Book Review: Joyce Meyer, Do It Afraid

There is something very special about Joyce Meyer. Her plain spoken approach lays out for us a simple yet profound truth. In Do It Afraid, we see her attacking an old enemy for us all, fear. Through personal stories as well as a testimonial from various contributors on each chapter, and of course solid biblical teaching, Mrs. Meyer teaches how faith overcomes fear. She approaches a wide variety of things which cause people fear and trepidation and tells us how to overcome it. She divides the book into three sections, Understanding Fear, Confronting Fear and Mindsets for Walking in Freedom from Fear. While asserting (correctly in this writer’s opinion) that fear can and should be overcome, she also acknowledges that fear is often present in our lives and that if we wait til we have not fear, we will not accomplish anything, instead we need to step out in faith and do it afraid. If fear of anything is holding you back, or has ever held you back, I highly recommend this book.

Book Review: Just Jones by Andy Andrews

Andy Andrews is the author of some of my favorite books, including the masterpiece, The Traveler’s Gift, which ranks right up there with the works of Tolkien and Lewis in my heart. His non-fiction books are wonderful, but there is just something about the way this guy writes fiction. Reading a new fiction book by Andy is like a visit from an old friend, and this time he brought along one of my favorite friends, Jones. Not Mr. Jones, just Jones. From the time he introduced us to this man who changed his life, Andy Andrews shows us this amazing man and his superpower, being a noticer, i.e. someone who notices the truth of our lives and helps us to see it. The truths shared in these amazing works of fiction will change your real life. I believe that this book could stand on its own, but if you want my recommendation, start with The Noticer, then read The Noticer Returns and follow it with Just Jones. You won’t be sorry. These are the kind of feel good encouraging stories that are so needed today. Read it and share it with a friend.

Draw Me Closer Sketchbook Devotional

I created a new sketch book resource and this is a sketchbook with a difference. It’s not just designed to get you drawing, but to draw you closer to the Lord. The idea is simple. How often have you gone into reading the Bible and found yourself getting distracted to the point where you don’t remember what you just read? The Word of God is too important for that. We need to slow down, dig in and apply it to our lives. So, what if we added some action to our reading? What if we read a passage, worked through the text and then used what we learned to create something to help us remember and apply it to our lives? That is the idea behind this book. You can see a sample here.

Book Review: Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath

This book is amazing. It’s all about making your message stick. Using a combination of simplicity, making unexpected points, making concrete points, and being credible, making people care (emotional) and connecting with people using stories or as they break it down SUCCESs. True to their formula the Heath brothers use a wonderful array of stories that illustrate their points perfectly. I am a pastor, so helping people to connect with messages is crucial and I have no doubt I will reference this business book often. If you have a message you want to share, or if you really need to share it, be sure to check out this book.