Today at Bible Geek Gone Wild it’s Free Fiction Friday. Enter for a chance to win the 3 volume Dinah Harris mystery series by Julie Cave. Visit Bible Geek Gone Wild for details.

Review:
In recent years the English Puritans have been making a comeback. Pastors and theological students, in America and elsewhere, have been looking to their writings for inspiration and guidance. Names like John Owen, Richard Baxter, Thomas Goodwin, Richard Sibbes, John Bunyan, Samuel Rutherford,and Matthew Henry are exceedingly well known. Their books adorn my bookshelves and the shelves of many of today’s church leaders. What’s more, their appeal bridges both the Calvinism-Arminianism and the charismatic-cessationist gaps. Preachers of all stripes benefit from the wisdom of these men of years past.

Many of the Puritans have had a long history of well-written biographies. But some of the Puritans are known today by little more than their writings. One such Puritan preacher is Jeremiah Burroughs. His name may be familiar to some–he is perhaps best known for his attempts to encourage a unity of spirit in the Puritan party between the Presbyterian-leaning majority and the Congregationalists and other non-conformists. He was a preacher extraordinaire in his time and was invited to be one of the few Congregationalists admitted to the Westminster Assembly of Divines, which gave us the well-known and widely respected Westminster Confession of Faith. But in the centuries after Jeremiah Burroughs’ ministry, no full-length biography of the man had ever been written.

That misfortune has been remedied through the efforts of Phillip L. Simpson, an avid researcher of all things Jeremiah Burroughs and webmaster of the Jeremiah Burroughs Homepage website. His recently published work, A Life of Gospel Peace: A Biography of Jeremiah Burroughs (Reformation Heritage, 2011), makes a fine contribution to the study of the English Puritans in general, even as it introduces us to the largely forgotten man, Jeremiah Burroughs.

We don’t know an awful lot about Burroughs, we don’t know when he was married and what exactly his home life was like. But everything we do know about him is pieced together admirably by Simpson. We follow Burroughs from his childhood home to his days as a college student at Cambridge, influenced by Puritanism and traveling far and wide to sit at the feet of well-known Puritan preachers such as John Cotton, John Wilson and John Rogers. Burroughs’ closest friends at that time are also well-known Puritans in their own right: Thomas Goodwin, William Bridge, and Sydrach Simpson. Burroughs was also influenced by the well-known Thomas Hooker during his time at Cambridge.

From there, Burroughs took teaching and preaching posts which eventually got him in trouble with the Anglican authorities of the day. His opportunities to preach became severely limited and he eventually took refuge in Holland. There he was involved in a Congregationalist church and had many opportunities to preach. But when the tides of religious freedom turned, and the English Civil War saw the Puritan parliament squaring off against the Anglican monarchy, Burroughs took the opportunity to return to his beloved England.

He soon was preaching at three different churches a week, and being asked to preach before parliament. And then his services were required in the Westminster Assembly. He worked tirelessly, preaching and teaching, and turning his lectures into a number of important and widely read books. Then at the age of 47, the humble and widely respected minister died.

As Simpson details the life of Jeremiah Burroughs, he adds all the fascinating details such as Burroughs’ thoughts on church government and eschatology, his run-ins with Anglican authorities and harsh critics, his escapades in Holland, and the inner workings of the Westminster Assembly. And as Simpson walks us through Burrough’s life chronologically, he pauses to discuss the sermons and books that were written by Burroughs at each step in his life. Simpson’s expertise shines through as he summarizes and excerpts Burroughs’ works, and it seems that he must have read them all.

