Friday’s Fave Five

Posted on October 7, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Welcome to Friday’s Fave Five, hosted by Susanne at Living to Tell the Story, in which we can share five of our favorite things from the last week. This has been a wonderful exercise in looking for and appreciating the good things God blesses us with. Click on the button to learn more, then go to Susanne’s to read others’ faves and link up your own.

It’s funny how the same set of hours seems to fly by faster at times. I don’t know what happened to this last week, but it is gone already! Here are a few favorites from it:

1. Eating fries out of the bag on the way home from a fast-food place. One of life’s simple pleasures. 🙂 I’m trying to cut down on fast-food fries, but I grabbed a quick lunch of a junior burger and small fries on the way home from errands this week, and I love to nibble on the fries while they’re at their prime on the way home. So good.

2. A Kindle app discovered on my TouchPad and…

3. Free Kindle books! I hadn’t known that you could download Kindle books with anything other than a Kindle. I was surprised at how effortless it was to download them. Then someone on Facebook posted a link to a list of free Kindle classic books (I would share the link, but they’re up to $1.79 now — but still a good deal, so here are some inexpensive Kindle classics if you’re interested). I tried reading one on the Touchpad while using the treadmill this week, and it all worked together just fine.

4. Clearance sale. I had to stop in the Christian book store this week and found they had marked a lot of books on clearance for $5 to 5.99. Like I need to add more books to my pile…but I did. 🙂

5. Being able to share prayer requests electronically. My 20-year-old nephew had a freak accident yesterday — a ring he was wearing caught on something as he was getting out of a truck and severely tore his middle finger, resulting in its amputation down past the knuckle. From the time he was in the ER and then throughout the afternoon, my sister was able to share updates and prayer requests, which we then passed on to our friends on Facebook and also to an e-mail prayer chain our ladies at church have. Knowing that you can have prayer support in just seconds is a tremendous blessing. The last I heard, he was to go home last night with pain medications. If you feel led, I’d appreciate your prayers for him and also for my sister as she is in another state — it is so hard to have your children go through these things, but especially when you can’t be there.

Except for my nephew’s accident, it has been a good week. I hope yours was the same. I am thankful for God’s grace every week, whether they seem “good” or “bad” at the time.

Every day is a gift

Posted on October 5, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Yesterday could have been one of those no-good awful very bad days.

As I was waiting on my cream of wheat to gel in the microwave, I noticed anew the sad state of a burner on the stove that had been spattered with bubbling potato soup a few days ago, and thought, “I really need to clean that up.” As I took my half-formed cream of wheat out of the microwave above the stove in order to stir it, I bumped the microwave and the cream of wheat spilled onto the burner pan in question and its neighbor, looking, honestly, like someone had thrown up on them. So I took that as a sign to clean up that burner pan now.

The next several hours were fine except that I got out the door to go visit my mother-in-law later than planned. I have to pass through three school zones to get to her place, and at the wrong times of day that can be a nightmare. Plus I like to be home when Jesse gets home. He’s capable of being home alone, but I can remember the difference in my teens between coming home when Mom was there — warmth, interest, communication — and coming home an empty house when she was working to — lonely and desolate. This is Jesse’s last year before college, and I want his memories to be of mom being there when he gets home from school.

So on my way to Mom’s, thinking I should make it past the one school zone that lets out earlier without too much delay, suddenly traffic came to a grinding halt in both directions. As several cars made three-point turns to go back the way they had come, I inched forward. It looked like one of those big construction vehicles had stalled (it looked like a truck in front but had a large long crane-type arm on the back), and from what I could tell, had been hooked to a tow truck. Hooked because evidently it was either too big or too heavy to be on the tow truck. But the tow truck, in making a wide turn onto my road with that unwieldy beast tethered to it, had swung too wide and almost went off the slope on the other side of the road. I was almost at the last turn to Mom’s place, so I hated to turn around and try to find another route when I didn’t know the area well (and the GPS wasn’t giving me any better ideas). I kept thinking about it, but every time I was just about to, I’d see some movement with the stalled vehicles and think we were just about to get going…and then realize we weren’t. I ended up there for about 45 minutes to an hour. Thankfully with all of this study about the sovereignty of God in Job, the Lord enabled me to take it all much more patiently than I might have otherwise, but I still stewed over the waste of time for all of us involved and prayed for the situation while listening to some nice classical music on NPR and occasionally flipping through the mail I’d picked up on my way out.

