Where is God?
Finding His Presence, Purpose, and Power in Difficult Times
By Dr. John Townsend

Where is God? discusses a topic that resonates with every human – why do we suffer and what is God’s place in that suffering?  I really appreciated the compassionate and honest tone of the book. Townsend addresses head-on the tendency to question God and to doubt God in the face of trials.

Chapters 6-11 are the best parts of the book where the author explores hope through trials, God’s sovereignty, God’s transforming power, community, and faith. For me the whole key to the book is in this quote, “Even if the situation does not change, life can be good.” This is what I need to read when I’m struggling with pain — life hurts, but it’s still worth living. I did glean encouragement from reading Where is God?

BUT…Where is God? is rooted in needs-based Christian psychology rather than a nouthetic/biblical approach. (For more about the differences between these two approaches read this article.) So for reformed readers, the book is going to come up lacking. Townsend’s basic answer to the question of evil/pain/suffering in the world is man’s freewill (chapter 4). The book’s emphasis is on living through pain and gaining from pain instead of on glorifying God in the midst of our pain. So it’s a very man focused book rather than a God focused book. I find that slant to be a weakness because it’s only showing one facet of the larger picture of suffering.

Where is God? is also not a scripturally saturated book. Generally Townsend first shares his own views and then offers a scripture to verify the idea rather than starting with the Bible and drawing conclusions from it. Some points didn’t have any scriptural support at all and left me wondering where Townsend came up with the ideas in the first place.

I received this book free in return for my honest review. Thanks, Thomas Nelson Publishers!

Related posts:

1. Book Review: Take Your Best Shot by Austin Gutwein
2. Book Review: The Sacred Meal by Nora Gallagher
3. Book Review — Jesus Manifesto

Enjoy your holiday with loved ones! I will be doing the same.
I’ll not blog again until the day after Christmas when I’ll share the third installment in the Expat Homeschool Mom in China series. See you then!

Related posts:

1. Christmas in March
2. Christmas Chinese Style #3
3. Christmas Chinese Style #2

The Sacred Meal By Nora Gallagher is an odd look at the Lord’s Supper. The traditional and Biblical meaning of the Eucharist — Jesus’ sacrifice on a cross to pay the penalty of man’s sins– is sorely neglected. Instead Gallagher sees the Lord’s Supper as a humbling method God uses to thrust Christians together in fellowship through this shared ritual. Trying to shed light on the Lord’s Supper, she brings insights from Buddhist yoga teachers and from her experiences praying with Muslim women during Ramadan. It was all so totally unusual to me, a conservative Protestant. (Nora Gallagher is an Episcopal.)

The book certainly had nuggets of inspiration that resonated with me. But there were some key areas where Gallagher veered so far from Biblical orthodoxy that I just can’t recommend the book as a whole.

1. Her view of sin is post-modern.

She says that sin is not so much about personal conduct but about justice. Therefore she delves into topics such as global warming, soup kitchens, sweatshop factories, and AIDS patients. She compares America with the corrupt Roman Empire and warns of a coming day of judgment. But there is nothing said about the punishment of hell for an individual sinner.

In speaking of her preparation for taking the Lord’s Supper, Gallagher says, “I try to bring my whole self to the table. All the good stuff and the bad.” There is no mention of repentance of sin (or even of accepting Christ at all) as a prerequisite to partaking of the Sacred Meal. This is contrary to Biblical teaching.

Because of her post-modern view of sin, her humanistic Christianity is merely a social gospel.

2. Her view of Jesus is incorrect.

Whenever Gallagher spoke of Jesus, it reminded me of the Jesus in The Last Temptation of Christ – a confused teacher who slowly discovers his calling. Again, this is simply not Biblical. Jesus is fully man and fully God. A mystery, yet a truth.

3. She rejects the total depravity of mankind.

Gallagher puts far too much hope in man. These passage shocked me, “Jesus. . . . puts great faith in us. Jesus puts great faith in our ability to change course and to answer his call.”

Really? If Jesus had such great faith in man, why did He have to die for them? Why did he come to this earth at all? Why did He give us the Holy Spirit to enable us to obey if we already had this ability?

Later she even goes farther to say, “The things he [Jesus] did could not have been done without them [the disciples].”

I totally disagree. We need Him. He does not need us.

I’m glad this book was free. Thanks, Thomas Nelson, for letting me read it and giving me the freedom to write a negative review. If I had paid $18 for The Sacred Meal, I would have been very, very disappointed.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: Where is God? by Dr. John Townsend
2. Book Review: Take Your Best Shot by Austin Gutwein
3. Book Review — Jesus Manifesto

Take Your Best Shot: Do Something Bigger Than Yourself By Austin Gutwein with Todd Hillard

Austin Gutwein says, “If AIDS is contagious and brings death, shouldn’t hope be contagious and bring life?” Take Your Best Shot is a message of Christian hope, that anyone can use his passion to help others.

