Biblical Spirituality, edited by Christopher Morgan

This is a compilation of 10 articles on Spirituality. Thus each chapter is written by a different individual or two. So there is a wide range of writing style and concepts by different theologians.

Some of the topics include:
Chapter two, Spirituality and Spiritual Formation in the Old Testament (emphasis on creation)

Chapter three, Spirituality according to Jesus

Chapter four, Spirituality according to Paul

Chapter five, Spirituality according to James

And my favorite, Chapter ten, Spirituality and Our Work.

While the entire book is dealing with a theological framework of what Spirituality is I very much appreciated Chapter ten which breaks down the concepts into what happens in our work place. It was reported that, "it was found that an overwhelming majority reported that the church had done little or nothing to equip them for faithful living at work." As a pastor I found that comment disheartening. Why? Because I think it is very true.

The church does a good job of teaching and training people about the spiritual aspects of their personal lives, but it doesn't often teach its disciples how to share their faith in their workplace, or even how to apply Biblical Principles to our daily work environment.

It was stated that, "The moral terrain of our work lives is mostly defined by law and economics rather than theology, leaving us with an uninspired ethical pragmatism lacking in wisdom and heart." As part of my work in Missions, I taught Vocational Job Training. I taught about our attitudes at work, how to dress, what to expect, how to conduct ourselves, etc. But what was really captivating for the students was teaching what the Bible says about work.

God created man, but He created him to work. Six days shall you work and on the seventh day rest. Work is an integral part of our lives. We spend 1/3rd of our lives at our jobs. That's a lot of time. If God created us to work, then He wants to be a large part of our work. That doesn't mean we all do "Christian" work, it means that we at work we don't stop being "Christian."

Well, I should stop and just review the book. The concepts of the book are about how we view Spirituality and how we apply that to our lives. It will give you a great Theological groundwork, but it will enliven it with a practical outworking for our daily lives.

This will be a good addition to anyones library as a great teaching and reference tool.

The Nugget by P.T. Deutermann

The Nugget follows the military exploits of a naval dive bomber pilot in the Pacific Theatre during World War II. Lieutenant Robert T. Steele. The story starts out with a board of inquiry about whether Lt. Steele is who he says he is. That is because he was lost at sea and presumed dead.

But the novel unfolds as Lt. Steele tells his story to the board of inquiry about what happened to him and how he fought the war even after being "lost at sea."

The story is well written and enthralling. It draws your interest in and gives you an excellent glimpse into what happens during war and how things can go from bad to worse to even worse for any military person.

But then their desire to survive and fight kicks in and they can do extraordinary things. Lt. Steele and his navigator, Rooster, survive by pure luck and also by skill. Then they don't just survive, but they go on the offensive with resistance fighters to thwart the Japanese.

I enjoyed the entire novel and find that it is a complete guide in how one person trained as a pilot can become all things in war to survive and fight.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

When Helping Hurts, by Steven Corbett

As we have been dealing with the Homeless Issue in our community (they are now called "unsheltered" to be politically correct) we needed a refresher on what is truly helpful in how to deal with them.

I suggested that our staff read Corbett's book and it has proven to be a blessing to us. Our staff have spent many hours talking about the book, working through the questions that are posed and then applying some of the issues to our situation.

The bottom line is that Corbett helps you to see that the issue is not an economic issue but a "heart" and "relationship" issue. The problem facing the homeless is that their relationship with God and with others is broken. As you step up to help them work through that broken relationship you will see growth.

Also in working with the homeless it is best to get them actively involved with the process to bring about changes to help them. So, Corbett gives great cultural, economic and social answers to the issue but he wraps all of that around the fact of how to help people with their broken relationship with God.

As we have been working through this now for the last five months we are discovering some real positive movement. Just this week three of our homeless have gotten all their paperwork in order, have met with social workers and all three have obtained full time jobs. They are liking the fact that they are now earning money and can start to right their ships. BUT, one of the major contributors to the turnaround is their attendance at weekly Bible study, their coming to family dinners weekly with our church congregation and their learning as well as our congregation learning that positive relationships can be built.

