The Return

Review: When God’s Ways Make No Sense Dr. Larry Crabb Baker Books 2018 I chose this book because the title intrigued me.   When God’s Ways Make No Sense.    There have been plenty of times when that seemed truer than I’d like to admit.   Are we even allowed to say something like that?   Even if we think it.   So, an author willing to take on that topic had my attention. And mostly because I wanted his take on what to do about it? As it turns out Crabb pretty much gave away his case very early on in his book with a single scripture quote.   The basic idea is God is GOD and we are not.   His motives and actions are incomprehensible to mankind and He owes no explanation for them either.   Crabb admits near the end of his book that he is not a theologian which I knew going into this book, but his arguments are theology.   Or at least I think so.   I found his repeated circling the topic a bit frustrating. That said, the book does provoke thoughts from th

Review: Sex, Jesus, and the Conversations the Church Forgot Mo Isom Baker Books 2018 I picked this one up after I’d seen a video promo by the author, http://moisom.com/sexandjesus#.   Sounded like she had something to say.   She does.   And even if you don’t think it applies to you it does in ways that aren’t necessarily related to sex, but just as a human being with desires.    Isom subscribed to many of the conversations that govern relationships in general, and those with men, for her generation, the millennials.   This book is not her life story, but it does describe some moments that were important to her journey then and now.   Her openness to share those times surprised me.   Her point without spoiling the book is that she had not understood what linked sexual intimacy to ordinary life, the why’s, if you will.   Was it not taught, discussed?   Or was she not interested in hearing might be a valid question?   Either or quite possibly both ways,

Review: The Prayer Wheel: A Daily Guide to Renewing Your Faith with a Rediscovered Spiritual Practice Patton Dodd, Jana Riess, And David van Biema Convergent 2018 The title intrigued me, and I decided to look at this prayer wheel idea.   At first, I thought it was a gimmicky idea, but as it turns out it’s something more.   The wheel had been used long ago but forgotten until someone looked at the fly leaf of an old ceremonial type bible.   There was a copy of this wheel.   It’s related to an Augustinian guide from the 4 th or 5th century.   Think a remix of the original that a Benedictine order had designed.   Now it’s rediscovered and back in circulation.   The authors of The Prayer Wheel have written a devotional book that uses the prayer wheel.   If a person is willing to work through the devotional, a knowledge of using the prayer wheel would be one of the outcomes.   I found their brief daily offerings could be used as prompts to deeper thought,