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No question mark? Some of you may be of the opinion that my “C” average English skills are starting to seep into my writing. While I will not deny that possibility, it is not so in this case. The missing question mark is intentional, for the title is not a question but a statement. Now this may be confusing to some because often, in today’s world, people have a desire for this statement to always be categorized as a rhetorical question. “What’s wrong with love?” The reason why it is most often relegated to the realm of the rhetorical is because people think the answer to the question is obvious. Nothing, isn’t that always the answer? Nothing is wrong with love. Love is always right and therefore love makes all things right. You see as long as love is the driving motive than who among us dare criticize the action, statement, belief, or newly stated cultural norm. We drape it in love and now love becomes the end all be all that justifies every action or relationship. What’s wrong with love? Nothing, absolutely nothing…or so we are led to believe.
As much as we do not want to acknowledge it, we have been led down an unfortunate path by our exaltation of love’s supremacy. It is a path that dead-ends at a dark destination. It is a destination where a person or culture can proclaim as right any standard or action without being pigeonholed by outdated cultural expectations or antiquated Scriptures whose “guidelines” for living are viewed as pedantic and foolishly out of place for the 21st century.
Two examples serve to make the point. Within the last number of weeks two former public proponents of the sanctity of marriage, Senator Kirk of Illinois and Senator Portman from Ohio, have reversed themselves and have now come out in favor of gay marriage. The reason for such a change in their former moral certitude you ask? Love. It’s all about love. Senator Kirk said “Life comes down to who you love and who loves you back – government has no place in the middle.[1]” Based on that logic, I am expecting the Senator to soon announce his support for polygamous marriages and incestuous marriages…assuming that the individuals meet the criteria of “who you love and who loves you back.”
Senator Portman took it a step further when he, in poor hermeneutical form, invoked the Bible to justify his reversal. He told a group of reporters: “The overriding message of love and compassion that I take from the Bible, and certainly the Golden Rule, and the fact that I believe we are all created by our maker, that has all influenced me in terms of my change on this issue.[2]”
While we must be careful never to diminish the true nature of love, we must recognize that when it comes to the attributes of God, love is no greater than any other attribute He possesses. The unchanging and unalterable truths of God’s standard for human conduct and relationships flows from the completeness of His character and the perfection of His attributes. We may think that all we need is love, but not so. For when we begin to take one attribute of God, which is perfect and complete, and we hold it up as more perfect and complete than the rest, trumpeting it’s superiority, we distort His character. Eventually God no longer becomes the determiner of standards but the exalted attribute takes His place. When this happens we will find ourselves immersed in a culture that eerily resembles the day when there was no king in Israel and everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
What’s wrong with love? Nothing so long as we recognize its place and do not unwittingly use it to change that which can never change – the standard God has established for human relationships and conduct which flows from the perfection and beautiful interworking of all of His flawless attributes.
[1] Chicago Tribune News: “Kirk announces support for same-sex marriage.” By Katherine Skiba on April 2, 2013.
[2] “Sen. Rob Portman comes out in favor of gay marriage after son comes out as gay” by Sabrina Eaton, Plain Dealer Washington Reporter on March 15, 2013 at 12:01 AM, updated March 15, 2013 at 1:32 PM
For those of you paying attention to our Chronicles of Narnia book reviews, you may have noticed that I am going out of order in the way the Narnia books are often organized. If you own at set of books, you will see that book one is The Magician’s Nephew. Meanwhile, I began with The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe and then Prince Caspian. The reason behind this is that I am reviewing them in the order in which they were released by C.S. Lewis.
To that end, the next book in the series is The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. For those of you who did not see the movie rendition when it was released in 2010, do yourself a favor and rent it on Netflix tonight. Of the books turned movie, this was perhaps the most well-done, at least from a Christian parent’s perspective.
A borrowed summary reads, “Lucy and Edmund Pevensie return to Narnia with their cousin Eustace where they meet up with Prince Caspian for a trip across the sea aboard the royal ship the Dawn Treader. Along the way they encounter dragons, dwarves, merfolk, and a band of lost warriors before reaching the edge of the world.”
The movie does not entirely follow the book, but there are some thrilling scenes to behold, and the Christian references in the movie are the most explicit. Without ruining the plot, there is a powerful allegory comparison made between Aslan and Christ himself that children will understand.