In reading this biography, then, you also sample many of Burrough’s writings, which are often excerpted at some length. Burroughs proves to be focused on God’s glory and has a warm style that majors on God’s grace and the glories of Christ:

In all your conversation with God, have an eye to Christ; look unto God, the infinite, glorious First Being of all things, but do it through Christ, the Mediator…. Then God is rendered sweet and amiable, lovely to the soul, like a friend that the soul can be familiar with, when He is looked upon through Jesus Christ. (pg. 151)

 

God the Father is infinitely satisfied in Christ. Surely if Christ is an object sufficient for the satisfaction of the Father, much more, then, is He an object sufficient for the satisfaction of any soul. (pg. 206)

Pastors and church leaders will benefit from Burroughs’ life and example–his emphasis on prayer and the manner of his dealings with various church controversies and personal criticisms. They will also benefit the excepts shared from Burroughs’ Irenicum to the Lovers of Truth and Peace, which was my favorite section of this book. In this book, Burroughs aimed to encourage the church of his day to desist from ugly divisions and to instead work for peace. Simpson points out that Richard Baxter once said, “I entreat those that would escape the sin of schism, to read the foresaid treatises of peacemakers [including] Jeremy Burroughs’s Irenicum” (pg. 255). With my background in strict fundamentalism, I found his thoughts on this subject most pertinent, and I can’t help but share a few of these excerpts with my readers.

Many men are of such spirits as they love to be altogether busied about their brethren’s differences. Their discourses, their pens, and all their ways are about these, and that not to heal them but rather to widen them. (pg. 257)

 

We must profess truth when the truths are necessary to salvation, and when my forbearance in them may endanger the salvation of any. [Yet he criticized the] rigidness of the judgments of some… who think all differences in religion that cannot be quelled by argument must be quelled by violence. (pg. 260)

 

If I must err, considering what our condition is here in this world, I will rather err by too much gentleness and mildness than by too much rigor and severity. (pg. 261)

 

Shall every jealous, suspicious conceit, every little difference, be enough to separate us, and that almost irreconcilably? Have we the Spirit of Christ in us? Is the same mind in us that was in Jesus Christ? (pg. 261)

 

Let us account those [to be] brethren in whom we see godliness, and carry ourselves towards them accordingly, even though they will not so account us. Let us not be too ready to cut off association with our brethren. (pg. 262)

 

Oh, that God would set the beauty and glory of peace, friendship, and love before us! That this precious pearl, union, might be highly valued by us! Let us all study peace, seek peace, follow peace, pursue peace, and the God of peace be with us. (pg. 263)

Simpson reflects on Burroughs’ death and legacy as follows:

Burroughs once said that peace was dearer to him than his own life. Time has shown that, though he did not live long, his cry for peace among brothers in Christ continues to resonate to this day. What could be more needful in this age than to adopt his attitude of graciously submitting to whatever circumstance our heavenly Father brings us? (pg. 295)

Surely such a man is worth getting to know. And you will find no better book to become acquainted with Jeremiah Burroughs than Phillip Simpson’s excellent biography. I highly recommend it.

Author Info:
Phillip L. Simpson and his wife, Sara, live in Huntington, WV, along with their two children, Zack and Molly. Phillip developed and maintains the Jeremiah Burroughs Homepage website, a site dedicated to collecting resources by and about Jeremiah Burroughs. He is a lay teacher and member of Crew Church in Huntington. Simpson graduated from Marshall University and Eastern Kentucky University, and is employed as an occupational therapist, helping people with dizziness and balance disorders. He also serves on the West Virginia Board of Occupational Therapy.

Where to Buy:
  • Westminster Bookstore
  • CBD
  • Amazon
  • Barnes & Noble
  • Reformation Heritage Books

Related Media:
  • Author interview about this book
  • Author’s website

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by Reformation Heritage Books for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

This week as many around the world celebrate the birth of the father of evolution, Charles Darwin, many evangelical Christians pose the question “did you know Darwin had a dark side?” Of course his theory of evolution is polar opposite from the Christian belief in creation, but besides that Darwin himself had a very dark past that included mental illness, a passion for killing animals, racism, eugenics, and a negative view of women.

The author of The Dark Side of Charles Darwin (Master Books, 2011), Dr. Jerry Bergman will share with the Homeschool Channel audience about Darwin, his dark side, and truth of creation.

