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The autobiography of the former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has got to be one of the most surprising books I have read in quite some time. I picked it up expecting him to talk about politics, when it’s primarily about God, with a personal call for the reader to consider their own position before Him.

There is a lot to take away from this book. And so I’m going to break up my review under a number of headings, with extended quotes to give the reader a better sense of what the author is saying.

Genuine Christian Faith

The first thing to say is that Plans for Your Good leaves you in no doubt as to Scott Morrison’s own personal faith in Jesus. As Mike Pence, the former Vice President of the United States, writes in the foreword, “May his words of hope point you ever beyond a prime minister and politicians to the goodness and faithfulness of God and the object of our hope, the Lord Jesus Christ.”

For a different viewpoint, watch Akos Balogh’s review, “Plans for Your Good: A Prime Minister’s Testimony of God’s Faithfulness”, with Dominic Steele:

Every chapter points the reader to the triune God of the Bible. Morrison himself identifies as being an ‘evangelical Christian’. And this means that he is focused on a personal relationship with Christ, the centrality of His atoning death and resurrection, the primacy of the Scriptures, and the proclamation of the Gospel in the world before the Lord Jesus returns. Many Christians might take strongly disagree with Morrison’s politics, but there is no doubt as to the genuineness regarding his faith.

At one point in the book Morrison talks about a conversation he had with his pastor after he had suffered a particularly painful political setback. He said, “Mate, you need to understand that you aren’t what you do. You need to start seeing yourself as God does. He doesn’t care what your job is, He just loves you.” This is a truth that Morrison comes back to time and time again. Clearly, his identity is in Christ and not his professional performance. This is something we all need to remember, hold onto and affirm.

Another great example of Morrison’s faith in Christ is what he himself says in the preface. I’ll give an extended quotation to give the reader a better illustration as to what Morrison means in his own words:

The thoughts I present here are the product of prayer, meditating on God’s Word, the counsel of Christian friends, the teaching of pastors over the years, and just seeking to live out my faith. I pray God will bless and transform you as you wrestle with these same questions in your own life.

In 1873, Fanny Crosby wrote the hymn, “Blessed Assurance.” It has been a favourite of mine for many years. Every time I recall it, I can hear my mother-in-law, Beth, harmonising above the chorus. It is the third verse I love most:

Perfect submission, all is at rest
I in my Saviour am happy and blessed
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

The refrain goes on to say, “This is my story, this is my son, praising my Saviour all the day long.” That is what this book is really all about.

In Australia, and especially in the Shire, when we want to say how excited or happy we are about something or someone, we turn it into a rhetorical question. We might say, “How good are the Sharks?” after my local National Rugby League team has had a great win, or “How good is Jen?” or just “How good?” When we won the miracle election in 2019, I became famous for saying on that night, “How good is Australia?” Well, “How good is God?” sums up how I feel about His impact on my life. It is a question God answers positively for me every day.

Like you, I’m far from perfect. I can’t pretend to have lived a life unstained by sin, selfishness, pride, and more. After all, I’m a politician! But I can testify to a life eternally marked by God’s goodness, by His saving grace through Jesus Christ, and by the sustaining presence of His Holy Spirit. My prayer is that he will give you eyes to see that His plans are for your good too.

Spiritually Mature

Another aspect that really stands out in Plans for Your Good is Morrison’s spiritually mature outlook on things. I initially had a suspicion that there might have been a triumphalist tone to the book, but this is not the case at all. This is immediately on display from the opening chapter, where he talks about his election defeat.

Morrison movingly talks about the disappointment to both himself, his fellow politicians, as well as his family. But he accepts the decision as part of God’s sovereign purpose for his life and moves on.

The next morning, the Morrison family was in their local church when their pastor invited him to come up to the front and speak. This was not planned or scripted but was a “spur-of-the-moment” thing. What Scott Morrison went on to say next is, in my opinion, one of the most memorable things of his entire leadership:

I thanked my church for their prayers and support and said it had been a very difficult walk for me and our family while I was PM. Invoking the famous passage in Esther 4:14, I believed I had served “for such a time as this,” and it was now “such as time as that.” I believed this time had now passed.

I said, “God calls us, if you are a prime minister, pastor, running a business, teaching in schools, working in the police force. It doesn’t matter. We are called to trust and obey. That is the life of faithfulness. We live our faith each and every day.”

