Tag Archives: Christian nonfiction

Insights on Revelation

Posted on by
7
Revelation

The book of Revelation can be daunting to read, with all its symbolism and strange experiences. I used Charles Swindoll’s Insights on Revelation as a companion this time through the book and found it quite helpful.

Swindoll says this book is a “mile-high” view of Revelation. He goes into more detail than a mere overview, but mainly hits the high points.

The Greek word for “Revelation” is apokalypsis, form which we get our word apocalypse. Today, apocalypse conveys the meaning of a massive, end-of-the-world-type battle. Though Revelation tells of the final, victorious battle between good and evil, the word actually means an unveiling. This is an unveiling of the future, but even more so, and unveiling of the true King.

Revelation was written by the apostle John, brother of James. He was an old man now, living in exile on the island of Patmos, when he was caught up to heaven and told to write what he saw.

First he is told to write seven letters to then-existing local churches. Swindoll calls these a type of performance review. Each church is told what they did right, what they’re doing wrong, and how God wants them to respond. The message to each church has much to say to us today as well.

Then John sees several visions of things to come, including the reign of the Antichrist during seven years of what we call the Tribulation, leading to the final judgments of mankind, the resurrection of all from the dead, and the crowning of Jesus Christ as the King of the universe, with all those who believed on Him through the ages coming to live with Him in His kingdom.

Revelation pronounces a blessing on those who read and obey it: “The one who reads this is blessed, and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep what is written in it are blessed, because the time is near!” (Revelation 1:3, HCSB). The blessing is repeated near the end of the book: “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book” (Revelation 22:7, ESV).

Swindoll emphasizes that we may not understand everything in the book–even John didn’t understand everything he wrote. But there is still much we can glean and be blessed by. He says careful observation of what the text says, paying attention to the context within Revelation, and bringing in what we know from other parts of the Bible help us understand it better. He says, “The book of Revelation wasn’t written to confuse, frighten, or entertain. Rather, it was given to believers to read, understand, and apply.”

There are groups of people with very strong opinions on some questions in Revelation: whether there will be a “Rapture” of the church, a catching away of Christians; when that will occur (before, in the middle of, or after the tribulation–seven years of trouble); whether there will be a literal millennium–a thousand year reign of Christ on Earth; or whether everything in the book is symbolic. I felt, even before this book, that these things are not worth arguing over or breaking fellowship over.

In fact, the study of Revelation can often devolve into trying to prove one’s version of these things. But a focus on these things can obscure or even miss the point. “The purpose of Revelation is to change us, not simply to inform us.” The book of Revelation gives us hope for the future, inspires us to live holy lives in light of what’s coming, and “moves us to worship God, who will ultimately triumph over evil.”

After each section, Swindoll share practical applications we can draw from the text for our lives here and now.

Some of the judgments God pours out on the unbelieving and rebellious in the end times are some of the most awful things we’ll read in the Bible. But the good news is, God has made a way to escape those judgments by believing on Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior now. The last chapter of the book contains an invitation: “The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price” (Revelation 22:17).

C. S. Lewis’ Letters to an American Lady.

Posted on by
7

C. S. Lewis was a prolific letter-writer. Just the third volume of his collected letters covering the last thirteen years of his life is over 6000 pages.

Yet Lewis often felt burdened by the volume of letters he needed to write. He even asked friends not to write to him at Christmastime because he heard from so many people then, answering their correspondence became almost impossible.

Clyde S. Kilby says in his preface of Lewis’ Letters to an American Lady that Lewis said “one essential of the happy life is ‘ that a man would have almost no mail and never dread the postman’s knock.'” Yet he wrote because he “believed taking time out to advise or encourage another Christian was both a humbling of one’s talents before the Lord and also as much the work of the Holy Spirit as producing a book” and “one’s days and his talents are given him not for private expenditure but to be used in all lowliness within the will of God. Though the flesh abhorred it, he mortified the flesh.”

The American lady this collection of letters was written to is unnamed, by her request. After Lewis’ death, she donated his letters to Wheaton College. She was a widow and a “southern aristocrat” who “loves to talk and speaks well.” She also wrote “reviews articles, poems, and stories.” She had fallen upon hard times financially as well as family problems and, in the end, various health issues.

Her letters to Lewis are not printed here, but her first seems to have praised him for his books. He writes that he would have to “be either of angelic humility or diabolical pride not to be pleased at all the things you say about my books.” She must have shared some of her troubles with him, because he assures her of his sympathy and prayers.

Their correspondence goes on to include over a hundred letters. His tone is always cordial, though at times he says he can only write “a pen scratch” because of busyness or illness.

She writes that she has converted to Catholicism. He says that path is not for him, but he did not want their correspondence to be controversial. He was happy that her “faith and joy are so obviously increased.”

Some of his notes are sprinkled with humor:

About sleep: do you find that the great secret (if one can do it) is not to care whether you sleep? Sleep is a jade who scorns her suitors but woos her scorners.

