How to Survive a Shipwreck  

by: Jonathan Martin

I must say, that this has been a delightful book to review. The title conveys accurately what the book is about - and I was pleasantly surprised to find out the perspective from which it is written.  Most books of this type, I have seen written from the perspective of people that have already crashed in their lives as they were, to find God and then come out of the situation.  This man writes this from the perspective of a person who was an active person of faith, only to come very close to losing that faith but then come back stronger and in different ways that he imagined.  I'm not saying that I necessarily agree with everything that he states, but, if you are feeling that your life is shipwrecked, or is about to be - then you may wish to consider reading this book.

I gained the following perspectives from this book that you may find encouraging as well:

1. I gained the aspect that life and faith are something you should take a view daily. We get into ruts where we assume things are going to be or come out certain ways and when they don't - we're disappointed.  The writer spends a lot of time talking about focusing on our "daily bread" and how if you are shipwrecked it gives you that perspective - that life is best handled one day at a time.
2. I gained a unique view of the observance of what we call Communion (the Lord's Supper) what the writer calls the Eucharist. I have been on the side of not doing it - and I have been on the side of observing it now for 40 years. I agree with the writer, when you CAN'T eat, or eat well, the times when you can become precious. Just because it has become ritualized, don't lose the perspective that you are sitting at God's Table, at God's invitation, to eat a meal with His Son. 
3. I gained the perspective that while the gifts of God (even those as simple as living, seeing, hearing, etc) are a blessing, they also come with awesome responsibility and at times even a curse. We all "see" but when you gain a perception that you have never had before, and you see in new ways - that sight comes with a responsibility and often brings with it pain.  I gained a new perspective on why the prophets wrote that they "ate" the word of the Lord and it was a delight to them, but when it hit their stomachs, it became sour and tumultuous. You can't NOT understand something, when you have gained that understanding and KNOW its consequences - and at times are powerless to stop it.

I give this book thumbs up and encourage you to read it. Even if you have not had a shipwreck, it will help you. If you are headed for or are in a shipwrecked life - this book may help you to see that you are not alone and that there is hope!

Jim

Misconceptions by Steven Reider

Misconceptions by Steven Reider

When I received this book, I guess I had misconceptions.  I thought this was going to be a quick read and I'd be off to the next one. The first chapters were nice, though I found some differences in thought with the author. But this didn't discourage me. I continued reading and pleasantly so. The middle chapters I found slightly confusing and again with some differences in thought from the author. However, the latter chapters I found intriguing and enlightening. The thoughts well formed and documented stimulated my own study, and I came away delightfully surprised.
Will I recommend this book?  Yes. But, I recommend reading it openly, with a degree of reservation. The book has good points, is worth study and note. However some of the logic in the chapters eludes me. Perhaps my own misconceptions? It's still a good book.

Jim

BOOK REVIEW: Answering Jihad:A Better Way Forward by Nabeel Qureshi

With all of the things going on in the world today, this book seemed to be a timely one to review. Though I fancy myself an amateur historian, I have not investigated Islam, or the Muslim community outside of a vague knowledge of its beginnings and the Crusades. I had seen other books on this subject before, but always from a semi-dogmatic Christian view and was turned off by them because of it.  This book I am delighted to say, does not do that. It presents the reader with a very honest - inside look at Islam, the teaching of Islam, what Jihad is and Radical Jihad and then understanding this in light of Judeo-Christian concepts.  I found the author trying to explain this simply, yet, at the same time trying to do justice to the subject. With the twists and turns within it, it would be about like trying to explain Christianity (and all of its modern diverse iterations) to someone who is not a Christian.  There are some serious questions considered in this book - mainly, did Mohammed the "Prophet" advocate the violence that we see in Islam today? He also makes a good point, that Christians in their history, are not without their violent tendencies as seen in the Crusade, and even espoused by modern hate groups under the banner of the Bible. And then the question that ultimately is a crux for both sides - do Muslims and Christians worship the same God?  How do we reconcile this, with our idea of who and what God is taught to be and supposed to be?

