All Things For Good
All Things for Good,
The Steadfast Fidelity of Stonewall Jackson
by J. Steven Wilkins
Just before Christmas, I was perusing the shelves at the Logos Bookstore in Nashville and struck up a conversation with a lady concerning a good biography. I directed her to the display of the “Leaders in Action” series published by Cumberland House in Nashville and edited by George Grant. As I was recommending different titles, I found that I had somehow previously missed this biography of Stonewall Jackson. There was only one copy and I grabbed it for myself. It turned out that the lady to whom I was speaking was a direct descendant of Robert E. Lee and was (unbelievably) ignorant of the greatness and Christian character of her ancestor, so she got the one on Lee (Call of Duty).
The author, Steven Wilkins, pastors a Presbyterian church in Monroe, Louisiana and has been a friend for over a decade. He is also the author if the Lee biography and produced the audio series, “America the First 400 Years”, from which I have gleaned information for my Southern History course.
Wilkins’ writing style is easy to read. He has a wonderful ability to paint word pictures which allow the reader to “see” the events and people in print. Wilkins’ treatment of Jackson is almost reverential, and rightly so. With the exception of Robert E. Lee, there is no one in American history who more vividly portrayed a Christian character and scripture in action than Thomas J. Jackson. This book brings you to understand how an orphan who had difficulty learning could become “mighty in battle” both for his beloved Virginia and for his Lord Jesus.
When reading All Things for Good, I could not help but repeatedly become dismayed at the character of the man I was reading about compared to that of current leaders.
Jackson came from obscurity as a teacher of physics at Virginia Military Academy to become a Lt. General in the Army of Northern Virginia. He was feared by the Union forces and loved by Southerners. His fame spread to Europe as well.
Wilkins quotes Col. Garnet Wolseley, who would later become the commander in chief of all English forces— “With such a leader, men would go anywhere and face any amount of difficulties; and for myself, I believe that, inspired by the presence of such a man, I should be perfectly insensible to fatigue, and reckon upon success as a moral certainty.”
This book is a must for everyone. It is especially important for young men and women to see how Jackson as a military genius was always concerned that God receive the glory for every victory and the praise for His wisdom in every defeat.
This book is not just about history, it is about understanding a life given over to the Lordship of Christ Jesus. Buy two copies...one to read and treasure, the other to give away.
(Reviewed February 2008)