The Miracles of Jesus by Jessica LaGrone

The Miracles of Jesus by Jessica LaGrone ISBN-13: 9781501835452 Paperback: 208 pages Publisher: Abingdon Press Released: Sept. 5, 2017

Source: Review copy from the publisher through Amazon Vine.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Jesus demonstrated the presence and power of God by performing miracles. He turned water into wine, healed the sick, calmed the storm, opened blind eyes, and raised the dead. While these beloved stories draw our attention to divine power, they also have something else in common: human desperation. Every time we see Jesus performing a miracle, we also get a glimpse into the gift of desperation, a gift that opens us to the dramatic power of God through our desperate need for him.

In this six-week Bible study, Jessica LaGrone leads us in a captivating exploration of the miracles of Jesus, helping us to see that our weakness is an invitation for God to work powerfully in our lives and reminding us that we need God on our best days just as much as we do on our worst.

Themes and miracle stories include:
the gift of desperation (turning water into wine and other signs of God's response of fullness in our times of emptiness)
the miracle of abundance (feeding the 5,000 and other abundance stories)
miracles on the water (calming the storm, walking on water, the abundant catch)
Jesus our healer (5 stories of healing) death and resurrection (Lazarus, Jairus' daughter)
the miracle we all receive (the Incarnation)

The participant workbook includes five days of lessons for each week, combining study of Scripture with personal reflection, application, and prayer.


My Review:
This is only a review of the participant workbook of The Miracles of Jesus (which is meant to be used with a weekly video that I've never viewed). It's a 6 weeks long study with 5 days of study per week plus one page for when you're with a group and watch the video.

She focused on the miracles of Jesus--of abundant provision, healing sickness, calming storms, and Jesus himself. She pointed out how human desperation leads to Jesus' action and looked at why Jesus used miracles. She also provided cultural background information and had us look up related verses to help better understand the context of what was going on. She provided insights into the miracles and clear explanations. Overall, I'd recommend this workbook, and I suspect it'd make a good group study.

From page 82:"We don't get to choose whether the sea we travel is calm or stormy, but we do get to choose where to turn our eyes and attention. We can choose to be overwhelmed by the power of the storms or overwhelmed by the power of God. ...This powerful God cares for you. He has chosen to be in the same boat with you, even in the same storm with you. He is near enough to hear you, know you, and love you up close."


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Deep Blue Kids Bible Dictionary by Four Story Creative

Deep Blue Kids Bible Dictionary by Four Story Creative ISBN-13: 978-1501840616 Hardback: 288 pages Publisher: Abingdon Press Released: Aug. 15, 2017

Source: Review copy from the publisher through Amazon Vine.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
The Deep Blue Kids Bible Dictionary is written to help kids (age 7-12) learn about the persons, places, events, ideas, and terms in the Bible. Each definition includes references to passages in the Bible where the word appears. The entries also include a guide for pronouncing each proper name and other words. Includes full-color illustrations, pronunciations, maps, over 1,000 scriptural references, and more. This dictionary is perfect for Sunday school groups, families, Christian school classes, and libraries.


My Review:
Deep Blue Kids Bible Dictionary is a full-color Bible dictionary aimed at children ages 7-12. The entries were alphabetical and mainly covered people and places, though also some objects (altar, dowry, etc.) and theological ideas (glory, grace, holy, etc.). Each entry included how to pronounce the word, a brief explanation of the word, and the main places where that word is found in the Bible. They also included some pages at the beginning that showed and briefly described what daily life was like.

Some of the entries had illustrations, ranging from cartoon style to more realistic art to photos. It seemed random why they'd use a cartoon animal in one spot and a photograph of an animal in another spot. There were also some charts and maps. Most of the maps conveyed useful information even if their scale and detail weren't that great. However, the scale was so far off on one map (of Jerusalem at the time of Christ) that I thought it was more likely to confuse things than clarify. In general, kids will probably enjoy this and find it useful, but I don't understand why the maps and pictures varied so much in quality and style.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Stranger No More by Annahita Parsan

Stranger No More by Annahita Parsan with Craig Borlase ISBN-13: 9780718095710 Paperback: 288 pages Publisher: Thomas Nelson Released: Nov. 14, 2017

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through BookLook.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Annahita Parsan was born into a Muslim family in Iran and grew up with the simple hope of one day finding a good husband, having children, and doing some good in the world. Married and a mother before she turned eighteen, Annahita found herself unexpectedly widowed and trapped for years in an abusive second marriage that she later fled—discovering instead a God who might love her. Stranger No More is the remarkable true story of Annahita’s path from oppression to the life-changing hope of Jesus. Fleeing Iran across the mountains into Turkey, she spent months in the terrifying Agri prison before a miraculous release and flight to Europe, where she and her two children knelt in a church and prayed, “God, from this day on we are Christians.”

As the leader of two congregations in Sweden, Annahita has baptized hundreds of former Muslims since her own conversion and is reminded every day that saying yes to God is always worth the risk.


My Review:
Stranger No More is the memoir of a woman who grew up as a not-very-devote Muslim in Iran. She married young only to lose her first, loving husband in an accident. She was left to raise her baby son alone, so she felt sympathy for a man who had lost his wife in an accident and had a young daughter. They married, but he was very abusive to her and the children. Most of the book was about this abusive marriage and why she didn't leave him. They had to be smuggled out of Iran due to his political views and were imprisoned and tortured in Turkey. They were eventually allowed to move as refugees to Denmark, where she tried to commit suicide and eventually was convinced by friends to leave and hide from her stalker husband. She ended up in Sweden and became a pastor to Muslim refuges.

There's more to the story than that (including yet another failed marriage), but only a small part of the story was about her becoming a Christian and her activities since then. It was a hard story to read because she went through so many horrific experiences. The sad part was that most of these experiences might have been avoided if she hadn't been so ruled by emotion. For example, she wanted to return to Iran to visit her dying grandmother even though she was warned (and seemed to know down deep) that her life would be in danger if she did. But she did it anyway, and, happily, God saved her from the worst consequences of that decision. It's clear that God was at work throughout her life, but she also has suffered a great deal due to the choices she made.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.

Godspeed by David Teems

Godspeed by David Teems ISBN-13: 9781501847158 Paperback: 384 pages Publisher: Abingdon Press Released: Oct. 3, 2017

Source: Review copy from the publisher through Amazon Vine.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
For the Protestant reformer, times were treacherous. The reformer lived, moved, and exercised his or her faith within the shadow of a powerful church that dominated Western culture. Many of these men and women paid the ultimate price for their faith.

Celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, Godspeed is a 365-day devotional that features the words of prominent reformers, including Martin Luther, William Tyndale, John Calvin, and others, thoughtfully illuminated by best-selling author David Teems with both historical precision and charm.


My Review:
Godspeed is a 365-day-long devotional. There is an entry for each day of the year. Each entry started with a quote from one of the "Voices of the Reformation"--mainly William Tyndale and Martin Luther, but also people like John Wycliffe, Jan Hus, Thomas Cranmer, Anne Askew, Ulrich Zwingli, John Calvin, John Knox, and queens Anne Boleyn, Katherine Parr, and Elizabeth. The author (or a further quote) then expanded upon what the reformer said. This was followed by a brief thought or prayer (often another short quote from that reformer). It ended with related verses from the Bible. Those verses were quotes from different versions of the Bible published in the last 500 years. This devotional is a fun way to get a look at some of the things the reformers wrote.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.