Religion Books

I apologize for this long review. I feel very passionate about the subject covered in this book and I feel that I would be amiss if I did not state my humble opinion, pointed as it may be. So please forgive the loquacious effort that I humbly offer in hopes that others will read this book and find themselves changed for the better as I have.

I found it very interesting to read through the fifty-something reviews on this book before writing this review. The catch with books like Mr. Piper's 'don't waste your life' is that it generally creates a very LARGE reaction in one of 2 extremes; convicting and life changing, or unmoving, condemning or perhaps hard to swallow. If someone who is not a christian, or perhaps not a member of the denomination of Mr. Piper (basically a Reformist), writes a review about this, chances are it won't be a good review, so that review isn't fair. If a believer, or a member of Mr. Piper's denomination writes a review, and they agree with the book, that review may not be fair.

So... What to do...? My recommendation is enter with an open mind, finish the book, verifying or contradicting what you have read with scripture and arrive at the conclusion God has for you; you will find answers, you will spend time in the word of God, and you will grow closer to the Saviour. So that is a win for all, regardless.

Now, as for the book, it is a clear presentation of what Mr. Piper believes we are able to do with Christ's promised assistance; live a life that is glorifying to God. How? Mr. Piper presents, and supports with scriputre, basic but difficult (because we are sinners) principles such as "only what's done for Christ will last", "learning the severe discipline of reading the bible", "loving people means pointing them to the all-satisfying God".

Other principles suggested by Mr Piper for living a life that is glorifying to the Lord are, "Christ crucified, the blazing center of the glory of God" (John 3:16), "deserving nothing but inheriting everything-WHY?", "spreading a passion for Christ crucified-by teaching (in other words, we are called to explain, as Mr. Piper more eloquently states it, "live and speak in such a way that the worth of 'Christ Crucified' is seen and savored by more and more people."), "Magnify Christ through pain" (this was a very real subject for me as I have been out of work for 4 months with a back injury and just had spine surgery 2 weeks ago; and only by God's providence did my family survive this ordeal because worker's compensation rejected my claim and disability still hasn't kicked in, so I understand the concept of suffering (and I don't mean the physical pain, though that was not fun), I mean worry, stess, but then I come back to the Lord and pray and know that he will care for my family and provide a peace that is other-wordly {not a real word? hopefully you get the point} even as I was laid off because I couldn't work in a physical job during a recession that was hammering the company that I worked for; but the Lord still provides; my opportunity to witness to people based upon this experience has been dynamic and I thank the Lord for the grace that he gave me to speak up without fear).

More concepts include "how is dying gain" (an understanding that death is the point at which we are united with our creator), "how we handle loss shows who our treasure is" (again, I have no income, but because of our struggles of the past few months, I understand that monetary gain is meant to bless others; I recommend Randy Alcorn's 'The Treasure Principle' regarding this topic), "there is a difference between sacrifice and suicide" (an interesting thought; Mr. Piper states "[it] is not wrong to pray for healing, to take medicine, to put locks on your doors, to flee unruly mobs...It is presumption to jump off the temple while quoting scriputre promises that God will catch you."; bascially, protect yourselves, trust in the Lord, but don't be ignorant to what God expects from us in caring for ourselves; the obvious exception here being the many missionaries who are specifically called to just such a dangerous life, but guided by the Lord, they are able to trust that He is in control of their life).

The book is broken in to a Preface, 10 chapters, and a Final Note, all of which are seperated in to short, easily digestable sections. Mr. Piper does not cram anything down your throat as you read. It is a simple and straight-forward read. Everything is scripturally backed; verse references included. This is a study of what God has instructed each of us to do to glorify Him. We are called to live our lives for His glory; read the bible and you will see scriptures, chapters, books, Old and New Testament, explaining the Lord's plan for his children.

As a believer, I found this book very encouraging and spiritually convicting; a microscope through which I saw where I can strive to do better in living my life for the glory of God. If one is not a believer, and I am not judging, I am attempting to see from a differnt angle how the book would be recieved, it might be a very difficult study of a "radical" faith; that seems to be what I remember thinking several years ago before accepting Christ.

Cafeteria christians (a term that is harsh, but makes a point; those who pick and choose the parts of the bible that they like and leave out the rest so that life is easy for them) may also have a problem with this book as it is a call to arms, a wake-up call, a blaring reminder that we are here on this earth for a greater purpose than to serve ourselves. We are all sinners. We are born sinners. We remain sinners until death. The only thing that saves us is the exceptional grace of a God that loves his creation despite the fact that we have turned our backs on him in search of our own gain; Harsh?, yes! True?, yes! And I am guilty of it myself. Because even after we accept Christ, we continue to sin. Only upon entry in to heaven will we cease to sin, so perhaps its not so harsh a term after all, just true. But again, not judgement. I am the worst of sinners and dare not point out sin in others that I am not committed to doing so with.