As for wrinkles—pshaw! Why shouldn’t we have wrinkles? Honorable insignia of long service in this warfare.

Over the thirteen years they wrote to each other, we see glimpses of his personal life and what books he was working at the time. His marriage to Joy and her death took place in this time period. But most of the letters focus on encouraging her in her troubles.

Some of the quotes that stood out to me, some of which are well-known:

How little people know who think that holiness is dull. When one meets the real thing (and perhaps, like you, I have met it only once) it is irresistible. If even 10% of the world’s population had it, would not the whole world be converted and happy before a year’s end?

(Concerning someone she had a problem with) I mustn’t encourage you to go on thinking about her: that, after all, is almost the greatest evil nasty people can do us—to become an obsession, to haunt our minds. A brief prayer for them, and then away to other subjects, is the thing, if one can only stick to it.

I suppose the only way with thorns in the flesh (until one can get them out) is not to press on the place where they are embedded; i.e. to stop one’s thoughts (firmly but gently).

Your faith is a support to me as well as to yourself.

Remember one is given strength to bear what happens to one, but not the 100 and 1 different things that might happen.

As for the bug-bear of Old Peoples’ Homes, remember that our ignorance works both ways. Just as some of the things we have longed and hoped for turn out to be dust and ashes when we get them, so the things we have most dreaded sometimes turn out to be quite nice. If you ever do have to go to a Home, Christ will be there just as much as in any other place.

Re some of their health problems:

Not that you and I have now much reason to rejoice in having bodies! Like old automobiles, aren’t they? where all sorts of apparently different things keep going wrong, but what they add up to is the plain fact that the machine is wearing out. Well, it was not meant to last forever. Still, I have a kindly feeling for the old rattle-trap. Through it God showed me that whole side of His beauty which is embodied in colour, sound, smell and size. No doubt it has often led me astray: but not half so often, I suspect, as my soul has led it astray.

Pain is terrible, but surely you need not have fear as well? Can you not see death as the friend and deliverer? It means stripping off that body which is tormenting you: like taking off a hairshirt or getting out of a dungeon. What is there to be afraid of?

Has this world been so kind to you that you should leave it with regret? There are better things ahead than any we leave behind.

Remember, tho’ we struggle against things because we are afraid of them, it is often the other way round—we get afraid because we struggle. Are you struggling, resisting? Don’t you think Our Lord says to you “Peace, child, peace. Relax. Let go. Underneath are the everlasting arms. Let go, I will catch you. Do you trust me so little?”

Of course this may not be the end. Then make it a good rehearsal.

Though I’ve had this book in my Kindle collection for several years, it wasn’t on my radar to read any time soon. But in looking for a particular quote (the one about having better things ahead than behind), I began to read that in context, then read some more, then started at the beginning. Though I read some of these in the last volume of his collected letters, it was good to have all his correspondence to one person put together.

I’m so thankful this lady shared Lewis’ letters with the public. They were an encouragement to me, as I am sure they have been to many others.

(I often link up with some of these bloggers.)

(Updated to add: someone thought this book contained letters written to Joy Davidman, who later became Lewis’ wife. No, these letters are to someone named Mary. I don’t think Lewis knew Joy yet when he first started writing to “Mary.” None of his letters to Joy are in the larger volume of collected letters.)

Review: Life Under the Sun

Posted on by
9

I’ve read and enjoyed several of Hannah Anderson’s books. So when I saw she had written a Bible study titled Life Under the Sun: The Unexpectedly Good News of Ecclesiastes, I put it on my wish list. After I received it, I put it on my literal “to be read” stack, thinking I’d use it the next time I read through Ecclesiastes.

I forgot I had the book until recently when I rediscovered it while looking for something else. As it turned out, my pastor had just started a series on Ecclesiastes. So I decided to go through this Bible study as a companion to the preaching, to reinforce what I was learning on both fronts.

Ecclesiastes is unique in that it seems somewhat cynical on first reading. Solomon, who many feel is the author of the book, uses a word nearly forty times that is translated as meaningless, vanity, or useless. He talks about the frustration of things like working all your life only to end up with nothing or leaving your money and possessions to someone who may not manage them well; finding injustice in the very people who are supposed to promote justice; sometimes it seems like good people suffer calamity while wicked people have it easy; life seems like an endless cycle of the same old thing, and so on.

But that word translated meaningless or vanity is the Hebrew word hevel, which means something more like vapor, smoke, or mist. Solomon speaks of chasing after the wind: you can’t catch it, and if you could, you can’t hold on to it. Life seems like that sometimes–endlessly pursuing but never grasping anything of permanence. Life is also as brief as a mist that disappears, language used elsewhere in the Bible as well.

Ecclesiastes is part of what we call both the wisdom literature of the Bible as well as its poetical books. Rather than straightforwardly telling us what it means, like Paul does in his epistles, the wisdom books use figurative language. Hannah says this “forces us to slow down and consider the truth being presented. And thus, it seeks not only to inform, but to transform” (p. 21).

