Clear Winter Nights by Trevin Wax

A short read with a powerful message.  Most of us have struggled with our faith at one time or another.  The author provide a realistic story of a young man who is about to make several critical choices in his life.  The main issue is his he doing the right thing, the more he doubts himself his faith becomes questionable.  He is asked to spend some time with his grandfather who is recovering from a stroke.  The young man takes this time to confide with the one person he can truly trust, his grandfather who also happens to be a retired pastor.  Before you read the book, keep in mind there is no true ending.  The reason it does this is the book is really a tool for a church study group.  The story’s conclusion is left where the reader must fill in how they think the story should end.  The ending allows the readers to explore all the possibilities.  At the end of the book is a study guide that includes questions for each chapter.  The book is a quick read but it is a very useful tool when discussing topics around Christianity.  The next church study class I conduct I will be using this book.     

 

I received a free copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing in exchange for my honest review of the book.

Humble Orthodoxy by Joshua Harris

The author provides interesting facts that we are right in the doctrine regarding the Bible but have a tendency to destroy the cause of truth with our pride.  The overall message of the book is good and informative but extremely short and vague in areas.  I am a meat and potatoes person so when I read a book I hope to get my fill of details and information.  I found this book was only an appetizer.  It is short and to the point but leaves many questions and the need to searching for more information.  Keep the format and message but place more content and examples.  There is also a study guide in the back of book.  That is helpful but accounts for about twenty percent of the book.  Interesting read to get you going on this topic but plan on having other books available on the subject.

I received a free copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing in exchange for my honest review of the book.      

When God Makes Lemonade by Don Jacobson

If you like the layout of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books but wanted something more inspirational and encouraging, you found it.  This book is composed of many short stories by different authors, each that have some form of positive and up lifting message to share.  The design of the book is done in such a way were you can read a few stories lay the book down and pick it up again without having to worry about if you remember the plot or the characters.  Most of the short stories are told from the point of view from the person it happened to.  You get to relive that story through understand their struggles, see the challenges they encounter and how they overcame the innumerable obstacles.  In this book you will find many stories that you can relate too and yet others you cannot fathom how they could do it.  This book is perfect for the person who does not want to invest a lot of time reading but is looking for something quick and full of encouragement. 

I received a free copy of this book from BookSneeze in exchange for my honest review of the book.

 

One Perfect Life by John MacArthur

One Perfect Life is a complete story of the Lord Jesus Christ.  I have read many books that have claimed the same thing but this one was different.  The author pulls together key stories and teaching throughout Jesus’ life.  The information is gather into a single topic that provides a full understand of what is being told.  Not all of the topics are easy to understand that is where the author provides footnotes for each section of the Bible on that topic.  At first, this was a little over whelming but you find as you keep going the amount of good information drives you to want to read more.  If you are looking for one book to understand Jesus then you need to read this composite of the New Testament.  Passages from the Old Testament are also incorporated into the stories from Genesis to Revelations. 

If you have been looking for a better way to understand the Gospels, a verse-by-verse explanation, key passages connected to Jesus and trusted Bible translations go no further you have found it.

I received a free copy of this book from BookSneeze in exchange for my honest review of the book.

Fortress of Mist By Sigmond Brouwer

I’m always concerned when I read a book that is part of a series without having read the previous books. With the Fortress of Mist, the story does provide enough background that reading the first book is not necessary. The book provides a good stand-alone story regarding a King that grew up as an orphan. Like most kingdoms or nation, there is always turmoil. In this book, we find there is a secret society that is trying to force the king to side with them. The king has a secret weapon that only a few know that he has. He owns a library of books that cover many subjects including war. These books have helped in two cases to win two wars and yet not lose a single life. While this is a standalone story, I think you will also find yourself looking for the first book and the books to follow. The plot is quick, easy to read and brings a different viewpoint to the fantasies stories we have all read.

I received a free copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing in exchange for my honest review of the book.

 

The Story of the Voice by David B Capes with Chris Seay and James F. Couch Jr.

The Story of ‘The Voice’ is the background how a group of people strived for a new translation of the Bible, the results was ‘The Voice’.  Historically, the bible has been translated into many different versions for many different purposes.  The goal for ‘The Voice’ was the ability to reach out to the younger generation.  The group’s goal is to re-engage younger people in the teaching, meaning and understanding the Bible. 

The book goes through some of the key people who contributed to the book.  Background is also given how the title was decided, philosophy behind the new translation, contextual equivalence in practice and other background information showing the complexity behind doing a new version of the Bible.

Not being familiar with ‘The Voice’ I visited the website.  The website offers a free download of the New Testament.  You can review just how different this translation is from the NIV and NLT versions.  I can see were ‘The Voice’ would be very attractive to a younger generation of readers.  If the current Bible in your church has not captured the younger generation in your church I would suggest trying ‘The Voice’, it delivers the same Biblical messages but simply in a different manner. 

I received a free copy of this book from BookSneeze in exchange for my honest review of the book.

Unglued Devotional by Lysa Terkeurest

This daily devotional to the book Unglued, by the same author, provides structure to help readers handle every day struggles. This includes a daily opening Scripture, Thought for the Day, devotion, and closing prayer.  The book provides the readers with a 60-day journey in learning to handle emotions like disappointment, being afraid and feeling guilty.  Unglued Devotional is easy to read and short enough to keep most readers attention.  The author shares many personal stories about her, her friends and others she knows.  Through their struggles in every day life, for example lost luggage and rude clerks, and declined credit cards, when life does not go as planned, jealousy and more.  Each day provides a Scripture verse, the thought of the day, a devotion and /or story you can relate to and a closing prayer.  The devotionals are short, around two pages. Each day captures short quick thoughts about the Lord, especially for when you become unglued.

I received a free copy of this book from BookSneeze in exchange for my honest review of the book.