Tim Tebow Shaken? That Captured my Attention

For full disclosure, I need to start this blog by saying that I have never been a Florida Gators fan.  As such, I delighted in the rare circumstances where Tim Tebow lost at the collegiate level. When be became a pro, however, my perspective of him changed.  This book keeps with that transformation and my respect for him continues to grow. 

The opening chapter of the book begins with him being cut by a pro team -- clearly a First World problem -- and the questions that he posed to God.  He believed that he knew what God had in store for him but, just like all of us that think that way, he learned otherwise. Someone once said "make your plans in pencil and give God the eraser," and those words are exemplified in Tebow's life. 

As he traces his story of ups and downs as well as those that helped remind him of the important things in life (e.g. the children that his foundation assists), he concludes the book with a chapter called "What Matters Most."  I would encourage you to start reading there.   He puts it this way on page 191 -- "I want to live off the field in a way that outlives me.  I want my love for God and for others to shine greater than an incredible comeback moment, a heavy gold trophy, or a handful of favorable headlines."  Those choices make all the difference in the world. 

We must, however, come to understand that God formed us and compares us to nobody else in this world.  More critically, we lack  nothing that His grace cannot supply to us BUT we must first turn to Him and surrender ourselves.  Therein rests the interesting piece of being "shaken" -- oftentimes, God must shake us to get our attention, ultimately, leading to surrender to Him.  As Ravi Zacharias has said, "There is no greater discovery than seeing God as the author of your destiny."

It is clear that Tebow is not the most skilled author; however, you can see his heart for God on every page.  This book is a quick read and, I believe, worth your time.

To comply with new regulations introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, I am offering this disclaimer:  I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.

The Lion Chased a Bit too Far

So, I have several of Mark Batterson's books and really enjoyed his first -- In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Evening.  It grabs your attention and makes you scratch your head in that you've missed that story somehow in the Bible.  His most recent book - Chase the Lion - goes back to that original but it lacks the grandeur of the first which was a New York Times best-seller.

The structure of the book is rather predictable in that he talks about his first book to start off and then he moved into this newer rendition.  Well, every chapter starts off with some story and then he talks about "chasing lions."  He used a snippet of a verse in that chapter that mentions going the pit with that lion; however, he never really spent time explaining their importance or relevance to the chapter.  he seemed to use the verses just to make it "more Christian" rather than doing some type of exegesis regarding the actual text.

Before I describe my largest concern, let me tell you that some good is here in the book.  He has put forward a "manifesto of the Lion Chaser" and those have some good statements.  In fact, one of them is the background to my computer -- run to the road!  If you want to see them all, you can find them here:  http://chasethelion.com/manifesto

Now, let's get into my big issue. On pages 10 and 11, the author quotes the minor prophet Joel and he totally missed  (not a slight miss but a HUGE one).  He used the prophet to lend credence to the summary of his chapter -- dreaming dreams is "the natural, supernatural by-product of being filled with God's spirit."  That conclusion is not even remotely in the context of the of Joel's prophecy.  If you read all of Joel 2, you will see that its a call to repentance and the Lord working in His people.  They are to be satisfied in Him alone.  What's the end of that work?  The people call on God's name which moves them toward salvation and deliverance from sin because God will be the judge of all mankind.  The statement about dreams concocted by Batterson is not the final product because salvation from sin and submission to His will is.  In this case, the author chased the lion a bit too much.

There are some good one-liners in here; however, get his first book instead of this one.


To comply with new regulations introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, I am offering this disclaimer:  I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.

Another Study Bible

I will go ahead and admit it -- I'm a sucker for study Bibles.  When I see one, I want to get it to see how its study notes are different than any other.  The MacArthur Study Bible is the "gold standard" in my opinion, so I confess a hardship in trying not to compare others to it.