Finally the vehicles blocking the road got mobile and we were all on our way. I visited Mom a while and then, on the way back, felt my blood sugar slipping a bit and decided to pull into a fast-food drive-through for a little snack. But the line wasn’t moving. The guy parked where orders were placed looked like he was having a conversation rather than placing an order, and no matter how much he talked, he wasn’t going anywhere. I assume he was talking to someone in his truck while waiting for someone to take his order. Finally I decided to forget it and head home for a snack, saving money and calories and any more waiting time.

And then I got stopped in backed-up traffic again, this time for a passing train.

I finally got home, a little rattled, harried, and hungry, glad I had an hour or two to unwind before dinner and wouldn’t have to wait in line again for the rest of the day.

Elisabeth Elliot has a devotional I can’t find just now about how even little things that don’t seem to have a major purpose can be taken as the Lord’s will for the moment, and Amy Carmichael has written about God’s grace for disconcerting “little things.” I thought, “Well, Lord, I don’t know what purpose you had in all of that. But thank you for helping me not to get as frustrated as I could have.”

Later in the evening I was sorting through coupons, flyers, catalogs and such while watching The Biggest Loser. I decided to clean out the file folder of restaurant coupons and discovered in it an envelope my mom had sent some time before she died containing several pages from a desk calendar that she thought I’d find interesting. I had glanced at them before but I am sorry to say I had never gotten around to reading them, and I felt bad that she had taken the time and care to send them to me and I had neglected them.

I kept the envelope out and went through it this morning. The desk calendar was evidently a compilation of different Chicken Soup for the Soul books. One particular story was about a lady whose daughter was in the children’s ward of a hospital after surgery and who made friends with a bright cheerful six-year-old boy named Adam receiving chemotherapy for leukemia. One rainy, gloomy day, this woman remarked on what a depressing day it was, and Adam answered, “Every day is beautiful for me.”

Wow. Every day is a gift. For a middle-aged lady stuck in traffic as much as for a six-year-old leukemia patient.

Book Review: Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World

Posted on October 4, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Worldliness is a difficult topic to consider because people can have some weird ideas as to what is worldly. Yet it is a topic Christians must consider, because the Bible says ” friendship of the world is enmity with God” (James 4:4) and instructs us to “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (I John 2:15). But what aspect of the world? Surely not the physical world, the flowers and sunsets and such that God created and called very good (Genesis 1 and 2), because “God…giveth us richly all things to enjoy” (I Timothy 5:17b). And surely not the people in the world, because “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). John elaborates when he goes on to say, “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (I John 2:16-17).

C. J. Mahaney and four other ministers help us think through some of these questions, considerations, and applications in Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World. This book first came to my attention when I was listening to a former pastor’s sermon online and heard him quote from it. It intrigued me both because the quote in itself was very good, but mainly because I knew this pastor to be more conservative in his standards (not in a legalistic way) and thought if he found value in this book, it must definitely be worth reading.

And it definitely was. The authors successfully walk the narrow line between the extremes of making a list of legalistic external standards and eschewing all lists in favor of false understanding of Christian liberty. They seek to explain Biblically what it means to be “in the world yet not of it.” The first chapter discusses the concept, succeeding chapters apply the principles to media, music, possessions, and clothes, and the final chapter shares some right ways to love the world. There are two appendices in the back discussing modesty.

Here are just a few of the many quotes I marked:

The gospel makes all the difference between whether you are merely conservative or whether you are conquering worldliness in the power of the Spirit for the glory of Christ (p. 11, John Piper’s forward).

What does it look like when the blood of Christ governs the television and the Internet and the iPod and the checkbook and the neckline?…The only way most folks know how to draw lines is with rulers. The idea that lines might come into being freely and lovingly (and firmly) as the fruit of the gospel is rare (p. 11, Piper).

We will never be useful to the world if we are being deeply shaped by the world. And we will be shaped by the world without intentional efforts not to be (p. 12, Piper).

In the end, the sum of all beauty is Christ, and the sin of all worldliness is to diminish our capacity to see him and be satisfied in him and show him compellingly to a perishing world (p. 13, Piper).

