Fifty years of life lessons

Review by Julie Abell

Ah 50! I just turned 50, and just before I did I read Patrick Madrid’s Life Lessons: Fifty Things I Learned in My First Fifty Years. If you haven’t read any of Patrick Madrid’s books I recommend starting as he is a remarkable story teller and great apologist for the Catholic faith. The stories he includes in this book are about his life with its mistakes and successes. Each of the 50 stories ends with a verse or two from scripture which highlights the lessons to be learned.

His stories include a Facebook mishap, losing (and then finding) his five-year old daughter, misreading a sign as saying “guilt” instead of “quilt,” getting stuck for over 20 minutes on a roller coaster, concealing a speeding ticket from his parents, and, obviously, many others. While we laugh at his blunders, he is laughing right along with us. But at the end, he pulls it all together and with the scripture references shows us that God’s wisdom is timeless, and we should pay attention and be obedient to it. While blunders can be funny, they can also have long ranging effects and sometimes recipients of our sins are not so resilient or forgiving.

His stories are encouraging and remind us not to take ourselves too seriously, because we are
full of flaws, but at the same time we are to strive to be holy as He is holy. A book that allows you to
read the chapters in any order, it is one you should pick up and give a try. Enjoy!