Andrew Smith's Blog

My name is Andrew. Come and have a look inside my life and watch me share what is on my heart.

What It Means to Be a Man: God’s Design for Us in a World Full of Extremes By Rhett Smith Book Review

 

In What It Means to Be a Man, Rhett Smith to guide readers into tapping into their masculinity and being more centered on God’s design for our ultimate manhood journey. The book is divided into four sections, “Awareness, Honesty, Openness, and Movement”. Rhett Smith begins the book by exploring the concepts presented in David’s life. He also described the different archetypes that David was and he encouraged men to be honesty about which one they tend to be. He makes a great point and asked the tough question that every boy ponders at one time of their life, “Do I have what it take to slay the giant?” (Page 23).  Men, our giants can be sickness, disease, financial problems, father wounds or fatherlessness, marriage problems, wayward sons and daughters, the fear of intimacy, being vulnerability, the fear of sharing their emotions and thoughts, depression, anger, suppressing their feelings with addictions, etc. There are a number of giants we may be facing and throughout this book, Rhett Smith will assist men in finding out what it truly means to be a man.  

 

This book helped me to realize that I struggle with living in balance between being too passive and aggressive. I tend to be too passive and I withdraw and most of the time I have trouble being vulnerable and being intimate. I fear in being hurt again, rejected, or abandoned. I also noticed that in one of the chapters that I do in fact have a father wound. My father has always been there for me and there has always been an emotional distance between us. He was continuously driven to work hard and achieve. His dad died when he was ten years old and I know he had to teach himself how to be a man. My dad hasn’t really taught me how to be a man and he knows way more about fixing cars, then I do. I kind of wished he passed down some of that knowledge. And we rarely have a conversation together even though we live in the same home. I especially loved the suggestion that Rhett Smith gave men, he encouraged fathers to actively engage with their sons every single day. Just think of the impact this small act could have and influence your child’s life.

 

I would recommend this outstanding book to every single man, son, and father who is deliberating what it truly means to be a man. This book will positively influence every man and challenge men to vigorously participate in their lives. I immensely loved the content and study guide offered in this phenomenon book about a God centered approach to manhood. I also loved the aspect of the book being written as short chapters on topics that men struggle with and the book could be read and studied as a devotional. Rhett Smith personally endorsed that men read should read it for a total of sixteen weeks (4 months) and with a group where men are strengthened and transformed together. The book provided viral healing and the importance to dwell on my identity in Christ and His unconditional love for me. If you’re looking for a life altering book on becoming the man God has created you to be and you’re longing for your relationships with others and most importantly God to be fulfilled, and intimacy to be rekindled, then read this book and be changed!
 

"I received this book free from the publisher through the Moody Publishers book review bloggers program." 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of The Anxious Christian check it out on Amazon.com or ChristianBook.com:

 


 

 

Check out the book trailer:

 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyCSz_SuVm8

NIV College Devotional Bible Book Review

 
The NIV College Devotional Bible is written to engage college aged students into reading the Bible and the devotionals presented in the Bible. This particular Bible has 222 devotionals on topics that college students will enjoy and it has a supportive appendix. The Bible has a “table of weights and measures, a subject index search, a one year reading plan, 60 day overview of the Bible, 30 days for beginning your walk with Christ, 30 days with Jesus, 20 not-so-famous Bible stories, 30 days of prayer, 30 days of promises, 30 days of leadership, 30 days of knowing God, 30 stories of great Faith”, and many more. The devotionals were spread throughout the Bible and they consisted of a personal or historic story entwined to a scripture passage. Each devotional also contained three critical questions for readers to contemplate on and to respond to. 
 
One of the devotional for instance, discussed the hardship of death and the terrible agony of losing someone that you loved. This specific day dealt with 1 Corinthians 15:35-38 and Paul wrote to the believers in Corinth describing to them that when believers die, that isn’t the end for them. He explained that sting of death is sin but through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we have the final victory. The devotional told a personal story about Andy meeting with Pastor Tim for coffee. It had been a year since Andy lost his precious wife. They caught up like old friends on what happened and what they have been going through this past year. Andy admitted that he understands now what Paul stated in this passage about the sting of death and where pain hurts. Andy began to open up about the difficulty of witnessing your seven year old daughter and on her birthday, she makes a wish for her mother to return and came back to her. The pain hits Andy when he has to check ‘widowed’ in important documents. He also sees his little five year old son drawing pictures of mommy and she is far off from everyone else, looking down from Heaven. This is one devotional that is truly heartbreaking and sad. This one came in a significant time because this past weekend, I lost my great grandmother and I know that she lived a long life. But death still stings, no matter when it happens. This devotional and passage was a wonderful reminder that if we are saved and we know Jesus as our Savior, we will one day have victory over death.  
 
I would recommend this astonishing Bible to every single college aged student. If readers will consider and read through the passages and devotionals spread out on these pages, their lives will be forever changed and impacted. Mediating on the scriptures was very easy and user friendly with this Bible. I really liked and connected with was beneficial section in the back of the Bible. I immensely loved the “thirty days of promises” featuring “when satan attacks you”, “when you’re waiting for an answer to prayer”, “when you’re uncertain about the future”, and more valuable passages. I enjoyed the design of the hardcover Bible and it was very appealing and it reminded me of school colors. This would be a phenomenal resource and graduation gift to any high school student entering college and any college student. 
 
"I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program."  
 