About the Book:
A single man stands behind the greatest deception in history. Charles Darwin?s ideas still penetrate every aspect of our culture, including science, religion, and education. And while much has been made of his contribution to the evolutionary hypothesis, little has been publicized about the dark side of the man himself and how this may have impacted the quality and legitimacy of his research.

This daring and compelling book takes its readers behind the popular fa?ade of a man revered worldwide as a scientific pioneer, and unveils what kind of person Darwin really was. The book reveals disturbing facts that will help you:

• Perceive Darwin firsthand through the eyes of family and friends, and his own correspondence
• Discern this darkly troubled man, struggling with physical and mental health issues
• Uncover his views on eugenics and racism, and his belief that women were less evolved than men

Thoroughly documented, this book reveals Darwin?s less-than-above board methods of attempting to prove his so-called scientific beliefs, and his plot to ?murder God? by challenging the then-dominant biblical worldview.

About the Author:
Dr. Jerry Bergman has taught biology, genetics, chemistry, biochemistry, anthropology, geology, and microbiology at the college level for over 30 years. He has 9 degrees, including 7 graduate degrees, and has authored over 800 publications.

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Book Details:

Recommendation:
Review Date:  2/8/2012 by Shaun Tabatt
Rating:  Highly Recommended

Review:

I’ve heard it said that you can’t keep a good girl down and that seems to be the case with Dinah Harris. She is at it again in Pieces of Light, book three in the Dinah Harris Mystery series published by Master Books. When we last saw Dinah at the close of The Shadowed Mind, she had just wrapped up a case with detective Samson Cage, where they worked together to bring down a serial killer, who was intent on single-handedly bringing his own brand of neo-eugenic justice to bear on those he considered undesirable in the lower rungs of Washington D.C.’s societal ladder. As luck or fate would have it, the work of an expert profiler is never quite done and it is time to move on to a new case.

Since the time her career came to an abrupt halt at the bureau, Dinah has been working as a consultant, offering her profiling skills for hire. Her next client is none other than Ferguson, her long-time friend and former partner from the FBI. Ferguson has recently been promoted to the position of Assistant Special Agent in Charge for domestic terrorism. This new position gives him the leverage to bring in an outside consultant to assist with an investigation. When the Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church falls victim to a bombing during evening mass, Ferguson hires Dinah to help him and Special Agent Sinclair track down the person or persons responsible for this heinous crime. As one bombing turns into two and then three, it becomes clear that it will take the very best of Ferguson, Sinclair, and Dinah’s sleuthing to apprehend those responsible.

At first glance, you may think that Pieces of Light is just another suspenseful mystery novel. While I acknowledge that it most certainly is that, it is also much more. As you work your way through the book, you will be exposed to several seemingly disparate story-lines that run parallel for a time, but as expected come together at the end of the book, brining the story to a riveting conclusion. It is no secret that Julie Cave is not afraid to expose the ills of modern society as evidenced by the difficult topics she took on in Deadly Disclosures and The Shadowed Mind. Pieces of Light is no exception. As we get to know the various characters in the story, we encounter spousal and child abuse and see some of the long-term ramifications for those affected by it. One of these victims finds release through self-mutilation and consoles herself through cutting.

If you are familiar with the earlier books in the series, it is not a huge surprise when Senator David Winters surfaces again in this story. Ever since their first encounter in Deadly Disclosures, Senator Winters has considered Dinah a personal enemy. He is up to his old tricks again, always ready to back whatever cause will pad his back accounts the most. Senator Winters could have benefited from a dose of reality from the book of Proverbs. His personal character continues to be tarnished by the corrupt circles he runs in and the wicked games he plays. In Pieces of Light, his former sins may come back to haunt him when justice comes about from an unexpected source.