Before Demas deserted, he drifted (p. 20, Mahaney).

One reason why the church of God at this present moment has so little influence over the world is because the world has so much influence over the church (p. 23, Spurgeon).

Worldliness, then, is a love for this fallen world. It’s loving the values and pursuits of the world that stand opposed to God. More specifically, it is to gratify and exalt oneself to the exclusion of God. It rejects God’s rule and replaces it with our own…It exalts our opinions above God’s truth. It elevates our sinful desires for the things of this fallen world above God’s commands and promises (p. 27, Mahaney).

I’m not saying it’s wrong to watch television, rent a DVD, surf the Internet, or spend an evening at he cinema. The hazard is thoughtless watching. Glorifying God is an intentional pursuit. We don’t accidentally drift into holiness; rather, we mature gradually and purposefully, one choice at a time (p. 40, Cabaniss).

Filthiness, foolish talk, and crude joking are “out of place” — they’re forbidden not because they’re on some arbitrary “banned words” list, but because they reflect the heart and attitude of those who disregard God and His Word (p. 55, Cabaniss).

Christians should dislike and avoid vulgarity…not because we have a warped view of sex, and are either ashamed or afraid of it, but because we have a high and holy view of it as being in its right place God’s good gift, which we do not want to see cheapened (p. 56, Stott).

If we wouldn’t trust a non-Christian to give us counsel on how to live our lives, why would we regularly listen to their counsel set to music? (p. 82, Kauflin).

Materialism is what happens when coveting has cash to spend (p. 95, Harvey).

In my experience, 95 percent of the believers who face the test of persecution pass it, while 95 percent who face the test of prosperity fail it (p. 103, Alcorn quoting a Romanian pastor).

Covetous chains the heart to things that are passing away (p. 106, Harvey).

Your wardrobe is a public statement of your personal and private motivation. And if you profess godliness, you should be concerned with cultivating these twin virtues, modesty and self-control (p. 120, Mahaney).

The Bible doesn’t forbid a woman from enhancing her appearance. But here in I Timothy 2:9-10, Paul isn’t just advocating modesty in dress; he’s insisting that more time and energy be devoted to spiritual adornment in the form of good works. And he’s warning about excessive attention devoted to appearance to the neglect of good works (p. 135, Mahaney).

[The world] held no sway over Paul, nor was he dependent upon it for anything. He didn’t crave its approval, embrace its values, or covet its rewards (p. 169-170, Pursell).

Hope I didn’t overload you there. That’s only maybe a little over half of what I marked, and flipping through the pages again, I keep finding more thought-provoking statements.

There were maybe one or two statements in the book I’m not sure I agree with, but by and large I would consider it an invaluable resource for anyone who has grappled with what worldliness is and seeks grace-based ways of combatting it.

***I must say, as well, that though I enjoyed this book, this is not a blanket endorsement of the authors. I was only familiar with the names of two, knew little about them, and nothing about the rest.

A portion of the book is online here.

(This review will also be linked to Semicolon‘s Saturday Review of Books.)

The Week In Words

Posted on October 3, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Welcome to The Week In Words, where we share quotes from the last week’s reading. If something you read this past week inspired you, caused you to laugh, cry, think, dream, or just resonated with you in some way, please share it with us, attributing it to its source, which can be a book, newspaper, blog, Facebook — anything that you read. More information is here.

Here are a few that stood out to me:

From the July/August 2001 issue of The Elisabeth Elliot Newsletter:

The Purpose of Trouble

“Whatever else trouble is in the world for, it is here for this good purpose: to develop strength. For trouble is a moral and spiritual task. It is something which is hard to do. And it is in the spiritual world as in the physical, strength is increased by encounter with the difficult. A world without any trouble in it would be, to people of our kind, a place of spiritual enervation and moral laziness. Fortunately, every day is crowded with care. Every day to every one of us brings its questions, its worries, and its tasks, brings its sufficiency of trouble. Thus we get our daily spiritual exercise. Every day we are blessed with new opportunities for the development of strength of soul.” ~ George Hodges

I think I saw this on a couple of people’s Facebook:

Christianity if false is of no importance & if true is of infinite importance but it can’t be moderately important ~ C. S. Lewis

If you’ve read anything that particularly spoke to you that you’d like to share, please either list it in the comments below or write a post on your blog and then put the link to that post (not your general blog link) in Mr. Linky below. I do ask that only family-friendly quotes be included.

