A Story for God's Glory

“A Million Miles in a Thousand Years” is Donald Miller’s way of reminding you to “stop and smell the roses.” The author uses his life experience to artfully invite you into his journey of “making life count.” As he works to make a movie of his life, he realizes that his story, “as is,” is not all that exciting and maybe isn’t worth telling; that revelation changes everything. Miller decides to start not only making each day count, but each moment. Then, his story becomes interesting, exciting, and worth living. The author’s purpose is to get you to self reflect, examine God’s purposes in your life, and boldly embrace the life God’s given you.

For me personally, it was a slightly difficult book. I wasn’t sure I liked the writing style, nor the story. At first I thought it was a book about “nothing.” The first chapters grabbed me (a little) the following chapters bored me…I didn’t care if the characters slept on inflatable mattresses or how many cigarettes or drinks a person had. (I got a little irritated at it all) But, then as I read on, I could feel the warmth and depth of Donald Miller. His journey had taken him into a profound place in his faith and he wanted to take us with him. Including the petty details of his story was his way of conveying exactly how much he began to take notice of life around him. As the chapters rolled on, I found myself deeply reflecting on my life and I found the metaphors in the book to be incredibly thought provoking. The story of Jim and Janice nearly brought me to an all out crying session and the story of Bob and his family at the dock will be a memory that Miller shared that I won’t soon forget. This book makes we want to embrace the story that God has for my life…it makes me want to wake up and ask God, “So what are WE going to do today?” I am certain that the author’s purpose was to help you see what God has shown him about the meaning of life, and now his story is being used for God’s glory. The message echoes what God has also spoken to me, “I’m the author and finisher of your faith…let Me write.”