I recently received Donald R. Sunukjian’s new book “Invitation to Philippians; Building a Great Church Through Humility” for review. This book is part of the author’s “Biblical Preaching for the Contemporary Church” with books on Galatians, Mark, and Joshua forthcoming. Sunukjian is the Professor of Christian Ministry and Leadership at the Talbot School of Theology, Biola University. The content of this book is a series of sermons that the author delivered at some point in the past that have been “slightly edited to their present form in order to adjust from the hearing ear to the reading eye.” The focus of the book is to present a case for personal humility based on Christ’s example of humility.

Simply put, this book doesn’t work. Sunukjian published a textbook entitled, “Invitation to Biblical Preaching”. He writes, “The purpose of this series is to offer models of the principles presented in the textbook.” Although the material of this particular book is okay, the fact that the reader would need to have read the textbook to properly understand what Sunukjian wanted them to understand creates a huge vacuum. I cannot recommend this book.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from CrossFocus Reviews as part of their Blogger Review 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: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

I always enjoy books and movies that are based upon true-to-life military stories. Movies such as Saving Private Ryan and Black Hawk Down; books such as No Place to Hide and Fearless have been instrumental in educating the general public as to the reality of war. I would say that this affinity to the military genre of entertainment has to do with the fact that I am a former Marine. The instant connection through terminology and experience makes the reading/viewing much more enjoyable. I recently finished “The Last Rescue; How Faith and Loved Saved a Navy SEAL Sniper” by Howard Wasdin. Wasdin is a former member of the US Navy’s SEAL Team Six, the elite of all SEAL teams. He is also the author of a book, “SEAL Team Six.”

Wasdin was a member of SEAL Team Six in Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993. His team participated in the recovery of two downed Black Hawk helicopters and crew who were participating in a mission to capture Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid’s top military leaders. This battle was made famous by the 1999 book, Black Hawk Down; A Story of Modern War and the 2001 movie with the same title. This book is not a full account of the Battle of Mogadishu. The book begins with a snapshot of the battle and the leg/ankle injuries that Wasdin received through enemy fire. Following his injuries, Wasdin was evacuated and eventually separated from the teams and active duty altogether. What follows this separation is the major part of the book.

The Last Rescue is the story of a man’s struggle to heal; physically, emotionally, and psychologically. To use a familiar expression, this is a story of a man dealing with a journey from “hero to zero”. Wasdin went from being part of the toughest and most respected special forces unit in the world to being confined to his house in rural Georgia practicing wound care on a daily basis. At times throughout the book he himself how things could have went from so good to so bad and if he could deal with it all. The reader is allowed to follow Wasdin on his journey through a difficult and long physical recovery, divorce, raising children, finding meaningful employment that matches his military experiences, years as a car salesman, marriage to his new wife Debbie, college, and finally the opening of his medical practice as a chiropractor. Through these major life events, his military life and experiences are never too far from Wasdin’s mind. He often has to deal with the desire to “get back in” his old life. We also experience Wasdin’s battle with survivor’s guilt over the loss of his close friends in Mogadishu. The subtitle of the book speaks of faith and love. We are introduced to Wasdin’s personal faith in God and the love of and for his family is seen throughout. These are what gave him the ability to not only survive coming out of the military but to thrive in life. This is a great book. It is easy to read, informative, enjoyable, and encouraging. I highly recommend it.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Blogger Review 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: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Books that deal with the “end time” events and a coming “apocalypse” are very common today. It seems almost daily that a new book comes out claiming to have new insight into the revelatory events found in the Bible. Couple this with the movies coming out of Hollywood and the “end times” themes on television and you can see that we are a society that is inundated with the reality of biblical prophecy. One of the sound, conservative, and dependable voices within the “end times” conversation has been, and still remains, Dr. David Jeremiah. In his latest book, “Agents of the Apocalypse; A Riveting Look at the Key Players of the End Times”, he writes from a perspective that stands against his other works on this subject.

Agents of the Apocalypse is a fictional narrative. Simply out, the book uses a set of characters to demonstrate what life might be like on earth as the biblical events such as the Rapture, the Great Tribulation, and the Battle of Armageddon unfold. Jeremiah tells ten fictional stories: The Exile, The Martyrs, The 144,000, The Two Witnesses, The Dragon, The Beast from the Sea, The Beast from the Earth, The Victor, The King and The Judge. Each story is followed by a “The Scripture Behind The Story” section. In this section, the author dives into the biblical content of the previous story. For example, in Jeremiah’s chapter, “The Beast From The Sea”, he details the nature of the Antichrist. He includes two charts. The first contrasts Christ and the Antichrist. The second deals with the Antichrist’s work during the Tribulation Period. Subsections in this chapter include: His (The Antichrist) Preparation, Presentation, Personality, Plan, Pride, Peace Treaty, Persecutions, Power, Profaneness, and Punishment.