If you would like to purchase a copy of NIV College Devotional Bible check it out on Amazon.com:
 

The 21 Toughest Questions Your Kids Will Ask About Christianity: and How to Answer Them Confidently By Alex McFarland Book Review



In The 21 Toughest Questions Your Kids Will Ask About Christianity, Alex McFarland has written an excellent resource to guide parents in answering the difficult questions your children may ask about Christianity and their faith in Jesus Christ. As we all know, children love to discover and ask questions in order to comprehend the reason and meaning behind important concepts. Alex McFarland has written this book to encouraged parents that they should be their children’s sole source for any questions that their children will have. He strongly advocates to parents to make sure that they pause before answering their questions. Parents need to try and understand why their children is asking this particular question and what event has influenced them to bring this up. Your kids may be asking a question that goes much deeper than the surface question asked. For instance, Alex stated, “Let’s say your child comes to you and asks, “Why does God allow bad things to happen?” This seems like a straightforward theological question, right? But what if Grandma had been ill and has just passed away? The real question your child is asking may be, “Why did God allow Grandma to die. I prayed for her. Why didn’t He answer my prayer?” This is a much personal issue” (Page 8). This book will tackle the challenging inquiries that your children may ask at some point about faith in God. A critical point that Alex made was allowing our children the freedom to ask questions without parents just giving a full on lecture. Parents should focus on a having a dialogue conversation with our kids.
 

The book comprises of questions about “God, Jesus, the Trinity and the Holy Spirit, the Bible, the Church, and questions parents ask and my question to you”. Some of the questions are, “Why does God allow evil?, Why does God allow suffering?, How do we know that God loves us?, Why did Jesus have to die on the cross?, When is Jesus coming back?, When I pray, who is listening – God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit?, Are the miracles in the Bible true?, Why are Christians such hypocrites?, Questions parents ask”, and many more questions about Christianity. Each chapter begins with a quotation, key concepts feature, and information to assist parents in answering the chapter’s question.  
 

I vastly liked the story about eight year old, Lewis and a conversation that he had with his mother. Lewis asked his mother, “What is sex?” and she responded by discussing the differences between men and women and how they fall in love and then how babies occur. All Lewis wanted to know was how to mark a school form, M or F. Just as a side note, this book doesn’t discuss that topic because this book is more aimed at Christianity type questions. Alex McFarland shared this story as an illustration to not respond to our children’s questions with too much details and to answer their questions age appropriately. Another example would be if your kids ask about when Jesus is coming back, you may not need to go into the whole theological behind the book of Revelations and the pre- and post-tribulation rapture period. They may be looking for a more simple answer to their question. If they are wanting to go deeper and they are still asking questions, then feel free to respond with more in depth answers. He also addressed that it’s okay to admit to your children if you don’t know the answer to a question. But it’s important to tell your kids, we will find out the answer together and this might mean asking a pastor, a youth group leader, or another ministry key leader their question. I think this part of the book was especially beneficial to parents and it was a great reminder to parents to use discernment when answering some of their children’s questions and to answer them on their children’s maturity level.
 

One of my favorite questions was, “How do we know that God loves us?”. Parents are advised to always display unconditional love in their homes and to their children. As parents, we obviously know that our children will make mistakes and they will need grace, to be accepted, and loved unconditionally like Christ loves them. The most incredible tangible way that Christ has shown His children the He loves them was by sending this only Son to die for our countless sins. Jesus paid the ultimate penalty for our sins and it’s viral to share this message with your children. If you have younger children, Alex suggested planting a seed and watching it grow will help your children to understand patience and how their love and obedience are like the seeds growing. When we study the word of God and follow His word, we will see fruit manifested in our lives. Alex McFarland has travelled the world, teaching the word of God and he has seen that many young people have no clue that God loves them even when they sin. When we commit sins, we can choose to repent and ask for His forgiveness, and then to turn away from our sins. He also stated that if your child is struggling with low self-esteem and feeling unloved, help your child to reach out to others and develop ways, they can be a blessing to others and show others that they are loved and wanted.
 

I immensely loved how Alex McFarland crafted a few projects to assist parents in describing important concepts on the principles of God’s character. I really enjoyed the aspects of the sugar test and how it represented God’s standard for purity, a decaying apple to explain that everything decays, and planting a plant and letting your kids watch it grow and witness how the plant seeds grow and this is how as Christian’s we are supposed to bear fruit. There are many more special tangible projects presented in this book to help younger children grasp the ideas of Christianity.
 

I would recommend this magnificent book to every single parent, whether your child is younger or even a teenager. It is written for all ages in any parenting stages and it will be a very beneficial resource to guide parents in answering their children’s questions about Christianity. I would also recommend this book to people who one day hope to be parents, grandparents, as well as, pastors, kids or youth group leaders, and anyone who works with children. I learnt a remarkable lot about parenting and responding to our children’s most problematic questions regarding their personal faith in Christ. I will also like to say, that I’m only twenty-three and not married or a parent yet so I haven’t personally been asked or had to respond to some of the questions conversed in this book. I felt like this book has influenced me and it has assisted me so whenever I enter that stage of my life, I can already be a little prepared to answer whatever questions my kids may ask about Christianity. I immeasurably loved the chapter dedicated to the questions that parents ask. This chapter gave parents verses and information concerning sexual immorality, homosexuality, abortion, greed, money, materialism, drugs, drinking alcohol, people who commit suicide, and many more serious topics. This book is a brilliant foundation resource that will assist many parents confused on how to answer their children’s innumerable questions. I appreciate Alex McFarland on taking the considerable time in writing this book in order to lead parents in replying to their child’s questions. If you’re looking for a book on how to answer your children’s perplexing questions, then you definably need to read this one!
 