Another exciting element in the novel is that readers are able to continue following Dinah’s own journey of faith. Over the course of the first two novels, we watched Dinah’s life unravel in the midst of debilitating grief and rampant alcoholism. Her life turns an important corner, when she accepts Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. It is only by His saving grace that she is able to pursue sobriety and find healing from the pain she felt from the loss of her husband and son. In Pieces of Light, Dinah is pursing a life of deeper faith. We see her regularly spending time in prayer and Bible reading and come to understand how precious it is to her. She also regularly attends church and is part of a weekly women’s Bible study. When Dinah unexpectedly encounters a new love interest, she must come to terms with what that means in light of her memories of her late husband and son. More importantly, she must make a decision about whether or not she will choose to yoke herself to a non-Christian and set relational boundaries and standards as prescribed by God’s word.

I trust readers will develop a soft place in their heart for the Dinah Harris character as I have over the course of reading all three novels in the Dinah Harris mystery series. Many thanks to Julie Cave for her continued willingness to delve into difficult subject matter in her novels. Just in case you have not realized it yet, I will let you in on a little secret. The main character in her books is not Dinah Harris, it is Jesus Christ. In Pieces of Light as well as her two previous novels, Julie continuously weaves a message of hope, proclaiming the power of Jesus’ sacrifice and His desire to redeem every life from even the darkest of sins and the most hopeless of circumstances. With two very clear gospel presentations in the book, this message resounds loud and clear.

I sincerely recommend Pieces of Light and the other novels in the Dinah Harris mystery series. Each of theses novels reads fine on its own, but readers will get even more out of the stories if they read them in chronological order. If you are already a Christian, you will be both challenged and edified by what you find in these pages. If you are a non-Christian, I trust you will see the message of the gospel that Julie has woven into the story. Let me close by taking a moment to express my heartfelt thanks to Julie Cave for writing these great books and Master Books for publishing them. Now that Julie is a blessed mother of two little ones, I know her free time for writing is probably a bit more limited these days, but I hope this isn’t the last we’ve seen of Dinah Harris.

Author Information:
Julie Cave credits her parents for introducing her to books at a young age, which fostered an enduring passion for reading and writing. As a child, her favorite authors were Enid Blyton and C.S. Lewis and it wasn’t long before she began copying them, writing short stories for anyone who would read them. At fifteen, two things happened which would shape her future: she heard a creation science speaker at her church which cemented her faith in God; and she finished her second novel-length story and realized she had fallen in love with writing novels. After school, she completed a health science degree, got married, and worked in banking and finance. All the while she wondered how she could combine her love of writing and her strong passion for Christian apologetics and evangelism. One weekend at a church camp, a friend asked, ‘What if the guy in charge of the Smithsonian Institution went missing?’ The result – and the answer to that question – is Julie’s maiden published novel, Deadly Disclosures. Since then, Julie has written and released the other two books in this trilogy, The Shadowed Mind and Pieces of Light. Julie has two daughters and lives in Brisbane, Australia with her family. She divides her time between being a wife, a mother and an author.

Where to buy:

• Amazon: Print, E-book
• Apple: E-book
• Barnes & Noble: Print  , E-book

Related Media:

• Julie Cave Web Site – www.juliecave.com
• Julie Cave on Facebook – www.facebook.com/julieacave
• Julie Cave on Twitter – www.twitter.com/julieacave
• Book Trailer

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by Master Books for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

Book Details:

Recommendation:
Review Date:  2/5/2012 by Shaun Tabatt
Rating:  Recommended

Review:

After more than fourteen years of marriage, I am keenly aware of how little I knew about relationships and communication on the day my beautiful bride and I walked down the aisle. Nearly a decade and a half later, we are entering the latter part of our thirties. One of the harsh realities that has come to pass during the past few years is that the marriages of several friends and acquaintances have ended in divorce. We grieve for these losses and broken relationships, but we strive not to judge too harshly for it is but by God’s grace and a series of key people and books that we have been fortunate enough to celebrate fourteen wedding anniversaries and counting.