It all starts with nine year old Austin’s watching a World Vision video that pricks his heart and moves him to act. He begins shooting basketball to raise money for African AIDS orphans and eventually founds Hoops of Hope. It’s the same formula Austin encourages his reader to follow:

1. Find a need.
2. Use your passion to meet it.

I wrongly assumed the book would rely heavily on sports analogies. Actually, the book is not about basketball or even about African orphans. Austin does a fabulous job of keeping his Hoops of Hope story the primary illustration of his larger point – finding a need and meeting it with your passion. He’s not showing off but showing how – how God worked through his life. The point comes through clearly, and Austin comes off as a very like-able and humble kid.

Throughout the book, Austin shares his reflections on Bible scripture, his personal anecdotes, and stories of his trips to Africa. It’s all woven together in a rather non-linear fashion that reminds me of how you read a website, clicking back and forth. There is a cohesive whole, but it jumps around in the storytelling in a style I found a tad distracting.

Each chapter ends with questions to consider, Scripture to read, and something to do (a website to visit, for example). Take Your Best Shot makes for a good parent-tween evening read (that’s what we did) or serves as a good starting point for a teen’s personal devotional.

I loved the emphasis on the faith of children to attempt “impossible” things, and I think this book has an important message. Children do not have to wait until they grow up to make a difference. They can act now.

Additional Notes

The book is distinctly Christian, but not evangelistic. You will not find a prayer to accept Christ or see Austin sharing the gospel with African children. The helping done in this book is all humanitarian – food, clothing, education, and medicine.

Take Your Best Shot is classified as juvenile nonfiction, but be aware that because the book refers to helping AIDS orphans, there are some tough issues here. If your children are not ready to learn about AIDS, this is not the book for you.  One of the testimonials in the book is about a girl in Nepal who got AIDS as a result of forced prostitution. (We skipped that section with our 10 year old daughter.) My husband read this book outloud to Sprite so that he would be there to discuss both the theology as well as the tough world realities.  As you would with any book, preview before handing it over to a child.

Disclaimer

I received a free copy of this book in return for my honest review. (I thought that was a killer deal for someone who pays an extra $5 per book at Amazon just for shipping!)

Related posts:

1. Book Review: Where is God? by Dr. John Townsend
2. Book Review: The Sacred Meal by Nora Gallagher
3. Book Review — Jesus Manifesto

I’m all for planning our homeschool; unschooling just doesn’t suit me. But I am flexible. For example, when I see Sprite become inordinately interested in some particular topic, I think it’s wise to capitalize on that and do a little extra study to satisfy her curiosity. Last week offered a good example, and Dad jumped in to do the teaching.

On my way to bed, I found a note in the hallway that Sprite obviously meant for us to find. On it were some really good Bible questions:

1.  What language did God speak?

2.  If Jesus hadn’t been born yet, how could there be a Trinity?

3. If God made animals first, does that mean we aren’t as important as animals?

4. Can I say Jesus made the earth?

I love to see these kinds of questions! First, it shows me that Sprite is truly engaging with Truth. Also I see that she’s trying her best to use logic and what she knows from the Bible to answer these questions. I handed the paper to “Mr. Bible-ology Man,” as Sprite calls her dad.

The next day, he jotted down some scripture references beside each question and then spent extended time going over each verse with her until he was sure that her questions were adequately answered. Although it would have been quicker to simply answer her questions from his own knowledge, instead he took her straight to the Word, the ultimate authority and let her find each answer. I have to say that he handled it excellently.

When we teach our children what they want to know when they are asking, they will surely listen and learn. Take advantage of every curious question!

I prefer a physical book to an ebook or a PDF file, but I’m also not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

John Piper’s new book Filling Up the Afflictions of Christ: The Cost of Bringing the Gospel to the Nations in the Lives of William Tyndale, Adoniram Judson, and John Paton is available for free download!

Yes, I’ve already downloaded the PDF. Go check it out.

Have you ever dreamed you were invisible and used your powers to play pranks on people? There’s something about not being seen that brings out your mischievous streak.  If you’re invisible, you can be downright nasty without repercussions.

Speaking a foreign language offers some of the same temptations as invisibility. Where I live, I’m surrounded by people who do not speak my mother tongue. When I become frustrated, it’s easy for the rude remarks I’m thinking in my head to come right out in English. After all, “they don’t understand.”

So if they don’t realize the insult, is it okay to say those words? Of course not. Because the point is not just the offense to the person. The problem is the darkness in my own heart.

Why are those rude words and thoughts there at all? Is it a sense of entitlement or arrogance? Most surely pride is lurking at the root. Knowing English causes a lack of inhibition over my speech, “no one knows, so it’s okay.” Those are the thoughts of a hypocrite – saying the right things and acting the right ways in the presence of others, but reverting back to sinful patterns when no one is looking or, as in this case, when no one can understand.

These kinds of deep revelations about the sinfulness of my own heart cause me to go running back to a Savior who can forgive and restore. I am thankful for this painful revelation and humbly share it with you. (I’ve had this insight for quite some time but had a difficult time expressing it. Last night I read Luke 12:1-3, and it all crystalized for me. The Word is powerful indeed.)

