Why Jesus? (book review)

April 7, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

This is an age of all kinds of “spirituality”: New Age, mysticism, Eastern religions, and on and on. In his typical in-depth style, Ravi Zacharias points out why Jesus trumps them all in his newest book Why Jesus?

The subtitle is “Rediscovering His Truth in an Age of Mass Marketed Spirituality,” and that seems to really hit the mark. Ravi Zacharias takes on some of the biggest mass marketers of spirituality — like Oprah Winfrey and Deepak Chopra — and points out how their mass marketing is really just repackaging of some old, tired religious beliefs. Here’s one passage where Ravi really nails the mass marketers —

The tragedy of a worldview that is based on a blend of metaphysics, physics, spirituality, and medicine is that in the end, it violates those very disciplines to justify self-deification, which is the bottom line.

This is becoming the Absolute rather than communing with the Absolute. When you read Chopra and others of his stripe, you are told that God has a great plan for you. But the more you read Chopra, you realize that God is not visible in anything he has written. Chopra’s conclusion is that you are He… the divine is in you. Ah! But here’s the catch. To convince you of that, he has had to mutilate every other theory that holds to the contrary. How does he do that without seeming disrespectful of others? The bigger trick lies here. First, he takes their texts and strips them of their contexts. Next, he heavily quotes their own “authorities,” as long as they don’t actually believe their own texts. And finally, he dedicates his theory to all who claim to a different belief. This magical formula makes him look irenic and congenial, and then he can grace the talk shows as the ultimate glue that brings all religions together. He has provided spirituality without any absolutes and debunked any contrary claims at the same time. Anyone else may follow his lead and quote other texts out of context, but they dare not quote him out of context, unless they wish to meet him in a court of law. (emphasis mine)

There is something powerful about Jesus. Even the religious leadership immediately following Christ’s ascension told His followers to stop teaching people “in that Name.” There can be lots of gods, but there is only one Jesus.

Why Jesus? Ravi Zacharias points out that He is the One Who singlehandedly debunks every mass marketed “spirituality” being peddled today.

This is a challenging and deeply thought-provoking book, but it is well worth your time.

I am a FaithWords book reviewer.

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Amazing Grace In The Life Of William Wilberforce (book review)

April 5, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

If you know anything about the life of William Wilberforce, you may know that he tirelessly worked for the end to slavery in the British Empire. You might think that this singular focus, and uphill battle would make Wilberforce a joyless, serious person. But according to John Piper’s book Amazing Grace In The Life Of William Wilberforce, nothing could be further from the truth.

You might also be familiar with John Piper’s writing about joy-filled Christians (in his classic Desiring God). So it makes sense that Piper would be attracted to the life of a man like Wilberforce. He was one who was described as, “His presence was as fatal to dullness as to immorality. His mirth was as irresistible as the first laughter of childhood.”

John Piper uncovers what made Wilberforce tick. What helped him stay so relentlessly focused on eliminating the slave trade, and remain a joy-filled Christian as well? Piper writes:

“He was a radically God-centered Christian who was a politician. And his true affections for God based on the ‘peculiar doctrines’ of Christianity were the roots of his endurance in the cause of justice.”

This is a great “starter book” for anyone who doesn’t know much about Wilberforce. It’s a quick and easy read. But there is so much more to learn about this amazing man. If nothing else, John Piper’s biopic on this great politician’s life should serve to whet your appetite to learn more about him. It did that for me!

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Nurturing The Leader Within Your Child (book review)

March 20, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

I make no attempt to hide my admiration for Dr. Tim Elmore. I read his blog throughout the week, I subscribe to his newsletter, and I find his books right on target. As a parent, I always want to raise my game, and Nurturing The Leader Within Your Child is the perfect resource for me.

Tim’s desire in this book is two-fold: (1) Help parents see the enormous potential in their children, and (2) Help parents see how crucial their role is in releasing that leadership potential. One of his premises is this:

“Children want parents who:

  • communicate their interest in me;
  • express appreciation for each member of our family;
  • structure their lives to spend time together;
  • welcome my friends into our home;
  • answer my questions;
  • are committed to each other;
  • deal with crisis in a positive way;
  • are honest;
  • correct kids when needed, but not in front of friends;
  • don’t argue in front of me;
  • concentrate on strengths instead of weaknesses; and
  • are consistent.”

