Letters to a Young Pastor by Calvin Miller

Coming from a pastor of twenty-five years, you'd think Calvin Miller would have plenty to share with the new generation of pastors.

This book is stocked full of his anecdotes and insights of what it takes to be a minister, the sort of people you will come in contact with, how to interact with them and what he believes to be wrong with Christianity and its leaders.

You will not be missing any of Miller's sarcasm as these letters are full of it. I'm talking every single letter has the sarcasm included. At times this is confusing because I wasn't sure if he was trying to be serious about a complaint or just making light of it.

For example, he thrashes the megachurch pastors pretty hard. He claims megachurch pastors don't read books unless they deal with church growth.

Then he rips into Christians who don't end their prayers with "in Jesus' Name". As if saying those three words invokes some supernatural authority. (You'd have to understand what it means to do something "in the name of Christ" - it's along the same lines as taking God's name in vain)

He states that Rick Warren's prayer at President Obama's inauguration seemed to give Jesus the right to, "the nation of faith He forged at a terrible price."

See, I'm not sure if he's doing the whole tongue-in-cheek act there or if he is serious.

All in all, this book is a fun read for new preachers. It'll provide some fun insight and humorous stories from a seasoned minister.

I could have done with less sarcasm.

This book was provided for review, at no cost, by David C Cook Publishing.