Book Review: Answering the Toughest Questions About Suffering and Evil

Title: Answering the Tough Questions About Suffering and Evil

Authors: Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz

Publisher: Bethany House

Overview

In light of the events that took place recently in Sutherland Springs, TX, a book that discusses the issue of God and suffering would be a good fit. Suffering and evil are a reality that plagues our world. That truth does not make it any easier to stomach, but it is the truth nonetheless.

Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz try to bring some light on the subject of God and suffering in their recent book, Answering the Tough Questions About Suffering and Evil. These two authors have written many books with the intention of “communicating the truths of God in a way that is clear, correct, and casual.”

In Answering the Tough Questions About Suffering and Evil, ten questions are addressed about the topic of suffering and evil. These questions are ones that are often asked by people who are wrestling with how God and these issues fit together. Each question has a chapter devoted to it that also has some reflection and discussion questions at the end of each chapter.

Thoughts

It really seems like the stories of suffering and evil are coming more frequently and with more intensity. There have always been those that asked questions about God especially when tragedy strikes. I think that this work that Bickel and Jantz have written helps those who are genuinely looking for some good answers to these questions. This book in no way seeks to be a full answer to each and every question dealing with suffering or evil (that would a multi-volume set). Bickel and Jantz seem to put forward simple answers that point the reader to the truths of the Bible.

Recommendation

When it comes to recommending Answering the Toughest Questions About Suffering and Evil, I would gladly recommend this resource to a person that might be dealing with some of the common questions that people have with these subjects. It is not going to completely settle the issues, but it will give the reader some good answers and direction toward finding truth in the Bible.

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Book Review: The Wisdom of God

To say that I am a fan of A.W. Tozer’s writings would be an understatement.  I have read many of his works that has been published over the years.  I appreciate his style and approach to topics of the faith.  When I got the opportunity to read a “never before published” work of his, I was a little excited.  The work that I am talking about is The Wisdom of God.

The Wisdom of God is a collection of sermons and thoughts from sermons that has been compiled by James L. Snyder.  This is an important thing to remember as you read this book because you will find that there are topics and statements that are repeated often in various chapters.  At first, it was a little annoying reading the same thing over and over and over, but once I got my brain wrapped around that these were different sermons compiled together into a book, it helped.

Snyder shows how Tozer reveals what the wisdom of God is all about.  As the book cover shares, “wisdom is more than just a list of instructions – it is a part of God’s character, inseparable from His love and grace.”  The book is broken up into twenty-three chapters covering the topic of the wisdom of God and how it applies in different situations.

I would say that this was a different read that the normal Tozer work.  The compilation of various sermons into a book was sometimes repetitive, but the meat of what is shared is still inspiring and causes the reader to look at this topic that plays such a big role in the Bible in a fresh manner.

Recommendation

I would recommend this to anyone looking to get a fresh look at what the wisdom of God is about.  I would remind the reader that this is a compilation of sermons and materials so do not be surprised when certain things are often repeated and when the chapters do not necessarily flow into one another.  Otherwise, it is a good read.

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Book Review: "VIP"

Influence.  There are those who have it, and there are those who want more of it.  It is a powerful commodity in our day and time. There seems to be so many jockeying for position in the arena of influence.

As followers of Jesus Christ, Christians are to be influential people.  We are to use the gifts and tools that God has given us to influence those that we come in contact with closer to the God who loves them so.

O.S. Hawkins, the President and CEO of Guidestone Financial Resources of
the Southern Baptist Convention, has put out a new book that talks about being a person of influence.  He states that the common acronym, VIP
, should be redefined to “Very Influential Person.”  In VIP: How to Influence with Vision, Integrity, and Purpose, Hawkins lays out characteristics that one needs to have to be influential (Vision, Integrity, and Purpose).

VIP is a short read (around 116 pages).  In this short work, Hawkins shows how these three characteristics work to make a person more influential.  He uses different stories and phrases to help make the points of his book more memorable.  Sometimes the “catchiness” of phrases and trying to make them work through alliteration or other means took away from the content. Hawkins frequently (and well s0) uses the Bible to make his points.  I think that this is one of the strong points of this book.

My Recommendation

I think that it is important to be a person of influence.  Whether you like it or not, someone is looking up to you.  That means that you are influencing someone.  I think that there needs to be more materials that help us use our “influence” in ways that it is intended.

