ARMS OPEN WIDE

Monday, July 21, 2014

ARMS OPEN WIDE
A Call To Linger in the Savior's Presence
By Sherri Gragg

OVERVIEW: With a storyteller's giftedness, Sherri Gragg transports you into life-changing moments with Jesus where you'll feel touched, healed, and spiritually blessed by the assurance that the Messiah, the Healer, the Friend is alive with you now. Experience firsthand the power and devotion of the Savior in your own life. You'll know Jesus like never before. Sherri writes in fictional narrative form while mixing biblical history with scripture, creating a setting that transforms readers back in time and places them right in Jesus’ presence. For thirty-five days readers walk with the Savior to witness miraculous healings and events, and give fresh insight into His power by thinking and feeling with people whose lives became instantly transformed by His love and grace. Readers journey with Jesus and His disciples in the most important time in history.

AUTHOR: Sherri Gragg is a nationally published writer who was a winner in the 2012 Writer’s Digest Competition (inspiration).  She discovered the beautiful Jewish roots of her Christian faith during the course of a trip to Israel, and now passionately uses her gifts of writing and teaching to share the gospel of Christ through the Middle Eastern cultural lens.  She and her husband, Michael, have five children and live in Franklin, Tennessee.

MY REVIEW: Arms Open Wide—A Call To Linger in the Savior's Presence is an inviting title. I like to read it slowly and let the invitation sink into my mind. I get a mental picture of Jesus waiting with outstretched arms. I like the words of Robert Morgan: "Sherri's writings seem as if she parachuted into the middle of the Gospels, saw all the action for herself, and returned to tell us about it!

If you have ever wondered what it would have been like to witness the miraculous healing of a leper, to watch Jesus walk on water or to be in the mind of the thief hanging on the cross next to Jesus, this book will help you with that. Sherri also concludes each chapter with a prayer that is helpful. She says they are simply cries of her own heart but she believes they are a little like your heart's cry too. I think they may be.

This book is small and easy to handle. Each devotion is just the right length. They can be read easily and quickly. But you will not close the book quickly. You will want to linger and meditate letting the story travel deep into you mind. This is a good book to begin OR end the day with.

(I received this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.)

CURMUDGEON'S GUIDE TO GETTING AHEAD

Friday, July 11, 2014

CURMUDGEON'S GUIDE TO GETTING AHEAD
Do's And Don'ts Of Right Behavior, Tough Thinking, Clear Writing, And Living A Good Life
By Charles Murray

OVERVIEW: For those starting out in their careers—and those who wish to advance more quickly—this is a delightfully fussy guide to the hidden rules of the road in the workplace and in life. (From the back of the book.)

AUTHOR: Charles Murray is the W. H. Brady Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. He is the author of such national bestsellers Coming Apart and The Bell Curve (with Richard J. Herrnstein).

MY REVIEW: Charles Murray is one of my favorite writers. I love his easy style and his quick wit. He is extremely knowable about what he writes. Even though I didn't even know what a Libertarian was when I picked up his book, What It Means to Be a Libertarian, when I put it down I felt like I had received a college education on that subject. In this, his newest book The Curmudgeon's Guide to Getting Ahead he writes about how to behave around the curmudgeon's you will meet if you wish to work at the senior levels of an organization. He gives many day-to-day tips for young people on what to expect at the senior level.

Charles has a lot to say about life in general. he urges us to leave home no matter what, get real jobs (not internships), put ourselves in scary situations, and watch the movie, Groundhog Day repeatedly.
"Witty, wise, and pulling no punches, The Curmudgeon's Guide to Getting Ahead is an indispensable sourcebook for living an adult life." He doesn't make the claim that this little book will fix all that needs fixing in life, but he thinks it might help. And it will!

(I received this book free from Blogging For Books in exchange for a fair and honest review.)