Radical (dare to be different)

RADICAL: A Book REVIEW

Because “Christian Books Change Lives!”

     How often do you see the word, “radical” used in the context of Christianity?  Not very often in modern day America.  Most people who have read the book of Acts would recognize this word, but at least in the churches that I have grown up in and visited, “business as usual” is a better description.  It seems that once we have been saved by a belief in the life changing blood of Jesus Christ, an event that is radical in every sense of the word, we are somehow lulled or maybe I should say content, to just sit back and observe.

     Now to be fair, there are those churches and people out there who are making things happen.  One such person is an evangelist in my church named  G.M.  He and his wife and a group from our church have just returned from a missions trip to Africa and report observing hundreds give  their lives to Jesus during a several weeks campaign.  Yes, they are experiencing “radical”.  But most of us, myself included are living a rather mundane existence.  Jesus is a part of our lives, but only a small part and life pretty much just goes on as usual.

     How many of you reading  this review ever wonder, is this how the Christian life is supposed to be?  I didn’t much, at least lately, until I read Radical by David Platt.  This book is available at www.InHisHonor.org.   David is the senior minister of a church in Birmingham, Alabama.  Reading this book is like reading a modern day book of Acts. 

     David begins his book by making a rather bold statement.  He says, and I am paraphrasing here:  I realized one day that I was trying to build a mega-church that had thousands of followers and my role model was a man who spent his entire earthly ministry driving people away.  Now this is the very first time that I have heard a minister question the possibility that maybe numbers are not that important!  Like you do probably, I watch preachers on TV and at least  some of them pan the camera around their facility and you see lots and lots of people.  In Christianity these days, it seems pretty accepted that bigger is better.  I see no reason to point fingers at this point and name names.  We all know what I am talking about and no one ministry is any better than any other.  And we just assume that each ministry is trying to glorify God.  But what are we getting for our money?

     David says, “Nothing!”  And he is too close to right to be comfortable.  Where are the miracles that we see in the book of Acts?  Where is the hunger for God, for His Holy Spirit, for His Word that we see in the book of Acts?  Where is the burning desire in the hearts and actions of ordinary Christians like you and life me to make a difference in our world?  Where is the sacrifice?  We aren’t called to make a spectacle of ourselves and call attention to our sufferings or our giving, but where, oh where, is the difference that we are called to be?  Are we the salt and light that Jesus mentioned in the Gospels?  The salt that has lost its savor is fit only to be trampled underfoot, Jesus said.  That only too well describes my saltiness.

     Radical will do one of two things in your life.  When you read this book, you will experience a hunger that you have not felt in a while.  You will feel your heart stirred as you read the words that David penned.  And then one of two things will happen.  You will either get off your butt and begin to seek God and seek opportunities to see His movings or you will fall back into your complacency.  And it will be very hard to find a middle ground between the two.  Radical will challenge you, probably like you have never been challenged before, but then you have to decide:  do I want to continue to be “radical” or am I willing to settle for ordinary?

     Radical is a message for you, Christian of today and it is a message that you need to take heed to.  But how will you take action unless you receive.  And how will you receive unless you hear it first.  And how will you hear it first unless you have access to it.  You will find Radical by David Platt at www.InHisHonor.org.  Find it today and let your heart be stirred as you read that Jesus, the mighty earth-shattering Jesus of the Gospels is alive and well.  He is just waiting for you to take Him at His Word.

UNLOCKED

A book review about Autism: because “Christian Books Change Lives!”

     One of the most difficult of childhood behaviors about which parents must cope, must be autism.  When a child has autism, at least in its most common forms, he/she is literally confined inside behaviors which appear to be anti-social.  The child usually does not respond, at least not in common ways to stimuli such as touch and talk.  It appears as though the child is ignoring you.  Not only coping with this behavior, but managing to maintain a positive perspective and outlook requires in some cases extreme optimism, or a belief in miracles.  This book, "Unlocked" is about such an individual.  You will find “Unlocked” by Karen Kingsbury at www.InHisHonor.org.

     Karen Kingsbury shows a remarkable ability to get inside the heads of the characters about which she writes.  In this book, “Unlocked” she writes about a young man in high school by the name of Holden.  Holden, in typical autistic fashion is very withdrawn and functions in fact in his own little world.  His autism is thought by his family to have been caused by an incident which happened when he was a child.  He apparently lived a normal life until this event, as evidenced by the fact that he was best friends as a child with Ella, a neighbor .  Ella is now a very popular cheerleader attending the same high school as Holden and a thoughtful, committed Christian.

     One day, Ella discovers Holden being mocked and abused by a group of high schoolers.  She determines to befriend Holden and only after making this decision, realizes that Holden and she were friends as children.  Nevertheless, she is determined to reach inside Holden and discover, or re-discover, exactly what will make Holden come out of his shell.  Ella is the star of the varsity play being performed by the drama department.  The drama teacher is determined that this play will be long remembered as the highlight of his teaching career.  He is very demanding and has no time for someone such as Holden.

    Quite by happenstance, Holden one day hears some of the music being performed for this play and stops to listen on his way to class.  The drama teacher notices Holden and in a manner quite characteristic of all of us, shoos him away.  The teacher never even dreams that Holden could act in such a play and simply does not want to be bothered.  I found so much of human nature in this book, it was painful.  I thought to myself, how many times have I walked by someone with whom I should have interacted, only to be scared off with the problems involved in how to interact with them.  We have all been there.  Think of some person you know who is mentally retarded, shy, emotionally disturbed, and yes, autistic.  Most of us hurry on our way, much like the priest and the Levite in the story of the Good Samaritan.

     Ella does not.  She decides to try to reach out to Holden.  She notices rather early that Holden loves music.  He used to sing songs to her all the time when they were childhood friends.  Holden has never forgotten how to sing.  His ability is cloaked, but not to Ella.  She convinces the very straightforward and impatient drama teacher that Holden should be allowed to try out not only for the play, but for the leading male role in the play, which requires considerable singing.  Slowly, the drama teacher and Ella, with infinite patience, are able to convince Holden to try and then to succeed, in this leading, singing male role.

     What makes this book stand out and also makes it eminently worth reading is that this book celebrates the little person in life.  Holden was never destined to be President, nor a Supreme Court Justice.  He would never write well known books.  He was not a star athlete.  Holden is Everyman/Everyboy who is not special.  Not only is Holden not special, he is handicapped and therefore destined to be pitied, and of course shunned by the mainstream.  But one person recognized the human being in Holden, one high school girl of faith and when she determined with God’s help to befriend Holden, the results were miraculous.  Karen Kingsbury once again has done a superb job of making human characteristics come to life.  www.InHisHonor.org is proud to feature authors like Karen Kingsbury.

     Holden came out of his shell, learned the lead male role in a major play and began the difficult process of an autistic individual of re-integrating into society.  What a treasure Karen Kingsbury has created!  If like me, you treasure the works of God to rehabilitate humans with a spark of the divine, you will marvel as you read.

     In a personal note, I grew up with three mentally handicapped brothers.  Although I was far from unselfish, I learned to treasure my brothers for who they were and to acknowledge that God holds a special place in His heart for those whom He has so equipped.  I related very powerfully to the story of Holden in “Unlocked” because I saw many of the  same characteristics in my brothers, although they didn’t ultimately have the same potential as Holden.

     At www.InHisHonor.org, we have an entire library of books, fiction and non-fiction, which admirably tell the story of God’s love, as related in books like “Unlocked”.  I would encourage you to browse our website at your earliest convenience.  We all need encouragement.  We can all find it at www.InHisHonor.org, where “Christian Books Change Lives.”  See you soon!

The Atonement Child by Francine Rivers

The Atonement Child   Can Be Found at www.InHisHonor.org

This novel, by popular author Francine Rives, features a likable young woman named Dynah.  She could be anybody’s daughter, pursuing an education at a Christian college far from home.  By choice, she attended  a college in the suburban Chicago area, having moved there from her parents’ home in California.  We can all identify with the desire to establish our own life.

