This week I've been catching a couple of hours here, half an hour there to read Pete's latest manuscript, as I hold it I can feel the blood, sweat and tears that have gone into this particular baby. Apparantly being able to rip apart Dan Brown's appalling writing style qualifies you to be one of the lucky few who get a first glimpse at Pete's latest musing, "God on Mute"...
Maybe a few of you 24-7 old timers will remember a little booklet Pete wrote a couple of years ago off the back of Samie's illness. It was a simple, straight forward journey through the many questions and a few answers that was best read in private.
For a while now Pete's been musing on expanding that little foray into unanswered prayer and suffering and finally has carved out the time. Buried under coffee cups, books and paper, he's been emerging like a mole from a very dark hole every few weeks to give a weary grin and reassure us he's still alive.
That insane period of work and retreat is coming to an end and as I sat with a paper cup of tea on the train back from London last week I was almost hesitant to begin reading and commenting on something that's taken so much from such a dear friend. It felt like a precious child to be handled tenderly.
From the first few chapters that provoked silent tears on a busy train to the last few I read last night I can say that this is probably the most honest writing I've ever read. I'm amazed at some of the structural decisions Pete has made, he's given so much airspace and dignity to doubt, pain and struggle. There are no patronising answers, no skimming lightly over questions that to some people are the difference between a candle and the dark.
I won't say to much, it's really something that needs to be read, even if you're grateful enough to escape gross suffering or disappointment in life, this book is an open door to deeper prayer. xc