The Good Life

I just finished "Dreams and Visions: Is Jesus Awakening The Muslim World?" by Tom Doyle with Greg Webster. Wow! What a great reminder of what God is doing in the Middle East! Mr. Doyle did a wonderful job of compiling amazing, true stories of how God is reaching out to the Muslims of the Middle East through dreams and incredible "coincidences." "Dreams and Visions" takes stories of real people encountering Jesus through dreams and visions in countries like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Iran, just to name a few. I had chills reading the true accounts of people encountering Jesus for the first time or maybe they had heard of Him before. Not only did this book encourage me to pray even harder for the people of the Middle East, but it reminded me that the Lord is always desiring for every tribe, tongue, and nation to come to know Him in a true, saving way. It makes me think of the verse, "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count sl

I have loved going through this 30 day devotional focused on worshipping God. "I Exalt You, O God: Encountering His Greatness In Your Personal Worship" by Jerry Bridges is a phenomenal devotional that will lead in into worship of God for • His Greatness...beyond measure, beyond compare • His Holiness...transcendent majesty • His Wisdom...skill and splendor on display • His Love...the infinite love of an amazing Father for His child (from the book description) I think Mr. Bridges does a wonderful job of defining what is worship, both corporate and private. I felt convicted, challenged, and encouraged in my journey to worship the Lord more in my personal life and in corporate settings. I think he does a great job of clearly defining hard to understand terms and he does it with Truth straight from the Word. I like that whatever he was saying was totally backed up with Scripture. I loved learning about all the places in the Bible that talk about worshipping God. I also lov

"What You Need To Know About Bible Prophecy" is a great resource! I really respect Max Anders as an author and I read his book, "30 Days To Understanding Your Bible" a few years ago. So, when I saw this become available for review, I was excited to read it. "What You Need To Know About Bible Prophecy" is broken down into 12 easy to teach or read sections. Thomas Nelson says, " Prophets. Rapture. Tribulation. Judgment. End times. Learn what the Bible has to say about prophecy, how Christians differ in their views of the end times, and what the universal aspects are on which all Christians agree."  This is the perfect book for a Bible teacher, Sunday school teacher, or small group leader to read and teach from. I've never seen a book with a better flow for its chapters. You can definitely teach each section in an hour or less. The writing style is engaging and the questions are thought-provoking. I like the way he set up the end of the chap

I was able to review "No Greater Love" by Levi Benkert and it did not disappoint! I love memoirs and "No Greater Love" was an amazing story of one family's decision to follow God's calling on their lives. It's not your typical Christian memoir because Benkert doesn't sugar coat his life, family, or decisions. "No Greater Love" details the crazy story of Levi Benkert's decision to leave California for Ethiopia. Through an astounding series of events, he leaves for the African country in order to help organize a rescue of children destined to die due to tribal superstition, known as "mingi." When he arrives, he realizes that this is where he is supposed to be and calls his wife to ask about the possibility of moving their family of three young children there for good. I won't ruin the rest of the story because some parts of it are just incredible, but it is a must read for anyone with a heart for African orphans. I really ap

I had always wanted to read The Daniel Fast so I was really excited when I saw that it was offered by Tyndale. The Daniel Fast by Susan Gregory was great! The book is broken down into two sections. The first part is about Susan Gregory and why she wrote the book, what is fasting, the story of Daniel and his decision to fast, and tips for a successful fast. The second part details acceptable foods for the fast, menus, recipes, devotionals, and frequently asked questions. I loved reading it and I loved the recipe book in the back. Susan does a great job of explaining the reason behind the title of the book. I loved learning about Daniel and why he chose to fast. It is not really a book to learn about fasting, but more of a practical how-to guide for those who want to start fasting. If you are looking to learn more about the spiritual discipline of fasting, I would highly recommend Richard Foster's The Celebration of Discipline . I think the best part of the book is the 21 day devo

When I saw "This Thing Of Ours: How Faith Saved My Mafia Marriage" by Cammy Franzese offered by Book Sneeze, I just had to get it. I know very little about the Mafia and I thought it was incredibly interesting that a woman married to a mobster would have written a book, talking about faith of all things. "This Thing Of Ours" goes through the tumultuous years of the Franzese marriage. It tells about their meeting, engagement, marriage, jail sentences, children, and how Cammy learns and grows with each stage. I was genuinely surprised at how little she knew of her husband's involvement in the Mob, but I really enjoyed reading this book. Cammy does a great job of describing different events in her life and weaving her belief in the Lord through it all. This is book is not to read looking for perfection. She is a real person with real struggles and is clear from the start that she is not without sin. I think if you keep that in mind as you are reading, it isn't