The Dawn Treader book is crucial to the whole Narnia series in several ways, one of which is the introduction of the character Eustace Scrubb, who appears in other books in the Chronicles. The opening line of the book says, “There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it.”
The transformation of Eustace from a snobby, cowardly, childish, annoying little boy to a redeemed one is remarkable. It involves the assistance of Reepicheep the mouse, one of C.S. Lewis most endearing characters in all of Narnia.
In the book, as with the movie, there are some suspenseful moments that may frighten the youngest readers and viewers. With that caution aside, this sea-faring adventure of a book is one of the most delightful in all of the Narnia series. It will entertain, uplift and challenge us all to live a more virtuous life, by the grace of God.
For this next article in the Generations series, I am going to do something very shocking. I’m dividing the Baby Boomers into two groups. This might not sit well with some of them because that makes the Boomers an average-sized generation instead of the second largest one. Boomers like things to be big!
There is method in my madness. There are 363,905 Baby Boomers living in Oklahoma. The first group is what some term “Early Boomers” (born: 1946-1954. Age: 59-67). My next article will be about the second group of “Late Boomers,” which many believe should be considered separately as “Generation Jones” (born 1955-1964. Age: 49-58).
Baby Boomers were born (1946-1954) in a time of unprecedented prosperity in the United States. Because of this, they usually have an optimistic attitude and tend to take material things for granted. Rather than aspiring to the American Dream, Boomers have been born into it. When they were 25, the first Starbucks opened at the Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington and the Intel 4004 was the first microprocessor. Their impact on culture and technology are the hallmarks of the Boomer generation.
Boomers have shaped the world with technology innovations in just about every area of learning, especially in physical science, sociology, psychology and technology. They invented the personal computer, the internet, satellite networks, etc. Most of America’s technical engineers are Baby Boomers.
As the first generation that was raised on TV, they grew up watching Father Knows Best and Leave it to Beaver, but by 1971, when the oldest Boomer turned 25, everything was changed. Sweeping social and cultural change came to the United States and continued throughout their lifetimes. Boomer values changed society in the United States with regard to women, race, sexual mores, the rearing of children, the economy–even clothing! If you are wearing jeans at work as you read this, thank a Boomer. Their informal approach to life changed the business world from formal suits and ties to “business casual.”
Baby Boomers have a strong need to define what they do in terms of morality and right and wrong. They are the force behind movements from the Hippies and Free Love to the Jesus People and contemporary Christian music. Their tastes in music, movies, and design have shaped the present American context. They are the most educated generation in American history. They value and respect education. Baby Boomers are insatiable learners who are constantly on a quest of personal development.
Life in the SBC:
The argument could be made that the Boomers are the makers of the Southern Baptist Convention. As children they were enrolled in SBC churches during the “Million More in ‘54” campaign. The sheer size of their numbers forced the SBC to adapt to them with developments such as age-graded Sunday School, church busing, Vacation Bible School, and full-time children’s ministers. As youth, the SBC experienced explosive growth in church-based youth ministry, youth camps, youth musicals, etc. SBC campus ministries like BCM were at their height at the time the SBC Boomers were in college. Many Boomers became believers during the “Jesus Movement” of the 1970‘s. As they entered the ministry, Boomers reshaped the landscape of the SBC, creating new expressions of church with contemporary music, mega-churches, and Para-church organizations. Boomers will continue to shape the future of the SBC as they face retirement age. Between now and 2015, the people entering retirement age is projected to increase 54%. Boomers do not expect old age to slow them down or keep them from contributing to society. Look for the Baby Boomers to continue their active involvement in the SBC.
Boomer have shared experiences growing up that shaped their lives, many have a similar outlook on life.
Baby Boomer Outlook
Youthfulness. Boomers don’t want to be kids forever, but they do want to stay young by intensely questioning established ways and bringing the youthful sentiment of looking at things with fresh eyes.
Personal spiritual development. They tend to pursue their growth using programs, many of which have videos, books and seminars.
Achievement. Boomers are driven and hard working and tend to think a person needs to pay his or her dues to get to the top. Position is the result of creative action, hard work, and dedication.
Give a little face time. The generation that gave us “Woodstock” loves conferences and large gatherings. These are places where Boomers thrive because they like to mingle with others and form relationships.