The concepts Dr. Elmore presents are clear, concise, and simple to implement. But they are not microwaveable concepts; that is to say, you shouldn’t expect an overnight success story. But if you want to see your children discover and tap into the leadership potential resident inside them, you—Mom and Dad—will have to nurture it. If you are ready, this book can help!

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The 21-Day Dad’s Challenge (book review)

February 9, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Next to being a husband, there is nothing I love more than being a Dad! I take my responsibility as a father very seriously, so that’s why I am always trying to grow in this area of my life. I just finished a 3-week journey through The 21-Day Dad’s Challenge by Carey Casey, and I am a better Dad for it.

As the name implies, this is designed to be read one day at a time over 21 days. At the end of each day’s lesson there are challenges to help Dads put into practice what they’ve just read. These challenges, I discovered, cannot be accomplished in a single day; they are intended to become lifelong habits. At the end of several of the chapters is a QR code that takes you to a short 2-minute video by Dr. Greg Smalley, who serves as a cheerleader/motivator to help Dads get moving.

I appreciated “the little things” that this book showed Dads could do right away. The principles in this book are not hard to implement, but they are simple steps that any Dad can do. At least, any Dad who wants to step up his fathering skills!

I loved it! I think lots of other Dads will too.

I am a Tyndale book reviewer.

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Freedom Begins Here (book review)

February 7, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Freedom Begins Here is not a book for everyone, and I actually hope it’s NOT a book for you. It’s a book for those trying to break free from the powerful hold of sexual sins.

Pornography is a multi-billion dollar business: People are getting rich, and people are being destroyed. What may have started out as a quick peek has turned into a crippling bondage for millions of people. If you feel trapped by addictions to porn or other sexual sins, but you’re ready to break free, this is a great place to start.

This book is a 30-day devotional. These devotional thoughts don’t hem-and-haw around the issue, but address it straight on. It’s addressed in a way that doesn’t make light of the addiction, but doesn’t make the addiction hopeless or fatal either. At the end of each day you will be given a reflection and a prayer, to help you think about the freedom principle you’ve just read.

Don’t stay trapped. Don’t let pride tell you that you don’t have a problem. Don’t let shame tell you that you can never get free. You can be free!!

Get this book and get started on getting free!

I am a Gray Communications book reviewer.

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Today We Are Rich (book review)

February 3, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Tim Sanders has an amazing way of synthesizing business practices, thoughts from other authors, and his own personal experiences into bite-sized, readable nuggets of life-changing truths. Today We Are Rich: Harnessing The Power Of Total Confidence relies heavily on his personal experiences with his grandmother Billye, and it may be his most personally impacting book to date.

This book reads a lot like Tim’s autobiography, as he tells so many personal stories about his childhood and early adulthood. But then Tim steps out of his personal memoirs to give us some great insights from what he has learned. The amazing thing to me was how he could make his story seem so applicable to my story.

I found this book very readable and instantly applicable. It’s a book you can read rather quickly, but you will be applying and working on the principles for years to come.

Highly recommended!

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Love, Sex, And Happily Ever After (book review)

January 25, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

There is something about the way Craig Groeschel writes that just connects with me (maybe it’s the Craigness that we share!). So when I heard about Love, Sex, And Happily Ever After, I knew it was going to be an excellent read. And I was not disappointed!

With divorce rates so high in our country, far too many couples enter into marriage with the thought in the back of their minds that “this might not work out.” Using sound biblical principles and examples, Craig shows that it’s not only possible for a marriage to go the distance, but that our marriages can get better and better and better as they go along.

In his very creative style, Craig covers principles like:

  • Falling in love with The One
  • Finding your Two
  • The first, second, third, fourth and fifth gears of dating relationships
  • The dangers of living together (“playing house”) before marriage
  • How to know if you should breakup with someone you’re dating
  • Heart habits that will help your marriage go the distance

When I was sharing with a friend some of the thoughts I was reading, he said, “That sounds like good old fashioned common sense.” And that’s exactly what this book is, because it is so firmly based on The Book.

