On Bended Knee

So if you know me, I love to review a good bible study and I love being on launch teams!

And this spring I got to do that TWICE.

The first was on Crickett Keeth's On Bended Knee. 

This is one of the very few bible studies I've come across that tackles prayer like this. She doesn't focus on one specific prayer or one specific person but she covers many prayers across both the Old and New Testament. 

So above you'll see the Table of Contents where each week the author takes on a new prayer and guides us through that prayer. 

She starts off with THE prayer by Jesus (you know the one: Our Father....). 

Then we go into intercessory prayer by Paul in Ephesians (and even get to cover one in Colossians). Next is Job's prayer in his despair and Hannah's prayer as she was longing to have children (the prayer that brought forth Samuel). 

By week 5 we get to David's prayer in the Psalms of Lament where we find how to be sad & hurting and yet still trust God to be God. 

Then there's Asa's prayer who was seeking God and trying to turn the people towards God. 

Then Jehoshaphat, Asa's son and the monarch after him, who is depending on God for his decision making.

And we end the study with Nehemiah whose prayer was very bold, especially for someone still in captivity in Persia. 

Then at the end, there's this section with MORE prayers found in the bible that we can study and replicate in our own prayer time: Jacob, Moses, Solomon, Elijah, Hezekiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezra, as well as others by David and Paul.

And if you choose to do this study in a group there's also a leader's guide in the back.

I must admit I thoroughly enjoyed this book when I read over it during the launch and even more so now that I am taking my time going through it, studying the prayers and praying them over friends and family. I highly recommend as a good study on prayer that's not warfare praying (which is not covered in this study).

{FYI: I did receive this book for FREE as a member of the launch team.}

Praying God's Will for Your Life

Stormie Omartian is highly regarded in Christian circles for her writing and so I was quite interested to finally review a book by her. 

One thing to note from even the beginning chapters of this book is that it is quite personal. It's as if Stormie walks her audience through her life and how she became a Christian. Guiding the reader through becoming a Christian as well. She guides the reader through praying for salvation and if the reader is already a Christian, she guides them through recommiting themselves to Jesus. She recounts how she became a Christian so that others who may be on the fence about becoming a Christian can have that encouragement. 

 The book is organized into three sections: The Intimate Relationship, The Solid Foundation, and the Obedient Walk. Each section focuses on a specific part of the believer's life. The first section is helping the believer come into relationship with Jesus. The second section is to help pour the firm foundation of faith. The third section is living out that faith; obediently walking out the faith.

The chapters are bite sized and have a prayer section at the end of each.  The first four chapters have two prayers: one prayer for the new believer & one prayer for the seasoned believer. The bonus journaling space is at the end of the book. It would have been perfect to have it at the end of each chapter where its easier to journal in response to each chapter. There's also a tools of truth section at the end of each chapter which contain Scripture verses that relate to each chapter. 

At first I was a bit skeptical, but I see why her books are so beloved. This one is good for both the new and the seasoned believer. It requires you to put in work on your end to see results. And it prompts us to open up to the work of the Holy Spirit.

{FYI: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.}

Lies Women Believe

I remember the first time I heard about this book, it was a number of years ago and I was quite curious as to what it contained. Then the expanded edition was set to launch and I applied for the launch team, didn't make it. But then the book showed up in the book reviewer program as an option and I JUMPED AT IT. Thankfully, one of the admins even allowed me to received the study guide as well to review at the same time. AWESOME. Usually its only one book at a time.

I have literally taken my time reading through this book to review it. Studying through it with the companion study guide and it has been eye-opening. 

So there are three sections in the book: Foundations, Lies Women Believe and Walking in Truth.

Chapters 2-10 cover the lies women believe in specific areas: 

1. Lies we believe about God
2. Lies we believe about ourselves
3. Lies we believe about sin
4. Lies we believe about priorities
5. Lies we believe about sexuality (note this section is not in the original)
6. Lies we believe about marriage
7. Lies we believe about children
8. Lies we believe about emotions
9. Lies we believe about circumstances.

     The companion study guide further expounds on the book. Each chapter in the study guide starts with what section of the book it covers, recaps that section of the book, then has three question sections: Realize, Reflect, and Respond. 

