"Son of man, eat this book that I am giving you. Make a full meal of it!" So I ate it. It tasted so good—just like honey." ezekiel 3:3

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

The God I Never Knew by Robert Morris.

This book, which will be released in August, is a detailed explanation of the third person of the Godhead, The Holy Spirit. In his introduction Morris relays a personal antidote from when he was headed to Bible college and his pastor warned him to "watch out for people who talk about the Holy Spirit". I could relate to that, I remember in my early years as a believer being a bit wary of friends who spoke of the Holy Spirit too much. In high school we even had a name for them, we called them Holy Rollers. As my relationship with the Lord has grown and become more mature, more real I have found that I have a completely different view of the Holy Spirit, so I was anxious to read this book.

The book strives to give you a proper understanding of the Holy Spirit's role in our daily life. Many people see God as a vindictive God that is out to get us, which is not the true picture of who He is. The Holy Spirit was sent to comfort and help us, to guide us and be our friend. To be with us forever.

The book is divided into seven parts, which makes it easy to read. The parts are entitled as follows:
Part One. Who is This Person? Helper. Friend and God.
Part Two. What is this Person Like? His personality. His Soul.
Part Three. The Grand Entry. Wind and Fire. Pentecost
Part Four. The Power Transfer. Immersed. Three Baptisms, Three Witnesses.Empowered to Live.
Part Five. The Giver. Acts of Grace. The Discerning Gifts.The Declarative Gifts. The Dynamic Gifts.
Part Six. The Language of Friendship. Why the Controversy? The Word and The Language. Beneficial Language. The Choice is yours.
Part Seven. The God You need to Know. Your New Best Friend.
I found parts four and five to be most interesting. Morris explains his view on Charismatic Christianity. He talks about the spiritual gifts of speaking in tongues, the gift of discernment, the gift of faith, the gift of healing and the gifts of miracles. He shows how these gifts are available to all Christians, not just those in ministry, or some type of Super Christian (none of those exists!). Not everyone is going to agree on his take, but a book is just a persons interpretation of the Bible, not the Bible itself.
The advanced review copy I received to review did not include a study/discussion guide that will be in the book when it is released in August. I think this book would make a basis for a lively, interesting group study and discussion. I was provided this book from Waterbrook, the publisher for no charge in return for my review.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Eat Your Peas, Faithfully.


Words by Cheryl Karpen. Art by Sandy Fougner is a lovely little gift type book that I was delighted to receive to review by Thomas Nelson's Blog for Books program, booksneeze. I read this book aloud to my husband last night as he drifted off to sleep, what positive words to hear as you turn in for the evening.

I have several young women in my life that I would love to give this book to as a gift. I will consider buying more of these, and definitely recommend this book for anyone looking for a gift for a friend.The art work is bright, fresh and simple. I would even consider framing a few of the pages because I think they are just that special. The entire book is a very uplifting and happy experience. I love that it is all based on the word of God, not a bunch of new age mumbo jumbo. I was thinking by the title this might be geared toward a younger age set, but the "eat your peas" is something the authors Mom always told her, thus the name of the book. I am glad I chose this book to review and happily recommend it as a book you should read, making it a great gift. I received it free from the publisher, but this in no way affected my review.