I do not read a great deal of fiction work. However, Agents of the Apocalypse is a great work. Jeremiah has smartly woven sound biblical teaching in an easily relatable storyline. Due to the fictional side of the work, it seems at times that the author is reaching to make his point. The biblical exposition outweighs any negative feelings on the fiction side.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Tyndale House Publishers as part of their Blogger Review 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: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Kurdish people of Northern Iraq gained attention from the rest of the world during the reign of Sadaam Hussein in the 1980’s. It was under his reign of terror that hundreds of thousands of Kurds were gassed, tortured, and forced to flee their homeland. Following the Persian Gulf War in 1991, the United States along with Great Britain established a “no-fly zone” over Northern Iraq that provided the Kurds the needed relief from air attacks. The Kurds have come back into the news recently as victims of the Islamic militant group ISIS. They are again enduring horrible atrocities at the hands of a terrorist group. Within the decades of tragedy is the story of a peace-loving and simple people. In his latest book, “The Miracle of the Kurds; A Remarkable Story of Hope Reborn in Northern Iraq” tells the story of these people from not only a historical perspective, but from personal reflection as well.

Who are the Kurds? They are a group whose ancestry reaches back to the ancient Medes of the book of Daniel and Babylon and today reside in Northern Iraq. They are a variety of religions: Muslim, Christian, Jew, Yezidi, and Sufi who welcome people of all religions: Muslim, Jew and Christian. Mansfield writes they are “largely pro-American, pro-Israel, and pro-democracy…in the belly of the troubled Middle East”. Mansfield shares the Kurd’s history of being skilled fighters with a deeply personal connection to the mountains which make up their lands today. He also describes those along the way who have held control of the Kurds including European empires, Russia, and Turkey. Mansfield says that the Kurds have always held onto an “undying dream of freedom” and their journey toward that freedom has been littered with “epic battles, religious passions and vile betrayals”. The longing for freedom, broken promises, and periods of fortune and misfortune is summed up by a story that Mansfield tells of a memorable Kurdish expression, “we have jam, but we have no jam”. The broader meaning is of disappointment.

The title of Mansfield’s book speaks of a “miracle”. With the enforcement of the No-Fly Zone during the 1990’s, the United States and Great Britain provided the Kurds protection from their enemies and they began to flourish and became known as “the miracle of the Middle East”. He tells of how infrastructure development led to foreign investors setting up businesses in Kurdistan. This became possible by allowing foreign investors to have equal status with indigenous investors. These foreign investors were tax breaks with full rights of ownership and profit. The result was millions of investment dollars, new jobs, and a standard of living that was the best in the country. By 2010 Kurdistan had a world class airport, six-star hotels, new cars, city parks, and quiet neighborhoods. Kurdish private schools chose to adopt an English-only position. Through this rebirth and international influence, public schools no longer favored Islam only. Instead, all religions would be taught equally.

The Miracle of the Kurds is a good work. It is easy to read, informative, encouraging. Mansfield has done a great job, as he always does, in telling the story of the people. Although light-hearted most of the way through, one chapter is dedicated to Sadaam Hussein’s gassing of a certain village in the late 80’s. As strange as this may sound, this graphic inclusion makes the book work. It allows the reader to see the resilient nature of the Kurdish people. Mansfield makes a very powerful statement toward the end. He says, “Kurdistan is what America wanted Iraq to be. It is what we wanted from the war.”

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Worthy Publishing as part of their Blogger Review 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: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

It goes without saying that there are many different kinds of people in the world today. Different colors, nationalities, interests, backgrounds, life-experiences, problems, and physical appearances make up the fabric of today’s society. With that being said, our world has labeled a person based on characteristics like those above which has led to a hierarchy where some are perceived as more desirable than others. The end result of this errant classification is a people that are pushed to the fringes of society simply because they are “not good enough” for some. In his new book, “Misfits Welcome; Find Yourself is Jesus and Bring the World Along for the Ride”, Matthew Barnett shares the stories of this group of people. Barnett is the pastor of Angelus Temple and the Dream Center in Los Angeles, California. He refers to this group of marginalized people as “misfits” as they don’t seem to “fit” anywhere into the mainstream of society.

Barnett begins with a question that sets the stage for the book. He writes, “Have you ever felt like a misfit? Just saying the word misfit seems to strike a nerve. The truth is, in many ways, we all feel like misfits. We just don’t fit into the pattern and flow of life. But that’s where things get interesting. In fact, the unknown, the things unseen, is where miracles happen.” This book describes the life of Matthew Barnett, son a megachurch pastor in Phoenix who makes a move to the Skid Row neighborhood of Los Angeles and the events, people, and experiences that follow. His book is full of stories of how Angelus Temple and the Dream Center embraced and welcomed the kinds of people the world would have happily thrown aside. The “misfits” include prostitutes, gang members, drug addicts, drug dealers, runaways, alcoholics, and the homeless. Throughout the book Barnett continually emphasizes the fact God has called us to seek out, love, and care for the hurting, confused, and marginalized. He shares that most often people just simply want a second chance at life and to be valued as humans. This love and redemption can be seen in the fact that the great majority of his church staff include those who were once involved in the Dream Center’s various recovery programs.

Misfits Welcome is an encouraging book. It is a challenge, a dare, a call to reach out and love the hurting, the misunderstood, and the castaway. While not every church can be involved in the vast array of ministries that the Dream Center offers, Barnett challenge the reader to simply love those you can. Scattered throughout the book are testimonies of those who were helped and now are involved in helping others. The book does not provide the “how to” of social and recovery ministry. It does however clearly articulate the “why”. This book challenged me as a pastor and I recommend it without reservation.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Harper Collins and BookLook Bloggers as part of their Blogger Review 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: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”