     It asks you personal questions that help you to identify if you believe this root lie and how the belief and action upon that lie affect your life. Sometimes we say we believe one thing but the way we act and live our lives shows that we really don't believe what we said. For example, we can say we trust God but does every action we make show doubt? We can say we believe that the Bible is incorruptible and the absolute truth but do our actions show that? Because if we did, we love more and forgive more. We'd love people, treat them well, and still rebuke the sin in their lives, without fear of their reaction or anyone else's reaction. 

     I can tell you off the bat, the chapters on sexuality and children will immediately ruffle many feathers as these go heavily against the culture we live in. We live in a culture where it is fairly acceptable to be gay and if you refuse or do not accept it, you're labelled as judgmental and hateful. We live in a culture that says it is fairly acceptable to have abortions. We live in a culture where premarital sex is not a bad thing and adultery is ok if you're not happy and even glorified on TV and in movies.

     Now depending on where you are on the spectrum of beliefs will tell you just how offended you might be by this book. If you're pro-choice and accepting of LGBT then you will be offended. And you NEED to be. Maybe then you may read God's Word and realize that culture does not dictate TRUTH. Just because it has been regarded as acceptable by people, does NOT make it acceptable to the Lord. The ancient Israelites learned that with pagan worship and lost their hedge of protection for a number of years because of it.

     I HIGHLY recommend this book and the companion study guide to EVERY generation of women. We are in a place to influence those around us and we need to be a godly influence. We aren't called to sound like or look like this world so why do we attempt to do so?

{FYI: I received this book from Moody Publishers in exchange for my HONEST opinion.}

The Daniel Key

So here is Anne Graham Lotz's latest book. I was quite excited to dig into this book and completely devoured it. It is my first time reviewing a book by Anne Graham Lotz.

I really enjoyed her writing style. It's not overly personal and incorporates a friendly tone. The book is about 20 short chapters (160 pages). It has MANY nuggets to treasure. Each chapter is about a choice that Daniel made in his determination to remain faithful to God in spite of his circumstances. We read about his worship and faith, his forgiveness and humility. We read how daily prayer time makes a HUGE difference in our lives, even if it means going against the grain (like it did for Daniel). She points out much of Daniel's life that we can use in our own lives to strengthen our faith.

I think the main thing I dislike about this book is how she refers to Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah by their pagan, Babylonian names (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) rather than referring to them by their Hebrew/Israelite names. I think if the goal is to glorify God, then we need to use their Hebrew names that identified them as belonging to God than using their pagan names, which were given in the hopes of wiping out their loyalty to God.

Other than that, no complaints whatsoever. I do recommend to others, especially those who may be struggling with identity and even discipline.

Pastoral Theology

This book seems to focus on the what rather than the do of pastors. What do they believe, why do they believe it and how it impacts those they lead. 

I believe this book is hugely important because pastors play such a role in the body of Christ that they are responsible for shepherding God's people and their hearts. And that is what this book addresses. It addresses the different rhetoric and ways that we fall by the wayside. It helps those in ministry (even those not pastors) to see the areas in which they are relying more on theology and knowledge rather than God, Himself. One of my favorite quotes is that "The required characteristics establish the pastor as a representative of the One whom he ultimately serves and to whom he must give an account." To be a pastor is more than preaching on Sundays and collecting an offering. It is more than a platform. But rather a pastor is a representative of God and ultimately that is who they serve and report to. The church board is not the highest authority the pastor is accountable to. And as such pastors must be aware of and meet the characteristics set forth by God's Word. This even applies to those who simply operate a ministry but may not be a pastor. 

The book approaches pastorship and ministry from a theological, Christological, pneumatological, anthropological, ecclesiological, missiological, ministerial, homiletical, and familial perspectives. By approaching from these many perspectives (each receiving their own chapter) the authors help us view pastorship and ministry from different angles so that we grasp the accountability of the roles we find ourselves in. And how we are responsible for them. 

I recommend this book to those in any form of ministry, not just those in a pastorship, although I highly recommend those in or training for the pastorship.

{FYI, I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.}