The
Shack
Chapter 11a
- Mack
walks into a deep dark cavern, sees a chair, and sits down to wait.
(p.151-152)
- Mack
sees a woman sitting behind a desk like a judge. (p. 153)
- The
woman is Wisdom (Sophia) and she tells Mack she is there to help him. (p.
154)
- Sophia
tells Mack he is there because of his children. (p. 154)
- “Mackenzie,
you love your children in a way that your own father was never able to
love you and your sisters.”
- Do
you love your children better than the way your father loved you?
- Sophia
asks Mack which of his children he loves the
most. (p. 155)
“Well, each of my children is
unique. And that uniqueness and special
personhood calls out a unique response from me..”
- What
unique qualities do your children have?
- Mack
is questioned about his love for his children when they misbehave, are
rude, or embarrass him.
- “I
admit that it does affect me…, but even when they act badly they are
still my son and daughter, and they will be forever. What they do might affect my pride, but
not my love for them.”
- How
do you respond to your children when they misbehave?
- Mack
gets angry when Sophia mentions that God loves his children. (p.156)
“…and you didn’t move beyond
your father’s inability on your own, it was God and you together who changed
you to love this way. And now you love
your children much the way the Father loves his.”
- Sophia
senses Mack is upset. (p.156)
“You don’t believe that the
Father loves his children very well, do you?
You don’t believe that God is good, do you?
- Do
you believe God loves his children and is good?
- Mack
is now asked to sit behind the big desk because he is here for judgment.
(p.157)
- After
getting upset, Mack learns he is not going to be judged, but he was going
to be a judge. (p158)
“What me? I’d rather not…I don’t have any ability to
judge” (continue reading from book)
- Do
you judge others? By what
criteria do you base your judgment of others?
- Mack
is asked to judge God. (p.160)
“And what about the man who prays on innocent little girls? What about him, Mackenzie? Is that man guilty? Should he be judged?...What
about his father, the man who twisted his son into a terror, what about
him?...How far do we go back, Mackenzie?
This legacy of brokenness goes all the way back to Adam, what about him? But why stop there? What about God? God started this whole thing. Is God to blame?”
- Do
you think God is to blame for this fallen world?
- Sophia
continues to question Mack. (p.161)
“Isn’t this where you are
stuck Mackenzie? Isn’t this what fuels
the Great Sadness? That God cannot be
trusted?”
- Do
you feel like God cannot be trusted?
The
Shack
Chapter 11b
Summary Notes:
·
Mack
finally explodes, and blames
God for what happened to Missy (p161).
·
Sophia says that because Mack is
able to judge God, he must choose two of his children to go to heaven, but only
two. She insists, until Mack finally
breaks down and offers to sacrifice
himself for his kids. Mack sees
the example of how Jesus sacrificed himself for us. (p162-163).
·
Sophia says we demanded our
independence, and now we are angry with the one who loved us enough to give it
to us (p164).
·
What happened to Missy was the work
of evil, and no one in our world is immune to it (p165).
·
Mack watches through the waterfall,
and sees his kids playing with Jesus, including Missy (p166-168).
·
Sophia reassures Mack that Missy
doesn’t blame him for what happened, and neither do
·
Mack says he doesn’t feel stuck any
more (p169).
Splinters from “Shaq:” 
1.
Tell about a time when you expressed anger towards God.
2.
If necessary,
would you sacrifice yourself for your kids?
For your spouse/fiancé? A
friend? A drunk
bum lying in the gutter?
3.
Would you prefer
that God gave us less independence?
Possibly just let us do whatever we want, as long as it’s not
“evil?”
4.
If you could see
one person “behind the waterfall”, who would it be?
5.
What is the
biggest lie that you are holding on to?