The study is divided into eight weekly sessions of five days worth of reading in each. The first couple of lessons discuss the author and the nature of Ecclesiastes.

But then the rest of the book is laid out topically, covering wisdom, goodness, work, community, justice, and time “under the sun.” I suppose that makes sense in a study like this, because Solomon doesn’t lay these out in a neat and orderly outline. He seems to scatter them throughout the rest of the book. Hannah says that is due to the chaotic nature of life as represented in Ecclesiastes. But I have also read that Eastern literature is not laid out in a linear fashion like Western literature is: it’s more cyclical. Perhaps both ideas come to bear here.

But I felt like the topical nature of the study had us hopping around all over the place and seemed like we were missing some parts of Ecclesiastes. Our pastor is going through the book section by section, which I prefer.

As a whole, I felt this was a little lightweight compared to other Bible studies I have done. I liked her other books much better. That’s not to say this study was without merit: it’s very good as far as it goes. I did glean some good points throughout, and the topics often did intersect with what my pastor was preaching or what the church’s podcast on Ecclesiastes covered, even though they may all have been in different parts of the book.

I appreciated Hannah’s discussion of reading biblical poetry. She brought out some aspects I had not heard before. Some of the other quotes that stood out to me:

One benefit of studying Ecclesiastes is that it helps us realize our questions need to be refined. Again, it’s easy to come to the Bible demanding answers. It’s much harder to let the Scripture change our questions before answering them. But part of coming to Scripture honestly means letting it rework and restructure the way we think (p. 26).

If God invites us to enter His kingdom like little children, I have to believe He means for us to come with all the curiosity and audacity of a child trying to make sense of her world. And just as we would never shame a child for trying to understand the life she inhabits, so too, our heavenly Father does not shame us when we ask similar questions (p. 26).

What kept David from despair [in Psalm 27:13] was his confidence that he would experience the goodness of the Lord in this life–here, in the land of the living. Here, under the sun. He believed that despite all the difficulties, life still held the promise of goodness because it still held God. So instead of trusting in goodness itself, we should trust in the God of goodness, believing He who made the world good will continue to fill it with His good presence (p. 72).

While God’s work does not depend on us, our work does depend on Him. He has given us good work to do, and we must pursue it in order to find fulfillment (p. 104).

Applying wisdom to relationships often begins with confusion. While proverbs are neat and contained, the problems of life require us to puzzle through them. Wisdom happens in the process (p. 138).

Though we grieve the state of our world, a crooked world holds its own kind of hope because a crooked world hints to the fact that a straight one exists. The fact that we long for life to be other than it is tells us we know it should be something more. The fact that we instinctively know life is not fair confirms we know it should be fair. In fact, this reasoning is what eventually brought Oxford don and author, C. S. Lewis to faith (p. 152).

While Ecclesiastes might seem cynical or pessimistic at first, the book reaches the conclusion to enjoy God’s good gifts in a fallen world, live for Him, obey Him, and trust that He will work everything out in the long run. Or, as Hannah put it:

Ultimately, for the Teacher, the secret to life under the sun was found in remembering what life can and can’t give us. Rest from “hevel” comes from confessing our limits and remembering God’s limitlessness–including remembering our need of His limitless grace and mercy. So that when we run up against our own injustice, pride, and arrogance, we learn to run to Him. Time and time again, in each new season of life, we can run to Him confessing our need and surrendering ourselves to His loving hand (p. 205).

(Sharing with Between the Bookends)

Review: Playlist Theology

Posted on by

Several years ago, in a post I’ve lost track of, a worship leader told of being approached by an older woman at church who felt the musicians should not use drums on the older, traditional hymns. He told her she didn’t have a right to impose her preferences on others.

He didn’t seem to realize that he was imposing his preferences on her.

In similar articles I’ve read since then, that seems to be the running theme–the person with more conservative music standards who voices a concern, is written off as old, out of touch, domineering, or, worst of all, a legalist.

It’s true, a lot of people want to keep things the same way they have always been “just because” that’s what they know and feel comfortable with. But a lot of people are not operating from that point of view. They’ve been taught that certain kinds of music are right and wrong. And whether they’re correct or not, their consciences have been trained in a certain way.

I’ve read that the Bible contains over 500 references to music. But it doesn’t say much about styles. It tells how music can help people emotionally, physically, and spiritually, as it did when young David played for King Saul. But when Joshua and Moses came down from the mountain with the ten commandments in Exodus 32, Joshua thought he heard noise like war in the camp. Moses said, no, it’s not war: it’s singing. Considering the people were involved in idol worship with the golden calf, and the chapter says earlier “the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play,” the sound was likely that of the wrong kind of revelry. So there is an indication of certain kinds of music going with certain kinds of behaviors.

