In an effort to 1) relieve the readers of this blog from too many book reviews, and 2) make the book reviews more helpful, we are going to be posting them in a little different format.

Our goal is to provide the readers with the title and author of a book, a one sentence (or maybe more!) summary, who we think would benefit from the book, and a link to our full review on Amazon.com (just click on the author and title).

If the summary and recommendations peak your interest, click the link and read the full review. If the full review is helpful, please let us know by clicking on the button that looks like this:

This is helpful for us because it moves our reviews higher on the product. If our review isn’t helpful to you…well, never mind.

So, with that introduction, here are two books that you may be interested in:

1. Lewis, C. S. Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life.

• Point: “Really, a young Atheist cannot guard his faith too carefully. Dangers lie in wait for him on every side.” Here is how God sought out a reluctant convert.
• It would be worth another read and I would recommend it to someone who:
  • tells me that Christianity is devoid of reason
  • cannot ever see themselves believing in a personal God
  • who loves philosophy
  • believes science has all the answers
  • likes the works of C. S. Lewis

2. DeYoung, Kevin. Crazy Busy: A (Mercifully) Short Book about a (Really) Big Problem

• Point: Business is a part of life, but it doesn’t have to rule your life.
• It would be worth another read and I would recommend it to someone who:
  • consistently replies with “Busy” when I ask them how they are doing
  • is frustrated with their current priorities
  • has their children in thirty different programs
  • who views busyness as a badge of honor

Well, what do you think? Leave a comment if you have some better ideas!

This past year, I made some goals for myself in the area of reading. I greatly enjoy sitting down with a book, but I find that all too often I pick fiction rather than non-fiction. I decided to try to read at least one spiritually beneficial book each month of the year, and I was greatly blessed by this exercise. Here is a list of some of the books that I read:

*Your Family-God’s Way – Wayne Mack

*The Faithful Parent – Martha Peace/Stuart Scott

*Worldliness – CJ Mahaney

*Quite a few missionary biographies (some of my thoughts of them have been stated in previous posts)

*Living the Cross-Centered Life – CJ Mahaney

*Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart – JD Greear

*Who is Jesus? – RC Sproul

*Counsel from the Cross: Connecting Broken People to the Love of Christ – Elyse Fitzpatrick/Dennis Johnson (One of the best on this list!)

*Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God – Noel Piper (Free in pdf from desiringgod.org)

*Loving God with All Your Mind – Elizabeth George

*When Sinners Say “I Do” – Dave Harvey

*The Transforming Power of the Gospel – Jerry Bridges

I would encourage you to look up some of these books and read them as well!

Book: Martindale, Wayne. Beyond the Shadowlands: C. S. Lewis on Heaven and Hell. Crossway, 2005. 

Pages: 240

Point: C. S. Lewis explains heaven and hell in a unique and enlightening way throughout his fictional and non-fiction works.

Path: The author divides his book into five parts. He begins by presenting and refuting common misconceptions about heaven through Lewis’ non-fiction, then part two refutes the same misconceptions with his fiction. Part three and four are the same style of treatment on hell. His final part deals briefly with Purgatory.

This is not a mere annotated bibliography of Lewis’ works, but rather a synopsis and explanation of Lewis’ views on the topic from all his works.

Sources: Martindale is obviously very well versed in the works of Lewis through both a reading of the primary sources and also secondary sources. He references articles, biographies, and interviews on C. S. Lewis.

Agreement: I appreciate the book because it took a very large theme in the writings of Lewis and brought it down to one place. As I have read through many of his works I was at times confused about his true thoughts on heaven and hell. This work cleared the room of misconceptions for me.

I really appreciated reading all the quotes of Lewis. Normally I find it frustrating to read large chunks of quoted material, but the author pieced his chapters together using both quotations, inferences, and his own logic to make it quite readable and edifying.

Disagreement: At times I felt as though Martindale was treating Lewis as incapable of error. Lewis contradicted himself, held errant views, and sometimes changed midstream. All human authors do. It seemed as though Martindale’s treatment of Lewis and Universalism/Second Chances was like that.

When I finally got to the section on Purgatory I was relieved to find that the author let him stand – as wrong as he was.

Personal App: Can I explain heaven and hell has well as Lewis? Obviously not! For that reason I will continue to read him and learn from his metaphors, illustrations, fiction, and logic.