I hope you’ll visit some of the other participants as well and glean some great thoughts to ponder. And don’t forget to leave a comment here, even if you don’t have any quotes to share! 🙂

The King of Love

Posted on October 2, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I’ve posted this before, but it is on my mind again today. One of my favorites:

The King of love my Shepherd is,
Whose goodness faileth never,
I nothing lack if I am His
And He is mine forever.

Where streams of living water flow
My ransomed soul He leadeth,
And where the verdant pastures grow,
With food celestial feedeth.

Perverse and foolish oft I strayed,
But yet in love He sought me,
And on His shoulder gently laid,
And home, rejoicing, brought me.

In death’s dark vale I fear no ill
With Thee, dear Lord, beside me;
Thy rod and staff my comfort still,
Thy cross before to guide me.

Thou spread’st a table in my sight;
Thy unction grace bestoweth;
And O what transport of delight
From Thy pure chalice floweth!

And so through all the length of days
Thy goodness faileth never;
Good Shepherd, may I sing Thy praise
Within Thy house forever.

~ Henry W. Baker

Laudable Linkage

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Barbara Harper

It’s a nice cool morning here in TN. Unfortunately I woke up at my usual time when I could have slept in another hour. Oh well — at least I can get ready for the day at a more leisurely pace.

Here are a few good reads I noted this past week:

More on Spiritual Abuse and the right way to respond to it.

How to Live in This Economy. “It’s only the field that has had a rest that can yield above the rest.”

How Should We Talk in the Virtual Community?

A Comment Ministry.

Ungraceful Parenting.

Books Every Guy Should Read, Part 3.

If You Want to Write a Book…

Cutlery Tray for Jewelry. Love this idea except I’d want a door on it to keep dust out.

And a couple of fun pictures seen around Facebook:

Hope you have a great Saturday!

Friday’s Fave Five

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Here are a few favorites from the past week:

1. Canvas tennis shoes. I tried on the tennis shoes I’ve had for 30+ years, and they didn’t fit. Imagine that! 🙂 I guess it has been a while since I used them. As I looked for new ones, they all seemed to have a very thick and long tongue that irritated my foot and ankle. Finally I found some like the ones I had, plain canvas without being encased in all the extra plastic. They did have some spiffy laces, though.

2. Half-batches. I was craving the kind of Rice Krispie treats I make, with peanut butter mixed in and melted chocolate chips on top, but with just three of us here, we didn’t really need a whole 9 x 13 pan full. I halved the recipe, and it was just about right.

3. Leftovers. With just the three of us, some times I can make smaller meals, but sometimes I make what I always make and then have the leftovers on hand for lunch. That’s really my favorite thing to do for lunch — just microwave something leftover from dinner, though one of my favoritist lunches from this week was quesadillas made from leftover taco meat.

4. Resolution of the difficult situation involving my mother-in-law’s care which I mentioned last week, at least for now, though we will have to face it again in the future. But we’ve got some time to think and pray about the best decision rather than having to make a rushed decision with only two days’ notice, as we faced last week.

5. A writing opportunity. Several months ago, our newspaper asked for submissions for “community guest columnists” whose work would appear on Sunday’s editorial page. My husband pointed it out to me and encouraged me to apply. So I did and sent in a couple of requested samples of my writing. I did tell them I wasn’t very politically minded and I was used to writing from a Christian viewpoint, and that I knew I shouldn’t use that space as a “bully pulpit,” but anything I wrote would be shaped by my Christian worldview. I figured because of those things that I wouldn’t be chosen. I had mixed emotions while waiting to hear back: sometimes I hoped I’d get it, and sometimes I hoped I wouldn’t. Then I just got an e-mail this week inviting me to be one of the columnists! I know over 70 applied: I’m not sure how many they chose and how often I’ll need to submit something. They’re going to send the guidelines and schedules soon. So, I’m excited! And a little scared! What few magazine articles I’ve had published have been for a Christian audience, and though this blog is open to the public, I think most of my readers are Christians. This will be my first experience writing publicly for a secular audience. There’s no remuneration, and it’s only for a year, but it will be good experience. I’d appreciate prayers for wisdom and the right words!

