While this book probably won't totally blow you away, it will make enough of an impression that it could change your whole life - so it is worth the read. When I first read this book, I thought it was probably just written for Charismatics and Pentacostals. I didn't think I would like it. But being a Reformed/Conservative/Presbyterian/Calvinist, I wanted a life changing book, and I think God the Holy Spirit speaks to me through this book.
The book covers why the Holy Spirit and Charistmatics have a bad name and explains away a lot of anti-Holy Spirit teachings that conservatives have grown up with. The best part of the book is that it explains the benefits of becoming FRIENDS WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. We should know God The Holy Spirit. Not Just God and Jesus. It is through God the Holy Spirit that God the father and son are able to change us. This is how we will know God's will, becoming stronger, kinder, more loving - through the power of the Holy Spirit.
I just finished the chapter on the Holy Spirit in John MacArthur's Fundamentals of Faith and this book supports the same teaching that it is GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT that gave Jesus and the Apostles all their power - the power to preach, do miracles, etc. After studying up on the Holy Spirit and reading these two books, I now feel like the Holy Spirit is THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE TRINITY in our daily lives today. In Christianity, He is so neglected, but in truth, HE IS THE ONE THAT CHANGES YOUR SINNER LIFE INTO A CHRISTIAN GODLY LIFE. Without the Holy Spirit, how will we overcome all our problems? How will we preach if we don't have the power of the Holy Spirit?
5 stars because: Morris teaches that tongues and miracles are still relevant today and not done away with after the apostles like some conservative's teach. Morris has a good case and I'm going to have to re-research my position here. But he uses scripture fairly well to back up his belief and he does a pretty good job at that. So even if I don't agree 100% with his ideas, at least he's done a good job backing them up and this makes me go back to the drawing board and re-research my view to see who really is interpreting the bible correctly.
I'm not sure I trust the last chapters 16-19 of this book - focused on tongues. Morris comes from a Charismatic perspective and some of his writing comes across as "selling" tongues to me. Is this a name-it-claim-it prosperity gospel teacher? I will have to YouTube Morris and find out more about him. I would want to know if Morris is another Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, Andrew Wommack, Creflo Dollar, etc.
The natural inclination for a conservative Christian is to agree with the reviewer, "I'm not sure the Holy Spirit really works this way" but I must say, even being an ultra conservative Christian, I know a friend who gets "promptings" that truly must be the Holy Spirit because they've proven accurate and guided my friend even though this friend is not Charismatic. The Holy Spirit is real and can and does talk to us.
Disclaimer: Borrowed this book from my sister, who received this from the publisher free of charge in exchange for this review. Honest review, as I am not required to give a positive review. I am normally a harsh reviewer, so you can trust that this book is worth reading.
Rumors of God by Whitehead & Tyson
Fantastic book! I highly recommend this book because it opens your eyes and make you go "Wow, I never thought of that!" Most of us were raised in wealthy America. Brought up on tv and games (including sports). This book is a wake-up call to all us who have fallen into this everyday American life and let our love of God fall by the side. We have settled for temporary pleasures when a much much happier life is so close and possible for us. This book asks: What will your life be if you just keep going just like you are going right now? When you are lying on your death bed and look back at your life, would you be proud of the life you had lived? Would you feel like the majority of your time was well spent? Myself included, I get the feeling most of us would be ashamed of a life wasted. Rumors of God is a book about prioritizing seeking God, not just letting your relationship with him fall by the side.
I found this book highly inspirational. There was so many good and convicting points that I found myself highlighting on every other page! It was a slow read for me because there was a lot of substance here. This book touches you and hopefully will change your life - make God your #1 and trust Him to carry you (like Footprints in the Sand).
Disclaimer: I gave my honest review. I received this book from the publisher but a positive review was not required.
I found this book highly inspirational. There was so many good and convicting points that I found myself highlighting on every other page! It was a slow read for me because there was a lot of substance here. This book touches you and hopefully will change your life - make God your #1 and trust Him to carry you (like Footprints in the Sand).
