The Bible Jesus Read

Hello,

 

This summer, the group read Philip Yancey's "The Bible Jesus Read". In this book,Yancey looks at the Hebrew Scripture–what Christians call the Old Testament, which served as the "Bible Jesus read" and focuses on the books of Job, Deuteronomy, the Psalms, Ecclesiastes, and the books of the Prophets. He writes about different aspects of these Old Testament books and stories of God's compassionate encounters with people.

 

Philip Yanceygives readers a better understanding of God and His relationship with us and also encouragesus to consider how the Old Testament is relevant to their own lives.

 

As I read this book, it gave me a fresh understanding and appreciation of God's love for His people. Although I found some of Yancey's analysis interesting and challenging, I felt the title of the book was somewhat misleading as the book was actually an analysis of selected books of the Old Testament.

 

Nevertheless, this is a great book for everyone looking for an understanding of how the Old Testament is relevant to his or her own personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

 

I highly recommend this book for reading.

 

Kind regards,

Ope

 

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Synopsis

The Old Testament is God's biography, the story of his passionate encounters with people and also a prequel to the story of Jesus. This book explores the sometimes shocking and cryptic writings in an effort to know God better.

In The Bible Jesus Read, Philip Yancey challenges the perception that the New Testament is all that matters and the Old Testament isn’t worth taking the time to read and understand. As he began to explore how the Old Testament related to his life today, he discovered that those seemingly irrelevant Hebrew Scriptures took on a startling immediacy, portraying a passionate relationship between God and people against the broad backdrop of human experience.

Like nothing else, the Old Testament depicts the cries, the complaints, the deep, insistent questionings of the heart, the stuff of life we all must contend with. With his candid, signature style, Yancey interacts with the Old Testament from the perspective of his own deeply personal journey.

From Moses, the amazing prince of Egypt, to the psalmists’ turbulent emotions and the prophets’ oddball rantings, Yancey paints a picture of Israel’s God--and ours--that fills in the blanks of a solely New Testament vision of the Almighty. Probing some carefully selected Old Testament books--Job, Deuteronomy, Psalms, Ecclesiastes, and the Prophets--Yancey reveals how the Old Testament deals in astonishing depth and detail with the issues that trouble us most.

The Old Testament in fact tackles what the New Testament often only skirts. But that shouldn’t surprise us. It is, after all, the Bible Jesus read. The Bible Jesus Read will give you abundant new insights into the heart of God the Father. And as you read with a fresh eye the prayers, poems, songs, and bedtime stories that Jesus so revered, you will gain a profound new understanding of Christ. 'The more we comprehend the Old Testament,' Yancey writes, 'the more we comprehend Jesus.'

 

Faith under Fire

Hi all,

We just finished reading Andrew White’s “Faith under Fire” which is his account of trusting God amidst a lifestyle of daily encounters with danger, death and tragedy in Baghdad. This is the second book we have read this year on the crisis and sufferings of the Christians caught up in the Middle East conflicts!

I enjoyed reading “Faith under Fire” and found some of the contents of the book inspiring and challenging. Andrew’s openness on faith and trust in God made me ponder on my faith and trust in God during my personal trials and my obedience to Him on a daily basis.

I would recommend this book for reading!

Please share your comments and thoughts with us if you have read this book.


Kind regards,

Ope

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Synopsis

Andrew White's perspective on faith and hope. How does he keep going, and what does he say to God ……?

"The 'Vicar of Baghdad' encounters daily tragedy. What happened to his faith when a young girl in his congregation died, after much hope and prayer? He has met the best and worst: articulate, agreeable imams and rabbis; Christian venality and dishonesty. What has kept him willing to see the best? Every time he returns to Iraq he may be saying goodbye to his family for the last time. What do they think? He suffers from MS. How does he remain cheerful despite his physical weakness, and its progression? What does he say to God, alone in his study, late at night? He has been caught up in momentous events. Can he see the hand of God? Looking ahead, can he be optimistic about the future? Where are his sources of spiritual energy? He solicits prayer: why?"

bittersweet ...

