I love expository preaching. The deeper you go into the text, the better it gets. To take one verse and expand it into eight to twelve chapters worth of content is great!

Pastor Jamie Rasmussen has done just that with How Joyful People Think. Using Philippians 4:8 as his treasure chest, he pulls out so much by way of spiritual nuggets and practical adornment. More than just the power of positive thinking, joyful thinking takes on a very realistic approach. It is truthful and honest, vulnerable about weaknesses and shortcomings, but always hopeful.

Beginning with the first phrase, Rasmussen discusses what the word “whatever” really means. Rather than a sarcastic reply or an empty gesture, “whatever” is actually “a word used to refer to limitless volume and extent.” The capacity for us to think joyfully is beyond measure! And the returns we get for doing so are innumerable.

 

Continuing through each of the eight ways to think, Rasmussen gives us deeper thoughts rather than surface understanding. “Whatever is true” means that we combine our personal reality with transcendent truth. “Whatever I honorable” means we keep our head cool under pressure from others. “Whatever is commendable” digs into the power of confession and integrity.

This book was not only a joy to read, it’s practical applications will live with me for a while. I recommend this to anyone, especially pastors looking for a way to preach this particular passage to their congregation.

Disclaimer: The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

Is justice possible? J. Paul Nyquist answers this question with scripture and clarity. However, the answer may not be what we expect or want. Due to our sinful nature, many times justice is perverted. But when we lean on the power of God, justice will always be there. It may be delayed or seem unjust to us. But it’s still there.

In regards to his search for justice within the legal realm, he does a great job. Framing the conversation around misapplied justice is smart. He uses stories of wrongful convictions to drive his narrative. And he supplies some good reasoning as to why we so often see justice misapplied.

I do wish that Nyquist would address the so-called “social justice” of the day. In fact, many would claim that wrongful convictions is definitely a part of that. Instead, he separates legal justice from social justice, which is fine. But I would love to hear what he has to say on these other topics. Perhaps a follow up to this fine work?

Disclaimer: The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

I’ve loved studying the Jewish background of the New Testament beginning with my undergrad days. At that time, my Hebrew professor shared details of life in Israel where he earned his Masters Degree in Jewish studies (before going on to Hebrew University in Cincinnati). He would often share a snippet of insight from the intertestamental period, a geographical detail about the Holy Land, or an interesting linguistic note that added to the text.

Since that time I’ve added to my knowledge whenever I can. Reading about Jewish history from the end of the exile to the fall of the temple has vastly increased my understanding of the New Testament texts. Lois Tverberg feels the same way. In Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus, she opens the text and offers examples of details we would wash over in our western mindset. By resetting our minds to an Eastern way of thinking, she says, we get a fuller picture.

This book is less academic than it is autobiographical, honestly. She speaks less about her personal life than the New Testament. However, her own journey of discovery comes through brilliantly. I learned some things I had never heard before, but many of them I had. But I really loved hearing her passion of discovery. It matched my own.

This is a great book for those who have never studied Jewish backgrounds before. A great primer on the topic in a very easy to read and understand text. I can’t wait to read more from Tverberg!

Disclaimer: The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

The Prayer Wheel: A Daily Guide to Renewing Your Faith with a Rediscovered Spiritual Practice

Patton Dodd, Jana Reiss, and David Van Biema

Ever since I discovered the examen prayer a few years ago I’ve been fascinated with finding different ways to pray each day. I grew up in a church without a strong liturgical tradition, so these things were new to me. However, they are ancient to Christianity.

One ancient, though lost, way to pray is through the use of a prayer wheel. The practice goes back to the time of Augustine, though the seven-spoked wheel illustrated in the book dates to around the mid eleventh century. It was pasted into the inside front cover of a manuscript of the Four Gospels where it stayed for two-hundred years, before being shelved for eternity it would seem. That is until 2015 when it was discovered in a New York gallery. This ancient practice has now found new light and new life.

The prayer wheel combines seven aspects of the Lord’s Prayer with seven gifts of the Spirit, Seven events from the life of Christ, and seven Beatitudes. As you pray from the outer wheel to the center, where “God” is printed prominently, you pass through each aspect until you reach the opposite side’s fulfillment. For instance, “Holy is your name” leads through the gift of wisdom and the Incarnation of Christ. This leads one to seek out being a peacemaker and thus being called a child of God.

This would seem like a novel approach to prayer, however it’s application can be quite powerful. I’m excited to spend some time in prayer through these seven positions. The best part of the prayer wheel is that you can actually make it your own – adding more wheels, like the seven deadly sins or the seven days of creation. It will definitely be another prayer tool in my toolbox.

Disclaimer: The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

We love a good pile on, don’t we? We love to see someone get what’s coming to them. Except when it’s us. Then we cry for mercy.

At the heart of Jon Ronson’s book So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed is this dichotomy. How has the advent of social media given us such a ready outlet for (sometimes violent) shaming? And how can we turn it off when it’s directed at us?

Shaming works. And that’s why so many publicly shame others. But at what cost? Ronson delves into the data to determine how lives have been wrecked and who has paid the greater price when publicly shaming goes awry. From a poor joke at a conference to a photo splashed throughout Twitter to a rape-themed backlash on 4Chan. A simple misspoken word in a moment can lead to a lifetime of regret and ruined reputation.

Ronson himself faced publicly shaming and backlash from the publication of this book. When he offered that shaming a joke sent on Twitter about AIDS and Africa was overblown, he was called racist. He readily ascribes to the title of Social Justice Warrior, and this book gets at the ugly roots of that endeavor. What strikes me is what we call justice nowadays. No longer do we look out for victims. We see blood in the water and plunge in like sharks. But justice and punishment aren’t the same. Shaming is punitive, never restorative. And justice must be more wholistic.

I would love to hear what you get out of this book. And if you enjoy it, by all means find more from Jon Ronson. He’s one of my favorite writers, and there’s no shame in that.