I believe that Hawkins has put together a decent work in VIP, but if you are looking for it to be something that is life-changing, I think that you would be disappointed.  The characteristics that Hawkins talks about in VIP – vision, integrity, and purpose – are desperately needed for a person to be successful at being influential.  I just wished that he would have shown a little more about how they work into being influential without the “sermon points”.

My Rating

3 out of 5 stars

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of an honest review.)

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Book Review: "The Gospel According to Jesus"

As the back cover states, "imagine a church where 84% of Christians are completely unfamiliar tenets of their faith, with a crippling misunderstanding of the word righteousness and, in turn, the gospel of Jesus."  In this work, Pastor Chris Seay tries to lay out a misunderstanding that he sees too often within the local churches of the United States. This misunderstanding has to do with the meaning of righteousness.

I admit that I received a complimentary copy of this book through BookSneeze®.  As life often does, many curve balls came my way and I was unable to finish this book in the normal routine.  After getting through it (finally), I thought that this was a pretty good book.  Pastor Chris Seay is being used in a mighty way at Ecclesia Church in Houston, TX.  Seay puts forth in this work through personal stories, interviews with church leaders, and a study of Romans a picture that righteousness is much more than just good morals but a heartbeat of the gospel that Jesus brought to us.

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Book Review: "The Vertical Self"

"The Vertical Self" by Mark Sayers was a very interesting and refreshing read. Sayers is the Senior Leader of Red Church in Melbourne, Australia. He uses his experiences and wisdom to show that in an age of social networking that our identity can and often does get built by unqualified sources. "The Vertical Self" pushes back to the foreground the truth that our Creator is the only One who can show us our true selves because it was He that created us.

I wondered how much difference there would be since Sayers is from Australia, and I am in Alabama. It was amazing to see that though we are separated by thousands of miles, we struggle and face many of the same temptations and frustrations.

If you are looking for another self-help book that will help you "do better", then this book is not for you. If you are tired of the struggle of trying to create your identity, then pick this book up and be reminded (maybe for the first time) of the you that you were created to be.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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Book Review

The latest book that I have read through Thomas Nelson's book review program was Dr. David Jeremiah's "Living With Confidence In A Chaotic World: What On Earth Should We Do Now?" I have been a big fan of Dr. Jeremiah and the work that the Lord is doing through him.  Dr. Jeremiah uses some of the most clear speech to bring God's word to people.  I have read many of his previous books.

This work seems to be a follow-up to a work ("What in the World is Going On?").  I think that it might have helped to read that book first.  I had a little trouble following Dr. Jeremiah's line from chapter to chapter.  One thing that I did find still in his work was  the great use of illustrations.  I have always admired Dr. Jeremiah's ability to illustrate the Word of God and its principles with common everyday stories from our culture.

I would suggest this work to anyone who might be wondering about if God really cares about us and the things that happen in our life.  With the craziness of our culture, this book definitely shows that God is still in control even through the chaos.

Overall Grade: B

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Book Review: "Love and Respect"

This was the latest book that I got from Thomas Nelson Publishers to review.  I had heard about this book from different people that it was a good work on the different needs of men and women in relationships.  My wife had mentioned it to me also, so I decided to check it out.  Here's what I came away with...

Good Points

• Dr. Eggerichs used some very common language that can easily be understood.  Though there was a lot of psychology in this book, it did feel more like it was you and the author sitting down somewhere talking.


• Great suggestions.  Eggerichs puts forth some great suggestions to help meet the emotional needs of your spouse (both for men and women).  The COUPLES and CHAIRS segments were really good and gives the reader something to put into practice.


• Good use of Scripture.  Throughout the work, Scripture is used (and in context).  It doesn't surprise me much seeing how Dr. Eggerichs is a former pastor.  It was good to see a work out there that is saturated with God's word getting so much attention.


• The great motivation.  The principles of unconditional love and unconditional respect are to be carried out not because the person deserves it but because Christ Jesus said that is what we should do.  I thought that this was good (and just like a pastor) to save this little nugget until the very end.

Not So Good Parts

• Repetition.  I thought that I was never going to get through the first seven chapters.  They seemed to be saying the same thing chapter after chapter.  I thought that they could have been condensed into one good chapter and said the same thing.  Once I got passed this seven chapter intro, the rest was pretty easily navigated.


