"An Asian Harvest" (Paul Hattaway)

TITLE: An Asian Harvest: An Autobiography
AUTHOR: Paul Hattaway
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Monarch Books, 2017, (320 pages).

Many of us have heard about the sensational book, the Heavenly Man. It powerfully describes the amazing miracles and testimonies of Brother Yun, a Chinese believer who suffered much persecution and hardship, and was able to testify God's work in his life. In spite of the horrific opposition to his preaching of the gospel, he persevered. The world have come to know his story, but the truth is, there are many other stories remain hidden, untold, and forgotten. We need more brave souls to uncover these stories to show the world that many believers have been unjustly and mercilessly persecuted by the local powers of the land. We need people to uncover these testimonies. One such person is Paul Hattaway, a native New Zealander who helped carry Bibles into restricted countries in the past and is now leading Asia Harvest, an outreach ministry to Asia. After telling the stories of Brother Yun (Heavenly Man) and experiencing the powerful testimonies of faith as he ventured into various countries, it is time to tell his own story as well. This book is an his autobiography.

"The Power of Presence" (Neil T. Anderson)

TITLE: The Power of Presence: Becoming Fully Alive
AUTHOR: Neil T. Anderson
PUBLISHER: Oxford, England, Monarch Books, 2016, (144 pages).

When I think of Neil Anderson, I would be reminded of his passion and conviction about spiritual deliverance and freedom in Christ, the latter having a double meaning. Freedom in Christ is a ministry set up by Anderson back in 1989 when he was a professor of practical theology at Talbot School of Theology in California. From spiritual warfare to being freed in Christ, Anderson shows us that we can break free from the powers of evil because Christ has already freed us at the cross, being an atonement for the sins of the whole world. One would have thought that such themes of triumphalism would carry over to all parts of his life, including this book. I was wrong. After 45 years of pastoral ministry, Joanne, his wife of over 50 years, was diagnosed with agitated dementia, leaving Anderson the arduous task of caring and constantly sitting by her side. Instead of "coming down" to her level, Anderson sees the opportunity as "going up" to her level, a sign of how much he treasures his wife. As he gets more involved with caregiving of her deteriorating state, his priorities change. No longer is he doing things mainly for himself but for her. No more vacations, day trips, movies, and all those ordinary outdoor activities, but more home time. Through the experience grows the author's awareness of the power of presence. This book is borne out of that deep reflection of life through the golden and gray age.

"God's Unwelcome Recovery" (Sean Oliver-Dee)

TITLE: God's Unwelcome Recovery: Why the New Establishment Wants to Proclaim the Death of Faith
AUTHOR: Sean Oliver-Dee
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Monarch Books, 2015, (192 pages).

We are living in a climate of suspicion, sarcasm, and skepticism of all things religion, especially in the West. Is it the death of faith or religion? Is it true that there are more Muslims immigrating to the West than Christians? What can we make out of the polls and statistics that suggest the Church is not only dying, but are becoming extinct? What about those Church-based surveys that paint a pathetic picture of the Church? Rather than accepting these findings and conclusions at face value, there is a small group of individuals who are bucking the depressing trend. They believe that such negative perceptions of the death of faith are hyped and lack the credibility of the real world. They believe that these negative perceptions need to be challenged so that the truth can be revealed. In other words, it is one thing to be indoctrinated by the news media and the influential public leaders about the state of the Church. It is yet another to learn to defend the truth and to ensure that people are not blinded by the clouds of doubt when they are in fact in the wide fields of hope.

Challenging the popular statistics, Sean Oliver-Dee breaks down the numbers to determine the true picture of decline. He shows us that not all decline are attributed to people leaving the Church. There are those who died or have joined other denominations. While mainstream churches are declining in numbers, other groups like the Pentecostals are registering big increases. Another problem in the statistics is that many of them are almost always reliant on "white" data, ignoring the other ethnic groups such as the Blacks and Asian churches. Another reason is that the data is not as updated as we thought. What troubles the author is that while many statistics capture the decline, they fail to zoom in on the scattered increases happening in other sectors of Christianity.

"The Atheist Who Didn't Exist" (Andy Bannister)

TITLE: The Atheist Who Didn't Exist: Or the Dreadful Consequences of Bad Arguments
AUTHOR: Andy Bannister
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2015, (240 pages).

Why is atheism increasingly being portrayed as something “scientific, contemporary, and for those with brains” while Christians being see as “stuffy, outmoded, and irrational?” Why do people buy into the arguments of New Atheists lock, stock, and barrel? Are they right in their assessment? Are they fair in their dismissive stances? Have they become victims of bad argumentation by the New Atheists? These questions motivated Andy Bannister to action not only to join the famous apologist organization, RZIM, but also to write this book that puts the arguments in proper perspective. He deals with each bad argument and shows readers exactly why they are bad and frivolous.

First, he argues that we need to question the sound bites atheists put forth, such as: “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” On what basis do people assert that? He points out that the alternative secular, atheistic, and socialist models have also proven fatal, like the Pol Pots, the Mao Zedongs, and the Stanlins. Bannister tries to prove that atheism must be sustained by rational and appropriate arguments. Don’t let the bus of New Atheism drive you away with their simplistic arguments that looks catchy on the outside but hollow on the inside. Second, he asserts that atheism is actually a belief system as not taking a position of religion is actually a position in itself. Bannister points out that atheism “looks like a belief, and behaves like a belief” and that a “simple disbelief in God does not make one non-religious.”

