Book Review: The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns

WOW! This book was amazing. I started reading this book and couldn't put it down. Richard Stearns, President of World Vision, writes a part autobiography, part challenge for those reading and a charge for those who claim to belong to the Church.

The way in which he writes make you feel at home and doesn't make you feel like you are being "preached at" yet somehow challenges you to make a difference. He challenges you to make a difference, not just so you feel better about your life here on earth, rather so you make a difference because of your love of Christ and what He did for the Church.

This book is pretty eye-opening with respect to what's going on with the AIDS epidemic in Africa and poverty around the world. Stearns also reminds us, Americans, how really good we have it and what our responsibility is as Christians.

I really appreciated the effort made by him to be honest about where he is coming from and reminding everyone that this is a process. Our lives and the way we live them is not going to change overnight yet we can't sit idly and wait for the world to change. We have to be the ones to help with God's grace. We have to start somewhere.

I also appreciated that he didn't just write the book and leave you at that. He gives the reader ideas on what to do next and a place to start. He reminds us that we all have something to give whether that be with our time or resources. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to make a difference in our world and am excited for what World Vision is doing in our country and around the world.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

How Should A Christian Live? by Brenda Noel

How Should a Christian Live is the third in a series of devotionals in the Word of Promise: Next Generation series. In this youth devotional, the reader will come to understand how a Christian should live based upon characteristics found in scripture. There are twelve sessions which include sections of reading, word games and an audio portion of scripture .

I found this devotional to be a great tool in a young believers understanding of the characteristics each Christian should try to develop. Having been involved in youth ministry, this devotional tries to dig deep in defining big ideas and terms as well as how to understand scripture and how to apply it in our daily lives. The devotional makes it an interactive experience between listening to the MP3 scripture along with the word games . The stories that are told in each session are easy to relate to and easy to follow.

I wish the devotional had you interact with the Bible more and used a more literal translation rather than the children’s version used.

Overall, I thought this was a great devotional for youth and appropriate for older elementary and middle school students.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”