Consensus building. They value egalitarian leadership. They prefer to work on problems in teams and task force groups. Give them a place to meet regularly and a team of competent people and they feel they can change the world.
Spend the money. Boomers are focused on the present more than the future. For this reason, they tend to spend more than save. They want to spend in ways that have measurable impact in the present.
Have you ever passed a field of spent sunflowers? Their burnt brown heads are all bowed in the same direction, like a class of naughty kindergarteners abashed by their scolding teacher.
They look as though they considered the dust from whence they came, and maybe we all should do that occasionally? I have passed that same field when the stately golden heads were lifted high and proud and petal-full.
But the spent sunflowers are beautiful in their bare humility, like surrendered souls having shed all pretense to self-sufficiency. I’ve held my own head high, too, on a stiff neck and I’ve withered down to brown humility and though painful, one is infinitely better. Because to be brought low is to know the security and stability of the Source rather than wavering on your own skinny stalk.
This is the one I esteem, declares the Lord. He who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my Word. Isaiah 66:2
Jesus told those heartsick disciples on the road to Emmaus, Didn’t the Messiah have to suffer these things and enter into His glory? (Luke 24:26)
Suffering, it’s everywhere in Scripture, and everywhere around us, and sometimes we’d just rather have our best life now.
God doesn’t seem to view pain the same way we do. C.S. Lewis wrote in The Screwtape Letters that God seems to take His most precious saints through some of the roughest, driest valleys (I believe he uses the very British word “troughs” instead).
His thoughts are not our thoughts; His ways are not our ways.
So we bow our heads with the sunflowers, give humble thanks, receive the manna-grace for today. We look forward to the day when all our suffering blows away like dust in the wind.
Do you feel withered and barren today, humbled before others or maybe just before your Maker?
It’s springtime in Oklahoma – tornado season – and our family is on high alert, especially my daughter, Hope. She wasn’t born yet when the May 3rd twister took her Mema’s house to the foundation in 1999, but she’s heard enough about it to develop a healthy paranoia when it comes to storms.
Honestly, I think Hope would live her entire life without a single May flower if only she could avoid April showers altogether, each of which sends her into an obsessive tailspin of activity, checking the weather app on her iPod, lying awake listening for sirens and deciding how best to hang onto her chihuahua should the roof be sucked off of our house. I think she’s decided to go with putting him inside her shirt.
A week or so ago, it stayed overcast and rainy for several days. On the way to school, her eyes pink and puffy from lack of sleep, Hope sighed, “I just hate the way this weather makes me feel, Mom. It’s like I’m trapped and the sun is gone for good. I mean, I know it’s up there somewhere because l can tell night from day and the plants aren’t dying, but I just want to see it and feel it for myself so I know everything is okay, you know?”
I knew exactly what she meant. My heart feels that way sometimes. When sickness comes or people disappoint or money is tight or I have just gotten so busy that I haven’t made God my priority, it’s hard for me to remember that God doesn’t change and that He hasn’t left me. Though I never doubt His existence or His love for me, I sometimes overestimate the power of the enemy and allow him to corner my emotions and steal my joy.
There’s no easy way out of a spiritual funk like that. Now, sometimes, God in His mercy simply breaks through my thoughts and warms my soul with His presence through the words of a song or the embrace of a loved one, but more often than not, He allows me to do the work of seeking Him before keeping His promise to be found.
In times like those, I rely on God’s Word and memories of God’s faithfulness to get me through. Minute by minute, hour by hour, and day by day, I consciously – though often not so enthusiastically – choose to do the things the Bible tells me to do and wait for God to show Himself faithful, and you know what? He always does. Sometimes slowly, but always surely, God reveals Himself to me once again, growing my faith, restoring to my soul the joy of my salvation, and letting me know that everything is okay.
It is not that we are competent in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our competence is from God. 2 Cor. 3:5
No matter what subject I teach from now on, I think I’m going to call it, “Loving People Who Are Hard to Like.” You should probably do that, too, if you teach some sort of class somewhere and want lots of people to come. I’m serious. Call it that, even if you’re really teaching a class in aroma therapy. Just trust me on this. People will come in droves.
