Shared Life
Amazon.com is awash with books on the Trinity, and no wonder: it has been a hot topic since the dawn of the Christian era. Naturally, the nature and personhood of God should dominate the attention of Christians, but many of these books have been highly philosophical and academic. In Shared Life, Donald Macleod, Principal of the Free Church College of Edinburgh, Scotland, has brought clarity and perspective to a subject that often overwhelms its writers, let alone its readers.
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Amazon.com is awash with books on the Trinity, and no wonder: it has been a hot topic since the dawn of the Christian era. Naturally, the nature and personhood of God should dominate the attention of Christians, but many of these books have been highly philosophical and academic. In Shared Life, Donald Macleod, Principal of the Free Church College of Edinburgh, Scotland, has brought clarity and perspective to a subject that often overwhelms its writers, let alone its readers.
I’m a fan of long Russian novels. Whenever I peruse the literature section of a bookstore, I cannot resist the urge to dive into big books by Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, or Solzhenitsyn. Over the Christmas holidays, I spent some time with Solzhenitsyn’s book In the First Circle, now available uncensored in English for the first time.
A review copy of this book on life and ministry in Haiti, penned by storyteller and activist Kent Annan, arrived unsolicited in my mailbox the selfsame week that a 7.0 magnitude earthquake leveled the impoverished nation. I may or may not have read it had the earthquake not happened, but the confluence of events conspired to convince me that I ought to. I’m glad I did. Any western Christian unaware of his or her blessed state in life – that is to say, 99.9% of us – ought to read it, ingest it, and act on it, for the alleviation of suffering in the world and for the glory of God.
If you have read Rev. Richard Phillips’ earlier book, Jesus the Evangelist, you know that instead of developing his own theories, passing on worldly wisdom, or even quoting great theologians, he teaches straight from the Bible. His new book is no exception. There is almost enough Scripture in The Masculine Mandate for it to be called a commentary.
I have never been a fan of personality tests. Every time I take one, I feel like I am being forced to decide between false choices. For example: "Which sounds more appealing to you? Reading a book at home alone or attending a party with lots of people?" I could spend a long time debating that one. Sometimes, I need a break from people and find refuge in solitude with a good book. Other times, I crave being with other people in social settings. Does that make me an introvert, an extrovert, or someone with tendencies that vascillate?
At the end of her bestselling book Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert fell in love with Felipe. Four years later she returns to tell their story. Having fallen in love with this Brazilian man, Gilbert began to build a life with him. But before long the Department of Homeland Security intervened, deporting Felipe for spending too much time in the United States despite not being a citizen. The only solution, the only way to gain his citizenship, was for the two of them to marry. Yet both of them, scarred from prior divorces, had no desire at all to marry. In fact, they had both sworn off marriage, vowing to remain together, but unfettered by that age-old institution.
Perhaps your mother trained you to show gratitude by sitting you down at the table with a stack of cards, envelopes, and a pencil as soon as the last birthday party guest walked out the door. "Write your thank you notes," she might have said. Mom understood something that it seems we've forgotten: it is not enough to feel grateful. Gratitude comes to fruition when it is expressed. Nancy Leigh DeMoss, Christian author, speaker, mentor, and host of Revive Our Hearts, would say that writing your thank-you notes is a good place to start, but an attitude of gratitude is the goal and encompasses more than saying, "Thank you" for our gifts.
There are times when I am sent a book for review and I get really excited by the title. I have to admit, my expectations were pretty high as I peeled back the wrapping around this book and caught a glimpse of the title. Unfortunately, Biblical Freedom from Religious Oppression by K. Scott Schaeffer fell far short of those expectations and I do not recommend it.
