Ruthless trust (by Brennan Manning)

(Amazon UK link)

Back in 2008, I borrowed Brennan Manning’s book ‘Ruthless trust’ from a friend who recommended it. I quite liked it, and thought it well-written. But for some reason it didn’t particularly resonate or strike me as anything special.

However, I’m rereading a lot of books, and decided I would like to try again. So I put the book on my wishlist, and was given it for Christmas at the end of last year. I started reading it at the start of the month, and planned to read around one chapter per day.

The book opens with a thoughtful introduction by Richard Foster. He starts with a simple example of a child’s implicit trust in his earthly father. And goes on to say that trust in the Christian world is sadly lacking. So it’s a timely book, one that looks at difficulties with trusting, and doesn’t try to pretend that the Christian life is easy, or that we should gloss over difficulties or tragedies.

‘Ruthless trust’ was written in the year 2000, and Brennan Manning makes some references to the turn of the century, wondering what the new millennium would hold. Despite a quarter of the ‘new’ century having passed, this book is still very relevant, and I found it both inspiring and thought-provoking.

Manning is very honest about his failings; at the time of writing he was a reformed alcoholic who left the Catholic priesthood in order to get married. But he was still very much a follower of Jesus, and in this book he calls us to have not just faith, or even basic trust, but what he calls ‘ruthless’ trust - trust that is there, no matter what is happening around us. Sometimes it may be just a thread in the darkness; sometimes we might not feel as if God is there at all. But, Manning says, he has learned to cling to whatever trust he has, knowing that God loves him no matter what.

Each chapter takes a slightly different angle, as Manning invites us to learn to trust. One chapter reminds us to notice God in all we see and do, a message that I’m hearing in other places too. It’s far too easy to concentrate on the past, or the future, and miss what is happening in the present. He does agree that sometimes planning for the future is essential, but that by thinking too much about what we might do, we miss what is going on around us. 

Manning is probably best known for his excellent ‘Ragamuffin Gospel’, which is the first of his books that I read, back in 2006. It’s the book which inspired me to continue acquiring the author’s other books. ‘Ruthless Trust’ is, in a sense, a sequel, where Manning sees himself moving on from being a ‘ragamuffin’ to becoming a follower, if only clinging on by a thread. Indeed, the subtitle (or, perhaps, the byline on the front cover) is: 'the ragamuffin's path to God'. 

As I've come to expect with Brennan Manning's books, the style is somewhat rambling, as he recounts anecdotes from his life and that of others he has known. But it works well. He was a gifted writer, and he brings his feelings and thoughts to life in ways that I felt resonated quite strongly with me. Once again, a book that passed me by fifteen years ago feels a lot more meaningful today. 

So I would definitely recommend this book at this stage of my life. It’s a book to read slowly, to re-read paragraphs if your mind wanders; to pause and ponder. One doesn’t have to agree with everything the author says to appreciate what he says, and it’s certainly not a book to read in one sitting. 

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