I then turned to share a passage in Habakkuk 3:17-18. I had to stop to regain my composer, as the words would not come out of my mouth. There were tears, but not of sadness. They were the tears of being overwhelmed by the assurance of God and the hope and trust we can have in Him as Christians. I struggled through the passage:

Even if the fig tree does not blossom,
And there is no fruit on the vines,
If the yield of the olive fails,
And the fields produce no food,
Even if the flock disappears from the fold,
And there are no cattle in the stalls,
Yet I will triumph in the Lord,
I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.

Deep down, I know that although this season may have ended, a new one would certainly begin.

That is a wonderful, spiritually mature way of looking at things. There’s an incredibly moving section towards the end of the book covering their heartbreaking journey in having children. This is covered in chapter 9, ‘Why are You Waiting?” and is one of the most encouraging sections of Plans for Your Good. And to hear all this from someone such as a former Prime Minister of Australia makes it all the more incredible, challenging and inspiring.

Grounded in Scripture

One of the most significant aspects of Plans for Your Good is its focus on Scripture. The book is saturated with relevant reflections — and contemporary application — of Biblical teaching. While it is completely orthodox, I wonder how many readers will respond to a politician also fulfilling the role of a pastor… will they recoil at it being too preachy? Or might they be impacted by the exhortations of someone who is simply sharing with them precious truths of God’s Word?

Morrison tells the personal story of listening to a sermon by Pastor Rick Warren, author of the bestselling book The Purpose-Driven Life. Morrison states:

In particular, he encouraged us to really commit to a daily discipline of reading God’s Word. I was inspired by Pastor Rick’s sermon and took up the challenge.

As prime minister, the minute you open your eyes each morning you are bombarded with information. Your smartphone is bursting with the overnight intelligence reports, the morning media summaries, text messages from your colleagues and senior staff, further details and changes to your daily program, and any number of other issues demanding your immediate attention You wake up with your phone screaming at you. Some mornings, you dread waking up because you know what will be there to greet you.

Even if you’re not the prime minister, it is very easy to fall into the habit of allowing what is beaming into your smartphone every morning to set the tone and mood for your day and let that get in your spirit. I saw Pastor Rick’s challenge as an opportunity to try to break this cycle and do something different. While prayer and Bible reading had always been part of my routine, I intended to do it in the evening when things were quieter.

In taking up Pastor Rick’s challenge, I decided that every morning, before I would read the myriad reports, emails, and texts on my smartphone, I would now click on my Bible app and progressively read my way sequentially through the entire Bible, cover to cover. It took me around eighteen months.

Those eighteen months were the most difficult I have ever experienced, including the ultimate loss and aftermath of the 2022 general election. But working my way through the Bible each day enabled God to get in the first word every morning, before the torrent stated. I kept notes along the way. In many ways those notes were the inspiration for the book you are now reading.

This is a fascinating insight not only into the mind of Scott Morrison, but also the formation of Plans for Your Good. It shows that it is intensely personal and experiential as to what the Prime Minister of Australia was going through, especially during the global health crisis which of COVID-19. But more on that later below!

Personal Integrity

One of the things that strikes you in the book is Morrison’s obvious love for his wife, Jen, as well as for their two daughters. This is an aspect which should not be overlooked. Neither Julia Gillard nor Anthony Albanese were/are married to their partners. Morrison, though, has been faithful to his childhood sweetheart, and there has never been any question of marital infidelity. In our modern ‘sexular’ age, this is not only commendable, but highly remarkable.

There are too many examples to mention, but Morrison is effusive with his praise and appreciation for his wife. Sadly, conservative politicians are often caricatured as having a “woman problem”, and this was especially the case involving Brittany Higgins — a topic which is not addressed or even mentioned in the book — but Morrison himself has been a paragon of personal virtue in this regard. As such, it’s something that should be acknowledged and applauded.

I was also struck by Morrison’s humility and willingness to acknowledge that he has sometimes acted out of pride, anger and self-righteousness. In particular, that he himself is a man in need of forgiveness.