That was the title of the seminar I taught at the BGCO statewide ladies’ retreat this weekend, and WOW! I had no idea how popular the topic would be. I wish I had taken a picture so you could understand how packed that room was each of the three times I taught it. There were 2300 women at this retreat, and it seemed like they were all trying to fit in the room at once. 30 minutes before the session started, all the chairs were taken, and people just kept pouring in. At “go” time, I had about 1 square foot of space to call my own, and women were standing in the doorways and out in the atrium to listen from there.
Of course, that so many people long for that sort of relational help says a lot, and could be a blog topic all on its own. But, for today, I want to talk about something else.
After the first two sessions on Friday afternoon, plus participating in the two main sessions in the auditorium, I was pretty spent. I found myself dragging a bit on Saturday morning as I made my way up the hill back to my room for the 3rd and final session that I would teach. It seems like it’s easy to get geared up to teach that first time, but by the third, the temptation is to just coast. Add that to the weariness, and the fact that I hadn’t found a Coke Zero anywhere, and I was facing the very real possibility of coming across much like the monotone economics teacher who put everyone to sleep on Ferris Bueller’s Day Off: “Anyone? Anyone? Something-d-o-o economics. Voodoo economics”
I didn’t want to do that, so I prayed. It went something like this: “God, I just want to give them my best.” And just as soon as the words came out, He spoke to my spirit: “But we could give them so much more.”
First, I laughed. Because I knew exactly what He meant and how right He (naturally) was. But I’m not gonna lie, my second thought was, “That’s kinda scary.” I mean, I’ve read the Bible. I know at least some of the stuff God can do when people leave things up to Him. I wasn’t sure I was really up for that.
I don’t know about you, but I think I probably forget just how powerful God is, and how He can reveal that power through me, way too often. Also, I shy away from it from time to time because it scares me. Ephesians 3:20 says that He’s able to do far more than we can ask or imagine through His power that works in us. When Job considered all the ways God has revealed His power, he said, “These are but the fringes of His ways; how faint is the word we hear of Him! Who can understand His mighty thunder?”
Clearly, I was praying too small. Don’t get me wrong. Certainly God is pleased when we give Him our best. But. as we do, it’s important to remember that, even on our very best day, we aren’t sufficient in our talents and abilities. Our sufficiency comes from God, and He has plans way bigger than we ever could.
You can do your best at your job this week, and you should. I’m sure your patients, clients, employer, or employees will really appreciate it. Your best can earn you a nice paycheck and the admiration of people. Some people might feel good because of your efforts, and that’s great.
I’m just wondering what would happen if you, and I, invited God to give them more.
I had the chance to see 42, the Jackie Robinson story. I invited my mother to go with me because I knew she would enjoy it. Mom grew up around the time Robinson went through his courageous experience.
I enjoyed it as well. I like biographical films, especially if they are done accurately and feature great acting. 42 meets these criteria.
The movie has a PG-13 rating, and anyone who has any idea of what the movie is about should not be surprised by such a rating. The “N” word is used excessively throughout the show. There is an uncomfortable scene featuring Phillies manager Ben Chapman, who says this disgusting utterance in similar fashion as one calling chickens.
The details of the historic ballparks were amazing. How they replicated the Polo Grounds, where the former New York Giants played, was a thrill for this sports nut to view. The Polo Grounds featured an unusually deep center field that was uniquely designed with a square notch at straightaway center. The movie made you feel like you were sitting in the stands.
Chadwick Boseman is excellent playing Robinson. He looks like an athlete, and shows some of the attitude Robinson was known to have.
But the star of the show is obvious. Veteran actor Harrison Ford gave an incredible performance as Dodgers General Manager Branch Rickey.
Ford is not known for playing historic characters. He hasn’t done impersonations or replicated mannerisms. He made his fame yelling at robots, kissing Princess Leia, bantering with a Wookiee; or wearing a fedora, carrying a whip, hating snakes and collecting priceless artifacts while being chased by villains or a large boulder.
Playing Rickey may have placed Ford at a different level on the acting sphere. The transition is similar to Sean Connery’s, when the Scotsman collected his 1988 Oscar for his role in The Untouchables. Before playing the street cop-turned mentor for Kevin Costner’s Elliot Ness, Connery appeared to be washed up as an action movie actor, but he actually enhanced his acting career playing older roles in movies that followed The Untouchables. Perhaps this is a path Ford may take?