The NKJV Apply the Word Study Bible is a new release and has some rather positive qualities.  First, I really like the name -- apply the Word -- because that is what we should do each and every day.  Second, I love (and I mean love) red letter editions because they help as you disciple new Christians to help delineate between narrative events and the words of Jesus.  As such, this one does not disappoint.  Third, there are good notes within it to point out some words and social/culture components.  It does not, however, go into the doctrinal or hermeneutical depths of a MacArthur Study Bible (see...I struggle in avoiding the comparison).

This one is the size of a "normal book" and not the typical Bible -- which is larger than a normal book.  To that end, the print is somewhat small and there is not much room for notes to go in the margin.  If you need larger print and desire to write notes on the pages, well, this is not the Bible for you.  Still, I can recommend this to you because you cannot go wrong studying God's Word! 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLookBloggers.com review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Still Searching for Jesus

Robert J. Hutchinson has written a chronicle, of sorts, describing his quest to understand who the real, historical Jesus was.  The result is the book Searching for Jesus; and as the title suggests, it leaves anyone still searching for Jesus.  My main complaint is that the book left way too much open for interpretation instead of helping close the door with his own conclusions. 

For instance, he has a small section (A Conclusion...and a Beginning) that, of sorts, summarizes it all.  I use the two words "of sorts" twice for a definitive reason -- as much as the author leads to a conclusion, he never delivers one.  His final paragraph starts with -- "whether intentionally or not, Jesus ignited a worldwide crusade."  Well, if you read the New Testament, we see what His followers believed and that seems to be convincing enough to take a stand on something.  Further, there are a multitude of glittering statements like "whatever you believe" or "more evidence is still being gathered."  I do believe he does nail this one aspect right one the money -- we cannot construct a day by day, minute by minute reconstruction of everything that Jesus Christ did, and that is okay because Christianity is built upon faith not incontrovertible facts (which would remove any and all need for faith). 

If you are "on the fence" and are seeking secular sources to help you make a decision to accept or deny Christ, I doubt that this book will help you in that regard.  Thus, my title of the review is "Still Searching for Jesus." 

Let me offer you, however, a glimpse into the value of this book.  It provides a wonderful historiography of cynics, skeptics, atheists, and gnostic beliefs alongside modern scholarship that advances those thoughts BUT then balances it with modern scholarship that challenges those same components.  This is a "one stop shop" of Christology summarized and, for that reason alone, it is a valuable book to have on your shelf.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLookBloggers.com review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Power in the Parables

John MacArthur has demonstrated, once again, why many consider him to be one of the strongest Bible teachers of the modern age.  In the recent book Parables:  The Mysteries of God's Kingdom Revealed through the Stories Jesus Told, he unpacks these parables and offers the explanation that is often missed.  Far too often we fail to consider the surrounding context that unlocks the teachings that Jesus was offering for those listening.

One of our greatest errors in Scriptural interpretation is using our modern culture to glean the meaning of the parable.  As MacArthur shows, that cultural bias leads to incorrect interpretations and applications.  For instance, the parable of the widow and the unjust judge does not make as much sense until you understand the Jewish and Roman judicial structure as well as the legal mandate to care for the helpless widows.  Further, the court system of that day was made for men; so, a woman advocating for herself in court means that she had nobody else to assist her.

MacArthur considers several parables:  (1) Good Samaritan; (2) Hidden treasure in a field and pearl of great price; (3) the Sower; (4) Pharisee and publican - my personal favorite of the book; (5) Two servants, ten bridesmaids, and the talents; (6) the Unjust judge; and (7) Lazarus and the rich man.  You can see that the author combines several into one larger discussion and, when you read the book, the understanding why becomes clear.  Chapter 8 is an interesting read - I'll leave it at that.

Great book that helps unearth meaning behind these parables.  I highly recommend it. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLookBloggers.com review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Black Earth Shines a Light onto a Dark Subject

Black.  Earth.  Two words that stand alone but have multiple constructs in meaning.  For instance, "black" can reference a color, have racial overtones, indicate a style of cooking (e.g. blackened shrimp), or darkness.  "Earth" can reference our planet of habitation, dirt, or the physical realm.  When you take these distinctive words and combine them, they completely change.  I believe Timothy Snyder knew exactly what he was doing when he coined the title of this book:  Black Earth - The Holocaust as History and Warning.

