What is it like being in the belly of a whale? Well, it’s downright scary, according to a description of the book.   When You Find Yourself in the Belly of a Whale, by Beth C. Whittington. Published in May 2008 by Xulon Press. What is it like being in the belly of a whale? Well, it’s downright scary, according to a description of the book that’s on www.xulonpress.com. And the surroundings are rather depressing. However, it is quiet. You have time to think – and pray. Singing sounds really good, much like being in the shower. You begin to explore the possibility of climbing out and taming the very thing that has consumed you. Beth Cantrell Whittington, a member at Calvary Baptist Alexandria, used humor, honesty, a battle with cancer, criminal justice career experiences, and down-to-earth devotional thoughts when she wrote When You Find Yourself .... Her point was to get readers to focus on the big picture – looking at the surprising blows and storms of life through God’s eyes. Jesus was never diagnosed with a life-threatening disease. He was never laid off because his company was downsizing. He never had family problems or experienced a mid-life crisis. But he was falsely accused, mocked, spat upon, beaten, and … [Read more...]

Because a journey can be much more than just miles. The Wayfaring Stranger is a historical love story detailing the intertwining of the lives of two teenagers The Wayfaring Stranger: A Journey to Louisiana, by Curt Iles. Published in November 2007 by Creekbank Stories, sixth self-published book by Iles, who has sold more than 15,000 copies total to date. Because a journey can be much more than just miles. The Wayfaring Stranger is a historical love story detailing the intertwining of the lives of two teenagers, Joseph Moore and Eliza Clark. Set in the mid-nineteenth century, the story begins with Joseph escaping from Ireland as a stowaway on a ship. At this same time, Eliza lives in the piney woods of western Louisiana in an area called No Man s Land. In alternating chapters, we learn about Eliza s life among her mysterious and isolated clan called Ten Milers as well as follow Joseph s winding journey through New Orleans and eventually into No Man s Land. Joseph is drawn toward this area because of the opportunities for freedom and land ownership things unavailable to him in Ireland. The Wayfaring Stranger chronicles Joseph s journey from being bitter to becoming better. Joseph and Eliza s lives bisect at a crucial time in … [Read more...]

Anne and John “Shady” Hurst traveled usually on military transport when they visited Israel, Morocco and Europe. He was career military; travel was a perk.   Sap from the Olive Root: A Long Journey from Israel to America by A.S. Hurst. Published in 2006 by Wise Printing, Sulphur, La.  Anne and John “Shady” Hurst traveled usually on military transport when they visited Israel, Morocco and Europe. He was career military; travel was a perk. Active in their church – whether it was First Baptist Kentwood or churches they helped start or strengthen in Europe and Asia – they traveled to learn about the Jewish people. Sap from the Olive Root is Anne Hurst’s retelling the stories of their travels. From “Shabbat in Jerusalem” to “Discovering Santa in Turkey,” the Hursts toured the places Jews lived and found spiritual encouragement as they walked where Jesus had walked, talked and healed. Then their search to know more about the Jews expanded to Europe – Spain, Prague, Berlin, Poland, Austria and into the British Isles. Excerpt from a visit to the Smyrna church, which inexplicably had been opened for the Hursts apparently by the angel who often helped on their travels – My eyes were glued to a picture of Mary, one that I … [Read more...]

“You can greatly improve your preaching by sharpening your storytelling skills,” says Author Austin B. Tucker. The Preacher as Storyteller takes a skills-development approach to homiletics.   The Preacher as Storyteller: the power of narrative in the pulpit, by Austin B. Tucker. Published in 2008 by B&H Publishing Group, Nashville. “You can greatly improve your preaching by sharpening your storytelling skills,” says Author Austin B. Tucker. The Preacher as Storyteller takes a skills-development approach to homiletics. “... [T]his master rhetorician compellingly demonstrates how a prepared preacher may successfully employ storytelling in order to proclaim the gospel with both biblical fidelity and heartfelt humanity,” wrote Malcolm Yarnell III Ph.D., of SWBTS for the book’s back cover. Excerpt: Long-range planning is essential for children’s sermons as well as for the pastor’s entire pulpit plan. (p. 107) Available at  your LifeWay Christian store and online.   … [Read more...]

Best Advice starts off with a fascinating description of life in Southern Louisiana and, in succeeding chapters, bloviates on a compilation of topics.   The Best Advice I Never Got: Rants and Observations of a Believing Lawyer, by H. Kent Aguillard. Published in 2008 by Pleasant Word, a division of WinePress Publishing, Enumclaw, Wash. Best Advice starts off with a fascinating description of life in Southern Louisiana and, in succeeding chapters, bloviates on a compilation of topics – everything from church to clothing, life to death, money to the lack – and need – thereof. Author H. Kent Aguillard “Tells the truth [as he sees it] about topics ranging from Roe v. Wade to the weekly church bulletin, to the 20th century rituals of death and dying, all woven into stories about football, farming and fishing,” according to the book’s back cover. “His devotion to the local body of believers and his extensive legal career lend credence to his advice on multiple popular culture issues.” Excerpt from a ‘rant’ on Christian music: In my experience, and having visited and spoken in hundreds of churches of different denominations, the form of worship is not what causes one to have a true God-experience. It is the sincerity … [Read more...]