Have a great weekend!

Grandma

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I mentioned on Friday a difficult situation that had just arisen. Thankfully it seems to be resolved for now, but it involved my mother-in-law’s living situation.

Most of you know she is in an assisted living facility. She is in overall good health, no problems with blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, heart issues, or any number of things that accompany aging. But she has been steadily declining in her ability to move: getting up from a chair, getting dressed, etc. She had been having trouble walking to dinner with her walker and had in fact not been going to the dining room for meals. The staff will bring her meal to her occasionally, but they don’t have enough staff to do that all the time, plus they want to encourage residents to get out and interact with others. At her last check-up, my husband asked her doctor if he’d prescribe a physical therapist to see if some work along those lines might help her. Some of the problem is due to aging (she’s 83), but we suspected some was due to disuse — the more she stayed in her chair without moving, the less she was able to move.

I came into her room last Thursday when the physical therapist happened to be there. He had already done his physical evaluation and was trying to fill out the paperwork: his Polish accent and Mom’s hearing problems were making it difficult, so I was thankful I arrived when I did and was able to answer some of his questions or help explain some of them to her.

My husband and I were both stunned when the assisted living owner/director called that Thursday evening after 5 p.m. to tell us that, based on the physical therapist’s report, Mom would either have to move to a nursing home that weekend or we would need to hire someone to stay with her at night. The major problem in his report was that he recommended that two people transfer her to her bed. her chair, etc., and the facility did not have enough staff for that, plus regulations decreed that in case of fire each resident needed to be able to vacate the building with one aide in under 13 minutes.

Well, one can’t make a decision about nursing homes in that short a time, plus we felt the PT’s further recommendations that Jim’s mom not attempt to walk with her walker, get into bed, get up from her chair, or use the restroom without calling an aide were going too far and would only further decrease her ability to move. We couldn’t do anything until the next day, so Thursday evening we felt definitely unsettled.

Jim was able to reach the PT the next day and to explain our concerns and the repercussions of his report. He agreed to meet with Jim over at his mom’s, and Jim was able to demonstrate to him and to the CNAs there that his mom could get up from her chair if given enough time (the CNAs, at least the ones there, agreed and said it is a problem sometimes that some want to rush her) and could walk once she got stable.

We think perhaps the problems in communication coupled with the fact that Jim’s mom gets very nervous and agitated when something new and unroutine happens may have contributed to her not “performing” very well during the PT’s first evaluation. He had recommended a two-person transfer because, when they were trying to transfer her from place to place, she wasn’t helping much at all in moving herself and, though she’s a small lady, as just a dead weight she was too heavy for one person. But she may not have understood what he wanted or that she was supposed to be putting forth effort as they moved her. The PT agreed to meet with Jim at his mom’s for another few sessions, and he agreed that she could walk on her own, though he recommended someone walk with her (he left a canvas belt there to put around her, and an aide can walk with her just holding the belt to keep her steady and have something to hold onto and help her up with if she starts to fall rather than just grasping slippery clothes). He still wants her to call for help in using the restroom, but overall he could see she could do more than he thought at first, and he’s working with her on trying to strengthen and limber up her muscles. Jim has attended these first few sessions both to help with the communication and to have a calming influence on his mom, but hopefully after this week they’ll be able to handle things on their own. The assisted living director is fine with all of this reevaluation: she just said that once she has a final report, if it indicates their facility can’t handle Mom’s needs then she would have to act.

So we’ve gotten a reprieve, at least. We’re thankful that the PT was willing to listen and work with the situation rather than being austere and authoritarian.

But even though we’re hoping for some improvement with PT, since she is 83, at some point she probably will need more care. We had already discussed the need to visit and evaluate some nursing homes even before this came up, and now we feel we need to go ahead and do that very soon. Since nursing homes are much more expensive and Jim is afraid they’re more clinical and less homey, we’ve also discussed the possibility of bringing her here and hiring home health care to help with things like showers (the assisted living place has people who do that). We have a spare room Jim and the boys made in the garage: that’s where Jason and Mittu stayed when they moved here and it was just barely put together. Jim has painted and done a little more finishing to it since then, but we need to carpet it, and, if she were going to stay there, put a toilet in it. We also need to find out what Medicare/Medicaid will do in either situation. She has some money from the sale of her home, but we want to parcel that out carefully so that it won’t run out before she passes away and to have some in case of hospitalization or illness in her last days.