A few final thoughts. I could write every concept, every principle, every chapter title, but that would really get old. I will sum up this review with a few interesting facts and personal thoughts about the book.

Mr. Piper thoughtfully places each principle in a understandable, real-life, human-experience, 'been-there-done-that', light, with personal anecdotes, testimonies from believers, and quotes from many current church leaders and authors of differing denominations who present their ministry through written word tactfully and with the same biblically-sound, scripturally-based, Christ-glorifying, humility as Mr. Piper.

Many of the quotes transcribed within this book come from many of histories best known authors and theologians. Some of these men are:
C.S. Lewis, Oxford shcolar and author extroidinaire, writer of the Christ-analogous 'The Chronicles of Narnia' as well as many biblically-centerd, scripturally-based, studies such as ''C.S. Lewis & the Search for Rational Religion', 'Mere Christianity', ''Surprised by Joy', and 'Christian Reflections', to name a few.

John Bunyan was a man who spent 12 years in prison because he would not agree to stop preaching. What a sacrifice for the Lord's ministry; Bunyan wrote of the experience, "[the] parting with my wife and poor children hath often been to me in this place as the pulling of Flesh from my bones." I can empathize, on a smaller scale, not having been in prison, but having faced a similar decision 3 years ago; God or my family. My wife threatened to leave after I was saved because she didn't understand, but God, in his grace, saved my marriage when it was on the brink of shattering and brought my wife in to his fold and we just recently celebrated our 10th anniversary, and I still have my 2 beautiful daughters with me every day, praise be to God.
Bunyan would go on to pen one of the best known works of fiction ever written, some do not even realize that, as with Lewis' 'Chronicles', the work is a parable, a personification of christian faith, suffering and, ultimate victory; the book was 'The Pilgrim's Progress'. Bunyan would, again like Lewis, author many sound and biblical studies such as 'Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners' and 'Seasonable Counsels, or Advice to Sufferers'.

Jonathan Edwards is quoted several times. Edwards was a 18th century preacher and theologian (and, FYI, one time president of Princeton University). He has so many published works that there are literally volumes of his writings and transcripts of sermons which provide an interesting glimpse in to the world of reformists in the early days of the United States.

I believe that the greatest disagreements and the biggest complaints about this book fall right here, under Reformation theories such as 'Predestination', 'Total Depravity', or the like. Certainly, churches must have doctrine, it is a requirement (perhaps consequence is a better word) of fallen man, but the doctrines have become so intensely opposed denominationally that God is actually lost in the midst of disagreement. It is sad that the Church (as in the world-wide body of Christ) should have so many disagreements when we are all so fortunate as to be saved; Christ bought OUR salvation by suffering OUR punishment on Calvary, why on earth do WE get lost in doctrine and dogma. Unfortunately, as sinners, we have allowed doctrine, which is authored by man alone, to override scripture, which was penned as inspired by God. We allow our arrogance to close our minds to Christ's mission; it is not about denomination, doctrine or dogma, rather, it is about saving as many souls as possible from eternal seperation from the Creator.

Finally, and again controversially (as with Edwards, probably a great reason for disagreement with what is presented herein), we have many quotes from the man who led the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther.

So, to finally sum up (and thank you to those who actually read my lengthy, heart-felt testimony) I believe that this book holds a great many truths that will inspire open hearts to serve the Lord with more fervor, love and grace.

Honestly, having read the other reviews, I can't understand why people of different faiths would review this book, although I am glad they read it. I might read a book about atheists or agnostics in order to understand why they believe what they believe, but I wouldn't write a review and criticise the book based on my differing religious beliefs. That seems a bit unfair; but, who ever said life would be fair.

God Bless!!!

One of the best books I have ever read. This book is amazingly convicting. Don't waste your life when you could give it to the Lord. When you stand before the throne of God you want to make sure you have done all you can do with your life. This book changed the way I thought about life. Read it, be convicted, and share the message of the gospel... the best kept secret in the universe, with the most precious reward.

This book changed my life. Before I read it, I was wandering in life without a specific purpose. The title of this book was so powerful to me; I realized that I desired not to waste my life. While I was reading this book, I saw God more clearly than I ever had, and for the first time, I felt a bubbling up of affection in my heart for God. I previously did not understand what people meant by the phrase "I love God." Now I understand. I do love God, and I love life, and I want to live my life to share this love and joy with everyone I know, so that we can have good times in Heaven forever.