Enough about me, let’s talk about you. If you were to rate your marriage on a scale of one to ten, where would it fall? A nine, four, negative 3? How would your spouse rate your marriage? Chances are it would not be exactly the same. If we decided to dig a little deeper and have both you and your spouse make a list of the top three factors that contribute to your ratings, we would most likely expose some “growth areas” for your marriage. If we are willing to be honest with ourselves, the reality is that whether our marriage feels like a ten or a negative 3, there is always room to grow and improve our relationship with our spouse. That is precisely what Gary and Norma Smalley intend to help you do in their book 4 Days to a Forever Marriage.

In recent years, it seems that of the writing of marriage books there is no end. With such a wide variety of choices in front of you, it can be difficult to decide where to start. In my opinion, not all marriage books are created equal. It is important to understand who the author is and what he or she is about in order to know whether or not a particular book is right for you. Gary and Norma Smalley are credible authors for a book on marriage. They have been married for forty seven years and have counseled thousands of couples at the Smalley Relationship Center. Whether in their own marriage or in the marriages of those they have counseled, it would be fair to say that they have pretty much seen it all.

4 Days to a Forever Marriage is a tool designed to encourage couples to spend four days working to transform their marriage relationship. The basic concept the book builds upon is that as we interact with our spouse, we can choose to respond in either love or anger. Using that simple choice as the foundation, the book introduces a new relational concept in each chapter. The relational concepts are:

• Day 1: Loving Words and Actions
• Day 2: Communication and Resolving Anger
• Day 3: Affection and Intimacy
• Day 4: Trials and Treasures

The book draws heavily on Gary and Norma’s relationship as it has been refined over the course of forty seven years. They share each of their perspectives on a given situation, which I found immensely helpful for a better understanding of how my wife would feel or respond in a similar situation. There are numerous scripture references in each chapter. I would strongly encourage readers to keep a Bible handy as they work through the book in order to maximize their reading experience. At the close of each chapter, there is a “For the Husband” and “For the Wife” section where readers are asked to summarize the principles they have learned in the chapter. Not only will this be valuable for helping each of you to thoroughly learn the concepts introduced in the book, it also presents an opportunity to have an honest discussion with your spouse about how these principles can be applied to your marriage relationship. Once you are finished with the readings for all four days, be sure to make use of the additional reading at the end of the book. I highly recommend the section addressing the different seasons of marriage: engaged couples, newly married couples, married with children, and empty nesters / remarriage. It will also be worthwhile to review a few tidbits they have included from a few of Gary’s other books. My favorites were The Smalley “Fighting Rules,” A Dozen Ways to Engage Your Spouse, and Romance on a Shredded Shoestring Budget.

Let me bring this review to a close with a bit of self-disclosure. In my reading diet, I tend to be a biblical and theological studies non-fiction reader, so I normally shy away from “marriage” and “relationship” books. I was a bit apprehensive as I began working through 4 Days to a Forever Marriage, but I soon realized that this book was different. Throughout the book, readers will encounter pictures of Gary, Norma, and their extended family. Each chapter is filled with personal commentary from both Gary and Norma making it very personable and accessible. It was almost like the Smalleys were sitting on a couch across from me having a discussion.

Now that I have gone through the book once for my review, I plan on going through it a second time with my wife as I know there is a lot our marriage will benefit from in this great little book. One suggestion for using this book is to work through it with your spouse like I am doing. A few other situations where this book would be of good use is a small group study, marriage retreat, and pastoral / Christian counseling. Let me close by expressing my heartfelt thanks to Gary and Norma Smalley for penning this fine little book. I pray that it would bear much fruit in Christian marriages for years to come.

Where to buy:

E-book editions of 4 Days to a Forever Marriage are on sale for $2.99 through Valentine’s Day!

• Amazon: Print, E-book
• Apple:  E-book
• Barnes & Noble:  Print, E-book

Related Media:

• Facebook:  Facebook.com/aforevermarriage
• Twitter: Twitter.com/forevermarriage
• Book Trailer:

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by New Leaf Publishing Group for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

Book Details:

Recommendation:
Review Date:  1/23/2012 by Shaun Tabatt
Rating:  Highly Recommended

Review:
The Gospel Story Bible is the latest addition to the Gospel Story for Kids series by Marty Machowski. Filled with 156 stories spanning from Genesis to Revelation, The Gospel Story Bible strives to bring the Bible to life in a manner that is thoroughly engaging, seeking to develop within our children a deep love for God’s word. It is worth noting that The Gospel Story Bible aligns with the Scripture passages found in the Gospel Story children’s ministry curriculum, allowing parents to reinforce at home, what their children are learning in the classroom each Sunday.

