Good But Has A Few Problems. This is an intriguing book in that it takes a week long trip Platt took into the Himalaya Mountains - apparently just weeks before becoming the President of the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention - and combines it from passages from the middle of the Gospel of Luke to present a case that "something" needs to be done about human suffering.

A cynic or pessimist is likely to rate this one closer to a max of 3*, because if nothing else it is repeatedly jarring to see Platt admit so openly to ignoring the human suffering in front of his face on this trip - he would rather speak to someone about Jesus than discontinue his trip and help them get to the closest hospital, despite their *eye rotting out from their face*, in just one memorable (and early) example.

An Evangelical Christian is more likely to rate this at 5* and wish for more, as Platt's prose speaks exactly their language and ideology - he is quite explicit and unapologetic in exactly what he is, and this reader doesn't fault him for his honesty here in the least.

Ultimately, I go with the 4* because even while Platt uses the full text of much of the passages he uses as primary sources, he still uses the concept called proof texting - wherein a particular verse is cited out of context in support of some point or another - as ancillary evidence. Further, I simply can't ignore the cynical/ pessimistic points above, yet at the same time I understand the worldview - to use one of their favored terms - Platt is coming from, and I get that he *thinks* he is doing good. Also, knowing the culture Platt is steeped in - I grew up in it - honestly, this book could have been *far* worse for readers outside of the Evangelical Christian movement Platt is a part of. Though there is one final craw in my jaw in the final chapter: After spending an entire book proclaiming the need for others to be bold and "do something", and indeed just before leaving readers with a challenge to do the same, Platt is so cowardly that he cannot bring himself to name the organization he represents and of which the International Mission Board is a key component: the Southern Baptist Church.

Overall, the book does indeed raise some topics that needed to be raised. Platt does a solid job of showing people what "life on the ground" is like in these rural, remote, and poor villages of the region. While it could have gone much further in a positive direction (showing the misery of the poor within yards of his own locations, for example), at least it didn't go quite as far in a more negative direction as it could have. So I feel the 4* is warranted here, and I do in fact recommend this book for everyone. ( )

Something Needs to Change: A Call to Make Your Life Count in a World of Urgent Need by [David Platt]This is a book for all believers. David Platt has used a journey of a lifetime to answers some difficult questions and to find questions he never thought he would ask. This pastor talks about his own struggles and how God is faithful through every doubt, or question we may have. It was refreshing to read a book about a person with questions instead of trying to preach answers. The answers he received were that more important for me.

I was given this book by Multnomah publishing in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. ( )