“Tyndale House Publishers/ Focus on the Family has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book.”

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of The 21 Toughest Questions Your Kids Will Ask About Christianity, then check it out on Amazon.com:

 

Stand Up and Fight Back: How to Take Authority Over Satan and Win By Ken Abraham Book Review


 

In Stand Up and Fight Back, Ken Abraham guides readers into fighting against the schemes of the enemy and our adversary, satan and his demons. He pointed out that satan isn’t going to bow down and get scared and leave us alone just because we articulate him to back off. He publicized that Christians must reply fully on God’s assistance and seek him first. Then we have to take our direct position and comprehend our authority in the power and blood of Jesus Christ. Only then will the devil tremble and flee. To try and conquer the devil without God’s presence, power, and strength is one of the foolish things that we can do. One of the devil’s favorite schemes is to deceive believers into sinning and eating the forbidden fruit. Because once we eat the forbidden fruit this unlocks the opportunity for satan to advance a stronghold over our lives.  
 

One of my favorite quotes was, “Multitudes of Christians admit to being in bondage to feelings, thoughts, and actions they know are incompatible with their faith. They feel strongly, irresistibly drawn toward evil, often compulsively repeating sins that repulse them, yet against which they feel powerless. Often this bondage can be traced to one of two area: sexual immorality or rebellion against spiritual authority (especially parental authority). Frequently it involves both” (Page 7).  
 

One of my favorite stories shared in this book was the story about a young woman named Beth. At the young age of thirteen, she was the kind of girl that was determined to have an active dating. Ultimately this lead to her engaging in having multiple sexual partners. Next, she also became addicted to drugs and drinking alcohol. When she turned sixteen, she was abused sexually, physically, and verbally by a young man and he would repeatedly play with her emotions and her mind. He would dump her one day and then be begging her to take him back and she willingly would. Like most parents, watching their beloved daughter being mistreated, they were beside themselves and confused on how to handle the situation. They took advanced measures and grounded Beth but she belligerently kept rebelling against her parent’s authority. She would sneak out of the house and go to her boyfriend’s house and she would return high and bruised. One day when her father was dropping her off at school, her boyfriend and a gang of boys surrounded the vehicle and threaten to kill him if he didn’t leave his daughter alone and let her live her own life. What happened next was truly heartbreaking, one night after her boyfriend was extremely wasted, he passed her around to his buddies and they all forcefully raped her. In the early morning hours, they dropped her off at her house and drove off laughing about what they had done to an innocent young girl. Her father was furious and he ready to take action against the boys and call the police. But Beth refused to press charges against the boys. She finally agreed to follow her parent’s guidance and she talked with their minister, Pastor Reynolds. The pastor had a vast knowledge in understanding spiritual warfare and demon oppression. He claimed that Beth’s sexual immorality opened the door to allowing demonic presences to gain a stronghold in her life. Pastor Reynolds gathered a team of prayer warriors to assist in delivering Beth from the demonic influencing in her life. Everyone was instructed to repent for their actions and sins that they have committed and to ask for forgiveness and to receive grace. They began to rebuke satan and his demons in the name of Jesus and her facial expressions changed. Beth declared that they couldn’t have her and the demons stated that they wouldn’t let go. As we all know that was a demon uttering that he wasn’t leaving without a fight. They also found out she was wearing a necklace and bracelet that her boyfriend gave her that had demonic spirits living in it. The demons fought harder when she tried to remove them. Finally, she was incredibly set free after she told the devil that she didn’t want him, sex, drugs, or alcohol, and his evil ways. This is only one amazingly story displayed in this book and there are many more shocking examples of demonic forces in someone’s life. This story had me on the edge and it made me realize that we must be extremely careful to not let satan set up a stronghold in our lives.  
 

I immensely loved how Ken Abraham reinforced that believers should be aware of the devil and his army of demons, but it’s also crucial to keep it in balance. Christians don’t have be looking for the devil in every corner of the street and be obsessed that everything could be a symbol of satan. I liked how he reminded readers to remember that the devil isn’t omnipresent or omniscient. Lucifer is a fallen archangel and he isn’t God. Our loving Creator is the only one who is omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent. It’s viral to recall that God is in complete control and He has the final authority and He has the immeasurable power and He will one day defeat all the demons. Shout unto God with a voice of triumph! Praise be to God!  
 

I would recommend this life changing paperback book to every single Christian professing believer. Be prepared that this book, as you can tell, isn’t a nice light reading, it’s going to change your perception on spiritual warfare. I encourage readers to mindfully read the pages of this book and let the concepts of this book to impact how they fight against the demonic influences that they encounter. I learnt numerous ways in which we allow the devil easy access to gain a stronghold in our lives. It was very informative in how to recognize the hidden effects sins can unknowably have on us and we could be opening the door to demonic forces and inviting them into our lives freely. The predominant area that caught be off guard was the massive effect that sexual immorality has distorted and restructured our generations into believing that pornography, multiple sex partners, affairs, homosexuality, rape, and premarital pregnancies aren’t destructive. When we know in God’s written Word that sex is meant for marriage and when we follow God’s instruction remarkable things occur. Ken Abraham cultivated that sexual sins is the area that permits satan an easy admission into building a stronghold in our lives. The book also taught me a prodigious deal about cults, the occult, witchcraft, and satanic trinkets. I immeasurably appreciated how Ken deliberated the background of Eve’s three mistakes in the Garden of Eden and the six consequences of Adam’s and Eve’s sins had on our every person since then. This book will greatly transform how you engage in spiritual warfare and it will strengthen how you fight the demonic adversaries present in your life!  

