When God Works Incognito

About the book /why read When God Works Incognito, by Fred Beck. It would be presumptive and self-serving to say, you should read When God Works Incognito. I can say the autobiographical vignettes, that are the main body of the book, will give you a real glimpse of the joys and challenges of one missionary's life and work in South Asia and Southeast Asia over a period of thirty-three-plus years. On the surface, it is my story. Beneath the surface, great flowing currents of God (the Creator-Sustainer-Savior) are active and personal. You will gain a glimpse of mission strategies; how some real missionaries live, work, grow in Christlikeness, and yes, sometimes struggle; how missionaries partner with local believers to reach their own people; and much more. The book also seeks, by real-life illustrations, to quietly answer the question: Is God even interested in what happens on earth? More importantly, does God act in the life and affairs of mankind? There are multitudes of unbelievers and scoffers. The Scriptures tell us that "God is spirit" (John 4:24). They also tell us, "a natural man" (a person without God) "does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him and he cannot understand them" (1 Corinthians 2:14). Thus, the natural man's understanding is limited to the physical domain-empirical matters that he can see, touch, or verify. The Scriptures continue, "But he who is spiritual" (a person who believes in and walks daily with God) "appraises all things" (because he has the mind of Christ; 1 Corinthians 2:14-16). Thus the spiritual person can understand, in part, both the physical and spiritual domains. Therefore, the spiritual person is equipped for interaction with God and learns, by experience and scripture, to recognize God's presence and activity, even when God works incognito.