It is somewhat sad and very sobering. I am almost done with it but highly recommend all to read it. I found it in pdf free online. Of course I cannot vouch for the site it is on, but here is a link to the pdf for you to read (it is an easy read, so please take the time to do it). Henry And The Great Society.
It would be nice to have a discussion about this book; if you read it, let me know your thoughts. I'll post mine at a later date ... if I have time.
LATER (edit):
Well, I had time to finish the book and for now I'll only touch on the few things I did NOT agree with.
First, I do not want to give the impression that I agreed with everything about their seemingly happy life before all the changes started happening. And second, I do not agree 100% with all the doctrinal stuff he puts at the end (though much of what he said at the end was a blessing and I hope to go back through and quote some of it at a later time).
The biggest doctrinal thing that stuck out to me is his few comments that suggest he believes in OSAS.
Another thing that stuck out is that he talked about food, clothing and shelter and the pursuit of that as our basic needs and being content with the basics (well, it seemed he was saying that that is where contentment comes - from having the simple things in life) ... I assume he is speaking of what Paul said about "having food and raiment let us therewith be content." But what bothered me is that he never (that I saw anyway?) mentioned what CHRIST said about "seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness" and how if we do this "all these things shall be added unto you." What things was Christ speaking of? Food and raiment. My thoughts are that anyone in the U.S. and most other countries can provide the bare minimum for themselves and get by. But if we are a follower of Christ and we seek first his kingdom and righteousness, then the LORD will make sure we have the basics. This is where TRUE contentment comes from. Walking in the will of the Lord and knowing that he will take care of us no matter the circumstances. There is great peace in that.
There was one more doctrinal thing that I thought good to bring up and that is his thoughts or beliefs on the rapture. I don't understand it all myself so I wont get into it, but I did want to say that he might be off. I have only read it through one time so maybe I missed something.
Taken with the right mindset, this book was a great blessing. Like I said, I hope to post some quotes at a later time ... either here on this post or I'll make a new one and link them together.
5 READER COMMENTS:
I really did enjoy this story. Husband & I are attempting to go the opposite way of Henry & Esther one appliance & convenience at a time. In the process of finding contentment w/ food & rainment & looking for the old paths we've begun to live for Christ as a family. I couldn't help but notice alot of this type of story in a book I promoted on my blog last year Surviving Off Odd-Grid. http://www.offoffgrid.com/ I think you would find it edifying.
Praise the Lord - thank you for sharing! I think all the 'conveniences' only serve as distractions and diversions. We too are learning how to step back one skill at a time. It's been a blessing in many ways. Also, it's been a challenge trying to discern what is worth keeping and using and what is not. I do not believe all modern conveniences are a snare.
God bless you - I'll have to check out the link when I have time. Thank you again. js
The way I worded the second sentence came out wrong. By saying "all" I did not mean the literally use of the word. I am still learning how to use more literal terms.
:~)
I found this post a few days ago and I was interested because I had just received the book in the mail. Finished reading it today and I agree with you. It was a sad story, but it held so much truth about how all of these things can change you. Some of the things weren't bad to have, but going in debt for them was and caused a great deal of their problems. It wasn't just the things though that changed them; I honestly felt like the wife was a huge part of the snare. She kept saying how it was up to her husband, but she always influenced him to her own desires and temptations.
YES - the wife was a huge snare. She was certainly not submissive, but she had a very good form of 'false submission', was manipulating, etc. As I was reading the book, I thought several times how if she would have been the kind of wife the Lord wanted her to be, Henry's outcome would have been much different.
Her materialistic spirit and false submission honestly made my stomach turn.
You are right; many of the items they went into debt for were not the problem. Covetousness, greed, envy, pride, and so on ... that was the main problem. Living way beyond their means and digging a hole deeper and deeper with each new thing.
Thank you for the comment. Lord bless you.
Post a Comment