• Infomercial-like at times.  I like the testimonies from people who had been to the "Love and Respect" Conferences that Dr. Eggerichs and his wife do.  But at times there were so many that it started to sound like a late-night infomercial.

Overall

Overall, I thought that this was a good book that really addressed the different emotional needs of men and women.  I would recommend it to couples to help understand why sometimes things are seen differently.  I would give this book a "B".

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Book Review: "Between Wyomings"

I have developed this urge to read more since I got out of school.  Why I didn't have this urge in school is beyond me.  Normally, I will read books that deal with ministry or student culture since I am a student pastor.   I chose this last time to break the mold and try a different type of book.  I chose "Between Wyomings" by Ken Mansfield.

"Between Wyomings" is basically a short journal of this record executive as he and his wife take a journey.  Different from my normal readings this book definitely was.  I'm not quite sure what I was really expecting to get out of this book when I got it.  It was interesting to hear about this man's (Ken Mansfield) past and all of the stars that he had gotten to work with.  I am a fan of a few of the artists that he had worked with, so it was good to hear some of the stories that you might never get to hear about them.

I will admit that this was a hard read.  Though the chapters were very short, the random blog-like style of writing was hard to follow.  Mansfield tended to go in and out of a day-dream state and just made the book not as interesting to me.

If you are a fan of the music industry and would like to hear some good stories about great ones like the Beatles, Waylon Jennings, and more then this book might just be up your alley.  If you're looking for something to really inspire you and move you, I would probably look elsewhere.

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Book Review: "The Principle of the Path" by Andy Stanley

The latest book that I have read is Andy Stanley's "The Principle of the Path."  Once again, Andy Stanley has put together a wonderful work.  I love to read his material because it is more like sitting down at the local coffee shop and discussing rather than reading a book.  "The Principle of the Path" is a great reminder for some and could be a huge eye-opener for others.  Andy Stanley shows how every part of life (relationships, finances, jobs, and more) are tied to the "path" that we are on.  The question of "how did I get in this situation?" is answered in a great way in this book.

This was a very easy and quick read.  As a minister myself, I really appreciated the study guide at the end of the book that could make this book an easy resource for small groups in a church setting.  I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to see their life go in a specific direction.  This book will help you to see the path and understand that the decisions that you make now, not your intentions, will determine the direction your life will go.

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Book Review: Christianity In Crisis 21st Century

I recently read the book "Christianity In Crisis: 21st Century" by Hank Hanegraaff.  I have read some of Hank Hanegraaff's work before and found it to be very good.  He does a great job of using the Bible in context.  That is why he has a radio program called Bible Answer Man that can be heard throughout the United States and Canada.  "Christianity In Crisis: 21st Century" was an interesting read.  It is a follow-up work to a book that Hanegraaff had written some twenty years ago that was called "Christianity In Crisis."  Both books deal with some "movements" that claim the title of Christian but have very untraditional theologies that prove them to be anything genuine Christian.

Some things that were really good about this work was that Hanegraaff gave some specific examples and didn't seem to be "attacking" a person.  He really made it a point to target the teachings and not the people themselves.  Though at times, Hanegraaff is very bold in his wording, I agree that with errant teachings, Christians do not need to be tolerant and worry about the feelings of other people.  I really think that the reason that many "teachers" of the kind of theology that Hanegraaff exposes in this work have massive followings because not many people have had the courage to stand up and call them to account.  I also really liked the fact that he cited all of his references so that someone could come behind him and check his work.  Hanegraaff is definitely not trying to hide anything.  He was rather calling some false teachings to be laid plainly on the table.

There were some things that I would have liked to seen differently.  I know that Hanegraaff was trying to give some credibility to what he was going to talk about, but the almost seventy pages of the "cast of characters" was a little long.  I know that there are many in this "word-faith" teaching, but it was just hard to get through all of the characters when they seem to be the same thing over and over.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who might be wondering about all these tv preacher guys (and ladies).  While not everyone on tv is teaching false doctrines, many are.  Sadly, many who are outside of faith in Christ base their belief of Christianity by what is readily available to them.  I think that this should encourage churches to get into their communities and be the true body of Christ and not leave it to someone who might be errantly representing Christ on tv to do so.

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