 

“I received this book for free from The Booketeria/ Charisma House for this review”.

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of Stand Up and Fight Back, then check it out on Amazon.com or Christian Book.com:

 


 


Epic Grace: Chronicles of a Recovering Idiot By Kurt W. Bubna Book Review



Epic Grace is written to assist readers into comprehending that God’s grace and mercy is a compelling critical aspect of grasping what being a Christian is truly all about. Kurt W. Bubna begins the book by admitting to his readers that he is a recovering idiot and he has made numerous mistakes throughout his life. By despite, his failures and his mistakes God was and is gracious enough to forgive him of his sins and give him implausible epic grace when he didn’t deserve it or earn it. He revealed to readers several personal stories about his heartaches, hardships, regrets, and how God’s amazing grace sustained him through his suffering.  

Kurt W. Bubna realized that perseverance and endurance during the difficult times is often overlooked. Most people don’t connect perseverance to the term grace. But he stressed that grace isn’t just about sinning and repenting, grace can also mean, receiving divine assistance while we are enduring through our struggles and suffering. God is always by our side in the midst of trying seasons of our lives and He promised to never leave us or forsake us. He is a true friend that sticks close to us and He has everything under complete control, even when we feel like there is chaos all around. Job was a man who feared God and stayed away from evil things and God surpassingly blessed him. Satan told God that if he could test Job and destroy everything he has then Job would surely curse God. God allowed it and satan began taking away everything Job treasured. Job had his donkeys and oxen stolen and all of his servants were tragically killed, next lighting stuck and burned up his sheep and all of his shepherds but one, and later raiders stole his camels and killed all of the servants but one. Just when he thought it couldn’t get any worst, another blow hit it blew behind the knees this time. A messenger arrived and told him the awful news that his children was at their oldest brother’s house when a powerful wind swept and made the house collapse, killing everyone but the one messenger. Losing children would be the final straw for most parents but Job fell to the ground and worshiped God even after the fact that his children were gone. (I don’t know if I would even have the strength to do that) He was also tested in his health and was tortured with boils all over his body. His wife complained and told him to curse God and die. His friends kept blaming and stating that all of his problems was because of all of the sins that he has committed. Job went through appalling suffering that no one wants to have to undergo. But Job is an excellence example of someone who continued to worship God and trust him during these problematic trials.  

Unfortunately, Kurt W. Bubna has experienced terrible grief and it’s one his family never saw coming. His daughter-in-law went into premature labor at seven months along. On the way to the long drive to the hospital, Nathan, his son called and told them the news that his little son, Phineas was born with undeveloped lungs and only lived an hour. Like most people, Kurt questioned God and he didn’t understand why he had to lose his grandson. His entire family was heartbroken and devastated. During this trial, he learnt that God knows what it is like to lose a Son and God was always there to comfort him in his grief. I would love to write that was the only dreadful pain that he ever had to go through but it wasn’t.  

I also loved the personal story about how Kurt discovered his calling and destiny and how he became a preacher. I related to the questions on “the process of discovery” that he presented in the chapter entitled, “Driven by Destiny”. I massively benefited from this section and I was reminded to listen to the still small voice and promptings that God places on our hearts in order for us to determine God’s purpose for our lives. It’s also viral to listen to what others believe to be our gifts and talents from God. It’s important to make sure that the Godly advice we receive from our friend’s line up with what God is saying and what he says in His written word. This past year, God has impressed upon me to assist His chosen people in whatever areas, they are struggling in and help them to overcome their issues that our hindering them from being all that God has intended for them to be. I’m majoring in Psychology because I want to be equipped to help children and adults, who struggle with low self-esteem, eating disorders, love and relationship issues, red flags in dating, how to end bullying, preventing suicide, parenting children, marriage problems, overcoming addictions, grief, handling stress in the workplace, how to monitor technology usage with children, how to protect our children from predators, how to help foster children to deal with the trauma experiences of losing or being abandoned by their birth parents, and people who were abused. I’m still seeking God on where He wants me to serve and where I should focus on being a therapist or a counselor. This chapter greatly reinforced the significance of following God’s plan and purpose for my life.  