Disclaimer: I gave my honest review. I received this book from the publisher but a positive review was not required.
God's Love Letters to You (40 Day Devotional) by Dr Larry Crabb
We've all heard our share of "death" words. A comment about your weight, sends you bawling and binge eating. A jab about you being "weak" or "a sissy" or "not like the boys" sets you up for life to prove yourself but never able to convince yourself that you are "strong enough." A comment about "shooting like a girl" in basketball, leads you to give up and dispise the game forever. Everyone uses them - we do, our friends, family and lovers. We all jab jab one another.
Only God can always be counted on to speak life words. BUT God's way of speaking (or our not listening) is so foreign to us that it can feel harsh, cold and uncaring. Sometimes, it is because his words of life are meant to kill that thing inside us that is killing us. Sometimes we foolishly try to keep alive what God is trying to kill.
This author has taken 40 of his 66 passage from his book "66 Love Letters" and turned them into a devotional book with questions to go along with the passages. The hope is that the love of God will replace the "death" words of the world.
At first I loved this book - what a great idea. Then I hatcd it when I saw that THERE ARE NO ANSWERS IN THIS BOOK - ONLY QUESTIONS! I thought, how shallow and cliche. But now that I've had time to reflect, I do love this book. Because the questions make you think. And maybe your answers and my answeers and the author's answers will all be different. So this book is useful because it makes us search our OWN beliefs.
Example:
The author tells you to trust God because he loves you even though He doesn't take your sufferring away.
BUT how can we know he loves us? Just because someone or the Bible tells us?
So the author asks you a question - why do you think God does this and lets you suffer?
BUT there is no answer! What good is a book that asks but never answers? Well, if you CARE ENOUGH, go find the answer! Don't accept man's answer. Don't accept the author's answer or your pastor's answer. Truly SEEK the REAL answer. The question of evil and suffering. Does God really love us?
Now no one can make you seek the answers. You might just give up. But at least you know the questions are out there and you might just see that your pastor, church and friends don't even know the answers to some of these deep deep questions. The questions the author asks aren't that deep - it is the making you think that makes you see a deeper question behind the author's shallow question. It is the lack of answers in this book that makes you want to seek and search out REAL answers.
So, I would recommend this book.
Disclaimer: I gave my honest review. I received this book from the publisher but a positive review was not required.
Only God can always be counted on to speak life words. BUT God's way of speaking (or our not listening) is so foreign to us that it can feel harsh, cold and uncaring. Sometimes, it is because his words of life are meant to kill that thing inside us that is killing us. Sometimes we foolishly try to keep alive what God is trying to kill.
This author has taken 40 of his 66 passage from his book "66 Love Letters" and turned them into a devotional book with questions to go along with the passages. The hope is that the love of God will replace the "death" words of the world.
At first I loved this book - what a great idea. Then I hatcd it when I saw that THERE ARE NO ANSWERS IN THIS BOOK - ONLY QUESTIONS! I thought, how shallow and cliche. But now that I've had time to reflect, I do love this book. Because the questions make you think. And maybe your answers and my answeers and the author's answers will all be different. So this book is useful because it makes us search our OWN beliefs.
Example:
The author tells you to trust God because he loves you even though He doesn't take your sufferring away.
BUT how can we know he loves us? Just because someone or the Bible tells us?
So the author asks you a question - why do you think God does this and lets you suffer?
BUT there is no answer! What good is a book that asks but never answers? Well, if you CARE ENOUGH, go find the answer! Don't accept man's answer. Don't accept the author's answer or your pastor's answer. Truly SEEK the REAL answer. The question of evil and suffering. Does God really love us?
Now no one can make you seek the answers. You might just give up. But at least you know the questions are out there and you might just see that your pastor, church and friends don't even know the answers to some of these deep deep questions. The questions the author asks aren't that deep - it is the making you think that makes you see a deeper question behind the author's shallow question. It is the lack of answers in this book that makes you want to seek and search out REAL answers.
So, I would recommend this book.
Disclaimer: I gave my honest review. I received this book from the publisher but a positive review was not required.
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