The Bible tells us, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31) and “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world” (1 John 2:15-16). There is a kind of music that appeals to the flesh–not just lyrics, but music. But exactly where are the lines between what’s worldly and what’s not? That takes some discernment. And some of it falls within the Romans 14 areas of differing convictions.

How much of our convictions about music are due to the culture we grew up with, to our consciences, or to the Holy Spirit’s leading? That’s what many of us wrestle with.

I recently came across Ben Everson’s book, Playlist Theology. He’s a “musical evangelist” from a conservative background who has given much thought to these issues. His book explores many of these questions in a careful, thoughtful, gracious way. He has the musical knowledge, experience, and vocabulary to discuss aspects of music in detail. He explores what Scripture says about music and how we can apply it.

I read one review of this book that brushed it off as saying music is amoral. That is not what Ben is saying. But he says certain aspects of music are not good or bad in themselves. The context and amount of their use can determine whether they are being used for good or bad purposes.

For instance, some people have a problem with syncopation. Ben explains what it is and names both classical music and some traditional old hymns that employ it.

Theologically, the mere presence of syncopation can’t be equated with sinfulness any more than dissonance in harmony can. Both are forms of tension that demand resolution. When tension resolves toward meaning, toward beauty, truth or praise, it becomes part of the art’s redemptive arc.

Where the moral question enters is what the tension serves. In worship, syncopation can mirror spiritual joy, spontaneity, or the exuberance of grace. . . In sensual contexts, the same rhythmic techniques can amplify bodily pleasure as an end in itself when all the other elements are bent toward lust (p. 118).

Some have trouble with the “beat” of rock music. All music has a “beat” It’s stronger in some kinds of music than others (like march music or children’s rhythmic songs). But a heavy rhythm can stir sensual feelings. (The main thing that made me throw out my rock albums as a teenager and new Christian was reading quotes from rock musicians themselves saying that their music–not just the words, but the music–was about sex and rebellion.) Ben suggests asking questions like whether the rhythm supports the melody or drives it, “What is this stirring in me? Is it leading my spirit or just exciting my body? Is it enhancing the message or overwhelming it?” (p. 142).

I have multiple quotes marked, but here are a few that stood out to me:

What’s taught in song is often remembered longer than what’s preached in a sermon (p. 34).

While the Bible doesn’t give us a list of forbidden styles, it does give us clear principles: music must glorify God, teach truth, be distinct from the world, stir the Spirit not the flesh, and flow from the heart (p. 36).

The same Bible that gives us freedom also gives us boundaries. The same God who created beauty also hates what distorts it. Discernment doesn’t mean endless openness; it means knowing where the lines actually are so we can hold them with integrity (p. 155).

I’ve realized over time that some of what I was taught about music, especially Christian music, as a young adult may have gone beyond what the Bible actually says. But I also didn’t think that meant “anything goes” now. Ben’s book was a great help to me in learning discernment about where problem areas in music are beyond “I know it when I hear it.”

I realize that for some of you, this whole conversation is totally foreign. You may have grown up with rock music and contemporary Christian music and never had a problem with it. Part of what I wrote at the beginning of this post was to try to help explain why that’s not true for everyone and hopefully encourage a little tenderness and understanding and less judgment on both sides.

____________
(To those who receive these posts via email: the last couple of times I’ve used the “quote” block in my blog posts, the quotes haven’t shown up in the email version. It was suggested to me that it might work better to use shorter quotes. I’ve done that here, so hopefully everything will come through. If it looks like something is missing, I invite you to click through to read the whole post.)

(Sharing with Between the Bookends)

Review: God Moments in My Publishing Life

Posted on by
God Moments in My Publishing Life

At the couple of writer’s conferences I attended, Les Stobbe was considered the wise elder statesman of the faculty. I only met him briefly, with a group, and I didn’t have any workshops with him. So when I saw he had written a book titled God Moments in My Publishing Life: The Making of a Writer and Publisher, I decided to check it out.

Mr. Stobbe was born in the Depression era and helped work on his family’s farm from the age of three. He developed a love for reading at an early age. Then he came upon a course for writers while recovering from an accident. He’s spent 65 years in the publishing industry in a wide variety of places and capacities: selling books, writing articles, curriculum, and books, ghost writing, book acquisition, publishing, mentoring, coaching, and being a literary agent. He’s seen trends come and go and watched as technology changed the industry.

One of the aspects I enjoyed in this part of the book was learning how some of my favorite books came to be. For instance, years ago I enjoyed reading First We Have Coffee by Margaret Jensen, about her experiences growing up as the daughter of a Scandinavian pastor in Canada. Unfortunately, I read it before having a blog, so I don’t have any notes or reviews from my reading. Mr. Stobbe heard her speak at a conference, recognized her as a born storyteller, and asked her afterward if she had any more stories. She said she had a manuscript full of them, and he helped her get them published.