I came away from this book enlightened, as the author has given me information that I did not previously have, and in a way that is worthy of reading, study, and consideration. It is not a condemning book, it is very straight forward, factual, well noted and written.  This said, while not the author's fault, or the book's fault, I found myself still bewildered by the movement itself. But that is for me to sort out.  

I recommend this book highly, if you are going to be encountering people of Islamic belief. It will help you to understand not only them, but to a great extent why some of them are even bewildered as a lot of people I know about the Bible. It also will help you to understand to some extent why things are happening like they are. It does not excuse it, but it will give you information that will help you put it into perspective.  If you are a Preacher, or a  Bible teacher or instructor, you need this book in your library.

~ Jim

BOOK REVIEW: Man, Myth, Messiah by Rice Broocks 5 STARS!

BOOK REVIEW

Man, Myth, Messiah

Answering History's Greatest Question 

By Rice Broocks 

This is my first foray for a while, into what I consider to be Evidences books. I found it to be a good read - and a delightful thing that I found throughout most of the book is that the author doesn't assume that you are already a believer.  I found the book practical in its approach, and although the slant of the book takes you to the conclusion that Jesus is the Messiah, I found the approach stimulating. While I would like to have seen more comparison by Mr.Broocks with other beliefs and concepts, this book offers enough to give an honest comparison. It is a modern book, referencing modern materials, references and thoughts. I think I would have appreciated this book more, had I read his previous book, "God's Not Dead."  His approach is scholarly as well as scriptural and he makes a good point that there are more people who believe in Elvis sightings and UFO's to be real, than there are people who will give credit to even the concept that there was a man from Nazareth who rose from the dead. Yet, there is more evidence for the fact that Jesus is real and that what happened to Him is real. 

If you are not a believer, this book is NOT going to try to convert you. It will ask you to face facts to what is true. 

If you are a believer - hang on - because the book will take you beyond "the Bible said" into a challenging aspect of whether you believe just because, or whether you believe because there is no other reasonable alternative.

I give the book 5 stars. That's a high rating from me personally. But I rate it this because it took me to a realm that I had not considered, and for me reaffirmed a conclusion I came to sometime ago.  I hope that it will for you too.

The VEXED Soul

 And when she came to the mountain to the man of God, she caught hold of his feet. And Gehazi came to push her away. But the man of God said, "Leave her alone, for she is in bitter distress, and the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me."

 2 Kings 4:27 

Take some time to read this story, it is a telling one. It may seem a little confusing, and it involves Elisha, Gehazi, and a Shunammite woman. I don't know all the ins and outs of the customs of the day, but there are some practical things that are stated in this chapter that we can all learn from

1. Vs.27 (quoted above) Elisha tells Gehazi to leave the woman alone because as the KJV puts it, she is "vexed" in her soul. The ESV quoted above, defines this as in "bitter distress."  We could focus on Elisha's statement, that God had hidden this from him, but if we do, we will miss the point. Whatever is happening to the woman, it is upsetting to her to the point that she is "stressing out" about it.
2. What we might miss, is that in vs.26 when she is directly asked about her state, she maintains “all is well.”  Now, how do we reconcile this with what Vs.27 reveals? Is she adapting the typical human response when asked how we are and we dont' want people to know - we tell them, "I'm ok?" Is she lying? or, has she adapted a frame of mind that even though there are things in life that are stressful and cause us to be troubled, we are "alive and well, therefore it is a good day?"

I will leave it to you to read the chapter and come to your own conclusions. Here is what I do know. Regardless of how bad things are for you, they could be far worse! In our plights of life, we often lose perspective because we get caught up in the stress of the moment and do not take the time to realize that things could be even worse. We don't take the time to realize that even though things are bad, I may be suffering, hurting crying - I have life and I have God - ALL IS WELL. 

