Love Does by Bob Goff

January 28, 2020January 27, 2023 by samanthareads In Book Club, Samanthareads 1 Comment

I decided to read this book directly after I finished A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller;
a. because it was available to check out and,
b. because Bob is someone Don talks about fondly in his book.
Don portrayed him as a pretty interesting guy. Someone who didn’t set any limits to the sort of life he wanted for himself or his children.

Bob talks a little too much about Jesus for me to want to read this book ever again, in fact as I was reading his book I thought if I met him in person I probably wouldn’t like him. He sounded too much like a guy who is always happy. However, by the time I finished reading, I found him pretty inspiring. I enjoyed reading about his uncharacteristic parenting style and the defining moments that have shaped his philosophies on life.

A little background about Bob, he is the type of person who once his mind is set to do something, he does it forthright and all out. After going down a few different avenues, he decided he wanted to be a lawyer. He knew where he wanted to go to law school, but he didn’t receive a high enough LSAT score to be accepted, so he sat on a bench outside the dean’s office every day until the dean gave in and he was admitted.

Bob and his wife, whom he calls “Sweet Maria” agreed that when each of their three children turned 10 years old they would get to choose an adventure to go on with him. The adventures chosen by the kids ranged from a spur of the moment trip to London for tea, a hike up a mountain in a snow storm and motorbiking in the desert, all epic choices in their own right.

Bob also spent a lot of his time in Uganda trying to make it a safer place for the country’s children. He served as a diplomat establishing a judicial system, freeing hundreds of Ugandan children from prisons and building schools for them throughout the country in the process.

Bob likes to say that he lives his life through whimsy. I chose to send this book to my friend Garrett. Someone who reminds me of Bob Goff a great deal. A kind person who like Bob didn’t always know what he wanted to do but, always has the best of intentions. Garrett is also someone who fights for children, specifically those who have suffered from the horrors of human trafficking. I knew I had to send Love Does to Garrett, when at the end of book Bob gives out his phone number. Bob encourages anyone who reads his book and thinks he could help them, to reach out to him. That is Garrett.