Hi there,


Ever wondered about the meaning of the word bittersweet? A definition taken from the oxford dictionary is: - …

“Arousing pleasure tinged with sadness or pain” …:


Based on this definition, won’t you agree that life is or can be bittersweet … when in a split second; all the joy and happiness we feel can suddenly be tinged with sadness for a reason and for a season? But guess what? God uses these bittersweet seasons of change to refine our character for the better.

This brings me to the introduction of the book we just finished reading …. "bittersweet" by Shauna Niequist.

I found bittersweet relatively easy to read primarily because of the various short chapters and was able to pick it up and put it down effortlessly. Although every topic did not appeal and apply to me, I still enjoyed reading bittersweet. The chapter on grace was very refreshing and one quote in particular caught my attention:

….… "Grace isn't about having a second chance; grace is having so many chances that you could use them through all eternity and never come up empty......


There are other interesting and wise quotes scattered throughout the book. A couple I found thought-provoking are:

On page 90 –

..... "Now is your time. Become, believe, and try. Walk closely with people you love, and with other people who believe that God is very good and life is a grand adventure. Don't spend time with people who make you feel like less than you are. Don't get stuck in the past, and don't try to fast-forward yourself into a future you haven't yet earned. Give today all the love and intensity and courage you can, and keep travelling honestly along life's path."


and on page 240 -

……“My life is a story about who God is and what He does in a human heart.”



I give Shauna credit for her honesty and vulnerability which I find quite inspiring. I am really looking forward to meeting her at the Kerith Community Church – Unique - REAL2012 women’s conference taking place on the 22nd and 23rd of June.


I will recommend bittersweet to both Christians and non-Christians to read.


If you have already read this book, please post your comments and thoughts.


Enjoy!


Love and blessings,
Ope

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Synopsis

In her follow-up book to Cold Tangerines, author Shauna Niequist shifts her gaze to the challenges and blessings of change in Bittersweet. Drawing from her own experiences in a recent season of pain and chaos, she explores the bits of wisdom and growth we earn the hard way, through change, loss, and transition, and offers her own reflections on what brought her hope along the way.

'The idea of bittersweet is changing the way I live, unraveling and re-weaving the way I understand life. Bittersweet is the idea that in all things there is both something broken and something beautiful, that there is a moment of lightness on even the darkest of nights, a shadow of hope in every heartbreak, and that rejoicing is no less rich even when it contains a splinter of sadness. 'It's the practice of believing that we really do need both the bitter and the sweet, and that a life of nothing but sweetness rots both your teeth and your soul. Bitter is what makes us strong, what forces us to push through, what helps us earn the lines on our faces and the calluses on our hands. Sweet is nice enough, but bittersweet is beautiful, nuanced, full of depth and complexity. Bittersweet is courageous, gutsy, audacious, earthy.........

Niequist, a keen observer of life with a lyrical voice, writes with the characteristic warmth and honesty of a dear friend: always engaging, sometimes challenging, but always with a kind heart. You will find Bittersweet savory reading, indeed. 'This is the work I'm doing now, and the work I invite you into: when life is sweet, say thank you, and celebrate. And when life is bitter, say thank you, and grow.'

LIGHT FORCE

Hi there,


Don’t you just love the idea of reading variety of books? Well, in Activate we certainly do. Just after we finished reading “Seriously funny” which was indeed seriously funny, we moved on to something a lot more serious and not in the slightest bit funny!

Have you ever wondered about the Christians caught up in the Middle East conflicts? Some of you might think to yourselves, what Christians? Well, there are Palestinian Christians as well as the Messianic Jews who have for years endured great sufferings because of the crisis in the Middle East. As Christians, it is significant that we seek understanding of the crisis and persecution the churches in the Middle East are facing.

As a group, we just read Brother Andrew’s “Light Force: The only hope for the Middle East”.