He also shares a few instances of the Christian publishers who “blew it.” One example: Moody Press was encouraged by Warren Wiersbe to pursue a preacher named Chuck Swindoll. Mr. Stobbe got permission to approach Swindoll, who agreed to writing a book for Moody to publish if Moody Radio Network would agree to air his radio program. Moody turned down the offer. Swindoll published his first books with Multnomah Press. He became a prolific writer with many bestsellers.

Some of the middle chapters seem to have been formed by separate essays which were put together here. But they repeat information among themselves and from other parts of the book. He tells how he met his wife and how he began with a writing course after an accident several times. I would have liked to see a developmental editor help shape these into a more coherent whole, or else have these essays clearly labeled as such and perhaps set apart from the other content.

The last several chapters of the book contain advice to writers, and these chapters are gold. I especially appreciated “Communicating Heavenly Ideas in Earthly Terms,” “Integrating Scripture and Life Experience in Writing,” and “Organizing Your Book for Life-Changing Impact.” The last chapter was particularly helpful to me, as I am reading another book on writing specifically for help in that area, and not finding much there. So to stumble across just what I needed in this book was another “God moment” in Stobbe’s work.

I may not agree with every little point of theology in this book, but I was blessed by a long lifetime of evidence of God’s leading. The specifics of each person’s path may differ, but we can trust God will lead us all in the way He would have us go as we trust and follow Him.

Review: The Gospel Comes with a House Key

Posted on by

In Rosaria Butterfield’s book, The Gospel Comes with a House Key, she advocates for “radically ordinary hospitality.”

For a bit of background, her first book, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, tells how she, as an atheist, leftist, feminist, lesbian professor who hated Christians, ended up becoming one. A major tool in her conversion was a pastor who contacted her and invited her to dinner with him and his wife. They didn’t attack her or argue with her–they just discussed their mutual views. She spent two years meeting with them and studying Scripture before setting foot in a church. God slowly transformed her thinking and then her life.

Also, hospitality was a big part of the LGBTQ+ community she had been a part of. Many lost family and friends when they “came out” as gay, and they became family for each other. She saw how hospitality can build bridges and bind people together in the Christian community as well.

She defines “radically ordinary hospitality” as “using your Christian home in a daily way that seeks to make strangers neighbors, and neighbors family of God. It brings glory to God, serves others, and lives out the gospel in word and deed” (p. 30).

“Ordinary hospitality is the hands and feet of Jesus, and it holds people together with letters to prison or hugs. Hospitality reaches across worldview to be the bridge of gospel grace” (p. 208).

The author combines memoir with instruction. She makes several good points, among them:

  • “Those who live out radically ordinary hospitality see their homes not as theirs at all but as God’s gift to use for the furtherance of his kingdom” (p. 11).
  • “The truly hospitable aren’t embarrassed to keep friendships with people who are different. They don’t buy the world’s bunk about this. They know that there is a difference between acceptance and approval, and they courageously accept and respect people who think differently from them. They don’t worry that others will misinterpret their friendship. Jesus dined with sinners, but he didn’t sin with sinners. Jesus lived in the world, but he didn’t live like the world” (p. 13).
  • “Where else but a Christian home should neighbors go in times of unprecedented crisis? Where else is it safe to be vulnerable, scared, lost, hopeless?” (p. 19).
  • “Radically ordinary hospitality is this: using your Christian home in a daily way that seeks to make strangers neighbors, and neighbors family of God. It brings glory to God, serves others, and lives out the gospel in word and deed” (p. 30).
  • “The Christian home is the place where we bring the church to the people as we seek to lock arms together” (p. 32).
  • “Christian hospitality cares for the things that our neighbors care about. Esteeming others more highly than ourselves means nothing less. It means starting where you are and looking around for who needs you. It means communicating Christian love in word and deed. It means making yourself trustworthy enough to bear burdens of real life and real problems” (p. 166).
  • “Hospitality shares what there is; that’s all. It’s not entertainment. It’s not supposed to be” (p. 216).

Rosaria shares many examples mainly from her own family, but also from others. One story woven throughout the book is that of a reclusive neighbor named Hank. It took months of friendly overtures, short encounters, and befriending his dog before he opened up to their family to any degree. And then he was arrested for operating a meth lab in the basement of his house. The Butterfields continued to pray for him, write to him, send books as allowed by the prison, and send pictures colored by the children.

One area of hospitality I hadn’t considered was how befriending such people might tarnish one’s own reputation. When Hank was arrested, some of the neighbors assumed the Butterfields had to have known what he was up to (they didn’t). As mentioned above, Jesus was known as the “friend of sinners” and scandalized the Pharisees by eating with them.

Another topic I had never connected with hospitality was the area of church discipline. She tells of a season in their church when two men were outed for committing grievous sexual sin. One repented, the other did not. When someone persists in unrepented sin, fellowship with them has to be broken–but the point is not to ostracize them, but to bring them to repentance and reconciliation.

