New Books – July 2005

New Books – July 2005

J. Sidlow Baxter-A Heart Awake, by E. A. Johnston. Born in Australia and raised in England, Baxter (1903-1999) was dramatically impacted by his mother’s witness and by Charles Spurgeon’s printed sermons. Baxter’s preaching and teaching brought him to pastorates in Northampton, Sutherland, and Edinburgh, as well as to America and around the world. He was a renowned preacher, theologian, musician, and author, known particularly for Explore the Book, his comprehensive overview of the Bible.

Why the Ten Commandments Matter, by D. James Kennedy. An insightful examination of the value of God’s Law to mankind in all generations.

Augustine to Freud: What Theologians and Psychologists Tell Us About Human Nature (And Why It Matters), by Kenneth Boa. Psychobabble has become a part of culture’s everyday vocabulary. Statements are taken as truth without knowing where they come from or what they imply. Boa helps readers to see how psychological perspectives are in harmony with Christian theological perspectives, and where they differ. He examines what six prominent theologians (including Jonathan Edwards and Augustine) and eight renowned psychologists (including Freud and Maslow) believe and teach about human needs.

Praying Backwards: Transform Your Prayer Life by Beginning in Jesus’ Name, by Bryan Chapell. Introduces believers to the transforming process of beginning our prayers in Jesus’ name—not by moving a simple phrase, but by understanding and embracing the meaning behind the phrase, and reordering our priorities in prayer, away from ourselves and toward Jesus and his kingdom.

God in the Flesh: What Speechless Lawyers, Kneeling Soldiers, and Shocked Crowds Teach Us About Jesus, by Don Everts. In the Gospels, we don’t just have a bullet list of quotes from Jesus. We have observations of what He did, and how people responded to Him. By examining these simple phrases and casual comments, we get a startlingly fresh portrait of who Jesus was and is—God in the flesh.

Into the Reign of Awe: Mysticism in C.S. Lewis, by David C. Downing. From his novels to his nonfiction essays, C.S. Lewis’s works display a sense of the mystical. In this book, Downing explores the breadth of Lewis’s writing, introducing us into the context of Christian mysticism in Lewis’s day and the writers who most influenced him.

Her Heart Can See: The Life and Hymns of Fanny J. Crosby, by Edith L. Blumhofer. An intimate, informed look at the most prolific of all American hymn writers. Having lost her sight in infancy, Fanny went on to compose more than 9,000 hymns as well as various other songs. The author draws on primary sources to separate fact from fiction in the life of this remarkable woman.

Great Women in Christian History: 37 Women Who Changed Their World, edited by A. Kenneth Curtis and Daniel Graves. The stories of 37 notable women who have served God’s kingdom as missionaries, martyrs, educators, wives, charitable workers, mothers and instruments of justice.

Escape in Iraq: The Thomas Hamhill Story, by Thomas Hamhill and Paul T. Brown. Chronicles the extraordinary experience of the American civilian truck convoy commander delivering fuel to U.S. armed forces in Iraq. His convoy was attacked on April 9, 2004, five of his associates were killed, and he was taken prisoner by masked gunmen who held him for 24 days before he made his daring escape.

Evangelicals and Tradition: The Formative Influence of the Early Church, by D. H. Williams. A brief and accessible primer by a major evangelical historian on the indispensability of tradition and the teachings of the early church fathers for the church’s life and worship today.

True For You But Not For Me: Deflating the Slogans That Leave Christians Speechless, by Paul Copan. A ready-reference handbook for answering our culture’s latest objections to Christianity.

Godly Jealousy: A Theology of Intolerant Love, by E. Erik Thoennes. Divine jealousy plays a central role in God’s activities throughout human history, but is virtually ignored among those in the church today. The author explores God’s jealousy for His own glory and for the faithfulness of His people in the OT and the NT, and then looks at godly human jealousy as one of the primary attributes of the great leaders in the Bible. Finally, he draws moral and ethical implications for the church and its leaders today.


