"striving together for the faith of the gospel." -Phil. 1:27
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Where Has Oprah Taken Us?

Where Has Oprah Taken Us? by author Stephen Mansfield presents an inside look at the life and career of media icon Oprah Winfrey from a uncommon perspective. This New York Times best-selling author begins the book with Oprah’s rising from a poverty stricken town in Mississippi to a famous woman in the world. After this thoroughly researched and highly interesting chapter, Mansfield then superbly uncovers in the rest of the book the reasons for Oprah’s values, morals, and spiritual beliefs, the Oprah you see and know today.

(On a personal note, I have often wondered how Oprah rose to fame and what influenced her to be the woman she is today.)

He clearly shows how Oprah has become a product of the popular culture of her time. In this cultural journey he explains how Oprah’s everyday exposure to things such as music (i.e. The Beatles), current events (i.e. JFK’s assassination), books (i.e. The Secret), personalities (i.e. Anton LeVey) and friends (i.e. Marianne Williamson) greatly shaped her secular and religious worldview. In other words, other than the first chapter, this book isn’t about Oprah Winfrey, it’s about the culture of Oprah Winfrey and how it can shape and influence someone who is searching for something meaningful to believe it.

(As a Pastor, it is my duty and privilege to teach other Christians how to view the secular world through the lens of Scripture and to help them maintain a biblical worldview. This book proves the fact that pop-culture can greatly shape and manipulate your morals and beliefs if you don’t establish and maintain a biblical worldview.)

At the end of each chapter and occasionally in the middle of a chapter Mansfield would interject his own thoughts and perspective. This not only gave the reader a personal connection with the author, but also served as a helpful instructor with the topic at hand.

(Personally, as a firm believer in Jesus Christ, I greatly appreciate Mansfield’s testimony of Christianity and his apologetic questions he presents along the way. Very helpful!)

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 

Book Review: Take Action Bible

The Take Action Bible published by Thomas Nelson is printed in the New King James Version (NKJV) and has a creative approach to connecting the truth of the Scriptures to real-life application. Through this basic 2-column reading Bible there are 5 short stories of Christians living out Bible principles (i.e. serving, giving, going, etc) that the reader can stop and read along the way. In addition, after each short story there is a page where the reader is directed to read a particular passage that supports the theme and is then challenged with a question of application.

This easy to use red-letter edition Bible is a great resource for new Christians and/or Christian teenagers to (1) read the Bible and (2) be inspired by other real Christians living out their faith. For example, the first short story the reader comes to is “GO” and it’s about a young couple leaving their comforts in the USA to be missionaries in Nigeria. Many Christians have a burden for foreign missions, but few actually take the time and have the courage to go to the mission field.

The only critique I have about this particular semi-devotional Bible is that it left the reader wanting more short stories about other real Christians living out their faith. The publishers are definitely on to something here, but needs to further developed. This critique applies only to the short stories, not the Scriptures itself (those are just fine!).

In summary, The Take Action Bible really fits its title! The inserted short stories and the 52 Action Ideas listed in the back really stimulate the reader to think how he/she can put Christianity in to action.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 

From the Mouth of Teens!

This is a post from my wonderful wife, Charity. Happy reading!

I had an experience today that not many people get to have. My husband, who is the youth pastor at our church, had just taken our youth group to The WILDS. (The WILDS is a Christian camp in North Carolina.) During Sunday school he was getting feedback from the teenagers, which he always does when we go on a big trip.

His most important question was “What does the WILDS do spiritually that you appreciate?”

Their answers were something you would rarely hear coming out of a teen’s mouth but were very eye opening to what kids really need from us as parents, teachers, and spiritual leaders. I hope their answers are as thought provoking to you as they were to me.

Again, the question asked to the teens was:

“What does the WILDS do spiritually that you appreciate?”

