What are you reading?

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J

JustAnotherUser

Guest
#1
Haven't seen a thread about books, so I figured to start one. Other than 'reading this thread' as an answer, is there any current book(s) you are reading within your spare time other than the Bible? Any type of genre books would you generally recommend?

I'm currently reading The Thorn Birds. It's a pretty interesting read even though I'm nearly 200 pages in. It's based off of a series that's also been shown on TV, but I think I'll stick with the book first since they say books are usually better. It's a good thing I have a mother who stores books and is a semi-book worm herself since I've finally decided to get a hobby and read. :p Alongside with that even though I've just (re?)started, I'm investing time on reading the Old Testament. Still on Genesis.
 
Feb 7, 2015
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#2
Yes, I'm currently reading, The Jesus Driven Life.
 

tourist

Senior Member
Mar 13, 2014
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Tennessee
#3
I am currently reading the bible cover to cover for the third time. I don't read the books in order but skip around. I am about 50% through. Currently reading Genesis and Exodus. I have already gotten Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy out of the way. I am reading several chapters a day with my wife as part of our nightly devotions. We are also doing an intensive study on the book of Luke.
 
Feb 7, 2015
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#4
Sorry for the second post.... the short, short editing time allowed here really restricts some things.
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Book Review: The Jesus Driven Life: Reconnecting Humanity with Jesus by Michael Hardin

September 30, 2013 by Adam Ericksen

[Join our live chat with Michael Hardin of Preaching Peace on Patheos’s premium content channel Teaching Nonviolent Atonement this Thursday at 11:00 central. We will discuss mimetic theory and the upcoming second edition of Michael’s book The Jesus Drive Life: Reconnecting Humanity with Jesus, with a special emphasis on two new chapters, one on the Letter to the Hebrews and the other on the Revelation to John.]

The landscape of American Christianity, indeed, of world Christianity, is changing. Of that there can be no doubt. Terms like “postmodern Christianity” and “emergent Christianity” permeate our culture. Unfortunately, while few people actually know what these terms mean, there is a palpable sense that change is afoot. That change scares many, while it excites others.

In his book The Jesus Driven Life, Michael Hardin explores the transformation Christianity is experiencing today. He has one primary answer for the many dilemmas facing 21st century Christians. That answer is simple, but far from simplistic. The answer, of course, is Jesus. And that’s the obvious answer – middle school youth groups throughout the United States (including mine!) implicitly know the answer to difficult questions posed in youth group meetings is always an emphatic . . . “Jesus!” Unfortunately, the wisdom of our middle school students has become blurred in American Christianity. This is one of Michael’s greatest points, as he argues that North American Christianity has a “theology (a doctrine of God) without a Christology (a doctrine of Jesus)” (157).

The problem of a Christless Christianity is nothing new. For much of its history, Christianity has scapegoated Jesus right out of the Gospel. We have unconsciously replaced the God of Jesus with what Michael terms a “Janus faced god.” I think this term is very helpful, for Janus was a Roman god with two faces that looked in opposite directions. The two faces of Janus symbolized the god’s dual will to violence and to peace.

The spirit of Janus infects all of human culture. Indeed, it even infects the Bible. Using the insights of mimetic theory, or mimetic realism, Michael makes a cogent and a very understandable case that humans project our own violence onto God, or the gods. This process justifies our use of violence against one another, for if the gods are violent, our violence is justified, too.

Michael points out that, despite the biblical affirmation that God is One (Deut 6:4), the people who wrote the Bible often fell into a Janus faced view of God. This is one of the strongest aspects of The Jesus Driven Life. Michael doesn’t run away from the violence in the Bible, but offers a way to interpret that violence. For Christians, the answer is not our own interpretation of the Bible, but to interpret the Bible through the lens of Jesus. If we neglect Jesus in favor of our own interpretation, we will succumb to the spirit of Janus. (Sola scriptura no longer works!) Michael claims, “As far as I am concerned, in Christianity, it is all about Jesus or it is about nothing” (273).

Throughout his life, death, and resurrection, Jesus finally and concretely reveals that God is One and thus does not have a dual will. Rather, God’s will is love. For example, when Jesus was asked which commandment in the Law is the greatest, he replied, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:36-40). Michael reflects on this move that Jesus makes in the transformation of the human understanding of God from a Janus faced god to the Abba of Jesus, stating, “God is not a mixture of yin and yang, good and evil, terror and love. God is consistent with God’s self. The gods of our theologies might be mixed up, but the one who made the heavens and the earth is and always will be the One we are called to love because God is Love” (35).

