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4.54 AVERAGE
4.54 AVERAGE
"The greatest enemy of our faith today is not communism, Buddhism, Hinduism, atheism, or even Islam. Our greatest enemy is lostness."
This book. Wow. So much heartbreak and joy and weakness laughter and tears and especially a lot of singing. I can't truly capture everything it meant to me, so I'll just say this:
This book is real life in all of its raw brokenness and pain, but with the hope and joy of Jesus. You should read it.
This book. Wow. So much heartbreak and joy and weakness laughter and tears and especially a lot of singing. I can't truly capture everything it meant to me, so I'll just say this:
This book is real life in all of its raw brokenness and pain, but with the hope and joy of Jesus. You should read it.
I have never cried so many times in one book. God is so good
This book gave new insights into the nature of God and the global church facing hard, fiery trials. I appreciated the honesty n admittance of wrestling and questions, yet story after story of God's presence in this world.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Simply put, this book convicted me again and again, and it has given me a new perspective about persecution.
If you're a Christian, read this book!
If you're a Christian, read this book!
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Awesome collection of God's modern-day miracles and works in the world. Well worth the time to read, you won't want to put it down. (It's a bit slow for the first 100 pages, but get through that and you'll be captivated).
Careful, though - it may just change your life.
Careful, though - it may just change your life.
I began reading this book over Christmas break at my brother-in-law's suggestion. We were discussing the almost total disregard for super-natural events in main-stream philosophy in spite of their ever-growing documentation. He referred to this book as a recent account of how God is working among people in non-Western parts of the world. Christians in North America, if I can serve as an example, tend to think we have perfected the faith and that we can universalize our experiences (or relative lack thereof). But Nik Ripken's book challenges this claim.
Before beginning, I opened the book to page 266-267 and read the following:
You can read the rest.
In The Insanity of God, Nik documents his trip to a number of countries where Christians were or are currently suffering persecution. He shows that Jesus has not forgotten his followers; on the contrary, in an overwhelming number of cases, he has proved himself to be near them through their trials.
The first half of the book largely deals with Nik's personal life and troubling experiences in anarchic Somalia. The second half details his in trips to interview persecuted Christians. When talking to a Ukrainian believer, he asks why the amazing stories are not recorded for future generations. The Pastor said, "All of our stories are in the Bible. God has already written them down. Why would we bother writing books to tell our stories when God has already told His story" (179).
I've rated the book 4/5 stars largely because I wanted more.
Before beginning, I opened the book to page 266-267 and read the following:
"'Five years ago,' he [Pramana] told me, 'my life was in ruins. My wife and I were always fighting; I was ready to divorce the woman. My children were disrespectful. My animals were not growing or multiplying. My crops were dying the fields.
'So I went to the imam of the nearest mosque for help,' Pramana continued.
The imam, who also functioned as the local spiritualist, told him, 'Okay, son, here is what you need to do. Go buy a white chicken. Bring it to me and I will sacrifice it on your behalf. Then, go back to your village to meditate and fast for three days and three nights. On the third day, you will receive the answer to all the problems that you are having with your wife, your children, your animals, and your crops.'
Pramana did exactly as he was told. He went back to his village. He meditated, he fasted, and he waited. Then, as he explained it: 'I'll never forget, on that third night, a voice without a body came to me after midnight. That voice said, 'Find Jesus, find the gospel.''
This Muslim man had no clue what that even meant. He didn't know if Jesus might be a fruit or a rock or a tree . . ." (266-267).
You can read the rest.
In The Insanity of God, Nik documents his trip to a number of countries where Christians were or are currently suffering persecution. He shows that Jesus has not forgotten his followers; on the contrary, in an overwhelming number of cases, he has proved himself to be near them through their trials.
The first half of the book largely deals with Nik's personal life and troubling experiences in anarchic Somalia. The second half details his in trips to interview persecuted Christians. When talking to a Ukrainian believer, he asks why the amazing stories are not recorded for future generations. The Pastor said, "All of our stories are in the Bible. God has already written them down. Why would we bother writing books to tell our stories when God has already told His story" (179).
I've rated the book 4/5 stars largely because I wanted more.
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
I’ve read this book several times .. keep buying myself a copy, giving it away because I think everyone should read it, and then buying
myself another copy because it’s just too good not to own!
myself another copy because it’s just too good not to own!
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced