While slightly difficult to read - and probably not best for readers under 12 - this book is a short biography of John and Betty Stam. It begins with an introduction to the history of missions in China and ends with the legacy their lives left behind. This book is a brief 128 pages, but filled with their short and impacting testimony of God's goodness and faithfulness in all things.
I was significantly blessed by their continuing trust in God in all things - small and large. Their lives - as short as they were - were such bright lights for Christ and truly brought glory to God both in life and in death.
This book is a great overview of their lives and an encouraging testimony of God's work in the lives of those who have gone on before us. You will be encouraged by their faithfulness and challenged by their dedication.
I always approach books on this topic with a bit of anxiety - wondering if I will walk away with more questions than when I begun. However, this book ranks first in the several I have read on this topic because it not only answered all my questions, but did so with great clarity. McKinley does not beat around the bush and present pages of lengthy explanation, rather he takes you back to Scripture for the answers. This book is a 140 page handbook for those who are willing to ask themselves the hard question of: "Am I really a Christian?".
Despite the sober subject and deep content, Mike helps ease the tension with his sprinkling of humor throughout the book. At first this may seem out of place, but as you read you feel as if you are having a personal conversation with a trusted mentor. He also provides great word pictures that take some difficult concepts and make them so much easier to understand. The book is also hands-on and interactive due to the "How To Respond" section at the end of each chapter. It is a good blend of book and Bible study combined into one cover and is suitable for individual or group use as well as appropriate for both teens and adults.
I was convicted and encouraged by this book. It helped me see some weak areas of my life and direct me to passages in the Bible that helped me determine my answer to the question: Am I Really a Christian? Whether you can answer that question without thinking about it or not, I highly recommend this book. Anyone who reads it will walk away benefiting from it...it's just that they may not benefit from it as they first expected. It's short, it's easy to read, founded on the Bible, and Christ centered. It is a great stand-alone read or a fabulous follow-up read to Because He Loves my, or Living the Cross Centered Life, or books of like kind.
Am I Really a Christian? is more than what meets the eye at first glance. This is a "really should read" book that packs quite a punch.
BOOK OVERVIEW:
Wheaton IL¬—Some stats indicate that nearly 80% of Americans identify themselves as Christians. Mike McKinley has noticed a concerning trend: There are far too many people who think that they are Christians, but aren’t actually in Christ. He likens it to people who claim to be “huge Yankees fans” but don’t watch games, don’t know the lineup, or the stats, and only ride the team’s glory around playoff time for the exciting World Series victory. In Am I Really a Christian?, McKinley argues that there is much at stake in the decision to follow Christ, and it is crucial to know where you stand and what it means for your life. McKinley writes with a genuine love and concern for those in the church. He asks tough questions in order to plead with readers who may not be running the race marked out in God’s Word to change course. Emphasizing the importance that Jesus and Paul placed on this issue, McKinley guides readers through Scripture to show what the Bible says about genuine faith.
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The review copies were courtesy of Crossway and Amazon.com. The opinion expressed is strictly my own.
I think it was the title...but for whatever reason this is a book I had seen many times and just never bought for myself to read. But recently when a dear man of God recommended this to our church leadership I immediately found it on PaperBackSwap and began to read it.
WOW!
This book is not about the how-to's of prayer like so many other books are, but about the why we pray and the power of prayer. And for those of you in my circle, it's not "out there" either. While there are a few things I can't say I agree with, there is a whole lot more that I heartily say "Amen!" to and long to see happen in the local churches around here.
It's hard to pull apart this book to determine my favorite part...but if forced to make a choices I would say it was the chapter titled "The Lure of Novelty" where Cymbala speaks frankly on the the power of prayer against casting out and binding. I really appreciated his very balanced approach to this issue and his loving way of stating the truth.
I highly recommend this book for those who want to understand prayer more and be challenged to pray more. I don't know how anyone could not be excited after reading this book filled with a multitude of testimonies from Cymbala and his congregation. Teens and adults of all ages need to read this book and practice it's passion!
BOOK OVERVIEW:
Pastor Jim Cymbala shares the lessons he learned when the Spirit ignited his heart and began to move through his people. This book is for anyone seeking to live at the center of God’s purposes, through experiencing the power of his Spirit. This softcover edition includes a study guide.
Start! is a fantastic way to start the Christian life! I appreciate the work developed here to help new believers Live, Grow, Know, and Learn God's Word. The New King James version is easy to read, the bright red cover is attention catching, and the introduction chapters so very helpful. It is a Bible without the stuffy feel of the traditional award Bibles given out to new believers and comes with the benefit little tidbits and helps which will aid greatly in their understanding and continued growth. Every person should have one on hand to give to someone they lead to Christ!
