Book Review: What Are You Known For? (Building Your Legacy One Brick At A Time) by Rick Cua
By Colin “Cruz” Strombeck
Fans of 1980’s Christian rock remember Rick Cua as the man who sang “Wear Your Colors”, which in my opinion, is one of the top 10 Christian rock songs of that decade.
He certainly wasn’t a one hit wonder. His band put out 11 albums in the 80’s and 90’s, and one in 2007.
Recently, Rick, who now serves as a pastor, wrote a book called What Are You Known For? (Building Your Legacy One Brick At A Time).
In it, Cua shares stories about his heritage of faith, his great relationship with his wife and family, and lessons learned as a member of bands over the years.
In the book’s Introduction, Cua grabs the reader with this thought: “The sum of what we have done on this earth follows us to heaven.” In Chapter 1, Cua reminds us that if we admire Christ, we should act like he does.
By this point in the process, the light bulb went on above my head: this is going to function like a devotional book for me. I am going to read one chapter a day and digest each lesson well, that way. If you pick up this book, you too, will likely find the same to be true. And it is a challenging devotional, at that.
In chapter 2, Cua points out that every time the Lord has a good work for us to do, the devil offers a distraction. He says we should pray for discernment to see the distraction for what it is, and to boldly declare to the enemy that we will not be dissuaded from doing God’s will.
Early in the book is an amusing story of a man eating an actual glass…that was shocking. I don’t think anything else in the book will shock you, but I would venture to say there are some things that will surprise you and amaze you.
There is a chapter in the book that every Christian musician who is “trying to make it” should read. Cua has been there and done that and his wisdom in this area is invaluable.
In another chapter, he talked about how, as a Christian musician, he struggled with the thought of self promotion and recounts how he worked his way through that.
Late in the book, Cua asks the reader this question: what are the learned behaviors in your life that need to be dismantled?
By the end of reading this work, you will feel like you know Rick Cua. His humble attitude emanates from the pages.
This book will make you laugh, it might make you cry, and it will make you think, and if you let it, it will bring you closer to God.
You may find, like I did, that it functions as a great devotional. Whether you look at it that way or not, I believe you will find that it is definitely a book worth reading.
