Greatest Stories of the Bible

When someone mentions ‘story time’ one can often get a picture of children sitting at the feet of their parents or grandparents and listening as they hear the story that is being told. Greatest Stories of the Bible, NKJV by Thomas Nelson Publishing gives me the same type of picture.

250 Bible stories are laid out in chronological order for your reading pleasure. When you choose a story to read you get the scripture laid out for you in story format. The book gives you the feel of an antique book with the way the cover looks.

I sat down to read a story that I had read many times when I first received this book. It was nice to have the scripture laid out in story book format. The stories are a little easier to read the stories in this format as they have a starting and ending point.

I would recommend Greatest Stories of the Bible, to anyone who is looking for an easy way to find stories from the Bible. While this is not a complete Bible, it does give you the scripture for the stories you are reading without anything added or taken away. This would make a great family devotional as you can learn a lot about the Bible while all the time reading a story type book.

Living with Confidence in a Chaotic World

Living with Confidence in a Chaotic World by Dr. David Jeremiah is a book that will help you if you are struggling to find sense in what is going on in the World. Using scriptures Dr. Jeremiah gives you evidence that if believe in God and have given your life to Him, that you are safe no matter what is going on in this world.

And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. (Matthew 24:6, NKJV)

Jesus himself told us that things would happen, but if we endure to the end we will be saved. Dr. Jeremiah’s book gives you ways to stand firm in your belief and to know that all things will be ok. To truly get the fullness of what Dr. Jeremiah writes in this book, one should read his previous book, What in the World is Going On?

I would recommend both of Dr. Jeremiah’s books as they give help to those who are wondering what to do when the world is falling apart around you.

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years By Donald Miller

Ever wanted to be able to change your life? Want to get out of the normal routines and patterns that your family line has set. Donald Miller’s newest release A Million Miles in a Thousand Years will try and show you how to change your life as if you are part of a movie script.

Overall I wasn’t too captivated by this book. I found it hard to read at times and would have to force myself to not put it down. I am not saying that this book is not a good read; it was just not one for me. The thoughts behind the book made me really want to read it, however I was not captured in the writing.

The brightest part of the book for me was thinking back and wondering what it would be like if my life was turned into a movie. Would I change anything and if so how? I found a few things that I would like to not have dealt with in my life, however they are also what has shaped me into whom I am today.

So all in all, while not a great read for me, this book does make you think about your life and the journey you have taken.

The Expanded Bible Review

The Expanded Bible by Thomas Nelson Publishing is based on the New Century Version. This Bible only contains the New Testament. The Expanded Bible places study tools within the text so as you are reading the Bible you get a more in depth study. This Bible is not for new believers, however, as it can be very confusing when you are trying to read through a passage. This Bible is for in depth study and will help those who are trying to get a better understanding of said passage.
The Expanded Bible places alternate, expounded, and literal translations of the original Greek text in the text as you are reading. When you come upon a word that has more meanings in English, you get to see those meanings as well, right in the text. The Expanded Bible also provides you with the cultural and historical information that goes with a specific passage. When you understand the historical or cultural setting behind a passage it can illuminate why something was wrong or offended someone.
All in all, the Expanded Bible is a good tool for those wanting to go deeper into the Word by studying as you read. If you are just looking to read the Bible this is not the Bible for you. The study tools that are placed in the text make it hard to read straight through. You will need to have an Old Testament close by if you want to look up the passages that are referenced. Overall, I enjoyed using The Expanded Bible as a tool for learning more about the Word and the differences that can come when you translate from one language to another. For those looking for a Bible you can study while you are reading, then this one is for you.

Why Blog?

A few weeks ago on facebook I saw a chance to win a copy of Max Lucado's new book Fearless. So I tried for a few weeks and was unsuccessful. Then one day I happened upon the publishers site and it said they were giving away books to those who would read it and then place a review of that book, good or bad, on their blog and a major sales site such as www.christianbooks.com. So I starting thinking about it and decided why not. This will help me more then coming home and sitting on the couch watching tv. I like to read, so why not read and then write about the things that I read.

So here is my blog. I at times get things from God that I write about and will post those here as well. Thanks for checking out my blog.