God’s Providence

Throughout the book, Morrison affirms the Biblical truth of God’s sovereign providence. This is refreshing, especially for someone who is well-known for being an evangelical of the Pentecostal persuasion. Morrison states:

We can be control freaks. We think to ourselves, Sure, I believe, but I want God to realise my plans. Such plans may not be selfish. They may even be plans for Christian ministry or service. Ironically, we sometimes think we have a better plan to serve God than He does for us…

Real faith is about a life of obedience. It’s about taking action in the circumstance we find ourselves in and trusting God with what comes next. Real faith is knowing that whether things turn out badly or well, our joy and security in life will be found in our obedience to His purposes and plans for our good, not our own or what the world considers success or failure.

This is really powerful, especially when it comes from a former Prime Minister. True faith is not always receiving what you want, but doing what God wants and seeing His name glorified (Dan. 3:16-18).

Watch Scott Morrison’s valedictory speech on YouTube:

Response to Personal Attacks

One of the most distasteful incidents during Scott Morrison’s leadership was Australian of the Year Grace Tame’s refusal to smile when being photographed with the Prime Minister. While many feminists applauded her ‘brave’ protest, I personally thought it was disgraceful. Morrison never put Grace Tame down at the time or in the book, which I think says a lot about his ability to be gracious and respectful, even when it is not being extended to himself.

Morrison does talk at the beginning of the book, though, just how hurtful the personal attacks on him have been, even after resigning from office. I really appreciated how Morrison talks about this aspect. Clearly, they were really hurtful and unrelenting. But it was the Biblical understanding of how Christ commanded him to respond that ultimately brought him peace. In a Pentecostal expression of guidance, Morrison says that he sensed Jesus saying to him one time after he had prayed:

So Scott, your enemies are getting the better of you, are they? You think you have been unfairly treated, have you? You’re being humiliated and mocked? People are lying about you and misrepresenting you? You may have heard about some of My experiences.

My friends deserted Me when I needed them most. My people lied about Me and believed the lies told about Me. Even in My own hometown, they rejected Me. I was betrayed by one of My closest friends. The rest of them just ran off, and one of them even said he never knew Me.

My people welcomed Me with praises into Jerusalem, lining up all week for Me to heal them and teach them. Yet by the end of the week, they wanted Me crucified. When given the choose between saving a murderer and Me, they chose the murderer! The authorities who sat in judgment over Me chose to placate the noisy mob rather than do what was right and just. When they nailed Me to a cross where I suffered and died, even My own Father in heaven had to look away.

Scott, I get it. I’ve been there and worse, and you know what? I did it all for you, because I really love you. I’ve walked this path, Scott. I can show you how to move forward from here. Just follow Me. Just believe in me and trust Me.

COVID-19

This topic really deserves special attention. There are many Christians who would be critical of the Morrison government’s response to COVID-19. But there’s nothing which could have prepared anyone for such a global crisis. I can vividly remember the day when Morrison decided to take the pre-emptive step of closing our borders internationally, bringing the entire airline industry to a halt. It was a brave and wise move.

What happened next was a complicated interrelationship between the federal and state governments. While some readers will be upset with what the government did or didn’t do, it’s probably best at this point to let Morrison make an assessment in his own words:

We didn’t always agree on everything. In the latter stages of the pandemic in 2021, our state jurisdictions took the lockdowns too far, particularly in Victoria. My government also did not support some of the impractical internal border controls on Australia’s east coast, although we were wrong to have opposed border closures on the west coast, especially in the courts, during the early stages of the pandemic.

But at no stage did my government support vaccine mandates, except in the case of those working with the most vulnerable people in our aged care and health systems. Wider vaccine mandates were imposed unilaterally by some state Labor governments, without the support of my government or the official national medical advice. The federal government had no constitutional powers to override these mandates. We were similarly opposed to the closure of schools by the states, and our opposition to these actions was also supported by the national medical advice.

But we can’t claim to have gotten everything right. No one in the world did. We had our setbacks and our critics. In a crisis you never get everything right. What matters is how you respond when things don’t work out how you planned. However, even with our setbacks, whether it was early  in the rollout of our vaccine program or later when we had trouble obtaining rapid antigen rests, when you look at the results objectively, Australia’s pandemic response led the world. Our health plan worked. Compared to the death rates from COVID in our developed countries with comparable health systems, we saved thirty thousand lives. To illustrate, the New York Times calculated that nine hundred thousand lives would have been saved in the United States if it had the same death rate as Australia.