This edition of Don't Waste Your Life is the nicest edition, makes a great gift. I have given away at least 10 copies of this book to people I care about. Pastor Piper's message on the DVD is astounding: I have never heard anyone talk about suffering and death so unabashedly.

Like all his books, John Piper asks hard questions and then presses you for an answer. While he encourages you to think, to reflect, to consider, to - as the Berean's did - search the Scriptures to see if these things are true, John delivers his message with a sense of immediacy and urgency that will not be denied. You will find yourself waking in the night thinking about some well-turned phrase, question, or to ask yourself, "What IF..." I loved this book and bought WHAT JESUS DEMANDS OF THE WORLD after reading it.

This book will be dog-earred, bookmarked, highlighted, and discussed. It compells you to talk about it. Buy it.

As my title suggests, this book is written for Christians. Our mission is to make much of Christ, and to glorify Him. As John the Baptist said "He [Jesus] must become greater; I must become less" (John 3:30). This book which is so beautifully written by Pastor John Piper elegantly conveys this ever-important message to Christians as a wake-up call. Why are we finding so much joy in worldly things which do not last if Christ is our true Treasure? Is it perhaps because we are not fully living in fellowship with Him? Mr. Piper addresses so many crucial questions in our pursuit to glorify God and defends the idea that "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him". It seems that this truth has the potential to completely change for the better how many Christians live their lives, and this is the reason why John Piper has written this book. If you want to be inspired to live your life the way God intended for you to live it and to bring Him the glory through all circumstances, then this is a must-read for you! Pick up a copy, read it, and then pass it along to others! And, most of all, don't waste your life, because you have help from the risen Christ to live a life not wasted! Let us pray along with John Piper and say "As God lives, and is all I ever need, I will mot waste my life...through Jesus Christ, AMEN".

I needed to some accurate information about developing strong relationships that would benefit average people in church. Very helpful reading.

VisionalLife: The Pursuit of God's Passion

If I were asked what book should a first time church launcher buy, it would be Launch. I only wish the book would have been out before we launched in Jan 2007. We did pick it up and begin to implement the practical step by step instructions and recommendations. Since our launch in Jan 2007, we are averaging 175 and are using many of the post-launch strategies outlined in Launch. I have read many books on church planting and launching that are theory written by guys who have never taken a church beyond 150. Nelson is not a theorist, but a practician.

Jeff Calloway
Lead Pastor - Bridge Church at Perry
Author of VisionalLife: Pursuing God's Passion

Searcy and Henson have done a great job of putting together a very practical and readable guide to church growth. The basic premise is assimilating guests into engaged members by practicing an intentional hospitality and a structured follow-up strategy. The methodology makes perfect sense, and it is the same approach that Searcy used to grow his "from scratch" church in NYC. It is targeted toward a younger audience but could be adapted to different segments. There are also templates and other tools included in an appendix which make this a very implementable system. Searcy also shows that the motivation behind church growth is found in Bible verse. More information about Searcy can be found at www.ChurchLeaderInsights.com.

This is a great book to help your church implement a great guest welcoming program (hospitality). It is very practical and useful. You may not agree with everything, but you don't need to, to implement the program! This is uptodate and top notch.

I read Nelson's book this morning, handed it to my Assimilation Director this afternoon, and sent Nelson a note tonight, congratulating him on a fine piece of work. New Song has been doing many of the things Nelson suggests for a long time, but his is a systematic approach that thinks through and closes the gap on each potential point where a newcomer might fall through the cracks.

I doubt if any of the pieces of Nelson's assimilation system are new. He's probably borrowed alot from Saddleback and a little from others. What Nelson has done is thought through, written down, and explained what to do, so that no one ever has to start from scratch again. This is a church assimilation primer! The surprising thing is that no one has written this book before. The laudable thing is, Nelson has now done it for us.

Smaller churches, if you want to think like a larger church, this is a very good place to start. As you grow, you'll need to adopt this type of system for welcoming newcomers, along with equally comprehensive systems for Small Groups, children's ministry, youth ministry, visitor attraction, branding your signature event in the community, and every other subministry of the church.

Larger churches may not need this - if they're already doing as much or more for visitors. Personally, I'm going to huddle with my team and use it as a reference guide and checklist to make sure we've closed as many gaps in our welcoming process as possible.

Great job Nelson! Keep them coming!

Hal Seed
New Song Community Church
Oceanside, CA

Easy inexpensive purchase!
Very quick delivery!
I love it when it's like that!

Two copies (One for a friend)

Mindfulness in Plain English, Updated and Expanded Edition

Not quite as easy a read as I was lead to believe in the reviews. But definitely an excellent overview of mindfulness. I liked how it pointed out the pitfalls some beginners run into. I liked how they outlined the variety of ways meditation can be practiced. I would recommend this book to other beginners.

