Book Review – The Greener Grass Conspiracy

Every now and then, I’ll come across a book that hits me right where I need to be hit.  Such is Stephen Altrogge’s new book, The Greener Grass Conspiracy which, as can be deduced from the title, is about contentment.

Altrogge points out virtually everyone’s complicity in this conspiracy of thinking that “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.”  While he doesn’t necessarily present anything new and earth shattering, the down-to-earth perspective and humor he uses shone the light on my discontentment.   In one chapter, Altrogge points out the lies we believe in that fuel our discontentment, lies such as “God is withholding from me” or “God owes me” or “If I get it, I’ll be happy.”

Instead of constantly berating his readers for not having perfect contentment, he points the way to Godly contentment by showcasing the glories of the gospel.  He encourages the reader to focus on the blessings we have been given (such as life, health and/or food), but even with this his emphasis is to continually point to the cross.  That is not to say that Altrogge encourages a Pollyanna-ish attitude of just being glad no matter what our circumstances.  In Chapter 11, he specifically addresses those who are going through “the furnace of suffering.”  In this chapter, he says “I don’t want to give you pat, trite answers.  I don’t want to tell you just to trust in God and everything will be okay…I want to connect you to the only person who can carry you through and give you contentment in the midst of suffering.  I want to connect you to Jesus.” (pp.119-120)

Although it’s a relatively short book, this book to me is one that I need to read again, not only to be reminded of my lack of contentment in Christ but also to encourage me to do something about it.  The Greener Grass Conspiracy is a huge help in prying off the tinfoil hats of discontentment.

Many thanks to Crossway for providing a review copy of this book.   (5/5 stars)

Book Review – A Carpenter’s View of the Bible

You can’t read the Bible without seeing clear references to carpentry and building.  Jesus, who was most likely a carpenter during his earthly life, is said to be building his church.  We as believers are “living stones.”  We are given very specific details of the construction of both the wilderness tabernacle and Solomon’s temple.  To appreciate the construction narrative, it often takes someone who is well versed in building and design.  Charlie March provides such a perspective in his new book, A Carpenter’s View of the Bible.

In this book, March takes us on a somewhat chronological journey through Scripture, highlighting various passages and stories that speak of constructions of different kinds.  These include the Genesis account of creation, Noah’s ark, the Tower of Babel, Jericho, and the Tabernacle.  He also talks about the New Testament church and the “City of Heaven” still “under construction.”  In each, he makes a Biblical application of key construction points, such as pointing out God’s tent/tabernacle can be seen as a “tent of refuge from the storms life throws at us, the place where we may meet God and find a balm that soothes the painful things that always seem to plague us.” (p.93)

In several chapters, he covers some archeological information uncovered that sheds light on the Biblical narrative.  Most interesting to me was the chapter on the Jericho walls.  He spends some time on the issue of accurately dating the Jericho archeological site as well as describing the city’s setup and how the walls played a key part in its defenses.

Although the book is interesting, it is not light reading.  Often the writing style is disjointed and March wanders down unrelated rabbit trails that don’t seem to fit.  He also tries to make an attempt at light-heartedness with remarks that only succeed in coming across as flippant.  However, although the material is scholarly in nature, March does his best to make it accessible for the average reader.

Overall, A Carpenter’s View of the Bible is a fascinating book uncovering details about the archeological aspects of Scripture and how many of those aspects apply to the Christian life.

Thank you to Pleasant Word/WinePress Publishing for providing a review copy of this book.(4/5 stars)

The Wealth of Nations – FINISHED!

Events in the year 1776 were to be ones that changed the political face of the world for the rest of history. The fledgling United States of America was embroiled in its fight for independence from the British Empire, what was perhaps at that time the greatest power in the world. In July, the Declaration of Independence, authored principally by Thomas Jefferson was adopted by the United States, officially announcing its independence from the British Empire.

There was another document published that year, albeit one that was not quite as important and monumental as the Declaration of Independence. On March 9, 1776 Adam Smith published what was to become one of the greatest works in the field of economics and would help to change both the political and economic understanding of nations from that time on. The Wealth of Nations is “widely considered to be the first modern work in the field of economics…and the first comprehensive defense of free market policies.” (Wikipedia)

I am very pleased to announce that I have finally finished recording an unabridged audio version of Adam Smith’s seminal work.  This is perhaps one of the longest personal projects I’ve ever undertaken and I’m very glad to have it finally completed.  As far as I can tell, this is the only unabridged, human-read FREE version of this book you’ll find anywhere.

