Lean into the Whisper

Sometimes you have to yell to get my attention, but sometime a whisper is even more effective. And sometimes the voice of God is best heard in that still small whisper.  And Mark Batterson talks about that whisper in his latest book: Whisper: How to Hear the Voice of God. (Multnomah, 2017). 

                I think I’ve read most, if not all, of Mark’s books, and I have to say that I’ve enjoyed them all. Whisper is no exception. When you start reading a book and sense the passion of the author, you know you’re in for a good read.

                So why do we have to wait for God to whisper? The same reason we wait for others to whisper: we are prone to being so used to the noise and raucous clamor, that we become immune to it.  It might be that we lose our hearing in a certain range, or as is the case with many married couples that selective hearing sets in. Maybe it’s that everyone yells, so when someone is intentionally quiet, we take notice, and lean forward to better hear what is being said. So, God whispers with the hope that we’ll lean forward to hear what He has to say.

                One of the things I like about Mark’s books is the amount of detail he provides. He takes the most (seemingly) random things and puts them into the context of his prayer life and the story line.  I guess we all do it to some extent, but I have a hard time connecting the dots like he does.

                This is another book that I would love to lend to my friends, but I have underlined so many things, that I can’t bear to part with it.

                Simple prayers work. And we learn one in Whisper that is repeated throughout the book: “Speak LORD, for your servant is listening. It’s short, sweet, simple, and scriptural (1 Samuel 3:9)

                Batterson talks about the power of a whisper, and puts the power and the whisper in the context of seven languages: Scripture, Desires, Doors, Dreams, People, Promptings and Pain. God declares His love for us in so many different ways. And all we have to do is learn to listen. 

                I received an Advance Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for my review. There was no expectation that I was required to write a positive review. This book will release soon!

5/5

Is God Loving or Angry

For years I’ve heard about Jonathan Edwards famous sermon “sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”. I probably even read a manuscript of it at one time or another, so I jumped at the opportunity to read Brian Zahnd’s book Sinners if the Hands of a Loving God: the Scandalous Truth of the Very Good News. (Waterbrook, 2017)

The title intrigued me. I go to the local Rescue Mission on a regular basis, and while there are others who go there to preach fire and brimstone, I think what’s needed is love, mercy and grace. Most of the clients there know that they have a sin issue. They don’t need to be reminded of that, what they do need to know it that God loves them.

Brian makes some good points about Jesus being the fulfillment of the law and the prophets—He didn’t come to abolish them. And I liked how he used Old Testament examples and then showed how thanks to Jesus fulfilling, completing, perfecting the law, we no longer have to stone people to death, or exact an eye for eye. We can show compassion, and point people to Jesus. We can love them into the kingdom, instead of trying to scare them into it.

And then we have to talk about Hell. I saw some of the same tracks that Zahnd talks about. People burning in everlasting eternal fires. I didn’t like them when I was a teenager, and I don’t like them now. They’re creepy.  I believe that Hell is real, and I like to remember that hell is the eternal state of being out of God's presence. Is it a big room, very hot, flames licking at the edges and little demons with tails running around in red suits, jabbing people with their pitchforks? I think that is an artist’s rendering.  Regardless of what Hell is really like, it’ real, and if we listen to Jesus, the only way to avoid is to go, through Him, to the Father. And here’s where it seems like Zahnd may be straying a little from traditional Christian thought.

As I read through the chapter on Hell (Chap 6: “Hell…and Hoe to Get There”) it seems that Zahnd is suggesting that you can avoid Hell even without professing belief in Jesus. I hate to think that some really God-fearing people, people who worship God, will not be enjoying eternity in God's presence because they stayed true to their religious roots, but I can’t reconcile Jesus’ Words with desired, or aspirational belief system.  Having said that, Zahnd makes a strong case that our version of Hell is probably quite different than the biblical version.

Except for that one area, I enjoyed the book.

I received a copy of the book from the Publisher (WaterBrook) in exchange for a review.

4/5 because of some theological questions. 

How Charles Dickens met Tiny Tim and Ebeneezer Scrooge

    Christmas is just a few months away....(I know some of you are already counting down the days), and for many families, reading a Christmas Carol is a favorite tradition.  This year you can add to the fun by planning on making time to watch "The Man Who Invented Christmas" starring Dan Stevens, Jonathan Pryce and Christopher Plummer.

We all know the story of Tiny Tim and Ebeneezer Scrooge, but other than his knack for taking life as he saw it in London, we know little of how Charles Dickens came up with his classic literature. All right, let's be real, after watching this movie, due in theaters on Nov 22nd, we still won't know for sure; but this is a whimsical idea of how it might have happened. Watch as Dickens 'meets' the characters that he brings to life in the pages of the novel that has brought so much joy to so many people since it was written in 1843.

It's brought joy, and inspired people to become the new and improved Mr Scrooge.  For the last 8 years, the 6th graders at a local Jr High read  A Christmas Carol each year, and then do a Tiny Tim project on the last day of school before Christmas break.  For most of those years they've collected socks and hygiene items which are donated to the local Rescue Mission.   

Where did Dickens get his inspiration? Why did he write this book? we may never know, but thanks to a writer from 175 years ago, homeless people today are a little better off than they might otherwise have been.

watch the trailer here