Daniel: Alright Sophia, I'm going to say a book title, you give me the brutally honest, one-sentence review you'd write for it. Ready? Crazy Faith. Sophia: Okay... "Might convince you to quit your job and build an ark in your backyard. Results may vary." Daniel: That's perfect! And it perfectly captures the energy of Crazy Faith by Michael Todd. What's fascinating is that Todd is this hugely popular pastor from Tulsa, and his sermon series on this exact topic has millions of views online. He's a phenomenon. Sophia: So this isn't just a book, it's a movement. It’s got this massive digital footprint before the first page is even turned. Daniel: Exactly. And it all starts with this one provocative idea, a central question he poses right at the beginning: "Will you be remembered as a person who claimed to follow God but liked to play it safe? Or as a person who lived your life out on the limb and trusted God enough to live in crazy faith?" Sophia: Wow, no pulling punches there. He's basically throwing down a gauntlet from the first paragraph. Play it safe, or go big. Daniel: He is. And to make his case, he doesn't start with theory. He starts with stories. Epic, world-changing stories.

Daniel: The first and most powerful example he uses to define "crazy faith" is Noah. And we all know the Sunday school version, right? God says build an ark, Noah builds it, animals march on two-by-two, flood comes, humanity is saved. Simple. Sophia: Right, it’s a story we think we know. It’s almost become a cute children's story with cartoon giraffes poking their heads out of a boat. Daniel: But Todd forces you to look at it from a human perspective, in real-time. God tells Noah to build a colossal boat—we're talking about a structure longer than a football field and several stories high. And he's supposed to build it in the middle of dry land. There's no sign of rain, no weather forecast, no body of water anywhere nearby. Sophia: Okay, but can we just talk about the social pressure? For years? The book mentions it took many, many years. Your neighbors, your friends, everyone in your community must think you've completely lost your mind. Daniel: Absolutely. Every single day, for decades, Noah is out there, hammering away at this monument to what everyone else sees as pure delusion. He's the town crazy person. People are walking by, laughing, pointing, asking him if he's planning to sail it on the morning dew. The ridicule must have been relentless. Sophia: That’s the part that gets lost in the cartoon version. It’s not a weekend project. It’s a lifetime of commitment against all available evidence and social proof. That’s a heavy burden. Daniel: It’s an immense burden. And that's the core of what Todd calls 'crazy faith.' It's not just believing something will happen. It's acting on that belief when every rational indicator, every person around you, is telling you that you are wrong. It’s obedience when it looks like foolishness. Sophia: That makes me wonder, what does the book say is the distinction between this kind of faith and just… pure, dangerous delusion? Because one leads to saving humanity, and the other leads to you being broke with a giant, useless boat in your yard. Daniel: That's the million-dollar question, and the book's answer is rooted in the source of the instruction. For Noah, the command came from God. The faith wasn't in the boat itself; it was in the one who commanded him to build it. The process was illogical, but the source was trustworthy. His actions were a response to a relationship, not just a random, ambitious idea he cooked up himself. Sophia: I see. So the "craziness" isn't the goal. The craziness is a byproduct of your level of trust in the source. If you trust the source completely, then an instruction that seems crazy to the outside world just feels like the next logical step to you. Daniel: Precisely. And the resolution of the story is the ultimate validation. After all those years of labor and ridicule, Noah gathers his family, he gathers the animals, he seals the door… and then the rains come. The floodwaters rise, and this giant, ridiculous boat is the only thing that saves them. What looked like one man's insanity becomes humanity's salvation. Sophia: It's only crazy until it happens. Daniel: That's the book's subtitle, word for word. And he doesn't stop there. He brings up Moses at the Red Sea. Another impossible situation. You have an entire nation of people, the Israelites, with their backs to an uncrossable sea, and the most powerful army in the world is bearing down on them. There is no logical way out. Sophia: That's the definition of being trapped between a rock and a hard place. Except it's an army and an ocean. The panic must have been overwhelming. Daniel: The people were terrified. They were yelling at Moses, saying he brought them out into the desert to die. And in that moment of absolute crisis, God gives Moses an instruction that makes no sense: "Stretch out your staff over the sea." Sophia: And what's a stick supposed to do against an ocean? It’s another moment of profound absurdity. Daniel: Exactly. But Moses does it. He performs this small act of obedience, and God parts the waters, creating a highway of dry land through the middle of the sea. The Israelites walk through to safety, and the Egyptian army is swallowed by the waves. It’s another case where faith required an action that defied all human reason, leading to a miraculous escape. Sophia: These are powerful, epic examples. They’re foundational stories for millions. And I can see how framing them this way—as acts of 'crazy faith'—would be incredibly motivating for someone feeling stuck or facing their own 'Red Sea' moment. Daniel: It is. And that's why Michael Todd's message has resonated so deeply. He’s tapping into a desire for a faith that is more than just a set of quiet beliefs. He's calling for a faith that is active, bold, and world-changing.