I purchased this book because I was interested in learning about the concept of mindfulness. I wasn't exactly looking to develop a serious meditation habit, but during my reading of the book I began to embrace the idea. I read the book and wanted to re-read it fairly soon after finishing, but I loaned it out to someone. I'm eager to get it back and read it again, but I've told someone else they can borrow it! I may have to buy another copy. The book is well-laid-out, covers the subject matter very well, and opened my eyes to a new way of thinking. I'm trying to become a more regular meditator; currently I do it in ten-minute increments a couple of times a week at minimum, but I'm hoping to build from there. Also: I'm currently reading the "sequel" to this book, called "Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness: Walking the Buddha's Path." I'm only in the beginning but I'm finding it on par with "Mindfulness in Plain English" -- informative and eye-opening, and teaching me things that I feel can impact my everyday thinking (and hopefully result in an overall healthier mind).

THIS BOOK ENGAGES THE READER. THERE IS ALSO HUMOR IN THE PART ON MEDITATION AND THE INTERFERENCES THAT COME DURING YOUR ATTEMPTS TO MEDITATE THAT MAKE THE BOOK EVEN MORE ENJOYABLE.

This Book is another must have. It is (in plain english) a insight meditation manual to help the beginner learn and the experienced meditator to review. There is real world advice and explainations that will greatly help you understand how to learn meditation. Though no book can replace a caring and experienced teacher this book can certainly improve your understanding. Also the Book Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness and The Four Foundations of Mindfullness go hand in hand with this one and I reccomend getting all there in order to have a much wider view of the practice. I am truly thankful to Bhante Henepola Gunaratana for writing such a life changing book.

This opportunity to explore ways to deepen our spiritual journey is powerful. It is not what one always wants to hear; however, in the hearing, one suspects that the author is right on calling us to a deeper and more intentional journeying in the faith.

This book lists excuses and breaks down the how-to's of growing as a Christian. It will explain in very great detail with multiple examples to follow, of incorporating more of God in our busy lives. Reading just 1 page a day will encourage change and growth. A Christian, reading this book will be given the opportunity to be set a blaze by the Holy Spirit to make life altering changes that will bring them closer to God. This book has changed my life and those in my bible study, I pray that it will do the same for you. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life: A Study Guide Based on the Book The study guide is an awesome way to get more out of the book and to get more life application material as well. A great buy for those reading the book again as the book itself is a lot to chew the first time around.

Outstanding book to read, re-reread and meditate over. Scripturally-based. Gives practical suggestions to implement each discipline. We have used it in small-group Bible study with great success!

This book is a solid read and works well as a go-to-guide to spiritual disicplines. The section on journaling is dated, but perhaps you could draw a correltation to bloggin. Either way, it is worth a read.

Few books have proven to be as practical to me as Spiritual Disciplines For the Christian Life. Donald Whitney writes with both precision and perspicuity. Even naming a large group of spiritual disciplines might prove difficult for many today. If you find yourself among the many who are eager to more effectively walk with Christ I heartily suggest obtaining this classic Navigators book. (my full review is here: http://stilltruth.com/2007/spiritual-disciplines-christian-life)

Sadly, James Dodson has continued to provide his biased and denegrading perspective toward people outside his narrow and 'conservative' perspective. It's too bad God's unconditional love he claims to call upon does not extend to his beliefs in raising, mentoring, and bring up healthy boys.

How about we all just accept our boys for the beautiful, unique people they are! Don't waste your time or money with this book.

As a new dad, I found this book to be an extremely helpful resource. Dobson covers numerous relevant topics and provides fresh, practical ideas. I will certainly be coming back to this book over the ensuing years as my son grows. Highly recommended for dads, moms and grandparents.

This book should be named Boys don't stand a chance. This is the worst book I ever read. I didn't even finish it. The more I read the madder I got. This book had nothing to do with raising boys. It is a very negative book about how boys do not have a chance. I was very disappointed. I thought I was going to learn how to be a better father. If there was anything in the book about that, I must have missed it. I was very disappointed. I think Mr. Dobson should keep his opinions to himself.

With one little boy already in our family & another on the way I looked into getting this book. I was able to read a few pages online & I didn't want to stop reading once the sample pages ended! The info I read said it was very helpful in understanding boys & possibly helping to understand what makes your husband tick also. They were right! I bought the audio book thinking there was no way I'd be able to just sit around & read, but I could definitely listen while I was driving around town running errands. I'm glad I did...I've already listened to 4 of the cds & they have amazing info in them on the differences between males & females, the importance of both mothers & fathers in a child's life, discipline & so much more! I would highly recommend this book or audiobook/cds to anyone with boys or a husband!!!