I would recommend this magnificent book about God’s epic grace to anyone who is feeling like a failure, and they are feeling terrible guilty for the sins that they have committed, and they feel like God can’t possible forgive them and love them. This book will proved to you that God can forgive us of our stupid mistakes and sins, all we have to do is confess and repent, and turn away from our sins. God freely sent His only Son to die on a wooden cross for our many sins and He took the punishment we all deserved, which is death. The book will impart in readers that God will give them grace through whatever trials they have to withstand and He is constantly there. The book was a gigantic catalyst in helping me understand more fully the concept of epic grace. I immensely loved how Kurt W. Bubna was transparent in his struggles and triumphs and how epic grace from our loving Creator changed his life completely. He was very genuine in disclosing that he grew up in a dysfunctional family and his father had an unrealistic standard of perfection that no one could measure up to. His father also had secret addictions and was angry most of the time. Kurt shared that he was at one time, the prodigal son who rebelled and did shameful things that he regretted. He confessed that there was a time he drank a lot and partied hard whenever he got the chance. But by the grace of God, his life has turned around to where now he is serving God fully. I truly appreciated his honesty regarding his marriage troubles and how they went to a marriage counselor for guidance. The notion of the large circle conveying how a marriage covenant bond is supposed to work during the different stages of marriage was very life changing and will be extremely helpful to readers. I also loved the chapter about Caleb and his adoption story it was very inspiring to learn about how Caleb became to be a part of Kurt’s daughter, Jessica’s family. I greatly hope that God has me a Caleb out there somewhere in the future. I highly commend Kurt for writing such a life changing book and being extremely open to his fellow readers. If you’re looking for a book on the topic of grace, then you need to read this one!  
 

“I received an advance PDF copy of the book for free from the author for this review and I was a member of the book launch team”. 

If you would like to purchase a copy of Epic Grace, then check it out on Amazon.com:

 

 
Check out the book trailer:
 

Compassionate Jesus: Rethinking the Christian’s Approach to Modern Medicine By Christopher W. Bogosh Book Review

 
In Compassionate Jesus, Christopher W. Bogosh revealed the hidden dangers into buying into the medical field advice of prolonging life by any means necessary. This book is a personal mission to educate readers into learning about the medical science and the health care system and how they deal with treating dying patients. It also looks at the spiritual side of death and if prolonging death is really God’s will for our lives. Christopher W. Bogosh joined the Army in 1989 and became a medical technician and eventually became a registered nurse. He felt God calling him into ministry and he enjoys helping out as a clinical hospice liaison. He understands having to endure pain and heartache in his own life. He recalls having his sister die in a tragic automobile accident and he struggled with the why questions. Through this horrible event, he learnt that God is merciful and that he is in complete control and everything has a purpose and a reason, even when we don’t understand why bad things have to happen. He realized that everyone is guilty and we all deserve every illness, sickness, and even death. But God is merciful and He gives us grace and forgiveness for our numerous sins.  
A big emphasis is put on the scripture verse that Paul wrote that stated, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21) Christopher W. Bogosh pointed out that is extremely easy to believe that declare that verse when we are healthy and no sign of sickness is in our bodies. But will we be able to boldly decree that verse when sickness and death hits us. And we all know that at some point everyone dies an earthly death. Whether we choose a life in Heaven or hell is up to us! He has personally noticed that many Christian will pursue medical treatments at whatever costs in order to live a longer life. It’s important to remember to seek God’s will for our lives and not to worship the medical field as our healer and as our saving living Savior.  
My favorite chapter would be “Medical Science: Biblically Informed”. This section redefined the meaning of brain death and he reinforced that the medical field announces that the person is dead when a patient’s brain shows no activity. But for Christians we must remember that even, if their brain isn’t functioning, but they are still breathing, then they are really still alive. A person is alive still if their heart is still beating and their lungs are working. He also took a very critical stand against organ donors who are still on life support. He has observed that most organ donors who are on life support and declared dead have their organs removed before life support is taken off. He also notes that he isn’t against organ donors, but he truly believes that the medical doctors should wait until after the person is off life support, and they stop breathing for at least three minutes before harvesting their organs. He advises people to have a written will and a DNR order in order that their spouse, children, or family doesn’t have to make the difficult decisions regarding your health. You can already go ahead and have a plan ready just in case. I believed that this was great instruction to guide readers into thinking about how they view death and how they are already prepare ahead so their families aren’t having to guess what our wishes are.  
I would recommend this marvelous book to anyone who is suffering from a disease, illness, sickness, and possibly a death sentence. The book will provide readers with the awareness and the real threat of worshiping the medical field as your one true God. I would also recommend this book especially to people who are getting older and nearing the age of death. The book contained loads of information about how to handle and assist people who are close to death. Even if you’re perfectly healthy right now, this book will be an enormous advantage for all readers. This book would also benefit pastors and churches on how to assist people who are terribly sick and dying, and they could serve and be the catalyst of change and provide much needed encouragement on their journey into their loving Creator’s arms. I immensely enjoyed reading about praying in the spirit and praying for God’s will for our lives whether we are healed on earth or in Heaven. If readers will consider their desires concerning life support and other issues, then this will save your family from having to make problematic decisions on your behalf. The book was very well researched and Christopher W. Bogosh did an excellence job at presenting all of the Biblical explanations behind the massive facets of medical science and the problems of lengthening our life. If you’re looking for a book that will transform your thinking about medical science and you’re wondering what the Bible states about health and the health care system of today, then this book is definably the one to read!  
 
“I received this book for free from Cross Focused Reviews / Reformation Heritage Books for this review”.
 
 
If you would like to purchase a copy of Compassionate Jesus, then check it out on Amazon.com:
 

Secrets to a Happy Life: Finding Satisfaction in Any Situation By Bill Giovannetti Book Review




In Secrets to a Happy Life, Bill Giovannetti explored the deeper meaning behind true happiness and the satisfaction of relying on God’s amazing providence. The book enclosed eleven life changing key principles to finding contentment and happiness no matter what trials in life you may have to go through. The book covered the whole Biblical story of Joseph (Genesis 37 through Genesis 50) in vast details from his dim circumstances to his ultimate triumphs leading to God’s glory. Some of the eleven secrets keys to happiness are, “destiny, consistency, loyalty, endurance, trust, identity, surrender, and many more.  