(Originally posted  Sept. 27, 07 at my old blog)

A Creature on a Leaf

But this is my eye-opener — God reveals Himself through nature; therefore, we must study nature! There is actually a theological reason to study nature! God reveals Himself (His character, law and wrath) through the natural world that He created.

Romans 1:20 “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead. . . “

If we neglect to study nature, we will probably miss some truths about Him. I don’t want to miss it! I want to learn all I can. And more importantly, I want my daughter to see God through nature. I would never dream of omitting the Bible from our curriculum. Likewise I should not omit the study and enjoyment of nature.

Psalm 19:1-3 “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard.”

I am so excited by this discovery. And now as part of our working on the nature journal the next day at home, I’m going to add this question, “Since God reveals His character, law, and wrath through nature, did you sense any of that on our nature walk yesterday? Did God reveal any of Himself to you during that time?”

DD’s answer this week was, “He’s amazing! He made those insects so beautiful!”  Yes! God revealed His Divine Creator character to her through nature.

I’m not talking about worshiping nature here. We understand what animism is, and we don’t fit the bill. I’m talking about seeing up the beam of light all the way to God (as C.S. Lewis said).

You know, I blogged about the nature walks mostly because I knew that if I did, I’d be accountable to my readers to DO it. But now I see that I’m actually accountable to God to lead my daughter in the study and enjoyment of nature!

Col. 1:16 “. . . All things were created through Him and for Him.”

Related posts:

1. How We are Doing Nature Study
2. Erosion Nature Study
3. Dragonfly Nature Study

Ambiguity. How well can you handle it?

• not knowing what someone’s true motives are,
• not knowing what tomorrow will hold,
• not understanding the expectations in a certain situation,
• not being able to reconcile Bible verse A with Bible verse B,
• not being able to solve life’s puzzles and mysteries.

How crazy do those kinds of circumstances make you?
Living abroad as a foreigner in a strange land has forced me to accept a life of greater ambiguity.

First there’s the language issue.To put it simply, when you’re a foreigner, there’s a lot that you just don’t understand. For example, I go to put some money on our telephone account expecting to put $50, but I’m only allowed to put $30 in.Why? The clerk explained it carefully, but I have no idea what she said.How do I react to that situation? Can I live without understanding the entire situation? Can I be satisfied that I at least put some money towards the bill and not dwell on the mystery that remains?

Next there’s the experience issue. In a strange land, you experience new situations that you’ve absolutely never faced before.You have no past experience to draw upon to solve the problem. You basically have two choices: discreetly watch how others are handling it, or just wing it with the best common sense you can muster. These experiences can range from the mundane – shopping in the open air market, using a public toilet, crossing the street – to the serious – giving a wedding gift, dealing with my toddler who hits and growls at curious onlookers, making a hospital visit. When I first came to China, I seriously did not know how to get dressed in the morning. I felt that I had no idea what the day might hold, and I felt totally incapable of even dressing myself appropriately.(I am not exaggerating! You can only imagine how I felt about cooking meals for my family and taking care of household repairs.)

Another area of ambiguity is the whole culture issue. It’s the overarching cause of the ambiguity. Language and experiences both can fit under this umbrella. I’ve discovered that Chinese people themselves are much more accepting of ambiguity than we (westerners/Americans) are.They simply don’t have the same need that we have for detail. It’s a common criticism of foreigners that we just ask too many questions and want to know too many specifics – exactly what time will the activity end? Will lunch be rice or noodles? Will the bus have air conditioning? Chinese people are much more willing to “go with the flow” and accept not knowing. They live more in the present and don’t plan ahead in minutia as I tend to do. So for a planner/organizer type of person (me!) to live among this culture is a real stretch of character!

Where is this going?I think that God has forced me to look at this whole issue of ambiguity by putting me here in China.
Am I willing to accept not knowing, not understanding, not being in control?

What am I trusting?

My ability to solve problems and plan ahead?
Or God’s sovereign hand?
Can I float on God’s flow?
Can I trust him to keep me afloat and provide what I need along the journey despite my own inadequacy?
Can I accept the mystery of God Himself?
Can I continue loving Him when I honestly don’t understand His ways?

Yes, I’m learning how to do all of that. I haven’t mastered it, but I’m “pressing on.”

He is Alive!

This is our latest project for the Lent season.   We planted grass seed all over it.  It should be covered with a nice fuzzy green in a few days!

For several years now I’ve wanted to celebrate the Lenten season to the same extent that we celebrate Christmas.  After all, Resurrection Day is the most important remembrance of the Christian year!  It’s a real challenge to find activities and decorations that reflect the true meaning of the holiday.  (We don’t use bunnies, chicks, or eggs since they come from pagan traditions.)  This planter is just a start towards a more Christ-centered holiday.

What Biblical traditions or symbols do you use during this season?  I’d love to hear your ideas.