This is one of the best, most intelligent and broad introductions to buddhism and buddhist philosophy available. An important addition to your library.

This book did a great job to introduce Buddhism ideas in a clear and plain way, which makes Buddhism easy to be understood and easy to be accepted. Moreover, I'm also glad that he wouldn't simply follow whatever in the Buddhism texture without reflection, like most Buddhist scholars did. He reflected the ideas, explaining them reasonably and even asked readers to think, reflect and then see if they could accept or not...The author himself is a peaceful and great figure in modern Buddhism society. The experience of reading his book always brings me a peaceful mind. If you're interested in Buddhism but hesitate for its complicated terminology, this book is highly recommended.

This is a very well written introduction to Buddhism and Buddhism's primary concepts and teachings. As always, Thich Nhat Hanh is very easy and enjoyable to read.

I enjoyed this book, I found it to be very informative, and I liked the writing style of the author.
I just started delving into the realms of Buddhism. Any input from anyone who is an actual Buddhist and not a Professor or Doctor who only studied Buddhism and claims to be an expert is appreciated.

"The Heart of Buddha's Teaching" is one of the best books I've read. It's a great introduction to the basic principals and ideas of Buddhism. Thich Nhat Hanh really explained things in such a way that I feel I'm walking away with ideas and resources to help deal with everyday problems.

I'm tempted to call this a self-help book with how every chapter seemed to address things that I as a person am confronted with and am trying to understand. How Hanh applies Buddha's teaching to suffering, anger and how to achieve peace and zen is something I believe everyone needs and will benefit from reading. I've read other books that felt as if they were speaking of things beyond my grasp and ability to make sense of; this was not that book. Everything flowed nicely, the concepts were presented in terms that weren't too complicated, the examples given were ones that did not distract from the ideas and points.

Definitely a must read and worth your time and attention.

While the author reminds us not to limit God, he forgets or ignores the sovereignty of God. It is good for us to pray big prayers, but let's not forget that God can say no. After all, He is God, not Santa Claus nor some genie.

I also find it telling that most translations say that Benaiah "went" or "went down" into a pit rather than "chased" the lion into the pit. The book is a wonderful example of how to create doctrine out of a dubious translation. Pity, since a number of Batterson's ideas are actually worthwhile.

Don't let the humorous title fool you, this book is anything but funny. Sure, Batterson is humorous, witty and in his own words zany; but his subject is no laughing matter. Mark Batterson, pastor of National Community Church in D.C. is calling God's people to battle, to overcome their fears, limitations and inhibitions, and to strive for Christ in a way that may actually seem ludicrous to a lost and dying world - with passion and intensity! I was thinking of the similarities of this book with two others I've recently read - McManus' The Barbarian Way and the Harris brother's Do Hard Things. I like Batterson's approach much better than McManus who seems to say that Christianity must be uncivilized to be effective - but, I think of Wilberforce and his approach to ending slavery in England - it was England itself that was uncivilized and barbaric, Wilberforce fought to end slavery by restoring virtue and goodness...but reforming manners. Batterson, while he uses similar imagery of a warrior fighting for the cause of Christ, doesn't isolate himself on the isolated island of barbarianism. Do Hard Things is another powerful book that is very similar to Batterson's book, just targeted for a younger audience of teenagers.

Much better than The Three Success Secrets of Shamgar, Batterson stays within the biblical text to make his points and draws on other biblical references throughout the book to drive home this point. If you liked Piper's Don't Waste Your Life, or White's Serious Times, anything written by Schaeffer or Colson or Guinness or the movie Amazing Grace - you'll really appreciate this book as well. The idea isn't original, but his examples are new and different. I hope this book is as popular with men as Eldredge's Wild at Heart - this one is even better!

The funny thing is, I could sit here for hours and still come up with more ways this book has changed (and is changing) my life. If you actually do what this book challenges you to do, face your fears, see problems as opportunities, etc. your life will become 100% less boring. I believe God used this book to challenge me in an awesome way. Let me tell you, life is more exciting when you stop thinking about all the things you shouldn't be doing and start focusing on the possibilities with a God like the the One we serve. Stop living in a box. BUY THIS BOOK.

This is one of the better Christian books I have read over the past decade. The book challenges us to rise to the call on our lives and is an interesting read.

This book wasn't terrible. It brought up good points. But.. it was lifeless. Boring. It didn't convict me, didn't stir up emotions in me.. nothing. In fact, it felt like the other just repeated the same line over and over again. Heres a better book on the topic: Starving Jesus by Craig Gross. Now that book will convict you, I promise.