When I left office, Australia had the third-lowest death rate from COVID-19 in the developed world. In that first year of the pandemic, before anyone had a vaccine, we restricted the impact of COVID to around 8 percent of our aged care facilities. In the United Kingdom, it was seven times greater at 56 percent. When Bill Gates was asked at the Munich Security Conference in 2022 whether it was possible to prevent the next pandemic, he answered, “If every country does what Australia did, then you wouldn’t be calling it a pandemic.” He called Australia’s response to the pandemic the “gold standard”. John Hopkins University ranked Australia second in the world in pandemic preparedness.

Morrison also goes on to defend their strategy economically as well as regarding the overall mental health of the community:

Our economic plan worked. Millions of jobs and hundreds of thousands of businesses were saved. Compared to when the pandemic first struck, Australia’s economy grew 4.5 percent by the time we left office in the June quarter of 2022. That’s more than South Korea (3.9 percent); the United States (2.7 percent); and the United Kingdom, Canada, and France (all less than 1 percent). The Japanese and German economies were still going backward at that time.

Australia’s unemployment remarkably fell to the lowest rate in almost half a century. We actually had more jobs after the pandemic than we did before it. Also, despite spending unprecedented amounts on our rescue package, Australia was one of just nine countries to retain our AAA credit rating from all three international rating agencies.

Protecting our economy undoubtedly provided critical relief and peace of mind for millions of Australians, but we knew it would not be enough to prevent the wave of anxiety that would still come crashing over our population. During the pandemic, we saw a massive surge in the need for mental health and counselling services. And we responded. We put in place arguably the largest and most comprehensive mental health response of any country in the world. We poured in the resources and took the advice from our world-leading mental health experts.

Political Successes

I realise that for many people, the response of the Morrison government to COVID is viewed as an unmitigated failure. It’s worth keeping in mind, though, that Australia is not a republic, and hence, our Prime Minister is not a President. They have to work as a team, bringing together a vast array of opinions.

In this sense, one of Morrison’s most significant achievements was to put a stop to the revolving door of political leadership. Lest we forget the instability of the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd-Abbott-Turnbull years. Morrison steadied the ship, and one of the ways he did that was by taking a largely pragmatic approach.

That said, there were a few issues in which he showed significant political conviction as well as personal courage. The first that comes to mind was his skill in negotiating the AUKUS agreement and getting out of the French submarine deal, which he spends quite a bit of time explaining in the book. The second was his call to initiate a formal inquiry into the origins of COVID. This had enormous political and economic impacts on our relationship with China, but I believe was the right thing to do.

The Challenge to Forgive

I’ve left what I think is the most challenging section of Plans for Your Good to the very end. In the providence of God, on Saturday, 1 February 2020, the Morrison government decided to shut Australia’s international borders in response to the threat of COVID-19. Tragically, on the very same day, Danny and Leila Abdullah lost three of their six children — and their cousin — to a young driver under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

Not many people are aware of this, but the Morrisons became intimately involved with the family in the aftermath of the event. It also led to the formation of an organisation called I4GIVE. Danny personally challenged Scott Morrison about who he himself needed to forgive. It’s one of the most confronting and important questions any of us can be asked. A little later on, Morrison writes:

Now that I am no longer prime minister, I have had the time to reflect over the many years I spent in the pressure cooker of politics. There are disappointments I have to let go of, where I must pay the price and forgive. There is also repentance I must come to terms with — things I have said, things I could have said better, people I have taken for granted or disappointed, and some policy decisions I regret.

Now, I’m not going to turn this into a weeping public confessional; that’s not my style. I’m not getting on anyone’s couch. Nor is this the point I am making. Those things are between me and God and probably a few others as well, where necessary. My point is not that we should wallow in guilt or public flagellation. My point is about restoration and being able to move forward to the next season.

Conclusion: Definitely Worth a Read!

This long and extended review hopefully gives those who haven’t read it enough of a taste to give it a go. This was definitely not the book I was expecting to read. If you’re a Christian, then I don’t think he can but be encouraged, regardless of your political persuasion. There are obviously loose ends that would be good to follow up on and which will leave some readers as being unsatisfied. But ultimately, this is a book that seeks to glorify God through the expression of one man’s faith. A man who, for a time, enjoyed the highest office in the land.