Ford’s Rickey appears to be true to character. Rickey comes across in the movie as a combination of shrewd businessman and Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. In real life, he actually was a successful manager who stood tall on social issues of the day and made known his Christian faith, even more than what the film reveals.
Prince writes “I fear the moniker, ‘ferocious Christian gentleman’ sounds oxymoronic in contemporary evangelical circles where manhood is often reduced to being a nice guy and God is envisioned as a kind of cosmic smiley face. Where Christian discipleship is cheapened to generic niceness, men pursue comfort and respectability in the place of self-sacrificial ‘great experiments’ that demand ferocious Christian gentlemen.”
Men like Rickey are rare today. Not many businessmen are willing to go against culture and stand on Christian principles. As Prince states, “. . . our churches are in desperate need of some ferocious Christian gentlemen.”
The movie 42 does present the harshness of segregation our country experienced, but thankfully, the film also shows the powerful and humble stand both Robinson and Rickey take.
Let’s face it. The Christian film genre has not always had the closest table at the Golden Globes. As Christians looking for edification or Gospel tools at the theater, we have forgiven cheesy scripts, sub-par acting, and paid our fair share of money to support our tribe. Thankfully, as of late, Christian filmmakers have invested more time and resources into their projects.
“Home Run” is the latest evidence of great strides in Christian filmmaking. The story centers around Cory Brand, a major league baseball star and out-of-control bad boy. His alcoholism has led to stunts on and off the field putting his career in jeopardy. One such stunt gets him suspended and through a series of related events, Cory finds himself facing life in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, with ghosts from his past. Cory is forced to attend Celebrate Recovery, a Christ-centered 12-step program, as he faces his past, present, and future as a man struggling with alcohol addiction.
The film wholeheartedly accomplishes its main goal as a Celebrate Recovery vehicle. The program is shown in a very real and honest manner. The movie does an excellent job of exposing hurts, habits and hang-ups in many of the characters, showing that we all have struggles in life that need God’s restoration. The film also exposes the rippling effects of unchecked sin. There is great hope that Celebrate Recovery groups across the nation will see a fresh harvest of people wanting to bring their hidden and dark struggles to light.
While the direct goal is accomplished, the movie itself accomplishes a leap forward in Christian film. Lead actor Scott Elrod and actress Dorian Brown give standout performances as the story’s central characters. There are a few hokey moments in the film, but overall I enjoyed the story as well as the way it was told.
If there is a weakness to the film, it is one that falls with many movies in the Christian genre. While the movie does focus on God’s power to transform us in our addictions and struggles, there is little about the Gospel or Christ Himself. Jesus is implied in the film, but there is no real mention of Creator God, our depraved nature, justification by grace through faith, and growth in Christ through the Spirit. While Christians assume these things, and they may be offered thematically, they are not directly afforded to us in the movie.
This may be too high an expectation for what the filmmakers were hoping to accomplish. However, we do need to remember that one does not need the gospel to quit drinking, be a more committed father, let go of pornography, or win the football state championship. While many of those things can come through the transformation of the gospel in Christ, those things are not the gospel or Christ.
This is where the church comes in. Movies don’t save people. Jesus saves people. Home Run is a great way to begin a conversation about Jesus. I highly recommend it. There are many individuals who may not walk through church doors, but will gladly sit in a theater with a box of Junior Mints and a five dollar Mr. Pibb. The job of the church is to take that tool and use it for the gospel. In making a quality movie with a God-honoring message, the makers of Home Run have put an excellent arrow in the church’s quiver.
* A note regarding the movie’s PG-13 rating: I would have no qualms about taking a child as young as ten to the movie. While there are some intense moments, great care is taken to ensure it is honest without being gratuitous.
“Do your work for six days but rest on the seventh day so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave as well as the foreign resident may be refreshed.” Exodus 23:12
How much does Yahweh love us? So much that He specifically set aside one day every week so that we could rest and “be refreshed.” He created us in His image, after all, and He rested on the Seventh Day. It only makes sense that His divine design is that we are created to rest.
But what happens when we can’t find that day of rest?
One of the aspects of being an Army spouse living through a deployment is learning how to do “it all” solo. Literally, “it all.” All the house. All the kids. All the bills. All the “keeping family up to date.” All the community involvement.
There’s not a lot of time for rest.