On Nov.2, 1873, a ship called Villa de Havre (1) collided with another ship and sank within

Ville de Havre

twelve minutes. Three hundred and thirteen passengers were on board, among which were Rufus Wheeler Peckham a congressman and judge from New York. Hamilton Murray and his sister, for whom the Hamilton Murray Theater at Princeton is named. Lesser known, was the wife of a man, Horatio Spafford, Anna and their four daughters. Anna survived the wreck, but the four daughters did not. Anna was found unconscious, floating on a plank. Picked up by the crew of the Loch Earn, she was carried to Cardiff, Wales in the UK where she then sent telegram to her husband who could not join them on the trip, "Saved alone....what shall I do..."  Horatio Spafford who was in Chicago, left immediately to join to his wife in Cardiff. On the Atlantic, the Captain of the ship called Spafford to the bridge, where he told him that they were passing over the place where his daughters had drowned. He wrote to Anna's half-sister, "On Thursday we passed over the spot where she went down, in mid-ocean, three miles deep. But, I do not think of our dear ones there. They are safe, folded, the dear lambs."  It would be later, that Spafford would write what would become a well known hymn, "It Is Well With My Soul."  Phillip Bliss originally composed the music to the song, that was originally called, "Ville de Havre." But the cry of the song was so great, that it became known by the title which it now bears.

"Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate, And hath shed His own blood for my soul!"  

So, no matter what they cry, what the sorrow, plague, hurt, torment, stress of life, know this. It could be worse. If nothing else today, know that God has looked upon your helpless estate and given you a pearl of great price. You can languish in your circumstance, or you can understand, that even if you die today, if you are in Christ you have everything. What is worse? Not the circumstance you find yourself in, but to for you to allow that circumstance to keep you from seeing the one most valuable thing in front of you. The estate of your soul now and in eternity.

Jim

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FOOTNOTES

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Ville_du_Havre 

https://ferrelljenkins.wordpress.com/2016/03/12/roman-road-from-elah-valley-to-bethlehem/

Roman road from Elah valley to Bethlehem

Posted on March 12, 2016 | Leave a comment

Portions of roads from the Roman period are found throughout Israel, and we have posted about several of them.

One interesting Roman road is the stepped road leading from the Valley of Elah up to Bethlehem. This photo was made 4.2 km west of Mata on Highway 375. I am not sure of the date of this unusual stretch of Roman Road, but I think most of the Roman roads date to the late first century or the second century A.D.

These steps would have made the trip up into, and down from, the mountains of Judea easier for both man and beast. This is likely the same route, centuries before the Romans controlled the area, taken by David as he went from Bethlehem to take some special provisions to his brothers on the firing line in the Valley of Elah (1 Samuel 17:15-22). Note especially verse 15:

… but David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem. (1 Samuel 17:15 ESV)

Roman Road 4.2 km W of Mata on Hwy 375. S of Hwy. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

When David was in the cave at Adullam he wished for a drink of water from “the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate.”  The Biblical text records that three of his mighty men, without the knowledge of David, made their way to Bethlehem to bring him some of that water (2 Samuel 23:15-17). David refused to drink the water and poured it out to the LORD. I think the three mighty men would have used this same route.

BOOK REVIEW: From The Cross To The Church by: A.C.Graziano

From The Cross To The Church by: A.C.Graziano

As an amatuer historian and archaeological enthusist,  especially of biblical things I was drawn to this book by its title and subject matter. The author tries to present what many have written volumes on in a concise volume. A daunting task to say the least. I am writing this review being now only part way through the book  because I wanted to capture thoughts while they were fresh on my mind.

I have found the book interesting and frustrating at the same time. Even at this point in the book I would not recommend it to a novice. What I am sure was meant to be presented as factual..matter of fact, I found to be chaotic and having to go back and reread to make sure of things. There are assertions made with no footnote or reference to back it up, only to have it explained a little better later on and then more doubt cast after that. The book is good if you are delving into the origins of suspicions and thoughts surrounding them. It is good if you are researching some of the background of the development of trends that lead to reactions, that lead to development of human doctrine. But as a critical reference, it takes too much for granted to be a single volume and leaves little critical evidence or citation to substantiate it. It is footnoted in places and that I appreciated. But there are not near enough.

If you are versed in history and the facts surrounding biblical events, then you could find the book engaging. If you are not or are thinking about recommending it to someone who is not - don't.