Book Review of Playing Hurt by Brian Goins

PLAYING HURT
 By Brian Goins
ISBN 978-0-8254-2673-5
Published by Kregel
Reviewed by Clint Walker

 Ephesians 5:25 says, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” This is the starting point for Brian Goins’ Playing Hurt strategy to help men to be better and more effective husbands. The idea is to communicate sacrificial love to men in a way they can more easily relate to. Thus, the idea of “playing hurt” that many men have experienced or observed in athletic competition is tied to “taking one for the team” in a marriage relationship.

Playing Hurt is an ingenious metaphor for sacrificial love. Brian Goins does an admirable job of extending the metaphor throughout the whole book. He speaks of overcoming difficulty and the adversary through sacrificial love, and of being a servant leader for one’s household. He also challenges men to find a support team to help them be a better husband and father. His wisdom is witty, engaging, thought-provoking, and inspiring. As a husband with young children, I found the book to be a great encouragement.

However, I do have some honest concerns about the text. First, will very many men actually take the step to grab the book and read it? About half of the guys I know are not really committed readers. Of those that actually do enjoy reading books, very few of them are eager to read a “relationship book”. Because of this, I have concerns about whether Playing Hurt will actually get to its intended audience.

I also wonder if all of the athletic stories and metaphors are, at times, a little overdone. I know these kinds of stories are supposed to draw guys like me in, but at times it feels like the author is trying too hard to make the book too manly and cool. This feeling may be due to my experience as an athlete. I, at times, get tired of the some of the motivational tools coaches use with athletes, and some of those find their way into this text.

Also, when people would find out that I was an athlete, they would often try to communicate their point of view through athletic metaphors with me, assuming that I was not smart enough to figure out what they were saying otherwise I believe that Brian Goins has written the best book for Christian men on being a good Christian husband that I have ever read. It is easy to understand yet profound. Readers will find Goins easy to relate to, and will find his illustrations and stories especially helpful. It is definitely worth a read!