On the way home one evening, back to her dorm on the college campus, Dynah is raped and as a result becomes pregnant.  One of the hardest things to read in this book is to read how easily her fiancée, a committed young man who was studying for the ministry, encouraged her to have an abortion.  To him, the baby was a monster, conceived in violence and tragedy and therefore, not a living human being with a spirit and a soul.

Dynah struggled throughout the book with the lack of support, from first her fiancée, then the Dean of the college, and finally, her parents and well-meaning friends.  She wavered on the edge of having an abortion, despite her upbringing, and with the active encouragement of her parents.  She went so far as to visit an abortion clinic and after counseling, fled in panic as God’s Spirit dealt with her in compassion and entreaty.  However, in the end, she decided against having the abortion, even as she struggled with the practical matters such as how to support a child.  Of course, of no little concern was how she would be viewed in her church circles, as someone who was tainted.  Not a few would view her as having had illicit sex with her fiancé or some other sordid happening.

How do you deal with problems when confronted with a difficult personal issue?  I found this book altogether so believable in terms of how individuals react in crisis.  Although I have never been pregnant and thus cannot even begin to feel what it is like to have another life in my body, I watched with fascination as Dynah struggled with various ideas.  She wondered to herself throughout the book, “how do I feel about this baby, this thing growing in my body?”  Is this baby, the product of violent rape, is this baby a real human being?  Should I keep this baby or is it OK to have this violence aborted from my body?  How could I possibly love this baby that was forced on me?  On and on the questions come.

What Dynah does not know, having never been told, is that her mother and grandmother struggled with the same issues.  Her mother actually had an abortion and later married another man.  She thought that this issue had been dealt with long ago, only to find out that new resentment and feelings of unworthiness surfaced as she heard about her daughter’s rape.  Talk about the curse that crosses generations!  Dynah’s mother struggled anew with her own decision to have an abortion before Dynah was born, a sibling that Dynah never knew.   Dynah’s fiancée, thankfully, mercifully disappears early on.  I personally was ashamed of the entire male species, based on his behavior.  In his place, his roommate, a redeemed former gang member named Joe, takes an interest in Dynah.

Dynah left her Christian college in shame and moved back home.  I could not help but cringe as throughout the book those who should  have been her strongest supporters, instead became her detractors.  It made me wonder exactly what many of those who face this choice of aborting a baby today go through.  This book, more than almost any other book I have read, including the very first book I reviewed, entitled “unplanned,” brought home to me the very real heartbreak faced by those women who meet rape and abortion, and perhaps both together, face to face.  You see, it is true.  Christian books do change lives!  Christian books are not a substitute for the Bible, but they are a great resource for thinking Christians who want to explore the great issues of this age.

The author made this novel invaluable and quite believable by giving us a glimpse inside the abortion clinic that Dynah visited.  We see the turmoil going on in the doctor who performs the abortions and why he made his decision to do so.  We see the hard-hearted attitude of the clinic director who sees only the great profit available in performing abortions and not the great tragedy that lies behind.  In short, we see all sides of this great pressing social and spiritual issue of our time.  The question of abortion has not been satisfactorily resolved yet and perhaps never will be.  The Christian who studies, believes and faithfully reads the Bible as the Word of God will recognize, or course, that abortion is wrong.  There is somewhat legitimate concern that the child of rape could be tainted.  But in this novel, as in real life, God values human life and honors those who do the same.

This book, “The Atonement Child” by Francine Rivers is available at www.InHisHonor.org.  Christian Books do indeed change lives.  Read this book today for a fresh and vivid look at this pressing current social and spiritual issue: when and where, if ever, should abortion be a valid consideration in the life of a Christian woman?