Here is a warning for you -- this book is not for the faint of heart or the intellectually lazy.  Why not for the faint of heart?  The topic of the Holocaust is difficult partly due to the origination of the term "genocide" to describe the horrific events.  Snyder includes some of those (e.g. Nazis tossing babies into the air to shoot them like clay targets...chilling described on page 190) but attempts to avoid those gruesome specifics.  Why not for the intellectually lazy?  The author digs into the intellectual rationale used by the Nazis to create a Judeo-bolshevik myth that served multiple arenas -- political, physical, spiritual, racial, and social -- in gaining collaboration from others to murder the Jews.  This myth became the primary reason (not anti-Semitism) that individuals participated in the killing of the Jews even when they were not forced to do so and could have opted out without consequence other than peer pressure.

In short, the Judeo-bolshevik myth was Hitler's way to solve problems.  Everything he believed that led to the Holocaust was rooted not in statehood but in race.  Additional countries were not needed for empire building but to sustain and help purify the Aryan race.  His utilized politics to further advance his race-baiting in strokes that created murderous consequences for the Jews.  As Germany occupied areas formerly held by the Soviet Union and discovered mass graves due to Russian savagery, the Germans cast the Jews as collaborators.  They took their property, adorned them in Soviet flags, and had them march to the Soviet anthem.  Why?  He forced an identification of the Jews with Russian actions, so the local populace would blame them and willingly understand the need to exact revenge.  The odd part is that many of the individuals now killing the Jews were the actual collaborators with the Soviets in the earlier killings.  Thus, the Judeo-bolshevik myth was the tool to move the Holocaust into its advanced stages of mass killings rather than one off shootings.

With a background in philosophy and intellectual history, this book took an approach that I greatly appreciated.  Snyder pulls back the veil so that our modern world can catch a glimpse into how this could have happened.  His final chapter -- "Conclusions for our World" -- is strong and powerful; yet, I even believe he could have stretched it further in application.  This book is not your normal approach to the Holocaust; however, it offers a fresh and engaging perspective to a terrible time.

A worthy read of a time that we cannot forget so as to prevent it from ever occurring again....


To comply with new regulations introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, I am offering this disclaimer:  I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.

Churchill's Trial....not an error

Before I launch into the review, please allow me to be upfront -- this is NOT a Christian book even though it is put forward by a "Christian publisher."  The closest it comes to having anything redemptive is in the secondary title of the book where is uses the word "salvation."  The book is policy review of Churchill's life based on conservative principles and uses any opportunity to highlight the need of free government in America. 

Arnn is clearly a scholar and, at times, makes connections beyond what the average person will access.  He is masterful in his writing and logical in his thinking.  This book is not a detailed biography of possibly the greatest British prime minister.  What he has produced, however, is an overview of certain parts of Churchill's life that drive home his (Arnn) philosophical views.  Please do not misunderstand that last statement -- I am not questioning Arnn's scholarship because he and Churchill would agree on many things.  My point is simply this:  I am curious as to how Churchill scholars (or even the Churchill Society itself) would speak to this book by Arnn.

I did appreciate the fact that it was a different approach on Churchill which, as Mark Levin put it, is "rare."  The focus is not so much on historical events -- they merely serve as the backdrop -- but upon the writings, speeches, or actions of the famed leader.  The book is a good, fast read and does offer some interesting insights and lessons.

Whether or not to get this book depends on what you are seeking from the life of Churchill?  An understanding of the World War 2 years?  Find another book.  A detailed biography of the man?  Find another book.  Insights into conservativism and intellectual thought of the man?  This is probably your book.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLookBloggers.com review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”