Each story is two pages in length, featuring a Bible story reading,  a great illustration from A. E. Macha, and three discussion questions in the “Let’s Talk About It!” section. My family and I have been working through The Gospel Story Bible during mealtime with our children ranging in age from two years all the way up age thirteen. Every time we read a story, each of the children make sure they each get to look the illustration over carefully and from the youngest to oldest, they all participate in the discussion questions. We have been quite pleased with the level of theological discussion that comes about each and every time we bring out The Gospel Story Bible. In my opinion, it is one of the best children’s story Bibles we have in our home.  I recommend it very highly as a way to get Bible stories into your children, helping them to understand how the thread of the gospel is woven through God’s all the way from Genesis to Revelation.

Where to buy:

• Amazon
• New Growth Press
• WTS Books

Related Media:

• Marty Machowski on Facebook
• The Gospel Story Bible Preview – Old Testament
• The Gospel Story Bible Preview – New Testament

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by New Growth Press for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

Review:
What would it be like to live in the years immediately following the Reformation? How joyful would the discovery of Gospel truth be? Yet, how terrible would it feel to know people close to you, who are suffering for their faith? The turbulent period which followed the Reformation is captured well in a new book by Simonetta Carr.

In Weight of a Flame: The Passion of Olympia Morata (part of the Chosen Daughters series from P & R Publishing), Carr tells the story of a Reformation-era heroine still remembered to this day. Olympia Morata was an Italian tutor and scholar, who embraced the teachings of Martin Luther and John Calvin with as much fervor as her professor father. She was fluent in Latin and Greek by the time she was 12, and at 13, she was summoned to the court of the Duke of Ferrara to tutor his eldest daughter, Anna D’Este. Morata developed into a scholar in her own right, lecturing on Cicero and studying philosophy. And she was known for her poetry, having written her own metrical adaptations of the Psalms.

This obscure historical figure is brought to life through the imagination and pen of author Simonetta Carr. Carr weaves us in and out of the tale of Morata’s short life. We share her wonderment at going to court, and learn with her of the terrible plight of French refugees fleeing religious persecution. Morata’s relationship with her father and her family is developed and a romance eventually unfolds.

But the story of Olympia Morata has its dark turns. She encounters suffering martyrs and survives a bout with the black plague. At one point her town is besieged and then sacked, and she and her family run for their lives. And at the young age of 28, she dies.

The author doesn’t leave us with the bare facts of the case. She infuses the story with Gospel hope. The characters rehearse Scriptural promises to each other and find encouragement in the Gospel. And through this fictional account we can imagine what it really would be like to be there in Olympia’s and her husband’s shoes living through these difficult times.

Stories like these can help build the faith of our children. This book, directed primarily to girls, will both educate and inspire them. And the story is written well enough to captivate both children and their parents. As the father of five daughters, I can’t wait to place Weight of a Flame in their hands. I can’t thank the author enough for uncovering another Christian heroine for my daughters to look up to and to emulate. May the hope-filled life of Olympia Morata inspire many chosen daughters to trust the Gospel and risk their lives for the cause of Christ.

Author Info:
Simonetta Carr, mother of eight and homeschool educator for twenty years, has worked as a freelance journalist and a translator of Christian works into Italian. She is the author of the Christian Biographies for Young Readers series.

Where to Buy:
  • Westminster Bookstore
  • CBD
  • Amazon
  • Barnes & Noble
  • P & R Publishing

Related Media:
  • Book preview
  • Author interview about this book
  • Author’s website
  • Author’s blog

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by P & R Publishing for review. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.