An Educated Citizenry

         “An educated citizenry, not the right to bear arms, is the worst kind of threat to tyrants, dictators and repressive governments everywhere.”  Who said that?  The answer will be stated farther along in this article. J

      This Fourth of July, why not celebrate by ordering one or more of these excellent books for your family?  If it is true that an educated citizenry makes tyrants tremble, what are we doing to educate ourselves and our families about our godly heritage as  a nation?

      How many believers have bought into the notion that the United States is not founded upon religious principles?  Were there or were there not a group of men who by and large acknowledged the presence and purposeful acts of an omnipotent God?  It is popular today to suppose that the United States just happened.  Was there  no move to escape religious persecution :  were there no entreaties to God for protection, for healing and for safety?  What do you think, Mister and Mrs. Educated Amerian? Was it a  happenstance that believers  set sail into hostile seas, endured a month- longs journey and discovered a sparsely inhabited land teeming with resources? Was it happenstance that the United States was formed at this time in history and endured such internal struggles as the Civil War, the entire question of the morality of slavery, the terror of the Indian massacres of the early 19^th century and hundreds of other less publicized, localized problems?

      Not so long ago, our religious heritage was taught openly and none doubted.  However these days, for example you will no longer find a copy of the Mayflower Compact, a very important document penned even earlier than the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.  So how will you educate yourself and find out about all these resources that are available?   Look no further than www.InsHisHonor.org, a Christian online bookstore specializing in the biblical heritage of early America.

    The first item I would like to recommend is “America’s Godly Heritage” by David Barton.  This DVD explains how prominent religious teaching was in the American school system prior to 1963.  What happened in 1963?  If you are not sure, get the DVD.  It will give you much to think about.  Barton also authored a book entitled, “Four Centuries of American Education,” available as well on www.InHisHonor.org.   He wrote a book about Ben Franklin, a quirky man about whom many have argued as to his religious background.  Did you know that it was Franklin who suggested that the Continental Congress pray prior to a very important decision?  A CD –ROM by David Barton contains six early books penned by John Jay, a prominent early jurist and Supreme Court Justice.  Barton is a very prolific writer, but I would like to conclude this comment  on his works by noting “Original Intent: The Courts, the Constitution and Religion”.  This scholarly yet easy read references actual court cases and includes a copy of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence in the back of the book.  Don’t leave David Barton out of your library! 

Did I mention that you can purchase a copy of the New England Primer, the first textbook printed in the United States and one that was used into the early 20^th century?  A fascinating and relatively short paperback, this primer taught many of the Founding Fathers and their children. It is full of the wisdom gleaned from the Scriptures and yet was used as a public school textbook!  What did its users know that we have perhaps forgotten?

Have you ever heard of “From Sea to Shining Sea”?  This book is the second in a series by Peter Marshall, son of the famed U.S. Senate Chaplain, the Reverend Peter Marshall.  Peter Marshall(the son) is deceased but his books live on: they include the “The Light and the Glory” and “Sounding Fourth the Trumpet” the third in the series.  I was first introduced to the documented fact that the terrible Indian massacres of the early years of the United States were actively suppressed during times of great spiritual stirring.  It seems that when early settlers turned to God, He gave them years of peace, even in the midst of hostile tribes, and when they forgot God, terrible things happened.  That historical and documented occurrence ought to give us great pause as we contemplate the spiritual temperature of the United States today.  Yes, you will find these three books at www.InHisHonor.org.  Yes, it is true that Christian books change lives.

What other influential and life changing books might you find in our online Christian bookstore?  Why don’t you come see for yourself?  We are as close as your computer.  These days, we may be as close as your smartphone.  I have accessed the bookstore myself many times on my HTC G2 from T-Mobile.  With pinch to zoom features, I can easily read and even order on my smartphone.  But the point is, these resources are easily available.  If you live close to a public library, you may have access to computers there.   Www.InHisHonor.org is widely available and has many books, CDs and DVDs that will meet  your literary needs.

The quote at the beginning of this blog about educated citizenry: I made it up.  I believe I combined several quotes.  Does anybody recognize where it came from?  I would like to know myself!