One issue: The author is apparently friends with Brian McLaren. I don't know if you are familiar with him, but in a nutshell, he's a wolf in sheeps clothing and a false teacher. So thats something thats a concern.

This book was a true blessing. I need someone to remind me of what the bible says and don't sugar coat anything. If you are someone who needs to feel that everything you've done is OK, then this book is not right for you. If you want to know how to live a truly blessed, happy and stress free life then start reading it now.

I recommend this book to any christian women who thinks she doesn't have any lies that she is believing about the christian life/faith/marriage, etc. You will be surprised at how many lies Satan has used to discourage you and bring you down. Some of these lies are very obvious, but others will hit you like a ton of bricks. I know so many women who have read this book that you could probably find a fellow christian to borrow it from;-)

Nancy Leigh DeMoss, with startling clear exegesis of what the Bible really teaches about life and how we should live in the reality of a post-fall world are both comforting, encouraging, and constantly challenging. She does not represent a short of "Christianized" post-modernism but faces up to the hard demands of Scripture in every area. I have found the book to be helpful at so many levels to help me regain a Biblical outlook on life instead of simply acting out cultural assumptions and highly recommend it.

On the birth-control issues, again DeMoss bravely puts forth an idea that is radically against our rather self-centered culture. I am not saying that raising children is an easier than it is! But that isn't the point. Children are a blessing, every one of them. It is my tentative theory that before the fall/flood raising children was easier, because lifespans were longer, it was more spread out. today we have the same many kids naturally, but live like 500 yrs less. That means raising children selflessly today is extremely challenging, but God will never give us more than we can handle. God has built the conception of life as the general result of love between a man and his wife. Not that that's the only purpose of sex (expressing love is), but children are a blessing God Himself has generally built as a result. For some people, letting God decide how many children he will bless them with will mean a large family (and I have seen personally how warm and rich such families are. every member of the family adds something, and the parents will say raising such a large family was definitely challenging at times, but so worth it. each member is infinitely precious) The stress of raising a family will mean giving up a lot of our personal plans, will necessitate patience, a good sense of humor, and lots and lots of grace. But when we are weak, God is strong. Don't let cultural assumptions cause you to write off ideas like this and some others that Nancy brings to the light of Scripture.

This book was written for Christians, but I can't imagine that any woman could read it and remain unchanged. Author DeMoss takes on the lies that ruin our lives and destroy our peace - lies about ourselves, our relationships, our emotions, our circumstances, our sin, and most important of all, God Himself. And then she tells us the truth.

I bought this book because I thought it was part of a series started by the other book The Lies We Believe and which I liked a lot. From the first chapter on, I regretted the purchase because it was not as authentic to a Christian like me as the other book was. For one thing, the author purports to discuss some supposed lies that she doesn't even have any authority -- not to mention experience -- on. Granted, the book does have some lies that are real lies, but there were quite a few lies that should not have been there. With these types of lies, the author generalized too much, especially in areas she obviously had no knowledge or experience of, so that anyone could be duped into actually thinking the way this author thinks -- which is very bad if you're a seeker (a person who just heard God's Word and would like to know more or someone who is in the process of finding a God- and Bible-believing church to go to).

One of the lies that the book subtly tries to tell you is if not for Eve, Adam would have not sinned and sin wouldn't have entered the world. All through the chapters the author always goes back to how Eve wrongly acted and used an authority not rightfully hers by making Adam eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. There has been quite a bit of Biblical study into that scene where Eve eats the fruit and then Adam eats it, and these Biblical scholars now point to the fact that most statements in the creation part of Genesis have a time lag that is not immediately evident. In the case of the eating of the fruit, Eve ate the fruit but may have not given it at that very instant to Adam. Eve may have served the fruit as part of a meal, or may have casually told Adam to eat the fruit a little later -- in either case without the assumption DeMoss makes that she seduced/enticed/"ordered" Adam to eat it. It is similar to one's wife calling today, "Honey, dinner is on the table, let's eat!" The opening of their eyes may not have happened immediately, too, and may have been a gradual process. In any event, if Eve had truly orchestrated the Fall of Man, the Bible would have been specific about that instead of emphasizing that "through Adam sin entered the world", which is what Lies Women Believe: And the Truth that Sets Them Free thinks is not the case -- i.e., sin entered the world through Eve.

To believe that the need to learn to love myself (Lie #8) is a lie is not healthy. For one thing, DeMoss actually says we already have a good sense of self-esteem. If she meant that, then why not just state "I need to have high self-esteem" as the lie instead of learning to love myself? Not everyone is born with "high self-esteem" or a keen sense of self preservation. People who, as DeMoss says, "are plagued with a sense of worthlessness" are usually that way because of something in their life that made them that way. These people would like to kill themselves because they believe they are truly not worth anything (Lie #7). A person can't change the circumstances of his/her birth, childhood, background, past -- all of which have equal chances of making him the person he/she is today. If a person is abused as a child, it would take an extreme miracle for that child to even believe that he/she is lovable, much less for him/her to love himself/herself. This therefore proves that Lie #9 ("I can't help the way I am") is actually true because the accident of birth and environmental background shape what you are, which you cannot help (unless you're God, of course). This brings me to jump to lie #36 ("If my circumstances were different, I would be different"), a general statement that does not take into account that a considerable chunk of humanity would truly be different if their circumstances were different -- i.e., if they had not been abused, or their parents were not alcoholics, or if they had not been born with Down syndrome or cerebral palsy, then they themselves would actually be different.

Another supposed lie is "I have my rights". The Bible itself disproves DeMoss in this, as it is obvious from reading just the Old Testament that even God, in His goodness, recognized that human beings have inherent rights by making provision for those rights to be protected when he gave the various old covenant laws to Moses. For example, God made provision for a person who killed someone by mistake to flee to a place (in safety so others won't go after him) (Ex. 21:12-14, Lev. 24:17, 21b). Furthermore, one witness to a murder was insufficient; there has to be at least 2 (Num. 35: 29-30) because obviously there would be the "your word against mine" at play at a time when there was no CSI or forensics to conclusively determine whether a man killed another. These and other basic human rights has been carried down to our day, and to make a general statement that we don't have rights at all goes even against Scripture. DeMoss should have restated this to "I have no right to demand petty things" or something like that, which is what the list she wrote actually was. Her example of Jonah was an example of obvious eisegesis (among many) that I am just offended she would use him to justify that women have no rights.

Lie #20 ("A career outside the home is more valuable and fulfilling than being a wife and mother") is obviously something the author is not prepared to follow herself but expect the rest of womankind to follow. Here she is with a radio program she hosts and a writing career. I can believe the writing career being a career inside the home, but unless she owns a radio studio, then she obviously is going out to work and thinks it is better than having a husband and kids. (Yet later on she says it's a lie that women have to have a husband to be happy.) Not everyone has the luxury to be able to work in the home. And let's not be hypocritical about this because I have met so many Christians who pretend to be wives and mothers and have careers in their home, during which time they practice said careers, they leave their kids in a Church-run daycare or Christian babysitter from their parish or church. These Christian women are no different from others who have careers outside the home and leave their kids in a secular daycare or with a non-Christian babysitter. Furthermore, since DeMoss is keen to blame women in our culture as the culprits, what about those men who abandon women they impregnate with kids they are not willing to support? Those women can't stay at home else her kids will starve. She has to work because she has no choice (2 Thess. 3:10). It is not just women here who have shaped the culture we are in. Yet DeMoss wants us to believe that if womankind had submitted to the men in their lives from the get go we wouldn't have this kind of culture and society, we wouldn't be working outside our homes because every woman will be happily married with a wife and kids. Additionally, in the Middle Ages women have almost always submitted to their husbands and other authority figures above them and it obviously did not make our society any better than it is today. Additionally, the Church at the time propagated the myth that women were not empowered in the Bible and emphasized the submission so much to the point that women were secretly abused, all in the name of submission. DeMoss should carefully tread in the fine line of submission and not use the name of God, the Bible, and Christianity to justify this, because the Church has often twisted and used this to the detriment of thousands of women both then and now.

And what's this about the size of our family not being up to us to determine? There is no Scriptural basis at all for this. Most of Africa, Asia, and heavily Catholic South America obeyed this mandate, and the world is now heavily populated as a result, taxing those countries' natural resources. Surely when God mandated the human race to take care of the garden, he didn't just mean take care of Eden but also the whole planet? This is a very selfish lie because in DeMoss' ideal world, women would have babies no matter what, and the husband is supposed to be the only one taking care of that brood of maybe 4, 5, 6, 7 children. I can't do that to my own husband. I don't want him to work to death to support us! A woman is not just a baby-making machine while a man is not just a breadwinner. It's very easy for DeMoss to say this because obviously she was born in a rich family: her father had his own business, giving her mother the luxury of staying home to just take care of the house and kids (p. 172), and they were able to later send all 7 of them to private Christian schools (p. 174) even though they could afford to send them to a "private secular school" (p. 173). DeMoss also mentions she had a very sheltered upbringing in her introduction. I believe this is why some of the lies she says are unrealistic because she just lacks the experience or knowledge to know about them. I mean, has she even ministered to Christians in Africa or Asia?

