Mercy for Today by Jonathan Parnell

We often talk about God’s mercy, and for the most part, we’re glad that our God is so merciful, at least when it comes to not judging us as harshly as we deserve—and maybe we wish He wasn’t quite as merciful when it comes to some of the other people that we know.  Perhaps you have a definition of mercy, a few words that explain that we don’t get what we deserve: and that’s a good thing.

                But what does mercy really mean, and how does it factor in our own life, and even though God doesn’t charge us to be merciful to us, I think that He expects that out of gratitude, we will do certain things. Jonathan Parnell uses Psalm 51 as a starting point and talks about mercy.  His insights are found in Mercy for Today: a Daily Prayer form Psalm 51( B&H Publishing, 2020)

                Parnell starts the introduction by reminding the reader that God is merciful and because God is merciful, we can repent. He suggests that we 1) need to understand God’s mercy at the head level so that we can 2) testify of God’s mercy from our own personal experience.

                And as we learn to testify to God’s mercy we see  how we can praise God, for what he’s doing in our lives, and then we become willing to change, and hopefully actually do so, then we experience God’s presence, and start to live that life of joy that the Psalmist talks about, and which many years later the Apostle Paul would write about from his prison cell in Philippi.

                This book is a great help in understanding mercy as it’s recorded in Lamentations (3:22-23) It’s new every morning.

                As a member of the B&H blogger’s program, I received a copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review,

                4/5

We all listen to the urban legends and treat them as gospel. Some things have become such common knowledge in our culture, that to doubt them could be considered heresy. Unfortunately not everything we read about or hear about is true. Some things are ‘close but not quite’, and other things are downright lies. But if we hear something often enough it takes on the veil of truth.

                These lies spill over into all aspects of our life. And some of them are more believable than others. Daniel Im has written a book that exposes several of these lies. (You Are What You Do: And Six Other Lies About Work, Life and Love, B&H publishing, 2020)

                It’s bad enough when other people lie to us, intentionally or not, but it’s even worse when we tell ourselves those lies, and repeat them so often that they become truth. We believe our lies and live our lives accordingly. Unfortunately, when we’re chasing after the wrong things, we often forget God and the part that He should be playing in our lives.  We lust after possessions and status, we try to be the person that we think models success, and totally ignore the person that God has created each of us to be.

                As Im addresses these lies, he also refers us to the scriptures that exemplify certain Biblical truths.

                This book was a good reminder for me that God’s truths are eternal, but sometimes I prefer to listen to the lies that world tells me.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. 4/5

When God Doesn't Fix It

Sometimes it seems like God must not be listening. Things happen and we ask Him to take care of those things, but nothing happens. He’s distant and instead of a reassuring voice telling us that He is going to deal with our problem, we nothing. God is silent, and we ask if He really cares.

Of course He does care, but as Laura Story, found out, sometimes we don’t get answered the way we expect.  She tells her story, the story of her husband’s devastating illness and a life that took some unexpected turns, in When God Doesn’t Fix It: Lessons You Never Wanted to Learn, Truths You Can’t Live Without. (W Publishing Group, 2015; Laura Story, with Jennifer Schuchmann). 

Sometimes we have to go though some difficult times to learn certain lessons, and many times those lessons are not the ones we want to learn. They are painful, but important lessons in trusting God, and allowing Him to work in our lives. We learn that through our struggles we learn to tell the stories that bring God glory.

This is a moving account of how God can use the most difficult of situations to draw us closer to Him, and how in the midst of sorrow, we come to realize how much God loves us, and that we can trust Him, even during the rough times.

There is an excellent study guide/workbook that can be purchased separately.

I would recommend this book for a study group. Women are more likely to respond to this book than are men

4/5