I started the project over 3 years ago, in January 2008.  To put that into perspective, Sarah was 7 months pregnant with Ben when I began this recording.  I used three different microphones (in increasing levels of quality) to record more than 370,000 words.  Total finished recording time is just over 36 hours.  Taking an average time on recording, proofing and editing at about 3 minutes for every 1 minute of finished recording comes out to about 108 hours total of time spent recording the book.

In between recording the five books that make up The Wealth of Nations, I made some other recordings, including John Bunyan’s autobiography Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners and John Owen’s excellent book, The Mortification of Sin, both of which can also be downloaded for free.  What’s next?  Well, definitely something smaller, that’s for sure.  I’m considering working on C.H. Spurgeon’s Lectures To My Students, but haven’t quite decided yet.

If you enjoy audio books and would like to listen to what is continually listed in the top 100 books of all time, follow this link to download the free, unabridged audiobook of The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith. I hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed reading.

Almost Paradise

Last Saturday, I took Jeremiah, Natalie and Ben with me to the store to get a few various and sundry food items that Sarah needed. (Yes, I know saying “various” and “sundry” is redundant, but you have to admit, it’s fun to say together.) Usually, such a venture is a crapshoot – you never know what’s going to happen, how they’ll behave and whether or not I’ll end up getting the urge to buy a roll of duct tape. Sometimes, it’s an ordeal just getting them to cooperate by riding in the cart. And believe me, I would MUCH rather have them ride in the cart. That way, I know where they are and know where their hands are (“please keep arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times.”)

But on Saturday’s excursion, they each did wonderfully. There was no arguing as to who got to ride where, why couldn’t they walk instead and generally refrained from adding things to our cart that didn’t need to be there. Jeremiah, in particular, however offered up some rather funny moments. This should be no surprise since this is also the child whose style of worship leading covers quite the range of music. On the subject of putting things in the cart, Jeremiah quipped “Do you know why we don’t put things in our cart? Because it’s not on our list.” He definitely gets that from his mother.

After getting all of the food items on our list, we went to get some toothpaste. Since the toothpaste is right beside the toy section, we couldn’t possibly NOT go down the toy aisles. Especially since the munchkins had done such a great job in the store. I lifted them out of the cart and they made their way down each aisle, checking out the various and sundry toys [see? You had fun reading that, didn’t you?]. We checked out the pink aisle with all the girlie stuff and the more colorful aisle with the Legos, building block and other learning toys. But then, we rounded the last corner and Jeremiah must have heard angels singing and a bright light shining a path for him. He stopped, stretched out his arms and exclaimed with a sigh, “Ah! The toys with all the buttons!” And that’s exactly what they did – pushed buttons to their hearts’ content.

I told Jeremiah that I felt the same way when I go into a bookstore. He just looked at me like I was nuts.

Music Monday – Christ is Risen

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. (Romans 6:5-11)

Book Review – God Gave Us the World

Little Cub is amazed that there are other bears in the world that very different from her and even more amazed that they all don’t live in the snow! Why is that? “Why not make us all the same?” she asks Mama Bear. Why make polar bears different from panda bears and sloth bears and brown bears? Mama’s Bear simple answer is “God created our world and everything in it, because it’s in his nature to create.” This helps us to worship and praise our God, she says.

Lisa Tawn Bergren, in this new book of the “God Gave Us” series, explores the wonderful diversity seen in God’s creation. The illustrations by Laura J. Bryant are beautifully done, showing the wonder of the little bear’s discoveries at the “Bears Around the World” museum. I can see my own children asking the very questions Little Cub asks about why other bears eat different food or live in different place. This book is great for helping children learn that it’s a GOOD thing that we are all different.

Perhaps the only drawback is the seemingly forced segue into caring for the world God gave us. The book goes from showcasing diversity to caring for the world because “We don’t want to make God mad or sad.” While the message is certainly true that we should take care of the world, the inclusion in the book just felt a little forced.

It helps as you read this book to add some of your own commentary to the narrative since most of the book is dialog between Mama Bear and Little Cub and doesn’t necessarily describe what is going on the pictures. I read it to a group of about 8 toddlers (all ages 2 and 3) and they were able to follow the storyline quite well. Overall, God Gave Us the World is beautifully illustrated and written.

Thanks to WaterBrook Multnomah for providing a review copy of this book. (4/5 stars)