A Public Faith: From Constantine to the Medieval World, AD 312-600
, by Ivor G. Davidson (Baker History of the Church Vol 2). The second volume in this multivolume series covers the period which saw the official favoring of the Christian faith in the Roman Empire, the expansion of Christianity in western Europe, and the fragmentation of the political world in which the church began.

Stop Dating the Church
, by Joshua Harris. The author says we are a generation of consumers, independent and critical. We attend church, but we are not into commitment. However, he says, loving Jesus Christ involves a passionate commitment to his church—around the world and down the street, and he says it is time to fall in love with the family of God.

The Secrets God Kept
, by John Van Diest and Alton Gansky. Explains why God keeps secrets and what the NT writers meant when they wrote about God’s “mysteries”. Also looks at Jesus’ parables about the Kingdom of God.

Philosophy, Science, and the Sovereignty of God
, by Vern S. Poythress. We live in an atmosphere in which many people feel that intellectual integrity demands that one give up many elements in the biblical story. Rather than responding to “problem texts” posed by the secular culture, Poythress sets out on the positive task of uncovering some biblical foundations for science and the philosophy of science.

An Affair of the Mind: One Woman’s Courageous Battle to Salvage Her Family
from the Devastation of Pornography, by Laurie Hall (from Focus on the Family). Note: certain material may be offensive to some readers.

Every Man’s Battle: Winning the War on Sexual Temptation: One Victory at a
Time, by Stephen Arterburn and Fred Stoeker. The authors say that the challenge every man faces is the fight that every man can win.

God Is Closer Than You Think
, by John Ortberg. The author says the Bible is filled with examples of an intimate God, who promises to be with us, and says he will personally guide us. Yet somehow intimacy with God eludes us.

Tales of Persia: Missionary Stories from Islamic Iran
, by William McElwee Miller. A collection of missionary stories for younger readers, showing that the gospel has the power to change the lives of Muslims and bring them to faith in Christ.

COMMENTARIES
Galatians, by Philip Graham Ryken (Reformed Expository Commentary); Nehemiah: An Expositional Commentary, and Joshua: An Expositional Commentary, by James Montgomery Boice (Boice Commentary Series); Philippians, 2nd Edition, by Moises Silva (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the NT).

ADULT FICTION
A Thousand Tomorrows, by Karen Kingsbury; Monster, by Frank Peretti; Nightbringer, by James Byron Huggins; The Revelation, by Beverly Lewis (Abram’s Daughters #5); The Lazarus Trap, by Davis Bunn; The Virtuous Woman and The Gypsy Moon, by Gilbert Morris (House of Winslow #34 and #35); Charade, by Gilbert Morris; Moonlight on the Millpond, by Lori Wick (Tucker Mills Trilogy #1); The Warrior (Sons of Encouragement #2), by Francine Rivers.

YOUTH/CHILDREN’S BIOGRAPHY
Ten Girls Who Didn’t Give In (Perpetua, Blandina, and others), and Ten Boys Who Didn’t Give In (Polycarp, Bonhoeffer and others), by Irene Howat. Inspiring stories of martyrs.

YOUTH/CHILDREN’S FICTION
Kate and the Spies: The American Revolution, 1775, by JoAnn Grote; Betsy’s River Adventure: The Journey Westward, 1808, by Veda Boyd Jones; Maureen the Detective: The Age of Immigration, 1903, by Veda Boyd Jones; Emma’s Secret: The Cincinnati Secret, 1832, by Veda Boyd Jones; and Sarah’s New World: The Mayflower Adventure, 1620, by Colleen Reese (Sisters in Time, ages 8-12); Haunted Waters, Stolen Secrets, Missing Pieces, and Wild Rescue, by Jerry B. Jenkins and Chris Fabry (Red Rock Mysteries #1 and #4).

CHILDREN’S DVDS
George Washington (Inspiring Animated Heroes) and He Is Risen (Bible Animated Classics) from Nest Family Entertainment.

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