Start! The Bible for New Believers, NKJV was developed to help those beginning a brand new life of faith to place their trust in Jesus Christ while refreshing the foundations of the faith for longtime believers. START! is designed to take the hand of a new believer, or perhaps a believer who does not know their way around the Bible as they ought to, and lead them through. All of the notes are written to be understandable, conversational, and friendly while never assume that the reader knows what all the words mean. Start! The Bible for New Believers focuses on basic discipleship with articles and devotions on subjects including prayer, Bible study, church involvement, sharing your faith, and discovering God's will. Core biblical themes are introduced at basic levels of theological sophistication and presented in very simple language. Features include: · Grow entries, revealing key disciplines of the Christian life. · Know articles, exposing the core beliefs of Christians. · Live messages, focusing on various aspects of salvation. · Learn notes, providing mini-commentaries on key passages for spiritual growth. · Topical Index to articles and Scriptures · Secrets to Spiritual Success from the General Editor Greg Laurie – a crusading pastor and author who has impacted over four million people with the Gospel message, and seen well over 340,000 people come forward to make professions of faith in Christ.
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This review copy was provided courtesy of Book Sneeze Blogger Review Program through Thomas Nelson. The opinions expressed are my own.
It’s a Bible. No! It’s a book. No! It’s a tract. No!
It’s a booklet called THE LIFE BOOK!
This little hand-sized booklet looks innocent and intriguing from the outside. But inside it’s a powerhouse of truth. Biblical truth.
Made up of three sections, this booklet explains the story of God and people, the story of Jesus coming to earth, and a crucial decision about your life and your future. Throughout the whole booklet there are notes scrawled in and around the main writings from five various people as if they’ve read this book before you. Their comments and questions from five very different backgrounds help anyone who reads this – but specifically teens – to understand and dig in deeper. The middle section is actually the book of John from the Bible.
This is a very unique tool to introduce the gospel to high school students. It’s not the Bible in whole, but it presents the basics for someone to understand why we need a Savior and how we can have a personal relationship with that Savior.
BOOK OVERVIEW:
In today’s divisive culture-war society, when news stories about separation of church and state thrive with controversy, one cutting-edge Christian ministry is having remarkable success spreading the Word of God. What makes it remarkable? They are doing it by distributing Bibles in public schools—legally.
Carl Blunt is the president and CEO of The Life Book Movement, a Christian mission centered on Blunt’s own contemporary, youth-oriented edition of a portion of the Bible called The Life Book, a unique presentation of Scripture designed to engage high school students with the truth of God’s Word. The Life Book presents a brief overview of the Old Testament and the Book of John using an interactive format with honest student comments and real-life questions in the margins. Readers are drawn into the only story that can change their lives forever.
Founded by The Gideons International as an innovative strategy to reach high school students with God’s Word, The Life Book Movement works in collaboration with churches throughout the country to provide the books for free to high school students. Blunt’s organization brilliantly threads a separation-of-church-and-state loophole by getting his publication into the hands of Christian high school students and having thempass the books out to classmates at school—a practice that is entirely legal, as long as the books are not distributed by school staff or other adults. Blunt says, “It’s like we’re helping students smuggle God’s Word into a closed country (public high schools) to reach an unreached people group because studies show that only 4% of today’s teenagers are Bible-believing Christians.” The goal is to ensure that every student in every high school in the United States has an opportunity to receive the gift of The Life Book. This approach presents a phenomenal opportunity to impact a generation with the good news of Jesus Christ.
The Life Book Movement is best described to students as a week-long mission trip to their local high school. Local churches work together in targeted areas to ensure The Life Book is offered to every student in each chosen high school. All churches involved receive the books at no cost from The Life Book Movement and provide the books, along with some evangelism training, to the students in their youth groups. The students then spend a week passing them out to their friends and classmates at school. One student who received the book said, “I got one today. I read it in almost every class today. I like it. It’s pretty neat and other people asked to look at it and then asked where to get one.”
Flying under the radar since its inception last fall, The Life Book Movement is rapidly closing in on distribution of more than 300,000 copies in public high schools across 21 states and even the British Virgin Islands. A quiet success, indeed, but extremely ambitious, The Life Book Movement has an ultimate goal of distributing The Life Book to nearly 18 million high school students when all is said and done. And, so far, the outlook is extremely promising.
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John and Betty Stam by Kathleen White