In all honesty, I have to admit I am struggling with selfishness over what it would mean to “my” time and routine and the probable need to put aside other pursuits to have her live with us even with the help of an aide. But we just want what the Lord wants and will trust Him for grace for whatever the needs are. It may be that her care would be our primary ministry for a while. We just really need the Lord’s wisdom and direction as to what’s best for her.

I know some of you have walked this road before us. I appreciate your prayers.

What’s On Your Nightstand: September

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Barbara Harper

The folks at 5 Minutes For Books host What’s On Your Nightstand? the fourth Tuesday of each month in which we can share about the books we have been reading and/or plan to read. You can learn more about it by clicking the link or the button.

Wow, I can’t believe we’re almost done with September! Here’s what I completed reading this month:

Masquerade by Nancy Moser, reviewed here.

Beyond Suffering: Discovering the Message of Job by Layton Talbert, reviewed here. Excellent.

The Misery of Job and the Mercy of God by John Piper, reviewed here. Very good.

Gospel Meditations For Men by Chris Anderson and Joe Tyrpak, with my son, not reviewed. Just thirty-one pages, a little too explicit in a couple of places for a teen guy, but very good.

Peace Like a River by Leif Enger, reviewed here.

The Shape of Mercy by Susan Meissner, reviewed here.

Lion of Babylon by Davis Bunn, reviewed here. Intense action concerning a missing American in Iraq and the formerly fired operative sent to find him. Very good!

Amy Inspired by Bethany Pierce, reviewed here. Mixed emotions.

A Penny For Your Thoughts by Mindy Starn Clark and The Map In the Attic by Jolyn Sharp, short reviews here. I actually read this during the summer but they were for a Secret Sister at church, so I couldn’t mention them before letting her know who I was.

Goforth of China by Rosalind Goforth, finished several weeks ago but just reviewed here this month.

I’m currently reading:

Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World edited by C. J. Mahaney. Should be done in a few days.

Boyhood and Beyond: Practical Wisdom for Becoming a Man by Bob Schultz with my son. About half-way through, enjoying it so far.

The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber, my first by her, just started. I was very surprised to find a four-letter word there. Decided to lay this one aside after a way-too explicit sexual encounter was described.

Next up, probably:

Coffee Shop Conversations: Making the Most of Spiritual Small Talk by Dale and Jonalyn Fincher, recommended by Lisa.

Love’s Pursuit by Siri Mitchell.

The Little Women Letters by Gabrielle Donnelly, about three modern sisters who are descendants of Jo March who find a collection of her letters.

By Searching: My Journey Through Doubt Into Faith, autobiographical book by Isobel Kuhn.

Happy Reading!

Book Review: The Lion of Babylon

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Lion of Babylon by Davis Bunn isn’t the type of book I usually go for: action, adventure, intrigue, espionage, etc. But I picked it up as a possible present for someone whom I thought might like it. Wow. It definitely kept me on the edge of my seat at times.

Marc Royce is a former operative for State department Intelligence who was dismissed when he needed time to care for his ailing wife. Now suddenly his former boss calls him to for a special mission: his friend Alex is missing in Iraq along with an American woman he is rumored to have eloped with. Marc knows Alex has not eloped and agrees to travel to Baghdad to covertly search for him. He finds that both Americans and Iraqis officially know nothing but unofficially try to squelch his search.

He teams up with a Christian Iraqi lawyer to continue gathering information, and gets drawn into helping him recover some kidnapped children. They find that the kidnappings seem to be related to the missing Alex, two American women, and an Iraqi man. Unexpected allies and unexpected grace helps them navigate through the volatile politics and dangerous hindrances to finding those who are missing.

I have to admit that even with the American action in Iraq over the past several years, I have not really paid much attention to the region itself. Bunn’s descriptions of the different factions were enough to help understand but not enough to be tedious. His descriptions of the desert, dust, and heat almost made me feel like I was there. Sometimes the point of view was Marc’s and sometimes it was that of the Christian Iraqi, Sameh, and it was eye-opening to see what living for Christ would be like in that land. All in all a very good read.

Here is a trailer for the book: