BELIEVE!

In Believe For It, a book with the same title as her recent album and hit song, CeCe Winans focuses on passing the faith among generations. It is a very personal book about how she and her husband Alvin passed along the leadership mantle of the church they started in Nashville, to their son. CeCe also draws on other personal stories, including the death of her brother - but how when he nearly died the first time, God used that incident to change some lives and bring others to Him including his doctor. Each chapter ends with some thought-provoker questions for application. It is clear that CeCe has a loving family who instilled great truths in her and now she wants to make sure to instill them into others as a legacy across the generations. An advance copy was made available to me for review without comittment from the publisher and Netgalley.

And the World Was FOREVER Changed

Tracy Daub writes about the Christmas Story, Advent, as found in the Gospel of Mark. Ironically, Mark never wrote about the birth of Jesus Christ but starts his Gospel with His baptism. Therein, is the twist. In Holy Disruption, the author addresses key themes found in Mark and how Jesus interacted with the people. This IS Advent, because by definition it is the anticipation and waiting for the coming of the Lord. And He came to serve. A great quote from the work is "Welcoming the way of Christ means turning our lives, hearts, and priorities into a kind of counter-procession against the "empires" of our day. Consider the empire of consumerism and its vice-like hold on most of our lives. Christ's way of peace and justice stands in direct opposition to the dominant beliefs that one's worth and happiness and peace of mind are found through the acquisition of material goods and wealth." This book is a good reminder for the season of Christmas but also for anytime of the year. An advance copy was made available to me for review without commitment from the publisher and Netgalley.

Everything you wanted to know about Jesus...

Jesus the Jew, Jesus the story teller, Jesus as the One who suffered for us... it is all part of what you encounter here when you are Confronting Jesus. The impact of this book differs no doubt depending on whether you are already a Jesus follower, how long you have been, and how well you know His words in red and what is written about Him. There are pop culture references - even about the television series about The Good Place - which at first seemed creative, but they were a bit over-done by the end of the book. Still, maybe they keep the interest of the reader-audience the book was intended for. Certainly anytime we can learn more about Jesus, is recommended and this book does a good job of weaving together the various themes contextually. This book was advanced to me from NetGalley and the publisher without any commitment for positive feedback.

Give God time - He is there in your Trouble

Steven Scott takes the very familiar story of Joseph and gleans a dozen life applications, principles for us today. There is a great chapter on grief - because like it or not we will all experience it and already have. The chapter on vision mapping is both challenging and encouraging - especially if, like most today, we haven't thought lately about what our vision is. Remember, as a take away, no matter what you are going through, just like Joseph, God has a master plan, something much bigger than you know and a plan that may take a while for you to see. This book was advanced to me through NetGalley and the publisher without any commitment for positive feedback.