As many of us know, Joseph grew up in a dysfunctional family. At seventeen years old, he was instructed to the task of watching his father’s flock. His father loved him the most because he was the youngest son and he had him at an old age. His father gave him a coat of many colors and this made his brothers very angry and they envied him. Joseph was also a dreamer and had many God given dreams about where God would be taking him and he told his brothers that he would rule over them and they resented and hated him. They decided to throw into a bottomless cistern and they destroyed his previous beloved coat. They eventually sold him to a slave trader and killed a goat and put its blood on the coat. They told Jacob the bad news that Joseph must have been attacked by an animal and killed. To say the least very least, Jacob was distraught and sick with grief over losing his son.  

Bill explained that Potiphar, the captain of the guards for Pharaoh, purchased Joseph and was his servant. He was put in responsibility of watching the house and everything that Potiphar owned. Joseph had an extreme loyalty to Potiphar and he respected him and God blessed Potiphar’s crops and livestock because of the calling on Joseph’s life. Joseph had a horrible predicament that was about to change his life again for the second time. Joseph was a very attractive young man and Potiphar’s wife began to tempt Joseph sexual. She repeatedly tried to seduce him and ask him to sleep with her. He refused and stated that yes, he was in charge of everything in their household but one aspect was entirely off limits and that his master’s wife. He reminded her that it would be a sin against God but that didn’t stop her. One day, everyone was gone but Joseph and her. She decided to grab his cloak and she commanded and begged him to sleep with her. He ran out and left her the cloak and she accused him of trying to rape her and he was thrown in jail for a crime he didn’t commit. Bill pointed out that we can learn from Joseph’s story, the importance of being loyal to God in every area of our lives and this includes our singleness, dating, marriage, parenting, and business. He also noticed that our Mrs. Potiphar can be a number of different things in today’s times. Our Mrs. Potiphar can be cheating on our spouse, being consumed by greed and always wanting more, having to get the next high or buzz from drugs or alcohol, power and having to be the one in control, and sex. Another crucial aspect that Bill observed was God’s loyalty to Joseph just because He loved him. Joseph didn’t have to preform perfect or do anything to earn God’ infinite love. And the same goes for all believers, God graciously gives us grace even though we don’t deserve it and we haven’t earned it nor can we ever earn it.  

One of my favorite chapters in this book was entitled, “endurance”. When Joseph was in jail, he wasn’t lured into complaining about his problems and his unfair woes. Joseph spent his time overseeing two other prisoners, the chief butler and the chief baker in prison. It’s viral to recognize that Joseph didn’t stop living his life in prison and he served while waiting on God’s timing. One of my favorite quotes was, “You might be waiting for a marriage proposal, or an operation, or a job offer, or a graduation, or to have kids, or for your kids to move out, or to hear back about the resumes you sent out. Whatever you are waiting for, realize that waiting does not mean slamming on the brakes, stopping cold, or putting your life on hold and licking your wounds” (Page 84). This chapter spoke to me in my time of need, it showed me that while I am personally waiting on God’s timing regarding marriage and having children. I’m supposed to continue living my life as a single young man and serving God and others. I loved how Bill reinstated that God isn’t afraid of time and His time is eternity and complaining won’t help us get there any faster in the here and now.  

I would recommend this exceptional book to everyone who is longing for true happiness and fulfilment in our everyday lives. I have learnt that happiness isn’t based on our circumstances, or our adversities occurring in our life, how much money or materials we have, or how our career is going. Happiness is staying content and being joyful despite what is happening in our external surroundings. I immensely enjoying reading this astonishing book and Bill taught be a lot about Joseph that I will admit that I have never saw prior to reading Joseph’s story. I also loved how Bill came up with an analogy and compared Joseph’s life story to dominoes. If you remove one domino they will crash into each other, but together they form a whole giant picture. This is essentially saying that if you remove one part of the story of our lives, you will be missing the massive depiction that God is constructing for His purposes. He is going to use our trials, failures, and successes for His glory, even if we don’t understand right now why we had to go through our adversities. I really liked how Bill didn’t leave out the dreadful raunchy Genesis 38. Bill was very courageous in writing on this topic when most pastors and teachers tend to skip over it when telling the story of Joseph because the story switches to Judah, Onan, and Tamar. This chapter of the Bible is quite graphic so I can see why. But if it’s in the Bible, it is written for a reason. I will confess that this is the first year that I have read this chapter and understood the meaning behind it. Bill did an excellence job at writing the book about Joseph and it is one of the best books that I have read and learnt so much about happiness and being joyful in the mists of our problems.  

I immeasurably appreciated the personal stories, he shared that he went through in his own life. Bill revealed that he questioned God and he had trouble praying after he lost his first baby due to a miscarriage. He chose to trust God and surrendered his grief and pain and it took some time. I can’t even began to imagine the heartache He faced and endured. He also had to lean on God when his dad went through his fifth time in battling cancer. Bill knows firsthand how life can get complicated quickly and unexpectedly. I also found the identity chapter to have a number of beneficial reminders of who we are in Christ and how we need to base our self-worth on what Christ has declared over our lives. Each chapter had questions to reflect on and answer that assisted me in comprehending the material. This book taught me how to find happiness, it reminded me of my identity in Christ, and I learnt how to trust in God’s timing, especially when we don’t see any evidence that our dreams will ever come to pass or our situations will change. But even if they don’t, we can still choose happiness and in Heaven, hopefully we will see 20/20 vision of why we had to go through so many difficult things. If you’re looking for a book on how to find true happiness, then read this book! I highly recommend that you get a copy! It’s time for you to find true lasting happiness in Christ Jesus!