Sophia: And that leads directly to the modern-day reception of this book, doesn't it? Because while it's a New York Times bestseller and clearly inspires a huge number of people, it has also been pretty controversial. Daniel: It really has. The reception is quite polarized. On one hand, you have thousands of readers who say the book changed their life, gave them the courage to start a business, heal a relationship, or pursue a dream that felt impossible. They love Todd's humor and his relatable, energetic style. Sophia: But on the other hand? Daniel: On the other hand, there's significant criticism from some theologians and reviewers. The main point of contention is Todd's definition of faith itself. Critics argue that defining faith as "trust in something you cannot explicitly prove" or acting without reason is not quite biblically accurate. Sophia: How so? What’s their perspective? Daniel: They would argue that biblical faith isn't a blind leap in the dark. It's trust based on a foundation—God's character, his past actions, his promises. It's confidence, not irrationality. So for them, Noah wasn't being irrational; he was acting rationally based on the ultimate source of truth he was in communication with. The critique is that the book's framing can accidentally encourage a faith that is unmoored from wisdom and discernment. Sophia: Right, because the biblical examples—Noah, Moses, Mary—they weren't building arks to get rich or parting seas to land a promotion. They were following a specific, divine command for a redemptive, world-altering purpose. Is the book clear on that distinction? Daniel: This is where it gets complicated and where the sharpest criticism comes in. Some reviewers feel the book blurs that line and can veer into what's often called the "prosperity gospel"—the idea that faith is a tool to acquire personal health, wealth, and success. They point out that while the book uses these epic, selfless biblical stories, the modern application can sometimes feel more focused on individual achievement. Sophia: That's a serious charge. The idea that faith becomes a transactional tool to get what you want, rather than a relational trust in God for His purposes. Daniel: Exactly. And it's a tension that runs through a lot of modern, popular Christian teaching. People are hungry for a faith that has real-world power and relevance, a faith that works. Michael Todd is incredibly skilled at speaking to that hunger. He grew up with parents in ministry who modeled this kind of radical trust, and his personal story is one of believing for things that seemed impossible. His message is authentic to his experience. Sophia: So his followers feel he's just being honest about his journey, while critics worry the message could be misinterpreted or misapplied by a wider audience? Daniel: I think that's a fair way to put it. The book's power is its accessibility and motivational energy. Its potential pitfall, according to critics, is that this energy might not always be directed with enough theological precision or caution. It raises the question: how do you inspire people to take massive leaps of faith without accidentally encouraging them to jump off a cliff without a parachute?

Daniel: So at the end of the day, you're left with these two powerful, competing truths. On one side, you have this incredibly motivating idea that faith should propel you into the unknown, that it should be more than a comfortable, predictable routine. It taps into something deep in the human spirit that yearns for purpose and adventure. Sophia: But it comes with a huge responsibility. The challenge isn't just to have 'crazy faith,' but to have the wisdom to know what you're having faith for. Is it for a divine, selfless purpose, or is it for a personal wish list dressed up in spiritual language? That seems to be the critical question the book leaves us with, whether intentionally or not. Daniel: I agree. It forces you to examine your own motives. The stories of Noah and Moses are about surrendering to a plan much bigger than themselves. The danger is in trying to co-opt that divine power for a plan that's all about you. Sophia: So the application isn't as simple as "think of a crazy goal and just believe it'll happen." It's much deeper than that. Daniel: It has to be. So maybe the ultimate takeaway from Crazy Faith isn't 'go do something crazy.' Maybe the first step is to ask a quieter, more difficult question: 'What is the thing in my life that feels impossible, but is truly worthy of my deepest trust?' It’s a question of direction, not just velocity. Sophia: It's about finding the right 'crazy.' The purpose-driven crazy, not just the reckless kind. A great question to reflect on. Daniel: A perfect place to end. Sophia: This is Aibrary, signing off.