I think The Shack speaks that truth, creatively and with clarity-then offers hope and help for those times. Heaven is our future hope, not our present reality. The former things have not yet passed away.

But for those of us on earth, that verse teaches we will live with each of those things. In heaven, there will be no mourning, crying, or pain. But what does that verse also say about our time on earth? Revelation 21:4 says, “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” That verse is often used in funerals and hospital rooms to offer comfort to those who are grieving. The truth and mystery of heaven was also represented. Forgiveness, judging, trusting, and loving are all subjects the movie addressed. The answers in the movie were biblical in nature. I just know that it did in many beautiful ways. After seeing the movie, I still can’t tell you exactly how The Shack answered those questions.

How can an all-powerful, all-loving God allow an innocent child to suffer? How can God ask a person to believe and have faith, when they have lived through impossible pain and grief? I think that is the question Christians should take to the movie. The Shack deals with the most difficult question in theology. Again, I thought his representations of God, of Jesus, and of the Holy Spirit were truly genius. What does love look like? What gender is love limited to? What does love look like, sound like, feel like? If you had to draw a picture of love, what would that picture look like? Paul Young chose to depict God in a way that would most look like love, compassion, wisdom, and comfort to the character in his book. The truth about God is that it is impossible to depict him with human descriptions. The criticism from some evangelicals is that the book misrepresents God, but I think the exact opposite.

Personally, I thought the idea was genius. Some have disagreed with The Shack‘s depiction of God as a black woman. I am a huge fan of The Shack because I am a fan of great literature. I did several book reviews in churches and book clubs to discuss the book, and the people were often divided in their opinions. I had the privilege of listening to the author, Paul Young, speak about his book on two separate occasions.

When The Shack was first published it created an uproar similar to some of the current movie reviews, ten years later. But a work of good fiction has elements of truth, and The Shack is packed with those truthful elements. A work of fiction is supposed to be creative and imaginative with the truth. The book and the movie are works of fiction. I am a huge fan of The Shack, both the book and the movie. On the other hand, if you go to the movie looking for God, you will probably find him. If you go to the movie looking for something that is not exactly God, you can probably find it.

The shack book