If you would like to add something to your marriage, there is a lot to discover in here. But I think this book is especially appropriate for dating and engaged couples. In fact, since my role as a pastor means I get to do quite a bit of pre-marriage counseling, I’m going to make this book required reading for all of the couples I counsel.

I am a Multnomah book reviewer.

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Discovering Your Spiritual Center (book review)

January 23, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

I enjoy books and commentaries that help me study the Bible in a different way. Discovering Your Spiritual Center by David Teems is a unique angle at one chapter of the Psalms that I have never seen before.

The big idea of this book is to take a long, introspective look at Psalm 119. It’s the longest chapter in the Bible (at 176 verses), but it is conveniently divided into 22 eight-verse sections, with each section corresponding to a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. David Teems makes the case that rabbis considered the Hebrew letters to be living things, so that there is a significance to why each of these eight verses are grouped together.

The next idea of this book is to take a 22-day journey of rediscovering the power of the Scripture, by reading one 8-verse section each day. Then to take time to reflect on each day’s passage. It’s a good idea to use this one psalm to (re)awaken a passion for Scripture, as all but four of the verses mention God’s Word (law, statutes, commands, etc.).

So far, so good.

However, I did find some of the author’s fascination with the Hebrew letters—like their shape, or their placement in the alphabetic order—a bit unsettling. I also thought at times his pointing out other words in Scripture that start with the same letter of the Hebrew alphabet a bit stretched. So although the concept is good in theory (taking a 22-day journey through this psalm), I found the approach a bit, well, creepy.

I am a Leafwood book reviewer.

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Live Dead (book review)

January 18, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Live Dead is not for the faint of heart. Nor those who don’t want their regular routine disturbed. Nor those who like the status quo. Nor those who want life to be comfortable. But if your desire is to allow God to use you anyplace, anytime, anywhere, this just may be the resource you’ve been looking for.

Live Dead takes its name from the scriptural principles of considering everything in our lives dead so that we can live for Christ. This journal is compromised of 30 days of thought-provoking devotional material from those who are living dead. Namely: missionaries who are living in remote, unfriendly places, in order to take the Gospel of Jesus Christ to unreached and unengaged people groups.

Each day you will get a glimpse into their personal lives, the sacrifices they have made, and the joy they have discovered in living dead. And you will be confronted on how you too can follow them in living dead. Not everyone will hear God calling them to move to a foreign land to share the love of Jesus, but I believe everyone who takes this month-long journey will hear God calling them to live dead right where they are.

I did.

I’m glad I took the 30-day challenge, and I encourage you to do so as well. You can order live dead materials, including this journal, from their website. And if you live near Cedar Springs, MI, you can join me at Calvary Assembly of God as I teach a series based on this book during the month of February 2012.

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Grace Abounding To The Chief Of Sinners (book review)

January 17, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

One of my favorite books is Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan. I just finished reading Bunyan’s autobiography called Grace Abounding To The Chief Of Sinners, so now I cannot wait to read Pilgrim’s Progress again!

John Bunyan’s autobiography is almost solely focused around how he became a Christian, and then how he defended himself against the Church of England after he became a follower of Jesus Christ.

At times Bunyan’s account of his struggle with his self-doubts about whether God would ever receive a sinner such as himself are absolutely heart-wrenching. He clung so desperately to the Scriptures that said God wanted to forgive him, and yet beat himself up with other Scriptures that talked about the vileness of sin. He felt that his sin had so wounded God, that he was unsure if he could ever be forgiven.

In a way, I found this quite refreshing. It reminded me of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s warning against “cheap grace,” where far too many people trivialize the high price Christ paid on the Cross. But John Bunyan acutely felt his sin.

So once he finally received God’s forgiveness, he was a changed man who wanted to tell the world about his Savior. Unfortunately for the time in which he lived, his message of salvation wasn’t “sanctioned” by the Church of England, which landed him in jail for over a decade. The second-half of his autobiography is a play-by-play account of his interaction with the judges who tried and sentenced him. In this account, we read the words of a man who thoroughly knew Scripture, and knew how to use it!

It’s a fascinating biography, which I think any reader will enjoy.

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