Placing Jesus at the center of our lives changes the way we understand not only the Bible, but also our personal lives, our relationship with others, and our relationship with the world. Let me provide an example. I know Michael, and I think he would appreciate me saying this: Michael is no saint. He has no pretense to holiness. But Michael knows something at the core of his being. He knows that Jesus changes everything. I once asked Michael how he could be so sure that there is no wrath in God, but that God’s only desire is love. “Brother,” that’s one of his favorite terms, “I know God is love because I trust Jesus.”

Indeed, when Christians begin to trust in the all-embracing love of God revealed in Jesus, the world will be transformed. I hope and pray that The Jesus Driven Life will become a primary guide for Christians as we continue to move into the 21st century.

(You can purchase The Jesus Driven Life, and the companion DVD series at Preaching Peace or at Amazon.)
 

p_rehbein

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2013
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#5
Abraham Lincoln's Daily Devotional

and

Billy Graham's Wisdom for Each Day (some blond lady gave this one to me)
 
J

JustAnotherUser

Guest
#6
Thank you for the description, Willie-T.

I think I may have seen Abraham Lincoln's Daily Devotional somewhere online, but I didn't read it. I wouldn't get how a historical person centuries ago would make devotionals for people in this present day in age. :p Plus I gave up on daily devotionals while back anyway.

I can't help but to find that in the OT, there's names mentioned twice of people who were conceived under different people ( Enoch from Cain and his wife whose name isn't mentioned; Enoch under Jared and his wife whose name isn't mentioned, and Lamech...) Were names really limited back then? Hmm..
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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#7
some 'hard' (meaning deeply rooted in actual science, not fantasy) sci-fi at the moment.
just finished "Blindsight" the other day, and about midway into "Echopraxia" today - both by a man named Peter Watts.

Blindsight was a very provocative insight into the nature of consciousness, mixed with some light military / first-encounter storyline. Echopraxia follows the same lines; it is sort of a follow-up, but without quite as much probing into psychology as much as microbiology. good, whip-smart, riveting stuff, if you like the genre.

also the book of Isaiah.

:)
 
J

JustAnotherUser

Guest
#8
Oh, psychology! I'll look those up.
 
T

Tintin

Guest
#9
I'm currently reading:

Noah's Ark: A Feasibility Study
by John Woodmorappe (Biblical creation. Comprehensive, academic)

The Lost Art of Practicing His Presence by James W. Goll

The Holy Bible by Holy Spirit (2nd Samuel)

And I'm about to begin The Ghost Box by Mike Duran
 

p_rehbein

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2013
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#10
Thank you for the description, Willie-T.

I think I may have seen Abraham Lincoln's Daily Devotional somewhere online, but I didn't read it. I wouldn't get how a historical person centuries ago would make devotionals for people in this present day in age. :p Plus I gave up on daily devotionals while back anyway.

I can't help but to find that in the OT, there's names mentioned twice of people who were conceived under different people ( Enoch from Cain and his wife whose name isn't mentioned; Enoch under Jared and his wife whose name isn't mentioned, and Lamech...) Were names really limited back then? Hmm..
The Devotional isn't necessarily written by Lincoln. Some of his quotes are contained in it........but by and large, it is a "reprint" of "The Believers Daily Treasure" first published in 1852 by the Religious Tract Society of London, England. Mary Todd, Lincoln's wife, gave him a copy of this book, and this is where the Devotional came from. He kept it with him, and read it daily, as did he the Holy Bible.
 
T

Tintin

Guest
#11
Michael points out that, despite the biblical affirmation that God is One (Deut 6:4), the people who wrote the Bible often fell into a Janus faced view of God.

Willie-T, this bit concerns me though. God's Word is infalliable. Written by men, yes, but inspired by Holy Spirit. If we see God in an unbiblical light, it's us reading into the text incorrectly, not the biblical authors writings.
 

Pemican

Senior Member
Sep 27, 2014
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#12
I just got through reading "Rowing the Atlantic" by Roz Savage

I'm currently reading "As Far As My Feet Will Carry Me" by Josef Martin Bauer

Both of these books fall into the adventure / survival genre and are true stories.
 
U

Ugly

Guest
#13
Between Blue and Roxxy taking over Misc thought i'd bump this since it's already near the bottom of the page.

I have seen many Book threads, though, but they never last more than a week. And now, it seems, they won't have a chance to last a day in here they way some people take things over.
 

p_rehbein

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2013
30,095
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#14
Between Blue and Roxxy taking over Misc thought i'd bump this since it's already near the bottom of the page.