Lie #33 ("I can't control my emotions") sometimes depends on how healthy or unhealthy a person is, and what type of person we are looking at. DeMoss would have you believe that we ought all to be able to control our emotions. Hypoglycemia can cause a person to be irritable, as well as PMS in women, lack of sleep, hypothyroidism in everyone. If the person, however, is not aware he has a medical condition that is affecting his emotions, then he truly will not be able to control them. What more people with more severe mental and physical illnesses? Furthermore, there are certain diseases that can kill parts of the brain, and if those parts deal with how a person expresses emotion, then that person totally will not have control over what he feels. Again, DeMoss is making a general statement from the outside looking in.

This could have been a good book if the author stayed within her own knowledge, experience, and calling. Although she gives a list of further helps in the back of the book (some of which toe the same line as her book), it is easy to notice that she is talking from a shallow understanding of a lot of serious problems and things that are wrong in this world and with humanity, and using eisegesis of the Bible (as opposed to exegesis, hermeneutics, or even exposition) to prove her points. She says she has had a sheltered upbringing. The least she could have done to remedy this was go outside into the world, do some Christian work or something in other parts of the world, before writing this book, in order to understand more than she knows now and be able to write from a real calling and true experience.

This book is a great addition to the textbook. It reinforces the Hebrew learned in the textbook, through translating and practicing the specifics of each lesson.

I use this as an adjuvant to my classes, just to get extra practice. Even though it is oriented to Christian students, the Hebrew is sound for my Jewish studies. One good point: the 'font' size of the Hebrew is large enough that you don't need a magnifying glass to read the vowel points! And the answer key is internet based, which is convenient for juggling page and answer key!

This workbook is better than the Basics of Biblical Hebrew grammar book. This workbook has many different phrases, sentences, and scripture passages for you to read from, and helps to build a strong foundation in terms of applied Hebrew grammar, and inductive exposure to the language.

There are many inflected verbal forms in this workbook that are not broken down into their stem, tense, person, number, or gender, and all you are given is their inflected definition at the bottom of the page. Treat these words as if they were vocbulary words, and memorize them in their current form.

For example, the Hebrew word "vay-yomer" means "And he said". This is a Hebrew word in the imperfect state with what is called the "vav/waw conversive". However, the workbook does not tell you this information. It only tells you that "vay-yomer" means "and he said". Treat this word as if it were a vocabulary word, and memorize both it's current form and definition. By doing this, you're actually simulating natural learning process. You will be picking up on prefixes, suffixes, and inflected verbal stem forms without actually being formally introduced to them, so that when the time comes to introduce them in your Hebrew grammar study, you will already be familiar with them in an intuitive sense.

If what I said sounds like a bunch of jibberish, I'll put it another way. Suppose a someone said, "Tim went to the store, him will be back later", and you overheard it. Naturally, you know from natural exposure to the English langauge that this is improper grammar. The word "him" is the objective form of "he", while "he" is the subjective form which should be used in place of "him" in the example sentence given. However, we native English speakers don't "think" about making such a transition in our minds. We speak the language based on how we've learned it through natural exposure, and thus we know intuitively to say "he", and not "him" in such instances. The same methodology is applied in this workbook for certain words, especially verbal forms. This is truly important when learning Hebrew because the verbal system in Hebrew can be VERY cumbersome at first glance.

I have this workbook for my Hebrew class at seminary, and it offers many good exercises for hours of translation and parsing enjoyment.

I have not reviewed other first year Biblical Hebrew workbooks but I can compare this experience with my previous study of four other languages. This workbook is closely coordinated with the textbook by Pratico and Van Pelt and meant to be used in the same sequence as the material covered in the textbook. I found the exercises to be very carefully designed so as not to discourage the beginning Hebrew student; this is a common besetting problem because the morphology, grammar, and syntax differs so much more from English than Biblical Greek or other Indo-European languages. From the first exercise on, the author has been very careful to cull examples for parsing of nouns, pronominal suffixes, prepositions/prefixes, construct forms, and (especially) the verbal system that build gradually enough for most students to stay afloat, given a pace of learning that aims to complete the textbook in a 2-semester time frame. Perhaps the most encouraging aspect of the design is inclusion of real snippets for translation of the biblical text from the earliest exercises on. I found myself actually anticipating the "real" stuff from the Bible at the end of each chapter's series of exercises and blown away at how quickly I could recognize various forms, starting with the noun system, prepositions, and constructs. When the translations include forms that have not been covered in the text, generous footnotes provide hints that explain those forms, so as to allow for smoother recognition of forms that have been covered while at the same time seeing syntactical relationships in context, even before the other forms are covered. Although my instructor assigned only a fraction of the examples of Bible translation from each chapter, I was "hooked" and invariably ended up doing the whole translation exercise each time, saying to myself "I can do this!".