We’ve known of situations in other churches where a man has preyed on a woman he was not married to or on a teen. When the situation came to light, it was hushed up lest there be a scandal, and the victim was urged to forgive. But no counsel or comfort was given to the victim. Plus there was no thought of future victims if men like this were not dealt with. It’s much more scandalous to avoid dealing with sin like this rather than to handle it in a biblical way.

Back to Rosaria’s book: there was much to convict me. This is an area where I have failed many times over.

However, there were also aspects of the book I disagreed with. The Butterfields have neighbors and others in their home most nights of the week–in fact, she said it’s unusual to have dinner with just their family. That’s fine if that is how the Lord has led them, but there’s nothing in the Bible that says every dinner needs to include guests. There are times you need to be with just your family to minister to them.

Plus, all her examples seem to be really big. In sharing examples of other people’s hospitality, she mentioned one woman who liked crafts, so she invited some neighbors over to work on projects while they memorized Scripture. She ended up with fifteen ladies coming regularly. Again, that’s fine–in fact, that’s wonderful. But hospitality doesn’t always have to be a big group. It can involve one other person. In fact, some people are less likely to open up in a group setting.

She says her home looks on the outside like a “Christian commune. And we do not believe that this is excessive. We believe this is what the Bible calls normal” (p. 34). I disagree. There was a time in the early church when “all who believed were together and had all things in common” (Acts 2:44), but this is descriptive, not prescriptive. It’s the only place something like this is mentioned. The Bible tells us to welcome the stranger and exercise hospitality, and to be open-hearted and open-handed with each other, but it doesn’t tell us to run communes.

She says things like being a barista and having an Air B&B are “counterfeit hospitality,” but she doesn’t explain why she thinks that.–maybe because people are being paid for those services? I don’t know baristas–I’m happy with my instant Taster’s Choice decaf at home–but a waiter or waitress can either be hospitable or detached as they serve. I think being kind and welcoming in one’s job counts as being hospitable even if one is getting paid.

Some of her statements border on arrogance, like this one: “If Mary Magdalene had written a book about hospitality for this post-Christian world, it would read like this one” (p. 14).

And, her tone comes across so strong sometimes that it’s off-putting.

However I think she does have some important things to say about exercising hospitality. As I said, I was convicted many times over. I loved some of her summations:

Imagine a world where neighbors said that Christians throw the best parties in town and are the go-to people for big problems and issues, without being invited.

Imagine if the children in the neighborhood knew that the Christians were safe people to ask for help . . .

Imagine a world where every Christian knew his neighbors sufficiently to be of earthly and spiritual good (pp. 218-219).

(I often link up with some of these bloggers.)

Review: Rebel With a Cause

Posted on by
Rebel with a Cause

Franklin Graham’s autobiography, Rebel With a Cause, was not on my radar. However, someone gave it to me. I don’t always pray about what book to read next, but when I did a few weeks ago, I couldn’t get this book off my mind.

Franklin Graham is the son of well-known evangelist Billy Graham. In his earliest days, Franklin didn’t have a clear picture of what his father did. He just knew he was gone much of the time. He was quite a handful as a child. I enjoyed some of his mother’s creative and unconventional ways of dealing with him.

Franklin loved where his family lived in NC, motorcycles or almost anything with an engine, guns, and fun, even if it got him into trouble. And it frequently did.

In his first or second year of college, he went on a trip to help two single female missionaries–not for any spiritual reasons, but for a chance to go to a foreign country. He saw their work and simple trust in God and wanted to help more. He began to organize supplies for them, little realizing that this would eventually lead to his life’s work.

Franklin writes of the different male figures in his life who influenced him, mostly for good, in his father’s absence. One day, everything came together to convince him and help him be willing to surrender his life to God.

By his own admission, he was never much of a student. But he finally got serious about his studies and finished college whole married to his wife, Jane Austin.

I had thought that he began Samaritan’s Purse, but, actually, a man named Bill Pierce did. Franklin went on many mission trips with Bill. When Bill knew he was dying of cancer, he talked to Franklin about taking over SP when he was gone. After thinking and praying much, and waiting for the SP board to come to the same conclusion, Franklin agreed.

The SP website states, “Samaritan’s Purse is a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world. Since 1970, Samaritan’s Purse has helped meet needs of people who are victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine with the purpose of sharing God’s love through His Son, Jesus Christ. The organization serves the Church worldwide to promote the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

I appreciated that, whenever they heard of a need, Franklin, or, later, one of his team would go investigate the situation first. They’d try to discern exactly what the need was, whether and how they could help, and who could facilitate the efforts there. They made it clear that they would share Christ while there, and most of the time that was not a problem.

Franklin shares story after story of horrific needs and miraculous supply of both provisions and people to help. My heart was touched by those here and in various countries who stepped in to meet needs.

In later years, Franklin felt he might be called to be an evangelist. But he knew he was where God wanted him at SP. He didn’t want to be compared to his father or look like he was following in his footsteps. Then others began to tell him they thought he was called to be an evangelist as well. Finally one evangelist convinced Franklin to come along with him and help with his meetings. Franklin did, and then began to preach at meetings himself. He concluded that Jesus preached as well as helped people with their physical needs, so Franklin did not have to choose one or the other.