 

“I received this book free from the publisher through the Bethany House Publishers/ Chosen book review bloggers program.”     
 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of Secrets to a Happy Life, check it out on Amazon.com:

 

Clean: A Proven Plan for Men Committed to Sexual Integrity By Douglas Weiss, PHD Book Review


 

Clean is written to guide readers into becoming clean and living a life with sexual integrity and purity. Douglas Weiss is a nationally known psychologist, speaker, and an author. He is also the president of the American Association for Sex Addiction Therapy. He is also a committed Christian who had written an excellent book on the subject of staying clean from all bad forms of sexual perversity. He was very transparent and open about his own personal struggle with masturbation and pornography while in Bible school. He admitted that he would confess then keep masturbating and he would remain stuck in this deadly cycle. When he went to seminary he was still struggling but it was becoming less frequent. He felt God prompting him to tell his roommate that he masturbated and to be obedient he would confess to him. Luckily he had a trusting roommate that prayed for him and was a true friend throughout his sexual battles. He eventually realized that if he acted out he would have to confess to him. He finally broke the cycle and became free and now he wants to help every man, son, father, brother, pastor, daughter, and wife to be completely free.

 

He begins the book by digging into depth and sharing the statistics of how pornography has dramatically increased and is becoming more widespread. Times have changed and pornography is easily more accessible to users because of new technology, for example, iPads and smart phones. You can pretty much look at pornography anywhere.

Some of the statistics stated:

“Every second 28,258 Internet users are viewing pornography.” (Page 6)

“Every second, $3,075.64 is being spend on pornography.” (Page 6)

“In 2006, the United States had 244,661,900 porn Web pages.” (Page 9)

“The Internet Filter Learning Center (2008) states, “Approximately 13% of the US population regularly views Internet pornography 75% of whom are males.” (Page 10).

“Woman accessing adult websites each month 9.4 million.” (Chart on page 11).

All of the statistics presented displays that pornography is mostly viewed by men. But Douglas Weiss even admitted that his office has noticed that they are having to treat more women sex addicts than ever before. One survey found that 37% of pastors are also struggling with viewing pornography. As if the statistics couldn’t get any worst, next Douglas revealed the hidden dangers of our adolescents and their pornography habits. The average age that a child sees pornography is age 11. Between the ages of 8-16 years old 90% of children and teens have observed porn online and most are looking at porn while supposedly doing homework. Sex and pornography as you can perceive is influencing our generations and is negatively affecting many families and future families. I only shared some of the appalling statistics about pornography but the book encompassed tons of more statistics that will impact the reader.  

Douglas Weiss explored the veracity that some of the scripture characters had to endure regarding their sexual temptation. For instance, Joseph master’s wife, Potiphar attempted to seduce him into bed and tried multiple times to get him to give in to the temptation. Joseph said no repeatedly and he wouldn’t give in to her pleas. He stood his ground and wound up arrested for a crime he didn’t commit. But what if he had given in and had sex and had a moment of thrilling pleasure would he had been able to fulfill his destiny. As Douglas pointed out, “sexual purity is what maintained Joseph’s destiny” (Page 23). He also looks at Samson and Delilah and the affect that one decision that lead to the big reveal and the secret of Samson’s power that cost him dearly. Just like the characters in the Bible, we are in a fight with the devil for our great destiny that Christ wants us to accomplish for His glory.  

I was truly shocked when Douglas went into details concerning Revelation 2:20-22 and the woman Jezebel is very much active today. This was the first time that I have learnt about the incredible power that the woman Jezebel has on our world and how she is teaching and spreading the news that it’s okay to have sexual intercourse with whomever you please or masturbate and watch porn if you want and when you want to. All of this is lies from the satan and Jesus has declared that Jezebel will be made to go through suffering and whoever commits adultery with her will also suffer. The good news is that if we have fallen and sinned God is able to forgive us when we repent for our sins and turn from our ways.  

Douglas has opened my eyes to this numerous passages and the importance of staying clean. I also enjoyed that he shared stories about how people have gotten trapped in sexual sin. I liked how he tried to wake people up to the critical issues by relating stories that people could connect to. Some of the stories include workers getting caught at work printing off homosexual pornography and they ultimately get fired, one guy even called a prostitute and he accidently conferenced in his wife while setting up the encounter, others had sexual affairs and some accidently became pregnant or got someone pregnant, a company executive had an affair with an employee and she filed sexual harassment and sued him and the company, some even tried to hire a prostitute and it turned out to be undercover cop instead and they got arrested, and many more heartbreaking stories.  