Favorite Quote: A summary:

“Finally, it might be useful to summarize here at the outset the essence of Lewis’s thought on Heaven and Hell: Heaven is being in the presence of God and enjoying all good things that flow from his character and creativity. Heaven is utter reality; Hell is nearly nothing. Although Heaven is a definite place, it is more relationship than place (not unlike the experience we have in our homes). All our desires are, at bottom, for Heaven. Heaven is the fulfillment of human potential; Hell is the drying up of human potential. We choose Heaven or Hell, daily becoming someone more suited for Heaven or someone who wouldn’t like the place even if it were offered. Hell is receiving our just desert; Heaven is all undeserved gift.”

Some thoughts after meditating on this book:

If you were to take a blind, shriveled soul from the domain of darkness and expose him to the kingdom of light without changing his very nature, it would be a literal hell.

One of God’s gracious gifts to us in this life is to withhold his full presence. His greatest in eternity will be to reveal it.

Stars: 4 out of 5

It would be worth another read and I would recommend it.

If this review was helpful, let me know here.

Peace, Martha, and Stuart W. Scott. The Faithful Parent: A Biblical Guide to Raising a Family. Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2010. 

Pages: 240

Point: You will not merely “fall into” being a godly parent. It is a work of God in both the parent and child.

Path: Peace and Scott do a terrific job of providing 1) a biblical basis for what it means to be a godly parent and godly child; 2) a step by step look at different difficulties at various ages; and 3) counsel and guidance for those who feel as though they have failed.

Sources: Thoroughly grounded in the Gospel and the whole counsel of God

Agreement: I would put this on the Top Shelf of parenting books. We have been working through various books from this genre and have found this one to be one of the best. It has:

Good overviews

Helpful age specific struggles and counsel

Good steps, verses, and charts

Helpful Appendices

Good 30 day devotional for those who have wayward children (or anyone who is struggling in their life!)

Great questions for review at the end of each chapter – perfect for parents to ask each other.

There is not a push to see conversion early in the life of a child, but there is a push to teach the Gospel from the very beginning. They also provide a helpful outline to help the parent do that.

Personal App: What is my purpose as a parent but to glorify God in all things and seek to point my child to Him?

Favorite Quote: “We can, with God’s enabling grace and for his glory, faithfully honor God as we parent, even through the teen years” (14).

Stars: 5 out of 5

It would be worth another read and I would recommend it.

If this review was helpful, let me know here.

Practical Theology for Women: How Knowing God Makes a Difference in Our Daily Lives 

Author: Wendy Horger Alsup

Product Details

Paperback: 154 pages

Publisher: Crossway Books 

Point: Theology and doctrine are practical for our daily lives. We must learn of God’s character and works and then examine our own lives to see if our daily actions and responses are reflecting what we believe about God.

Path:  After a brief testimony of who she is and how she got to where she is now, Alsup systematically works through several key doctrines. She does not claim that this book is comprehensive by any means, but a good foundation. She works through the importance of theology and faith, several different aspect of God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. She also adds a section on communication with God.

Agreement: This is a great tool to use for personal study and also for group Bible studies. It is helpful in making connections between daily life and theology.

Personal App: How I view God directly affects how I think and act. Am I seeking to know God more all of the time?

Stars: 4.5 out of 5

It would be worth another read and I would recommend it.

If this review helped, please let us know here

Bridges, Jerry. Transforming Grace: Living Confidently in God’s Unfailing Love. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1991.

Transforming Grace

Point: God’s grace is sufficient. It is sufficient for our salvation. It is sufficient for our sanctification. It is sufficient for our weaknesses. It is sufficient for trials of today.

Path: Bridges explains how Christians today often accept God’s grace to cover them for salvation, but then attempt to live in their own strength day by day. We become legalists by attempting to please God with what we do or refuse to do.

Sources: This is a traditional Bridges book. He studies through several passage, noting Puritan writers and contemporary commentators.

Agreement: This was an excellent book to remind me that there is nothing I can do to improve on God’s grace. I cannot work for what God has done. There is no way that I could ever merit anything that God has given me in His grace.

Disagreement: I would disagree with some of what he says in regard to the OT law.

Personal App: Why am I doing what I am doing? Am I trying to earn God’s favor? Have I practically tried to earn grace?

Stars: 5 out of 5

It would be worth another read and I would recommend it.

I would probably put this on my once a year reading list.

If this review helped, please let us know here