This book was published in 1997 when both his parents were still alive. They contributed a few words at the end.

He doesn’t say anything about Operation Christmas Child in this book. I assume that was started after this book was written. I just saw there is a separate book about that ministry.

While I wouldn’t endorse everything written or all the people and organizations Franklin and his ministry associated with, I was blessed by how God worked in and through him.

Review: Mercy Mild

Posted on by

Mercy Mild: A 25-Day Christmas Devotional Tracing Christ’s Love from Eden to Eternity by Josh Taylor is a 25-day Advent devotional book leading up to Christmas. Though the author discusses some of the usual Christmas passages and topics, he expands his focus to show that Christ is foretold and pictured in Scripture long before the gospels tell of His birth. And His coming shapes what is taught in the rest of the Bible.

Taylor starts in Genesis, moves to Abraham and the tower of Babel, David, Solomon, the kings, the gospels, the epistles, and Revelation.

Each chapter ends with a prayer, reflection questions, and possible conversation starters from the chapter to spark a spiritual conversation with unbelievers.

I have a multitude of quotes marked in this book. Here are a few:

Your worth isn’t earned. Scripture speaks honestly about our condition—sinners by nature, hostile to God. And yet God’s love reaches across the divide, not because we deserved it, but because love is who He is (p. 3).

How often do we miss God because He shows up differently than we expect? We look for raw power, and He gives us willing sacrifice. We seek a warrior-king, and He sends a servant. We expect a throne, and we get a manger (p. 24).

It’s fascinating how the word “worship” breaks down—“worth-ship.” It’s not about what we get; it’s about declaring what God is worth (p. 49).

God’s writing poetry with geography. The town where David started his search for a place to house God’s presence is exactly where God chose to show up in person (p. 51).

Sometimes the biggest act of courage isn’t doing more; it’s standing still and remembering who God is (p. 56).

This promise didn’t depend on Ahaz’s faith, didn’t need his permission. God was writing a story bigger than one king’s fears or failures (p. 58).

Peace isn’t just about ending wars; it’s about healing what starts them—pride, fear, broken relationships, sin. That’s why surface solutions never last; we need peace that goes soul-deep (p. 67).

He takes our deepest wounds, our darkest chapters, and writes redemption right through them (p. 92).

Sometimes the biggest moments in God’s plan don’t look big at all. Just one person, being faithful, speaking words that heaven whispered first (p. 98).

God didn’t send Jesus because He was lonely or incomplete. He came because that’s what love does—it gives itself away, draws near (p. 104).

A mother’s heart shatters as heaven’s plan unfolds through her Son’s broken body. Being chosen, being blessed—it didn’t spare Mary from this moment. It led her straight to it (p. 131).

The same God who spoke light into existence now arrives as a baby, bringing a different kind of brightness. Not the kind that hurts your eyes, but the kind that helps you see everything more clearly. The kind that shows you the way home (p. 169). 

Yet here we are, still acting sometimes like we don’t have a home. Still trying to earn what’s already ours. Still carrying ourselves like orphans when we’re children of the King (p. 168).

I enjoyed this book quite a lot. A couple of passages sparked blog posts. I’m sure I’ll visit this book again in the future. 

Review: The Characters of Christmas

Posted on by
Characters of Christmas

In The Characters of Christmas: The Unlikely People Caught Up in the Story of Jesus, Daniel Darling takes a fresh look at Joseph, Zechariah, Elizabeth, Herod, the innkeeper, and others involved in the first Christmas. He writes, “We should become familiar with them not because their lives are the point of the story, but because their lives, like our own, point ultimately to the one character whose birth changed the world: Jesus Christ” (p. 11). “Reading about this supporting cast allows us to get a closer look at the One who is worthy of our worship” (p. 169).

Most of them were “wonderfully ordinary” (p. 13), encouraging us that God often uses everyday folks.

The author weaves together what the Bible says about these people as well as what is known from the customs of the day and gives us a credible view of the first Christmas from their point of view.

Some of the quotes that stood out to me:

Zechariah was a common name in those days. There are even multiple Zechariahs in the Bible. But it is not a coincidence that the first words from God to His people in four hundred years would come to someone whose name means “the Lord has remembered” (p. 33).

A priest, who often spoke words of blessing on God’s people, would be silenced and would emerge with a renewed faith in the possibility of God’s promise. Sometimes God has to quiet us so we can hear Him. Sometimes we have to be still so we can see Him move. Sometimes our words and our busyness get in the way of our faith (p. 41).

The couple who suddenly showed up at his door was a disruption, an inconvenience, a problem he didn’t plan for. This is, by the way, how God often enters our lives (p. 86).

A temptation for us, this Christmas, is to simply get full of “the feels,” the warm sentimentality of this season, and miss the good news at the heart of the holiday: Christ has come into the world to save you and to save me (p. 100).

