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Redemption and revival
REVIEWS BY HOWARD SHIRLEY New books mark the promise of the Easter season The overwhelming promise of Christianity is life, anew. Men may cloud it, agendas may muddy it, detractors may obscure it, but this central tenet of the Christian faith endures and is the focus of the upcoming Easter season. Five new and powerful books explore this promise in different ways. All will make you think, and all may well challenge your perceptions of Christianity, whether as a believer, or a cautious observer from the outside. Reviving the Sabbath
Buchanan writes with skill and beauty, using phrases, images and stories that are a delight to read and a joy to the soul. Regardless of your background, The Rest of God is a healing treasure in a far too harried world.
By Mark Buchanan W Publishing, $17.99 256 pages ISBN 0849918480
A change of pace
By Ben Young and Dr. Samuel Adams Nelson, $14.99 216 pages ISBN 0785211934
God's operation
With this book, he calls readers back to allowing God to transform them, rather than making feeble efforts to effect change the other way around. Living the Resurrection is worth reading and worth pondering, an eye-opener to a way of thinking and living that returns to the redemptive power of Christ.
By Eugene H. Peterson NavPress, $16.99 160 pages ISBN 157683929X
Retelling the old, old story
By Steven James Revell, $14.99 208 pages ISBN 0800731131
Understanding the Bible
The Illustrated Everyday Bible Companion is an excellent tool for understanding the concepts and customs within the Bible's historic span. Described in its subtitle as "An All-in-One Resource for Everyday Bible Study," this amply illustrated volume lives up to its billing, providing an encyclopedic listing of Biblical names, objects and concepts and placing each within its cultural and historical context. Packed with photos and drawings, this impressive guide also includes concordance information and a thematic summary of each book of Scripture. Want to know where King Jehoshaphat and King Ahab formed an alliance? The summary of 2 Chronicles will set you straight (18:1-3, in case you wondered). The Illustrated Everyday Bible Companion is easy to read and fun to thumb through. A suitable guide for personal study or family devotions, it places a true understanding of the Bible within the reach of every reader, not just historical scholars and seminarians.
Barbour, $24.97 704 pages ISBN 1593109059
A writer in Franklin, Tennessee, Howard Shirley is the author of Acts for God: 38 Dramatic Sketches for Contemporary Services, as well as Christian video and devotional materials.
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The first book takes a look at one of the oldest religious traditions: the Sabbath—the day of rest. In his book, The Rest of God: Restoring Your Soul by Restoring Sabbath, Mark Buchanan challenges us to go back to the original intent of the Sabbath, as expressed at its inception, commanded in the Torah and pointed to by Christ: a rest from one's labors, blessed by God. "The Sabbath was created for man, not man for the Sabbath," Christ said, and the implications of this truth are what Buchanan examines. Buchanan is not calling for a return to blue laws and suit-and-tie Sundays, but a recognition that God calls us—indeed created us—to rest from our work, one day each week. Sabbath rest means recognizing God, restoring ourselves and enjoying the life he has given us.
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The frenzied pace of this harried world is the disease which Out of Control: Finding Peace for the Physically Exhausted and Spiritually Strung Out seeks to treat. A pastor and clinical psychologist, respectively, Ben Young and Dr. Samuel Adams offer relief to anyone who feels overwhelmed by modern life. In many ways, this book could be a companion piece to The Rest of God, as it touches on similar themes, including a call for a return to a personal Sabbath. Out of Control suggests ways to bring each day out of the rushing current of the world and into the peaceful presence of God. The style of the book is friendly and straightforward, making Young and Adams' advice easily accessible to everyone. There is no preaching or condemnation, but solid, practical advice on dealing with anxiety, stress, worry and the demands of a mile-a-minute, information-overloading world. If you find yourself barely hanging on to your last thin thread, this book is for you.
If Out of Control challenges us not to be individually overwhelmed by the world, Living the Resurrection: The Risen Christ in Everyday Life by Eugene H. Peterson challenges the church not to let the world overwhelm the faith. A former pastor and theologian, Peterson is best known as the translator and author of The Message, which retells the Bible in modern language. With Living the Resurrection, Peterson calls for the church to refocus itself on the resurrection of Christ as the central transformational mystery that sets every purpose and guides every step. Peterson argues that the church has been lulled into treating faith as a self-help project, defined by techniques and goals and programs. Christians are trying to manipulate, define and control something and someone who is completely outside their control. "Resurrection is not available for our use," says Peterson. "It's exclusively God's operation."
Redemption is the theme of Story: Recapture the Mystery by Steven James. A storyteller and poet, James skillfully weaves together personal stories, re-imagined fairy tales, biblical scenes, imagined conversations with angels, philosophical musings and poetic interludes to tell the redemptive story of Christ. It is a potpourri of language and imagery, mingled to delicious effect, calling the reader to see the gospel story with fresh eyes, breaking through the numbness of familiarity to expose the wonder and adventure God offers. This highly original retelling of the Scripture is often beautiful, often haunting and thoroughly compelling. It is a reminder that Christ's promise of "life, anew" is constantly with us, then, now and always.
The Bible covers thousands of years of history, culture and religion. Making sense of it all is a daunting task; it's all too easy to get lost in the sea of odd names and ancient cultures—or to forget just where in all those pages to find a particular reference or event.