This is a great tool for any church to use in working through their issues with helping the homeless population. But beware, it's not just reading, its hard work that has to happen along with it.

To Live Is Christ, To Die Is Gain, by Matt Chandler

Matt Chandler gives us a very good commentary on the book of Philippians. Based on one of his sermon series he takes his sermons and notes and expands on them to deliver a very readable commentary on Paul's letter to the Philippians.

What I appreciate about Chandler's writing is that the book is very readable for both the lay person and the preaching pastor. It gives excellent insight through good illustrations and his obvious passion for communicating God's truths to his congregation.

We are doing a series on Philippians and recommended this book to our congregation. Many are reading it along with our series and the book has enhanced the congregations understanding of Paul's letter.

Thank you Matt for a very good application oriented take on Philippians

Celtic Empire, by Clive and Dirk Cussler

A very typical Clive Cussler adventure. The variation this time is that Dirk Pitt comes alongside Dirk, Jr. and Summer to help solve the mystery. What's the mystery? Well young children seem to be dying due to a cholera outbreak. The problem, it seems only the male children are dying. That seems a bit odd.

Add to that a U.S. Agricultural team being wiped out in El Salvador, as well as a dam being partially destroyed and then a U.S. Archeological team being left for dead after a grave robbery gone bad and you have a strange mix of events.

What with Pitt, Sr. rescuing a young woman at dam collapse in El Salvador and Dirk, Jr. and Summer rescuing the team (and another young woman) in Egypt from the deadly tomb robbers and you get two plots that seem on a path to merge together.

All this is to hide the actual issue of a mad group of women trying to take over the world and eliminate it of the male gender and you see how we can get a fast paced ride of adventure.

Again the Pitt family is called on to save the world, and they take their usual path of greatest resistance to achieve their goal.

Enjoy!

God and Galileo, by David L. Bock and Kenneth Freeman

God and Galileo takes us on a journey back in time to when Galileo wrote a letter to describe the circumstances of his being censored by The Church. It was when he came up with some of his Astronomy theories that flew in the face of accepted church theories on the origin of the Universe.

Galileo was able to prove that the Earth is not the center of the universe. As such, he came under fire for going against Copernicus and the accepted belief that the Earth was the center of the universe and everything orbited the Earth. Instead he showed how the Sun was what the Earth orbited and thus we were relegated to being a bit less important in the scheme of things.

David Block takes us from how the Church was the authority to how Science is now seen as the authority. But he brings us back to Galileo and the concept that the Church and Science should be able to coexist. One does not trump the other. But they are complimentary.

I found his hypothesis interesting and enjoyed reading the views that he is pushing forward. I think this book will give you much to think about and much to talk about with your science friends.

Enjoy!

Verity, by Lisa T. Bergren

Verity is her own woman wanting to do her own thing in a time when women were suppose to be meek, mild mannered, stay at home, not run a business, etc. The book is from a time in the late 1700's when the American Colonies were starting to rebel against England in what would be the Revolutionary war.

Verity though lives in the West Indies on a sugar plantation with her sisters. But she owns her own business, a mercantile store and horse trading business. She also is in love with a sea captain. But he has disappeared.

She will leave for New York to look for Duncan to find out what has happened to him. What she will find is a land split down the middle with rebels and loyalists. Which will she choose?

Her decision is easier when she discovers that Duncan was pressed into service by the English and murdered at sea by a Spanish Privateer. 

The story will take us through Verity's business, her crisis of faith, her brush with death and falling in love. Lisa Tawn Bergren gives us a great novel with lots of story lines that allow for Book Clubs to have hours of discussion.

This is the second book in what I think will be a 3 book series. I was left with wanting to read book one and then looking forward to book 3 being released.

Enjoy!