One night I was laying in bed after days of non-stop activity and facing more to come, my body aching from hours upon hours of constant motion, my “day of rest” too many days away. My spirit cried out to God, “How on earth will I keep going?”
Then, in a clear answer to prayer, I remembered a lesson I heard once about how Jesus is our Sabbath, our perfect Sabbath rest. Hebrews 3-4 tells us that the true Sabbath, true rest and restoration, is found in Jesus. “For we who have believed enter the rest…a Sabbath rest remains, therefore, for God’s people.”
I have access to the Sabbath rest at all times because I have access to Jesus at all times. As that truth presented itself anew to me, I prayed that Jesus would share with me an extra portion of that rest to prepare me for the days ahead.
That night, God blessed me with the best night of sleep I’d had in weeks, and a peaceful calm and focus the next day.
What a comfort to know that our Heavenly Father loves us enough to provide His promised rest not only in eternity, but in this life as well.
“Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28
From time to time, a book comes along that captures the heart (and pocketbook) of Christian book readers. A few years ago it was The Shack, today it is a new devotional, Jesus Calling.
Until now, I have put off reading and reviewing the book, which offers daily devotionals to the reader. The book’s appeal is readily apparent. Attractively bound and laid out, any believer could quickly import the book into his or her daily life. It has bite-sized readings for each day and Scripture references at the bottom, perfect for someone’s daily “quiet time.”
What’s more, the author, Sarah Young has hit upon a novel concept. She has written each entry as if Jesus Himself is talking directly to you. “Enjoying Peace in His Presence,” is the book’s promise. Indeed, many of the writings speak exactly to the perceived everyday struggles for the Christian walk.
I have personally spoken to many Christians who testify to the book’s powerful impact on their lives and spirit. However, I have some significant problems with the book that I must air, in descending order.
Problem #3: Becomes a substitute
Time is limited. In today’s fast paced society, with all the distractions of media, believers are bombarded with messages that distract from our time with the Lord. By the grace of God, having time with the Lord has become a standard for being a disciple of Christ.
Every day, millions throughout the world start and end their day with Scripture and prayer. To augment those times, many believes will invite in a devotional or study aide. In doing so, we must carefully choose what we invite in.
This extended review from noted Christian blogger Tim Challies underscores why, for theological reasons, “Jesus Calling” is not a good pick for devotional times. Furthermore, while many devotionals quote directly from the Scripture, this work only lists cites that you have to go look up, and when it does, only singular verses. The average reader will not take time to do this and therefore the book becomes an inadequate substitute for time that could have been spent in the Word.
Problem #2: Not His teachings
In the book of Acts, about the Berean Jews “were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Acts 17:11). In other words, the Bereans were good at comparing teachings they heard to the Bible. Anyone familiar with the words of Christ to those in this book will leave the reader scratching his head.
Here is a sample from the August 12 entry (pg. 235):
“Do not compare yourself with others, who seem to skip along their life-paths with ease. Their journeys have been different from yours, and I have gifted them with abundant energy. I have gifted you with fragility, providing opportunities for your spirit to blossom in My Presence.”
Even if this line of thinking were consistent with Scripture, it is a far cry from Christ saying He has come to “seek and save the lost.” It is far from the real blood He shed. In fact, it sounds more like afternoon talk show advice than the living Son of God. Unfortunately, examples like this are not uncommon in the book.
Problem #1: Not His voice
It would be problematic enough if Young were claiming to have captured the voice of Christ. From interviews, however, it appears that she claims to have captured the very words of Christ.
Sarah Young has said, “I knew that God communicated with me through the Bible, but I yearned for more. Increasingly, I wanted to hear what God had to say to me personally on a given day. I decided to listen to God with pen in hand, writing down whatever I believe He was saying. I felt awkward the first time I tried this, but I received a message. It was short, biblical, and appropriate. It addressed topics that were current in my life: trust, fear, and closeness to God. I responded by writing in my prayer journal.”
When considering a book, consider the author as well. We have here, from her own lips, her stated purpose for the book. The Bible, meanwhile, forbids adding to the Word of God (Rev. 22:19, Deut. 4:2, Prov. 30:6). In penning this work, Young walks onto dangerously thin ice.
While I am sure the book is of course not all bad, its problems are significant enough that readers should set it aside. In the end, what promises to be a live call on the phone line from Christ ends up being more like a prank call.
