Review of Bonhoeffer by Eric Metaxas

Most of us are familiar with the name Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Many of us have read, or have at least heard of, his books Life Together and The Cost of Discipleship. But do you really know who Dietrich Bonhoeffer is? Eric Metaxas has written Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy to show us the amazing life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Bonhoeffer lived a life in constant pursuit of God's will. He tried to always do what needed to be done when no one else would do it. When in Seminary, Bonhoeffer dared to go against the liberal theology of his professor Adolf von Harnack. He, instead, sought to teach the truths of the Bible and followed instead the theology of Karl Barth. In the 30's and 40's, Bonhoeffer had to make a different kind of stand, but for the same truths. He stood against the Nazi regime and how it wanted to distort and abuse the church. Bonoeffer helped to organize the Confessing Church when the German church allowed the Nazis to take over. He ultimately involved himself in a plot to kill Hitler believing this to be the only course of action to save his country and the countless lives that were being destroyed by Hitler and the Nazis. It is this plot that led to Bonhoeffer's arrest and execution.

Eric Metaxas has done a phenomenal job of telling the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and his struggles. While reading this, I was continually amazed at the amount of detail that Metaxas was able to put into this single volume. His work not only covers the life of Bonhoeffer, but gives detailed history of Germany during the life of Bonhoeffer. Metaxas is able to give a much larger glimpse into history. This book is nothing short of fantastic. There is only one negative thing I can say about it. It is thick. It is a big book with a lot to say. It takes a long time to read, BUT it is well worth the time invested in reading this book. I would encourage anyone to read this book. This is an amazing read for anyone who loves history ( especially World War II) or is interested in Dietrich Bonhoeffer himself. It's now out in paperback, and even though it make take you a long time read, you will not regret it.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers 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.”

Harvest

My blog's subtitle (my take on living life in the middle of corn fields) is sort of a joke about where I am currently living. I live in Illinois, most of which is corn or bean fields. I have to admit though, it is really cool to see all that happens in the fields throughout the year. I grew up in the suburbs and never really knew much about farming except that they grew stuff, so living in the middle of corn fields is actually quite fun. It is especially fun around this time of the year when they are harvesting in the fields. Last night and this morning, we watched the combines roll through the field that is yards from our apartment and harvest the corn. This isn't my first time seeing combines; I've even had a chance to ride in my wife's grandfather's combine. It's still cool, though, to see the combines roll through the fields.

Live Long and Prosper

One of my favorite shows is Star Trek. Because of that, I am sharing this with you:
Today in 1966 the first episode aired on NBC. Today, Star Trek turns 45. If you love technology, you should be thankful for Star Trek, which inspired many of today's devices. So go watch Star Trek and Live Long and Prosper.

Book Reviewing Update

As you have noticed, I blog for two different publishers. They give me books and I review them. WaterBrook Press has started to giveaway free books to those who read the reviews. Here's how it works: when you read one of my reviews and rank it, you will be entered for a chance to receive that book for free. At the bottom of each post, there is a place to enter your email and a ranking of my review. You can also go to their website and browse through reviews and rank more there.

Here are links to the books that I have reviewed:

Dug Down Deep by Joshua Harris
Radical by David Platt
Radical Together by David Platt

Digging Down Deep

Many people under estimate the importance of theology. Joshua Harris wants to curbs this problems. In Dug Down Deep he makes the case for needing to study theology. He argues that we need to be like the man in Jesus' parable and dig down deep to lay the foundation of our faith on the theological rock. He relates this through personal stories of learning how to apply Biblical theology to holy living. To explain how to live a holy life, he breaks down theology in to typical categories of God, Jesus, salvation, the Holy Spirit and sanctification. All of this is an effort to know God better, love God better and obey him better. Harris does a great job of presenting scripture in a manner that teaches about theology in way that is engaging. This is by no means a systematic theology or a very deep work, but it is a helpful. The final chapter leaves the reader with an important reminder that theology is not about gaining knowledge, knowing about God doesn't change a person. It is living out the truths found in scripture that will lead to change, this is done through humility.

Personally, I enjoyed reading this book. There are a lot of things that I have heard before, but he presented the information in a relational and engaging manner. For the most part he presented theology in a way that most people would agree. He did not try to pass of what some denominations hold as the absolute truth. Instead, he presented mainly from scripture in a manner that would not cause many to disagree. The only thing that would some would disagree with is his stance on "charismatic" gifts. He does believe in them, even though there are many Christians who do not think they are still practiced. His goal is clearly to call Christians to live a life that is founded on strong Biblical theology and for that I cannot disagree with Harris. I would recommend this to anyone wanting to know how Biblical theology can be lived out. This new edition includes discussion questions and would be great for church class or group. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and think you will too.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. 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.”

Review of J.R.R. Tolkien by Mark Horne

Most of us know of, have seen, and hopefully read The Lord of the Rings. Many are anticipating the release of the Hobbit movie next year. There are also a few who have braved the Silmarillion and enjoyed the brilliant stories written in it by Tolkien. But how many of us really know him or what kind of man he was? Mark Horne's new biography of J.R.R. Tolkien is brief, but informative. It brings you back into the world where Tolkien grew up and gives insight into what kind of man he was. He really is a fascinating figure who lived in a tumultuous time. He was born in South Africa before 1900, fought in WWI, lived through WWII, taught at Oxford and in the midst of all that spent his life creating the world that we know as Middle Earth.


Horne does a wonderful job of giving readers a glimpse into the life of J.R.R. Tolkien and helping us to understand what made Tolkien who he was and how that impacted the stories that many around the world love. While this book is not as thorough as a work like Humphrey Carpenter's biography of Tolkien, it is certainly worth the read if you are interested in the world behind the Lord of the Rings. Hopefully, by reading this someone would be more interested and dive into Tolkien's world and work since there is so much about this great writer that cannot be discussed in a 144 page book. If you enjoy Tolkien's work, I suggest that you read this book. It's a quick read and will help understand a little more about the world behind Middle Earth.


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers 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.”

Who are the Millennials?

Well, for starters I'm a millennial. So is my wife and so are all of my friends. Those of us born in the 80's and 90's are the Millennials. Most of us probably wouldn't take the time to figure out ourselves, and there really is no way to stereotype all of us. But, Thom and Jess Rainer have tried. While on vacation, my wife and I listened to the audio version of Thom and Jess Rainer's book The Millennials. It was a fantastic listen (and I'm not saying that in a self-centered it's all about me sort of way). I would recommend that you read/listen to it, too.

With almost 78 million, we are the largest generation in America. There are many of us who have graduated and are in the work force and still many left to go through college and enter the workforce. We are literally a force to be reckoned with since there are so many. There is good news, however. Most of us want to make a positive impact on the world. We care deeply about social justice and fairness. We care more about what we do with our lives than how much money we are making. If you are a leader of any type of business or even of a ministry, I would dare say you need to read this to understand the millions of us who will be applying for the job openings at your business and attending your church.

This book does a fantastic job of describing the millennials. There are a lot of us. We are wanting to make an impact on the world. We are very open to different viewpoints, while at the same time most of us are not very religious. We are highly connected to media. Most importantly, we are highly connected to people. We love our families and respect our elders. We love to communicate and build relationships. Thom and Jess (the authors of the Millennials) are very optimistic about us and think that we could make a large positive impact in the world.

Like I said, I think that you should read this book. Please don't read this post as self-serving or as a millennial simply wanting you to like his generation. Read it as a millennial asking you to take the time to understand all of us and as a millennial asking you to give his generation a chance.