The Precious Present

By Spencer Johnson

There is a glimmer of truth in There Precious Present, but it falls short on it's basic premise, i.e. the precious present "is the best present a person can receive because anyone who receives such a gift is happy forever." 

For fear of sounding like a killjoy, I'm not disappointed with Spencer Johnson. Johnson's Who Moved My Cheese is one of the few books that regularly impacts my life. I love it! This book -- not so much. 

I'm not buying his underlying worldview. It is an existentialist, "under the sun," pop psychology "only you have the power to make yourself happy." (19). I respectfully push back on that idea.

The Christian is urged to live fully in the present, but it is the reality of the present Christ and the hope (confident expectation) of his better future that actually gives one the ability to rest content in the present. 

I'm with Johnson when it comes to "being present where you are." That said, Johnson's road map to success leaves me cartographer, guide, and companion. That's a little boring -- and scary.