"Citizen" (Rob Peabody)

TITLE: Citizen: Your role in the alternative kingdom
AUTHOR: Rob Peabody
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Monarch Books, 2014, (192 pages).

What does it mean to be a citizen of the Kingdom of God? Is it simply a label to denote our citizenship status? Is there something more to simply being called "citizens?" For pastor Rob Peabody, director of the Awaken movement in Northeast London, it means a fundamental change from awakening to passionate living. It means not simply possessing a citizenship certificate but to be seized with an urgency of God's call and a fervency to live in accordance to the hope we have in Jesus. Anyone who reads this book will be re-awakened to the beauty and power of Christ, and what it means to live in Jesus. For Peabody, the Damascus moment was in Jerusalem in a hotel balcony on March 2008. Gripped with a "holy discontent," dismayed at a "Golden Ticket Theology," and awakened to the reality of Kingdom citizenship, Peabody lets loose his convictions in a 192 pages book filled with stories, historical flashbacks, biblical injunctions, and personal testimonies of what the gospel means when we begin living in an alternative kingdom. From mere citizenship, we begin to appreciate how the Early Church and believers were persecuted and forced to live as colonies. Being awakened means not becoming stuck in a colony but to continue to grow toward Christlike communities that help one another discover the beauty of God and one another. Such communities are not restricted to Christian circles divided by race, ethnicity, or cultural distinctivenesses. It means learning to let Jesus the King be all our our attention that whatever differences we may have would seem so small compared to the unifying power of the Cross of Christ and citizens of the Kingdom of God.

"Being Church Doing Life" (Michael Moynagh)

TITLE: Being Church, Doing Life
AUTHOR: Michael Moynagh
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Monarch Books, 2014, (352 pages).

It is impossible for one person to reach the whole world. What about people groups reaching people groups? What about communities of faith reaching out together to other communities? Indeed, there are no lone-ranger Christians. Being Church is not about personal devotions or individual heroics. It is about living as a Church by weaving together visible faith through "gospel communities."  This means that doing church is not about activities within a church building. It means flourishing Christian witnesses in all parts of the world. Unconvinced? Then learn from more than 120 examples that have been offered to trigger our imagination and creativity. From the get go, Moynagh offers readers glimpses of possibility in witnessing. He gives us seven reasons for ordinary persons to reach out together.

1. That we can reach out more to those on the edges of society
2. That we can connect Church with society
3. That we can revitalize our own Church
4. That we practice discipleship better
5. That we serve others more effectively
6. That we encourage ordinary people to witness
7. That we obey God's Great Commission and see mission as of primary importance than simply an add-on to our Christian life

"40 Days of Grace" (Rich Miller)

TITLE: 40 Days of Grace
AUTHOR: Rich Miller
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Monarch Books, 2013, (256 pages).

Grace is one of the most beautiful virtues in the Christian faith. Unfortunately, it is talked about often but not equally lived out. When applied to one's relationship with God, the gulf widens. Miller is President of Freedom in Christ Ministries, founded by Dr Neil T Anderson, who also wrote a foreword for this book. One of the best demonstrations of grace is freedom. Freedom to give and the freedom to receive. For the author, there are two things that is critical to freedom in life and in love. First there needs to be grace. He describes grace as follows:

"Grace is like the clean, oxygen-rich atmosphere we breathe. It is necessary for life, for health, for growth. When you are surrounded by grace you flourish; when you're not, you gasp for air. You feel like you are being smothered. Graceless living is like choking pollutants in the air - or worse, like carbon monoxide. You may not realize it is killing you spiritually until it is too late." (13)

It is the way we relate with God. The second thing is truth from which all grace builds upon. Truth is the "solid ground" that grace stands firmly upon. So Miller aims to help readers discover both grace and truth through an exercise called the "40 days of grace." It is not a race course but a grace course. Spread out in six weeks, each week deals with a particular expression of grace. In Week One, "Amazing Grace" is introduced as the beginning of an exciting life. We discover from Scripture that God is gracious. From knowing God, readers will be prompted to reckon grace in their lives, apply it outward to others, and live it out as an expression of love. Week Two begins a journey of being rescued from the "spiritual quicksand" of the lack of grace. Grace is not about how we feel. It is about the person of Christ. The way to grace is through Christ. We need to be reminded about our own need for grace as we ponder on our sinful nature. In forgiveness, we learn to receive with humble hearts the grace of God. On Week Three, we begin the journey from "ungrace to grace." We move away from shame. We are given a second chance. We are accepted by God. For Week Four, we learn to beware of the oppositions to grace. Guilt, shame, fear, and trickery can derail our path to God's grace. As we learn to depend more on God's approval, we will reduce our dependence on human approval. Week Five continues with the "Power of Humility," where living for God essentially means humble service and fighting pride. Week Six leads to the culmination of it all, where one get a better glimpse of what a "Grace-Rest" life looks like.

This book can be used as a 40-Days personal devotional. There are biblical references fully printed out for ease of reading and meditating. Following a brief writeup, readers are given a Thought to chew on, a Truth to remember, a Question to mull over, and Talking with God. At the final day, that is, Day 40, readers are to provide their own TTQT.  Like many things in life, there is no guarantee how an exercise regime or a time-based project will pan out. Here, I remember the words of Alfred Lord Tennyson who writes:

"It's better to have tried and failed than to live life wondering what would've happened if I had tried."

If you do not have a plan at all, and are intending to start on one, why not try out this book?

Rating: 3.75 stars of 5.

conrade

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This book is provided to me free by Monarch Books and Kregel Publications without any obligation for a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.