.Have a very Merry Christmas.
Michael, your messages include a lot of mercy, grace, compassion, forgiveness, and unconditional love. Sometimes, we really don’t need to be preached at. We don’t always need to hear about how we should be doing more (more praying, more trusting, more whatever) in order to achieve peace, joy, acceptance and salvation.
There is more than one way to communicate a message. That is why the internet is full of cats!
Dear Michael,
I have to say your work is always well written, honest, thought provoking, and absolutely worth my time to read! I read your blog every day. Your MYOA is perhaps your best work! Why? Because it points to God in unorthodox, everyday ways. Too often, we as believers, miss God at work in our lives. We don’t see God’s action in even the most mundane things, like a cat that has her own similarities with how we act toward God. We miss the God who kept us from a serious accident. We miss the God who created us to need Him. We miss the God who provides for our every need, not want, need.
I venture to say that your critic missed the point of your book because he read it from within his box of preconceptions of God. As believers, we may disagree about what we know and believe. But, if we are honest, we freely admit that God is bigger than any possible understanding that we have. And that means that someone else might understand some piece of God better than we do. I am sorry that he felt a negative review of your work was needed. I have found your MYOA to be excellent and always pointing out something about our relationship with God that could improve.
Keep up the good work!
Now, I have to buy your book and add it to the pile next to my chair to read!
Shalom,
Dave
Here’s my .02 worth knowing that the .02 is an exaggerated figure. As a pastor, I need to read and study many different resources to help with putting together a message that ultimately, the Holy Spirit prompts me to say anyway.
Having said that, after studying the text and much prayer, I have several commentaries that I will look at just to confirm that what I will say isn’t completely blasphemous. After that, I may look at some material that I consider “devotionals”. In my mind (and here’s where we max out at .02 worth), a devotional is simply a reference to a passage that spoke to another person in a personal way. I expect more from a commentary and I love your devotional.
Don’t let the Pharisee’s rattle you. Merry Christmas Michael and keep up the good work!
I just said his review was not helpful. There, happy Christmas!
Keep in mind that “devotional” is just a label assigned to one category. Maybe the book is more “inspriational” than devotional. Who cares which category label fits or doesn’t fit. It’s the message that counts.
Thanks for the kind words folks!
I need a tougher shell… 🙂
that is so funny – have to go over and post my review now – i won’t claim Michael as my son and i’ll do my best to not be intelligent, insightful and not syrupy 🙂
well, that didn’t come out right – hope my review WAS intelligent and insightful … lol
reading pastor HTT’s comments makes me certain that i wouldn’t be uplifted by anything he wrote, let alone edified
yeah, what Rob says
Great messages Michael. Maybe someday we can get them translated into Spanish.
Blessings
Michael, I will simply say this about your writing: I’m diggin’ your style.
In my mind, you carry on the spirit of the Internet Monk. Who had a few detractors who didn’t get it.
Em, you were great. 🙂
PH,
I wish I could write like Michael did.
That’s high praise….thank you.
When the guy you were not writing for hates what you have done you hit your mark.
BD,
I like that… 🙂
Man I like that too, Dread. That is 100% spot on.
Ha! I needed to read that, Sir Dread.
Here’s the thing, you create because you must, just like all creatives, especially those of us who predate social media, Amazon, Yelp, and Twitter.
Well done, my friend don’t let the critics get you down, especially the one inside your head!
..oh, and Happy Christmas from Santana Claus!
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ShwzFgX-FrM/R54b5G5MpDI/AAAAAAAAAI8/HzOcsE5uCn8/s1600/SantanaClaus.gif
When Almighty God walked this earth in the tangible form of Jesus Christ and taught in metaphors and parables that His listeners could relate to, did He quote Scripture from the Torah with each story?
No!
That pompous fat head of a pastor that dissed your writing is way off the mark!
His Pharisee letter of the law approach has blinded him to the elegant beauty encased in those gifted words that you have sent forth upon this earth.
Words that are so meaningful to so many of us.
Words that have slipped behind our barriers and appeared where we live in our own skin.
Words that ministered the balm of Giliead to our wounded lives in so many ways that only a man of God could have sent them forth to us under the wonderful guidance of the Spirit of God Himself!
A pox on him, the blinded fool…