The Return

Review: NIV Leadership Bible: Leading by the Book Zondervan 2013 This review will not comment on the biblical text, but only on the portions that make this the Leadership Bible and maybe a few other things.   With that said, what impressed me first off was the look and feel of this book.   I received an Italian DuoTone™ with ribbon.   Gilt edge, of course.   The general feel of the book is good, and the type clear and decent sized, like maybe 10-12 point for the biblical text.   I am very grateful to have received such a nice volume for this review.   Thank you, Zondervan and BookSneeze. Beyond the outward appearance though is the content that falls under the leadership emphasis.   For the general reader there are comments and notes throughout the text labeled as INSIGHTS.   Short, helpful and related to a few verses in the immediate vicinity.   For those that purchase this Bible for the leadership study there is a 52 week series available.   Each week (sometimes two wee

Review: The World of Jesus: Making Sense of the People and the Places of Jesus’ Day Dr. William H. Marty Bethany House Publishers 2013 If you have ever tried to keep track of who is who during the period that is the between the testaments time and afterward you will have a good appreciation for what Dr. Marty has done with this short book.   It’s still like reading a soap opera plot but at least this help keep the characters sorted out.   The political and social changes came fast and frequently back then with the land of the Jews right in the midst of it all.   For me this is a reminder that it was not any easier back then in that region than it is today.    So if you are looking for a place to start an exploration of that period this might be a good overview to pick up first.    This book was provided in exchange for a review by the publisher.

Review:   The Lifestyle of a Prophet James W. Goll Chosen Books 2001, 2013 Lifestyle of a Prophet?   Isn’t that like eating grasshoppers while dressed in a camel hair robe?   Or hiding out in the desert so a king won’t kill you?   Not in this book, and there isn’t anything even close to those examples mentioned.   So what has this author written about? For those of us from a non-charismatic or Pentecostal tradition the title is at least peculiar.   So let’s stretch a little and see what the other side of the aisle is talking about here.    That’s where I started with this book.   A prophet in Goll’s tradition speaks a word of wisdom or discernment that concerns those around him.   He mentions that dreams may reveal the information or revelation as well.   In either case, the prophet senses that he speaks the truth of God.   So to avoid some of the less useful forms of that have been known to occur Goll has penned this book.   His major emphasis is humility before God