The Romance Disguised

The Romance

(found at www.InHisHonor.org)

Dan was in love.  Since grade school, or what passed for grade school in those days, he had known that he would marry Christina someday.  Each day at recess, they spent the brief time talking, sharing their day.  Many times during the school day, one or the other would look up only to catch the other gazing in their direction.  It was as though they were destined to be each other’s soul mate.

The days became weeks and the weeks, months.  Months passed and then years.  Dan admired his father and wanted to follow in his footsteps.  His father enjoyed working with his hands.   He was known far and wide as a master craftsman.  “If you want furniture that makes a statement, but will not wear out, you want (Dan’s father) to make it for you,” they said.  Dan was usually within earshot of these remarks and the decision of what to become when he grew up was easy.  What man doesn’t seek such a role model and what better role model than the man from whom you have life?

Christina grew up in a traditional home also.  As a young girl she watched her mother raise her younger siblings and how natural her mother seemed!  Deep within her heart she longed to hold a little one of her own as she watched her mother and that longing grew until she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is what she desired in life.  Because she was raised in a godly and moral family, Christina knew that she would one day be a mother, but she also knew that she must follow the accepted practice.  We once knew this as a quaint rhyme:  “First comes loves, than comes marriage, then comes  Baby and a baby carriage.”  A godly young woman, it never occurred to Christina to question, nor divert from this progression.

Does this sound like any book you have ever read?  Two young people who grow up together as children, and grow together as teenagers?  Somehow the story seems a little familiar.  Maybe you read it somewhere before and it’s been a while.  This story is available in www.InHisHonor.org, a Christian bookstore available online.  Remember, “Christian books change lives” and this Christian story has changed countless lives since it occurred.

Now our story takes a strange, yet familiar turn.  Remember, Dan and Christina grew up assuming that they would one day marry and raise children. That was just the natural progression in families and certainly their environment was natural in every way.  But, one day Christina comes to Dan with a very sobering and sad story.  She is pregnant.  Keep in mind that they were living in a time that this just did not happen.  Families traditionally chose their son’s and daughter’s mate and then in their mid to late teens, the engagement was announced.  Now Christina is throwing a monkey wrench literally in the spokes of this tradition.  If she is pregnant, who is the guy?  Why in the world would she sleep with somebody, knowing that she was to be engaged to Dan?  And why is Christina engaging (pardon the pun) in this unexpected behavior anyway, since she was a very chaste and moral young woman? This whole turn of events was already bizarre enough, when she dropped a bombshell.  If you have been following this story closely, can you identify who Dan and Christina are?  Remember, this story is found in the Bible and it is a very familiar story, you just don’t know the two main characters as Dan and Christina.

God is in the business of changing lives.  His Word, the Holy Bible declares, “Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.”  He also states that “all Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for doctrine (that which is right teaching), for instruction (how to do what God desires), for correction (kind of like a spanking, except God is the administrator) and for training in righteousness.”  Those two verses are found in Psalms and II Timothy respectively.  They are part of the reason why www.InHisHonor.org has taken the motto, “Christian Books Change Lives.”  We take our mission seriously and we believe that one reason to offer this bookstore to the public is to change lives.

Back to our story for a moment: who are Dan and Christina? What is the bombshell that Christina dropped on Dan, right after she told him she was pregnant? Well, if I told you one of the answers, I would probably give away the second answer and as Paul Harvey liked to say, “and that’s the rest of the story!”   Have you ever been watching a riveting drama on TV and just when you were on the edge of your seat, you saw the words rolling across the screen…..”to be Continued?”  One of the many reasons I’m not a big fan of TV, they love to leave you hanging.  And I am going to be guilty of the same.

We will find out the rest of the story in Dan and Christina: Part II.    Until next time, or as Elmer Fudd (don’t you just love that silly wabbit?), would say,  “Th..th..th..thats, all f..f…f…folks!”  Stay tuned to this blog about the many engaging books you will find at www.InHisHonor.org.