1. Emphasis on God’s Word

2. Planned God & I Time (Devotions)

3. No media distractions

4. Loving counselors/staff

5. Preaching

6. Preaching on relevant topics

7. Clear mission statement (1 Cor. 10:31).

8. Christ-centered music

9. Balance between spiritual things and fun things

10. Consistency in philosophy and expectations

11. Resources (books, sermons, devos books, etc)

12. Transparency from speakers and staff about issues in life

13. Scripture memory

14. Prayer partners

This is what I took away from this very honest and open time with our teens:

Teens want an environment saturated with God’s Word.

They want people to be making sure they do their devotions and memorize scripture.

The need someone to pray with them.

They need preaching that makes their faith sound by thoroughly explaining why we believe what we do from the Bible.

They need preaching that addresses real life issues. (And believe me, they know more about things they shouldn’t know about than you think!)

Those that are doing the preaching and teaching need to get rid of their pride and be transparent with their own struggles. The kids already know you’re not perfect and they appreciate it when you admit that.

Teens are interested in learning more and want help  studying God’s Word by using books and other materials that godly people have written.

They want a clear goal for their life that stays the same, with rules that are enforced. They need the people “making up the rules” to actually love and care for them in deed, not just in word.

They need guidelines when it comes to technology and media.

They want music that pleases Christ.

They need a balance of spiritual things and fun things.

Most families spend their free time with fun. Let’s change it up and spend some free time doing something to increase their faith. They need that balance.

WOW!!! I know most of the time we see kids that roll their eyes and look embarrassed when we do family devos or try to pray. They get defensive when you ask them what they learned in their time alone with God.

Our teens shared with us what they really need and I’m so thankful for their honesty.

We need to persevere to do what’s right for our children, our family, and the kids we have a direct influence over. This is what your kids want and need.

What’s keeping you from giving it to them?

Pujols: More Than The Game

Pujols: More Than The Game by Scott Lamb and Tim Ellsworth has been a fascinating and enjoyable read over the last few weeks as the 2011 MLB spring training is getting started. This 229-page book does a great job of uncovering Albert Pujols’ childhood days in the Dominican Republic to his MVP seasons in the Major Leagues.

Throughout the book the authors show you just how great Pujols is compared to many other talented athletes in the MLB. The statistics can become very heavy at times. However, any avid baseball fan will thoroughly enjoy them.

In between writing about Albert Pujols’ baseball career the authors did an outstanding job at uncovering his personal, spiritual, and social life:

Personally: Throughout the book you will find that Pujols works hard to achieve what he has on and off the field. He really cares about his wife, Dee Dee, and his children along with assuring that he plays baseball with integrity.

Spiritually: There are several chapters dedicated to Pujols’ Christian faith in Christ alone for salvation and how that has influenced him in his family life as well as playing at a professional level. Christian athletes will greatly benefit on how Pujols views life, sports, and eternity.

Socially: Because Pujols is a Christian and strives to obey the great commission, you will read about his burden for down syndrome people and the foundation that he established to reach out to them. Anyone who spends time interacting with young people will appreciate their sacrifice and efforts.  

On a personal note, I would highly recommend this book to anyone, especially those who are Christian and who like sports.

[Please note, while it did not affect my review of this book, I received this book for review purposes at no charge from BookSneeze.com.]

The Ark is Coming!

So check this out…Answers in Genesis (AiG) is raising funds to build Noah’s Ark to the exact dimensions stated in Genesis 6! Yeah, really! In November of 2009, a CBS News survey revealed the finding that the remains of Noah’s Ark would be the greatest archaeological discovery of our day. A recent web survey asking which archaeological discovery people would most want to see made next was Noah’s Ark (43%)!

Noah’s Ark seems to capture the general public and people want to know more about this biblical event. That is why the leaders at AiG are taking on this gigantic (no pun intended!) task of researching and building a full-scale Noah’s Ark! They are projecting to finish and open to the public by year 2014. I bet the real Noah wishes he could have built his Ark that quickly! They are considering a site in Grant County (Kentucky) within a 40-mile interstate drive of downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. Praise God for this project and may it be a great tool that will spread the truth of the gospel to the world!

If you want to read about the real Noah’s Ark get a Bible and read Genesis 6-9. The main lesson you will learn is that God always blesses obedience! That is still true for today!