This book details on some of the earlier conflicts in Lebanon during its civil war as well as the religious and ethnic boundaries situation in the West Bank and Gaza. Some parts of this book will move you to tears when you read about how people’s lives were torn apart and the pain and suffering endured. Brother Andrew also wrote about the power of forgiveness, reconciliation, faith and hope …

A very enlightening read.

Why not grab yourself a copy of Light Force and read all about the only hope for the Middle East?

If you have already read this book, please share your comments and thoughts with us.

Enjoy!


Love and blessings,

Ope

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Synopsis

In the midst of never-ending debates, protests, riots, suicide bombings, and broken peace initiatives in the Middle East, one man came to make a difference.

He sought out church leaders and urged them not to flee the violence but to stay and strengthen their congregations to become a force for change. He faced the fiery rhetoric of Muslim fundamentalists head on and told them that the only hope for peace would come through Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

His message is that there is a radical Christian approach to the stalemate of Middle East conflict. Only the gospel of love has the answer, and Christians are called to allow God to use them to demonstrate the example of Jesus.

Previously known for his determination to deliver Bibles behind the Iron Curtain, Brother Andrew has spent the last thirty-five years in the Middle East serving the Christian Church as well as witnessing to Jews and Muslims. His mission: to bring hope to the believers caught in the crossfire of the most volatile region on earth.

Light Force brings Brother Andrew's story right up to date. It explains and illustrates the conflict – political and spiritual and its devastating effect on human lives.

Seriously Funny ... Life, Love and God ...

I am sure we all have some funny or /and embarrassing stories to tell. I certainly do. These are often stories about things that happen in my everyday life. Some of our stories may not seem funny to us at that point in time, but if we cast our minds back at them now we could find a humorous moment to laugh about.

Over Christmas 2011, the group read “Seriously Funny” by Adrian Plass and Jeff Lucas. It consists of letters between the two friends. The letters were sometimes funny, embarrassing, sad, controversial and above all honest. Although light hearted reading, it touches on many thought-provoking discussions such as:- how Christians are perceived , church life, spiritual growth, God’s grace, kindness, hearing from God, doubt, Christian conferences etc..

Adrian and Jeff were open and honest in their correspondence. They did not pretend to be “super spiritual Christians”, but shared their love for Jesus and showed that they are just ordinary people like the rest of us who also have some bad times as well as good times.

A thoroughly good read that has a combination of humour and seriousness.


Happy 2012!

Ope

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Synopsis:

A little while ago, concerned that the next time they got together, one of them would be in a coffin, Jeff Lucas and Adrian Plass decided to start exchanging letters - and this book is the result.

It was created spontaneously and uniquely; It isn't fictional nor is it predictable but what "Seriously Funny" does is combine thoughts, real life situations and express living moments of two honest Christians. It talks about serious issues, which also have funny endings and stories, hence the title "Seriously Funny". Breathtakingly honest, "Seriously Funny" is a celebration of 21st century Christianity - as well as a no-holds barred expose of its sillier side. And they are equally hard on themselves - their most embarrassing moments are a joy to read.

Amazing Grace

Hi everyone,

In November, we finished reading the biography of John Newton the man who wrote the hymn - Amazing Grace. In this book you will learn more about his colourful life, his journey through slave trading, his conversion, his Christian life and his contribution to the abolition of slave trade. This book is worth reading.

Enjoy!

Love and blessings,

Ope

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John Newton: From Disgrace to Amazing Grace by Jonathan Aitken

Synopsis

In this book, Jonathan Aitken (a former MP and cabinet minister) discovers John Newton the man, his motivation and beliefs.

JOHN NEWTON is best known as the author of "Amazing Grace" but this brilliant new biography shows how he led one of the most colourful and influential lives of the 18th century.

Using a wealth of unpublished material, Jonathan Aitken charts Newton's journey through slave trading, best selling authorship, ordination, church leadership, abolitionist campaigning and the spiritual mentoring of William Wilberforce and William Cowper.

From Newton's rip-roaring adventures on the high seas to his emergence as a pivotal figure in the abolitionist and evangelical movements this is a life of amazing achievement as well as of Amazing Grace.