If Jesus is the true King, if He is indeed the fulfillment of the covenant promises to Israel, if He is the Light of the world who saves people from their sins, then isn’t He worthy of our whole selves, body and soul? (p. 114).

Each chapter ends with study reflections and a suggested Christmas song.

I appreciated the fact that the book was only eleven chapters rather than being a 25- or 31-day Advent schedule. Fewer chapters made it easier to work in amid Sunday School and Bible study reading throughout the month.

I enjoyed this book a lot. Even though I was familiar with most of what was written, it was done in a way that helped me look at the Christmas story anew. I’m sure I’ll use this book again for future Advent reading.

Review: The Man Behind the Patch: Ron Hamilton

Posted on by

Ron Hamilton and his alter ego, Patch the Pirate, are household names in some places but unknown in others. I wrote something of a tribute to him a couple of years ago after he passed away. His wife wife, Shelly, wrote a biography of him, published last year, titled The Man Behind the Patch: Ron Hamilton.

I first knew of Ron in college. He and Shelly were newly married and GAs (graduate assistants) during my freshman year. They were always active in music both on campus and at the church they attended, which I visited occasionally.

I remember when Rob debuted some new songs he had written at college. “It Is Finished” was inspired by a teacher pointing out that when Christ said “It is finished” from the cross, it was a victory cry. The other two were “Come to the Cross” and “The Blood of Jesus.” I had not known that these songs were part of his requirements to graduate in his major. It’s interesting that these songs continued to be well-known and well-loved all through his career.

I remember when Ron was diagnosed with cancer in his eye. When they did surgery, he wouldn’t know until he woke up whether they had to remove the eye or not. They did. Sometime after his recovery, he gathered together all the notes and verses people had sent him and wrote what became his signature song, “Rejoice in the Lord.”

As Ron wore his eye patch, kids in his church began calling him “Patch the Pirate.” He had written music for adults but then decided to write some for kids as well. He put together a story line with interesting character voices for a children’s recording. Kids loved it, and parents soon begged for more because they were tired of listening to the same album over and over. Thus a children’s ministry was born. A Patch the Pirate adventure has been released every year since then, over forty all together.

He continued to write music for adults and choirs, cantatas, books of music arrangements for his songs. He wrote the words, various people wrote the music, and Shelly arranged them.

One of the trials of their life was when their oldest son developed a mental illness over several years, ending with the taking of his own life. Shelly told his story in Always, Only Good: A Journey of Faith Trough Mental Illness.

Another severe trial came when Ron was diagnosed with early onset dementia. He passed away at his home in 2023.

Shelly tells Ron’s story in three sections, Becoming Patch the Pirate, Life with Patch the Pirate, and Patch’s Long Journey Home. She begins with his early childhood in Indiana, to attending college, meeting and dating Shelly, their marriage and children. Then Ron’s eye surgery and budding career. They took over and managed the music company her dad began, Majesty Music.

Many of the middle chapters are something of a travelogue, along with which recordings came out when, sprinkled with anecdotes. The whole family traveled to churches doing “Patch” concerts until the family grew too big. Ron traveled alone for a while, eventually cutting back to traveling just a bit while becoming the music pastor of a local church.

Shelly was warned that biographies of men by their wives often become hagiography, idealizing the husband. Shelly attempts to show all sides of Ron. He wasn’t perfect–no one is. He was a prankster, and some of his pranks backfired badly.

A couple of other interesting facts I had not known: Ron had a deviated septum, which gave his voice a slight nasal quality. He didn’t know if surgery would change his voice for better or worse, so he decided to leave well enough alone.

Also, he considered doing doctoral work in music at another school and was accepted, but he was told his music would need to be more academic. He considered the offer, but decided to decline. He wanted to “put the cookies on the lowest shelf”–make them accessible to everyone. Shelly wrote later that Ron “chose to compose biblical texts that united with simple, memorable melodies for everyday life and everyday struggles (p. 368).

Ron wrote about 700 songs. Some for children were fun, like “I Love Broccoli” and “The Poochie Lip Disease.” Others focused on character. All of his songs for children and adults were biblically based. I shared some of my favorites in my earlier post about him.

By all accounts, Ron was a humble man. When Shelly once mentioned how many lives he had touched, he said, “I’d like to think God did it.”

This book was nostalgic for me in many ways. I didn’t know Ron and Shelly personally, though I had met them each a couple of times. But since I was in school a few years behind them and lived in the same town for over fourteen years, I was acquainted with their ministry. Then my kids grew up on “Patch the Pirate” tapes, especially in the car and at bedtime. We listened to many of Ron’s albums for adults over the years and sang some of his music in choir. Finally, I followed Shelly’s public Facebook page the last years of Ron’s illness.

I think this book would be especially interesting to anyone familiar with Ron or Patch. But even for those who don’t know him, this is an inspiring account of a humble servant of God using his talents for His glory.