I have seen many Book threads, though, but they never last more than a week. And now, it seems, they won't have a chance to last a day in here they way some people take things over.
I did my best.......... :) but they wore me out :)

Oh, back to topic: I'm reading Ecclesiastes tonight
 

p_rehbein

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2013
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#16
2 Thessalonians today............won't take long though :)
 
J

JustAnotherUser

Guest
#17
Still reading The Thorn Birds, page 326, which is nearly halfway through. I should be writing an essay but instead my eyes are glued to this book. Hoping at this rate I can be done with it within a week if I'm close to or at about page 400 by tonight.

I swear though, when reading it while taking the public transportation to and from school I've noticed other people taking out books and reading as well. Yesterday this older Asian guy sat next to me and we both had our eyes glued to our books until we were close or about at the last stop (where I drop off for college). It was kind of funny.
 
T

Tintin

Guest
#18
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Noah's Ark: A Feasibility Study by John Woodmorappe really is "a resource for the Serious Reader", as the cover suggests. The author is a professional in the fields of geology, biology and paleontology, so he's well qualified to speak about the subject. The book is incredibly comprehensive, the aim being to prove to the naysayers that the Genesis Flood account (Chapters 6-9) is historical truth and could be achieved without divine intervention. Considering it's now close to 20 years old, the content is surprisingly up-to-date.

The book is broken up into four parts:

Part 1) A Complete Inventory of the Animals and Supplies on the Ark
Part 2) Alleged Difficulties Regarding the Ark and its Cargo
Part 3) The Recovery of the Earth's Biosphere After the Flood
Part 4) The Adequacy of Single Pairs in the Repopulation of the World

Noah's Ark: A Feasibility Study has many thought-provoking and interesting components, but it's written more in the dry, matter-of-fact manner of a biology text book or thesis than something to be read for enjoyment. As a case study concerning the ark, the book achieves its aim, admirably. That said, the book's layout is very bland - many paragraphs of writing in one-column paragraphs, with a few dull diagrams here or there. I also would've appreciated more diagrams and picture references (and better one), as something this heavy in content needs some visual oomph!

Reading this book, I did learn many new things, both about the Bible and biology (the latter was never my strong suit), but some chapters towards the end (regarding human genetics) lost me. As such, it's an intriguing work, one that's well-written and heavily referenced (almost a third of this book provides an index of the references used), but not one for the average reader. I understood the majority of the content though.

All in all, I highly, highly recommend the case study content of Noah's Ark: A Feasibility Study to everyone - it's an excellent resource, but the actual book I only recommend to the 'serious reader'.

7/10 (it's an important and powerful book, but not an enjoyable read, as such)

9/10 (if you're passionate about biology, academic speak and don't need visual pizazz)
 
P

purpose

Guest
#19
Battlefield of the Mind. Written by Joyce Meyer.
 
T

Tintin

Guest
#20
cover_picture.jpg

In Search of... The Origin of Nations
by History Research Projects, sorry, I mean Craig White (what do you have to hide, dude?) is an in depth look at the Table of Nations found in Genesis 10. The book is comprehensive and well-referenced and borrows from many different fields to make its case. Writing quality ranges from quite good to competent to gosh-awful in places.

That said, while there's some fascinating and truthful information herein and it's clearly a labour of love from many years of biased research, my bull-puckey detector blared countless times while reading this book, and I'm not even a professional. I found some errors and many false assumptions and some well-known facts were even modified to fit White's presuppositions. To be fair, much of the time White does state when he's assuming something to be true, but then he also craps on too much about white skin and blonde hair and blue eyes and the lost tribes of Israel and oh, God, you start to realise this book is from the perspective of a British Israelism believer. I didn't even know that this was a thing!

Note: British Israelism is the belief that the "lost ten tribes" of Israel migrated to Europe and then to England and became the primary ancestors of the British people and, thereby, the United States.

All of that 'caged' racism makes a lot more sense, now that I've finished the book. Along with everything else, there's just too much of a reliance on prophecy and there's too much ugh (including the little-known 'fact' that Abram, Isaac, Jacob and Jesus were all Nordic - uh, right). The book is a real chore to read and the hidden (until the end) premise is just not biblical. I honestly can't recommend this book to anyone.

If you want a great resource concerning the Table of Nations, one that's fascinating, well-written, easy-to-read, credible (and not racist), try Bodie Hodge's excellent book Tower of Babel instead. The focus isn't quite the same, but that's definitely a good thing.

6.5/10