The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas reported the martyrdom of six Carthaginian Christians in 203. Throughout the Passion, there appears to be evidence of Montanism, an early Spirit-based movement similar to modern-day Pentecostalism. The New Prophecy and “New Visions”: Evidence of Montanism in “The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas” by Rex D. Butler, Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2006. The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas reported the martyrdom of six Carthaginian Christians in 203. Throughout the Passion, there appears to be evidence of Montanism, an early Spirit-based movement similar to modern-day Pentecostalism. In this book, Rex D. Butler examines the Passion and proposes that its three authors – Perpetua, Saturus, and the unnamed editor – were Montanists. Although many scholars have discussed both sides of this issue, this work is the most extensive investigation to date. Rex D. Butler is Associate Professor of Church History and Patristics at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. … [Read more...]

Two of today’s most important and popular New Testament scholars air their very different understandings of the historical reality and theological meaning of Jesus’ resurrection. The Resurrection of Jesus: John Dominic Crossan and N. T. Wright in Dialogue, by Robert B. Stewart, editor, Minneapolis, Minn.: Fortress Press, 2006; and London, England: SPCK, 2006. Two of today’s most important and popular New Testament scholars, John Dominic Crossan (co-chair of the Jesus Seminar) and N. T. Wright (Bishop of Durham, Church of England), here air their very different understandings of the historical reality and theological meaning of Jesus’ resurrection. The book highlights points of agreement and disagreement between them and explores the many attendant issues. Other scholars such as Craig Evans, William Lane Craig, Gary Habermas, and Ted Peters contribute related essays on the topic of the resurrection of Jesus. Robert B. Stewart is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Theology at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary where he holds the Greer-Heard Chair of Faith and Culture.   … [Read more...]

This volume highlights points of agreement and disagreement between two leading intellectuals on the subject: of intelligent design. Intelligent Design: William A. Dembski and Michael Ruse in Dialogue, by Robert B. Stewart, editor, Minneapolis, Minn.: Fortress Press, 2007 The subject of intelligent design has been much in the news in recent months but is often treated in a piecemeal fashion or one-sidedly. This volume highlights points of agreement and disagreement between two leading intellectuals on the subject: William A. Dembski, senior fellow with Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture, and Michael Ruse, an internationally-known philosopher of science. Each of the contributors presents his or her position in light of the other’s, providing readers with a fair and balanced case for both sides and allowing readers to decide for themselves. Additional contributors include William Lane Craig, Alister McGrath, Wolfhart Pannenberg, John Polkinghorne, Nancey Murphy, J. P. Moreland, Francis Beckwith, Martinez Hewlett, John Lennox, Kenneth Keathley, Hal Ostrander, and Robert Stewart. Robert B. Stewart is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Theology at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, where he … [Read more...]

The author leads his readers through the projects of two of the most important and influential scholars in the field of historical Jesus research.   The Quest of the Hermeneutical Jesus: The Impact of Hermeneutics on the Jesus Research of John Dominic Crossan and N. T. Wright, by Robert B. Stewart, Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, to be published July 2008 The Quest of the Hermeneutical Jesus is a study in how the way in which one reads documents referring to Jesus influences one’s conclusions as to who Jesus was as, a historical figure.  In this book the author leads his readers through the projects of two of the most important and influential scholars in the field of historical Jesus research – John Dominic Crossan and N. T. Wright –  in order to show readers how their philosophical presuppositions and hermeneutical methods impact their respective historical conclusions concerning Jesus. There is arguably no more important question in religious studies than what can we know about Jesus?  Jesus research also is a task in which interpretation of historical texts is unavoidable. Strangely though, there is virtually nothing in print that addresses how one field (hermeneutics) influences the other … [Read more...]

A helpful book which highlights points of agreement and disagreement on the topic of the present status of atheism and which worldview, atheism or Christianity, is preferable. The Future of Atheism: Alister McGrath and Daniel Dennett in Dialogue, by Robert B. Stewart, editor, Minneapolis, Minn.: Fortress Press, to be published in October 2008 The subject of atheism has been much in the news recently with the highly publicized release of radically atheistic books. This helpful book highlights points of agreement and disagreement between Alister McGrath and Daniel Dennett on the topic of the present status of atheism and which worldview, atheism or Christianity, is preferable. Other contributors include William Lane Craig, J. P. Moreland, Hugh McCann, Evan Fales, Keith Parsons, Paul Copan, Ted Peters, and Robert Stewart. Robert B. Stewart is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Theology at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, where he holds the Greer-Heard Chair of Faith and Culture. 0 … [Read more...]