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Transcending Mysteries: Who Is God, and What Does He Want from Us? (Refraction) by Andrew Geer and Ginny Owens Book Review


 
 



In Transcending Mysteries, Andrew Greer and Ginny Owens explored the many different dramatic insights found in the Old Testament and how we can discover who God truly is. Andrew and Ginny are both Christian artists/songwriters who have had hits songs played on the radio. This book is divided up into eight chapters with alternating voice perspectives and each chapter is related back to one of their songs. Each chapter they also walk readers through scripture passages and they share how it applied to their own life story. There is also helpful discussion questions at the end of each chapter.

 

One of my favorite chapters was entitled, “If You Want Me To”, Ginny Owens opened up about her childhood and how she dealt with being born blind. She revealed how she was bullied and how one of the popular girls would steal her food and make fun of her for being blind. She also shared personal storied about when she attended college at Belmont University and she wanted to earn a dual degree in commercial vocal performance and music education. One of her professors declared that she wasn’t good enough to have a successful career in music because her voice was too weak. She dropped her music major because of the comments. And she decided to just finish her education degree and she discovered real quick that many places refused to hire a blind music teacher even though she was more than qualified for the position. She eventually settled for working at a non-profit and went back to school and got her Masters. She struggled with disappointment and was questioning where God was during this low valley of her life. During this chapter, she related what she learned by studying Moses and how he felt so unqualified to lead the Israelis out of Egypt and how God used him despite how small and afraid Moses was. (Let me add a side note that I strongly disagree with the teacher I have seen Ginny Owens live a couple of years ago and she has a beautiful voice and she has won three Dove Awards.)

 

Another favorite chapter was called, “Rescue Me”, Andrew Greer shared how he struggled to believe that God truly loved him even when he made mistakes. He admitted that he was addicted to being a love addict and he was in a few unhealthy relationships and he also struggled with low self-esteem. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in music from Belmont University and began a job at a record label. He eventually was laid off and this opened the door for his music career. In this chapter, he revealed that he received counseling and went to twelve steps programs. He also explored the truth found in Isaiah 54 about how God gave the Israelis mercy for their mistakes during their time in the wilderness and he never stopped loving them.   

 

I would recommend this life changing book to anyone who is wondering about the mysteries of God and how they relate to us in today’s times. This book taught me tons of Biblical stories and I especially liked how they related them back to their own life stories and to a song they have written. I also liked how Ginny Owens shared her struggle with being single in the chapter, “Say Amen”. I connected with her desire to sharing life with someone you love, doing things together, and wanting to hear them laugh. I also have that longing of being married and having children. I liked how she looked at scripture passages at the life of Hannah and how she dealt with struggling with infertility. This chapter was a huge encouragement to me and it gave me great hope that no matter if I’m married or not I’m still God’s child and loved. I strongly recommend this book!

 

 

"I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program."  

 

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

 

 
 

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