Review: Grace Is Greater: God's Plan to Overcome Your Past, Redeem Your Pain, and Rewrite Your Story

Grace Is Greater: God's Plan to Overcome Your Past, Redeem Your Pain, and Rewrite Your Story by Kyle Idleman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was one of the books I dived into for our campus ministry's fall retreat that was this past weekend. Of all the books I read/am finishing up, this one is my favorite. I've always enjoyed how Kyle writes (with clarity and simplicity), yet each of his books have contained just enough challenge mixed with encouragement to really get you moving and thinking more seriously about certain parts of our faith. I highly recommend this book. It's ESPECIALLY worth the read if you haven't studied grace much before, or if you'd like a refreshing reminder of the extraordinary gift and responsibility that IS GRACE.

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Review: Letters to the Church

Letters to the Church by Francis Chan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I got this book from audible because I had a couple of credits to spare and it sounded interesting. I've read (or listened) to all of Chan's books EXCEPT for 'Multiply' and this by far could be considered his most critical book (I don't say that in a negative sense...more of a "hey, this is some heavy/pointed stuff, and there's probably going to be some things said that are going to be REALLY hard to hear). While that may be the case, he approaches the message from a position of humility and love.

Overall this book is a call for us in the American church to take a step back and evaluate if what we're doing is actually what's best for the KINGDOM, or if it in reality is just what's best for us. Some pretty hard things were said in this book, and I don't envy Chan for being the one to say them. Yet I do highly appreciate and respect his obedience to the calling he felt he received to share this message with us. Being in campus ministry and not in a 'congregational setting', I found a few of his suggestions and challenges compelling but not directly applicable to my situation. However, I DO feel like (based upon his tone and heart poured out in this book) that if he were to read this, he would want me to pray about taking that and trail blaze by figuring out what Jesus wants and what that looks like in our context.

If you're in leadership of any sort of ministry, I'd recommend giving this book a read. I could EASILY see great merit coming from engaging this book in a community (group of pastors, elders, ministry leaders, laymen, etc.) as well! Our culture seems to thrive on shrinking from proper confrontation and instead hide (especially behind the anonymity of social media and the internet when dealing with conflict between people). The confrontation you'll find through this book is NOT with a person (per se), but rather with complete surrender, discernment, and obedience to one who is to be both Savior AND Lord. I would encourage/challenge you to resist that temptation (as easy as it is) to shrink back from the confrontation here (i.e. making excuses, becoming defensive, etc.), and allow yourself to seriously engage what Chan's discovered on his journey with both church and Jesus over the past decade.

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Review: Spiritual Parenting: An Awakening for Today's Families

Spiritual Parenting: An Awakening for Today's Families by Michelle Anthony
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book certainly has it's pros and cons. I found multiple suggestions and arguments beneficial and even began incorporating some of them into my parenting. Overall I feel like much of what was said could have been said more briefly and in a few number of pages. If you're looking for books to read on parenting, this one may or may not be a groundbreaking for you, but I'd at least say give it a shot and see if even one of Michelle's stories inspires or encourages you!


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Review: Shame and Grace: Healing the Shame We Don't Deserve

Shame and Grace: Healing the Shame We Don't Deserve by Lewis B. Smedes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a book that was a textbook for my Christian Counseling class back in undergrad that I had started to read back then and simply skimmed (as most college students do) in order to complete the assignments dealing with the book. I find myself currently preparing for a retreat for college students in the campus ministry where I serve, where the topic is 'grace.' I'm thankful I still had this book on my shelf. While there were times (maybe writing style or maybe (more likely) fatigue) where I found myself a little confused as to what Smedes was trying to get at, overall this book provides fresh air to a community where members should be swimming in grace but instead are finding themselves drowning in shame. By identifying differences between healthy & unhealthy shame, deserving something versus being worthy of something, and sharing lots of stories to illustrate and guide, Smedes (I think) has produced a GREAT resource for Christians to read and work through. I would encourage anyone to read this book, though maybe going a little slower than I did, and taking some time to seriously wrestle with what he says and the practical suggestions he offers in trying to help us live more as a people who have experienced the best thing in the world, grace.

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Review: Imminent Domain: The Story of the Kingdom of God and Its Celebration

Imminent Domain: The Story of the Kingdom of God and Its Celebration by Ben Witherington III
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was an excellent little 'primer' on the Kingdom of God that would benefit people to read. I've often appreciated Witherington's writing style and contribution to theology and Biblical studies, and this book didn't disappoint. Splitting the book into two (2) parts and using the 'Lord's Prayer' as a structure for one of those parts, Witherington tackles the topic of what does "Kingdom of God" actually refer to and mean, and what are the implications thereof that we as followers of Jesus need to be aware of. I read this book as a supplement source to use in an upcoming series I'm doing with our campus ministry where we're going to look at the whole story of the Bible, and use the 'lens' of the Kingdom of God as we see how the whole Bible fits together from beginning to end. I'm excited to use this little book and see how it'll help college students develop a fresh and (hopefully) deeper understanding/appreciation for the "Kingdom of God."

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Review: Anxious for Nothing: Finding Calm in a Chaotic World

Anxious for Nothing: Finding Calm in a Chaotic World by Max Lucado
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My wife and I listened to this book on audio book while we traveled back home. Overall, this is a fairly decent book. One of the things I really appreciated about it is how it feels almost as a devotional/spiritual formation/practical commentary on the Letter to the Philippians. Lucado did a good job of continually bringing in multiple parts of Paul's letter to help the reader/listener understand various parts of the letter in light of other parts. One caution I had, that I've noticed is a common practice today, is the usage of so much Scripture in references. Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for using a lot of Scripture (I've had students tell me time and again that I use A LOT of scripture when I teach/preach/etc.). What I mean is the passing references to a verse here or a verse there, without the surrounding context of some of that verse. I'm not saying Lucado took any verses 'out-of-context', but what I am saying is that this practice can lead people to believe that they can do the same, having no regard to the author/preacher/whoever's work at studying and summing up the rest of the context while just referencing one verse. I personally believe this one practice has led to much of the division we see today among Christians, but I digress. This book is a great short read/listen. It serves as a challenge and an encouragement to deal with the anxiety present in your life. Using the acronym C.A.L.M. (Celebrate God, Ask Him for help, Leave the problem with Him, & Meditate on good things), Lucado also helps walk the reader/listener through a process by which he/she can practically follow and begin to identify and address the areas and sources of anxiety that are currently present in his/her life. I recommend this book, especially because of its simplicity and brevity to read/listen to and digest.

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Review: Simply Jesus: A New Vision of Who He Was, What He Did, and Why He Matters

Simply Jesus: A New Vision of Who He Was, What He Did, and Why He Matters by N.T. Wright
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is a must read (as is most of what I've read thus far by Wright). My mentor said that "Mere Christianity" had been a book that he believed every Christian should read (especially college students), but this book takes the same mission that "Mere Christianity" did and fulfills it from a different angle, with a more modern feel. Having read "The Day the Revolution Began" prior to this one, I can see some of the ideas present in this book that Wright later developed more in that one, but still it was a great read to be challenged, encouraged, and refreshed in my understanding and journey of knowing who Jesus is and why that really matters.

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