Pastor Andrew Brunson, serving as a
missionary and as pastor in a church plant was arrested by the Turkish government—accused
of being a spy. While millions of people around the world were praying for him,
American government officials, including
at one point President Trump, talking with representatives of the Turkish
Government asking that he be released, Brunson stayed in various Turkish prisons
for about 2 years.
God’s Hostage: A True Story of
Persecution, Imprisonment and Perseverance (by Andrew Brunson with Craig
Borlase, Baker Books, 2019) is the story of what Brunson went through due to whatever
was going on in someone’s twisted mind, perhaps thinking that holding a non-threat
would be a good bargaining chip. Brunson
bears his soul as he talks about how his faith was challenged, and how he came
to fully rely on God. His faith helped
him to preserve his sanity during an insane time, but also caused him to
realize that often being ‘called to pick up our cross and follow’ means a lot
more suffering than we might have expected.
Although the story itself is
compelling, the way it was told didn’t produce in me the passion that I was expecting.
It seemed to drag at times, and it was difficult to feel the anguish of Brunson,
and of course his wife, who stayed in Turkey and did all she could to be able
to see him as often as possible.
I received a copy of the book from
the publisher as a member of their blogging program.
4/5
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