Daniel Dignan
Have you ever found prayer boring? If you tend to pray about the same things in the same way, you probably have. The author of Praying the Bible believes prayer is a thrilling discipline when the Bible is used to guide it. He shows how to use the Bible, particularly the Psalms, to enrich your prayer life.
I highly recommend the book. It’s very short and if followed will make praying a joy.
(My Dad recommended this book to me, and I’m glad I read it. Thanks, Dad.)
This book does two things really well. It helps the reader understand the value of the Bible and explains the meaning of its various books.
The author is a Christian Bible professor. He believes the historic Christian view that the Bible is a one-of-a-kind book, divinely inspired. Meaning, even though about 40 authors wrote it, God was the one who moved them to write it, using their diverse circumstances, abilities, and writing styles, directing every word that would be written.
Against this, some say that it’s dangerous to claim that God wrote a book. For many have claimed that other books or writings are inspired and have used them to justify terrible acts. More specifically, Christians have used the Bible to justify injustice.
However, one has only to give the Bible a serious read to know that it’s a special book, one that helps us make sense of reality and history, and enlightens in shocking ways.
When the New Testament books were identified (during the fall of the Roman Empire), an African bishop named Augustine wrote a book titled The City of God (perhaps the greatest book outside of the Bible). Using the Bible and reason, he argued that the City of God and His will (revealed in creation and the Bible) are superior to the cities and ways of all earthly kingdoms.
Eventually, this conviction and belief led to an unprecedented rise in enlightenment and human flourishing.
The Bible reveals many great things. One is that God has spoken and is speaking to us in ways we can understand: through creation, through Scripture, and through Jesus Christ (Psalm 19, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, Hebrews 1:1-2), for our happiness and His glory.
If you want help understanding and benefiting from the Bible’s message on how to live the good life with God, I recommend this book.
Except for a couple of books, this is just about the best book I’ve ever read. The story is full of myth, poetry, and romance. A young man finds himself in a faery world, surrounded by fantastic, and sometimes dangerous creatures. His longing for joy, love, beauty, and heroics drives his journey, but his desire and curiosity put him on a dangerous path.
C.S. Lewis, the author of The Chronicles of Narnia, read this book during his late teens; it became a key book in his slow conversion to Christianity. If you want an unusual fairy tale story that helps you think seriously about love, happiness, redemption, preparation, work, and courage, I recommend the book.