One of the biggest takeaways was the serious emphasize on staying clean for our sons, daughters, and our wife or future wife. This is one of the paramount books that I have read on sexual temptations and how to become clean from our sexual addictions. I also immensely loved the countless charts featuring how looking at porn, masturbating, or having an affair affects our spouse and our children. This section of the book would make any man want to conquer the sexual battle satan is engaging with us. This taught me that a number of women will unfortunately become depressed because of their husband’s sexual struggles. I also learned that my sexual behaviors can affect my child self-esteem, spirituality, social, and dating life. I commend Douglas for sharing who are sexual organs truthfully belong to and it was very eye opening. I loved how the book contained many scripture passages discussed to teach readers what we might have missed before. The most scandalous Bible stories Douglas went into massive detail was the city of Sodom and Noah’s son Ham (Canaan’s father). This is the first time I have even remotely understood the implicit story about Ham.

I would recommend this life changing book to every man, husband, father, son, brother, pastor, and business man. Basically if you’re a man you without a doubt need to read this book! This book is also for both single men and married men. I must warn you that this isn’t a book for the fainthearted and most of the material and information will disturb you significantly. But how sweet the freedom and revelation will inspire you to change and stay sexual clean for yourself, your wife or future wife, your kids or future kids, and grandchildren or future grandchildren. I have personally struggled with masturbation and pornography and this book was an enormous tool to encourage me and help me to succeed in staying clean for my future wife and children even if I am still currently single. I would also recommend this book to all females who are wanting to understand what their husband or children our facing in regards to their sexual integrity. The book had many principles and plans to overcome and to help men maintain their sexual integrity and to stay clean. I would highly endorse this book to every man who is looking for a resource to assist them in their journey towards their sexual honor and destiny!

 

"I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program."

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of Clean check it out on Amazon.com:

 

You Were Born for More: Six Steps to Breaking Through to Your Destiny By Harry R. Jackson Jr. Book Review




In You Were Born for More, Harry R. Jackson Jr. has written this book to remind readers that they were born for more than the life they are currently living. In the book, he teaches readers about the four different classifications of grace and the transformation that is available through Christ. The four types of grace are, “survival, visionary, transitional, and establishment. His book included six principles on finding favor with the Lord and how to live fully in your destiny. The six principles was, “humility, trust, love, faithfulness, endurance, and purity”.  

On February 4, 2006, Harry R. Jackson had major surgery to remove a golf-ball-sized cancerous tumor located in his esophagus. He encountered some critical problems during his surgery and had suffered from a heart arrhythmia. He explained that his heartbeat would drop as low as 80 beats per minute and then rise as high as 180 beats per minute. The doctors were extremely concerned and was monitoring him closely. He also had a stroke a few months before the treatment and the doctors declared that people in his condition only had a 10 percent chance of survival. Before even having the surgery, Harry was prepared for what ever happened and he knew that he was a winner either way. He had faith in Jehovah and he knew that God wouldn’t leave his side. God sent him a confirmation on the day of his surgery in a newspaper article in the Baltimore Sun. The article was an interview about his new book which featured research on African Churches. He was deeply encouraged by the article and he knew that God hadn’t forgotten about him. He stated that it was the grace of God that healed his body from cancer.  

One of my favorite chapters was entitled, “When Everything Changes” and it was about having endurance when life suddenly changes beyond our control. Harry went into vast details about the story of Abraham and Sarah and referred this back to visionary grace. God called Abraham to leave the land of Ur and he gave him a promise that if he obey he would have a great nation and his name would be great and be blessing to all. He also said he would have many descendants. God declared that he would curse anyone who cursed him. Harry reiterates that believers nowadays can’t simply move away from idol worship and evil filled countries. What we must do is guard ourselves against the lures of satan and distance ourselves away from bad friends who negative influence us and try and draw us away from Christ. We also can protect what we allow to dictate our thoughts and behaviors. I immensely liked how Harry portrayed and demonstrated the illustration that when a woman becomes pregnant, her body begins to undergo changes and she first goes through morning sickness. He compares this to believers surrendering their own personal will for the will of the Lord. When you receive Christ into your life as your personal Savior, you become a new creature in Christ. God will began to birth a new thing in your life and we will have to go through growing pains but all of this is necessity in the grand schemes of things. God has a specific vision for your life and it’s imperative to remember that only God will bless what he has decreed. Back to Abraham’s story, Sarah was getting older in age and she still wasn’t pregnant. They both saw no sign that God’s promise would ever come to pass. Sarah decided to let Abraham have a child with her maidservant, Hagar. Hagar and Abraham had a son named Ishmael. God wouldn’t bless Ishmael because it wasn’t what God’s told them to do. God would only bless them when they were in the ultimate will for their lives. This chapter taught me a lot about staying in the will of God and not rushing to go ahead and trying to make things happen in my own strength and settling for Ishmael.  

I would recommend this fantastic book to anyone who is wanting to rise higher in their walk with God and they are tired of being stuck in the past. This book is a prodigious book for teenagers and adults to assist readers into knowing that they are more than conquers and that God has so much more in store for His children. This book has imparted me with so much wisdom about understanding the grace of God and the process of transformation to being all that we can be and reaching our God given destiny. I loved how the book covered countless examples of circumstances that readers may be going through. Some of these included, financial problems, sickness, relationships issues, marriage problems, and many other obstacles. One of my favorite types of grace is survival grace because God has protected me and saved me from some unpleasant obstacles and he has also provided for my needs time and time again. This has the potential to help you activate your spiritual breakthrough and to release everything that God has just for you! If you’re looking for a book on experiencing the favor of God in your life, then read this book!

 

“I received this book free from the publisher through the Bethany House Publishers/ Chosen book review bloggers program.”    

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of You Were Born for More, check it out on Amazon.com: