A New Book Review ~ Born To Wander

My husband and I love to read and we both enjoy getting new books to review. Recently we were sent a book by Michelle Van Loon, "Born to Wander".

Description of the book:
Why are we so restless?

All of us have a little wanderlust—a desire for that next thing, that new place, but this competes with our longings for security, control, and safety. We don't like how it feels to be unsettled and uprooted. Whether we're navigating a season of transition, dealing with the fallout of broken relationships, or wrestling with a deep sense of restlessness, we are all experiencing some form of exile. And most of us do whatever we can to numb the feelings of unbelonging, powerlessness, and unsettledness that come with it. But the truth is that exile has a profound purpose if we can just learn to lean in.

Over and over again Scripture tells us that the people of God are exiles and wanderers. And this is good news because exile is what transforms us into pilgrims. In Christ, we are no longer directionless wanderers, but pilgrim followers who have a clear purpose and a secure identity. In Born to Wander, Michelle Van Loon weaves together personal stories and keen insights on the biblical themes of pilgrimage and exile. She will help you embrace your own pilgrim identity and reorient your heart toward the God who leads you home. Engaging and thoughtful, enhanced with practical suggestions, prayers, and questions, Born to Wander will teach how to trust God even when you don't understand what's happening around you and follow Him even when it hurts.

If you keep chasing security, you'll never find it. Embrace the purpose behind the wandering and discover the freedom and safety of resting in God alone.

“Every one of us carries a restlessness that runs as deep as the marrow of our born-again bones. Our relationships shift like tectonic plates. We change jobs. We switch churches. And our culture tells us the cure for our restlessness is to buy a new mattress, a new car, or a new tube of toothpaste.

About the author:
Michelle is a regular contributor to Christianity Today's women's blog, In Touch magazine, and is the co-founder of ThePerennialGen.com, a website for midlife women and men. She’s married to Bill, and is mother of three and grandmother of two. Learn more about her writing and speaking ministry by visiting her website, MichelleVanLoon.com.

Our take on the book:
Both my husband and I found some things in the book that we liked, but we also found things we questioned and wondered about.

There was a broad survey of “pilgrimages” in scripture, and aspects of life's journeys, both physical and spiritual. Many places she encourages the reader to discover ways to use the desire to wander to grow in Christ and find their true calling/purpose for serving Him. This is something we can agree with. We all need to learn our purpose and to live out our part in the Body of Christ.

The things we questioned were what we thought was stretching Scripture to fit what she was talking about. Every believer is to be a pilgrim in this world, journeying purposefully to closer fellowship with God and better conformity to Christ's example. We are in this world, but not of this world. But instead of using personal stories to illustrate biblical principles for Christian growth, the author seems to use her personal experiences to determine the principles, and find something in scripture involving travelers to back up her conclusions.

Biblical principles, standards of the world, and personal history all seem to have equal weight, and everything is seen through the lens of wandering with little to no balance. 

There is enough to glean from the book to encourage you, but we think some caution is needed in reading it to remember that Scripture should be the beginning and final authority Our faith should start there, not in what we believe and then find Scripture that supports that belief.

You can purchase the book HERE! 

This reviewer received the product free or at a discounted price in order to bring you an honest review. No other form of compensation was given. All opinions are those of the reviewer.

Thinking About Who Jesus Really Is

This book was one that I was not too sure about as I read it, but my mind changed as I went along. Much of what Matt talks about I can relate to, we all have some weird and incorrect ideas about who Jesus really is and our walk with Him. It was interesting to see Matt's perspective on things and to really think about what he was saying. This is a book that will make you think, rethink, and question in a good way how you perceive things you think you already know. It would be a great discussion book for groups!

About the book:
Jesus is not a life coach, a movement leader, a cultural visionary, or a blessing dispenser—but you might not know that by listening to many Christians talk about their faith.

Feel-good slogans promote a caricatured Jesus made in our own image who cannot save us and leave us feeling guilty for not saving ourselves. Following the wrong Jesus disappoints us and produces anxiety, pride, and despair.

The first half of Getting Jesus Wrong recounts pastor and author Matt Johnson’s personal encounters with a string of false saviors—false saviors that many, especially young adults, will recognize. Johnson’s humor and transparency in recounting his own painful experiences will appeal to those who have tried a “brand” of Christianity and found it lacking.

The truth is, we all want something from Jesus. Some are just hoping for a little help to get through life—a new direction, a purpose that will get us up in the morning, an exercise plan, a way to get organized. But that approach to Jesus doesn’t result in real faith or love.

Whether we’ve followed a false Jesus or attempted to coopt the real Jesus, Getting Jesus Wrong ultimately offers us hope because it helps us see Jesus as he is. Getting Jesus Wrong shows that the message of the Bible is about Jesus coming to us as we are—which is good news for exhausted and disillusioned disciples. It shows us that getting Jesus right means a whole new way of thinking (the way up is down) and a whole new way of life (daily dependence on the one who knows the beginning from the end). Getting Jesus right gives us more than spiritual vitamins or a blueprint for living; it gives us a full, rich life spent exploring the depths of gospel love together.

Learn more and purchase a copy.

About the author:
Matt Johnson is a husband, father to two little girls, and is an armchair student of theology living in Seattle. He is also a freelance writer and editor. Until recently, Matt spent 7 years as an associate volunteer pastor in counseling and recovery ministry.

Find out more about Matt at https://www.therealmattjohnson.com.
Connect with him on Twitter.

This reviewer received the product free or at a discounted price in order to bring you an honest review. No other form of compensation was given. All opinions are those of the reviewer.

Leaving Religion, Finding Grace

This is a book I could not put down. I lovd every moment of reading it. I really appreciated how open and honest Kendra was about the horrible struggles they went through as a family and what she learned through it.

Kendra opens up about her walk with Christ, her doubts, her fears, all the while drawing you in to understanding how she grew to be more like Christ and that you can as well. She had no idea how little she really was walking with Christ until tragedy happened, and her eyes and those of her husband were opened to how life with Christ was meant to be more than just following rules and behaving in a specific way.

This is a transforming book and I highly recommend it to you!

About the book:
The “right” homeschooling philosophy. The “right” brand of theology. The “right” meal-planning, home-managing, keep-it-all-together parenting.

Kendra Fletcher, homeschooling mom of eight, had it all “right,” until it all fell apart. In the course of eighteen months, Kendra found her baby in a coma, ran over her five-year-old, and nearly lost her eight-year-old to a septic ruptured appendix. Lost and Found is the story of how God used those events to transform her family’s self-righteous religion into freedom in Christ.

Fletcher’s debut book is the gripping true story of how God used suffering to save her family from empty religion. As wave after wave of crisis hit, the Fletchers discovered that getting religion “right” wasn’t a good substitute for a living relationship with a loving God. Through their suffering, they learned about misplaced identities and false hope, and they threw themselves wholly into the arms of Jesus—where they found the grace they needed.

Fletcher, a well-known writer and conference speaker in Christian homeschooling circles, addresses the quiet legalism that so easily infiltrates Christian communities and exposes the dangers of focusing our hopes on the “right” ways of worship, work, and family life. More than a memoir, Lost and Found invites all of us to give up the things that hold us in bondage and find our value, worth, significance, hope, and identity in Christ alone.

Learn more and purchase a copy.

About the author:
Kendra Fletcher writes on faith and education for a variety of publications, including her blog. She is also a frequent speaker at homeschooling conventions, but she spends most of her time with her very large family. The Fletchers reside in California, where they play in the Pacific Ocean as often as possible.

Find out more about Kendra at http://www.kendrafletcher.com.
Connect with here on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.

This reviewer received the product free or at a discounted price in order to bring you an honest review. No other form of compensation was given. All opinions are those of the reviewer.

One Christmas Bear For You and Your Little Ones

One of my favorite things I love to do is read to little ones. It always so fun to watch their reactions to the story and the pictures. We started reading to our boys, well pretty much right after they were born. It has been something very important to my husband and me. Reading is a must in our lives and both our boys love to read too.

But for me, it was something more. That special time, cuddled with your little one and sharing a special story. It's a wonderful bonding time and the closeness to each other is a very calming and relaxing thing.

My husband liked to make books very entertaining. He would make voices for the characters in them. His favorite to read to them included a fairly good imitation of Richard M. Nixon.

But just reading any old book is not enough. I think it is vital to make sure you are reading books to your little ones, your not so little ones, and encouraging your older kids to read on their own, books that are going to help them draw closer to God.

One sweet book that is available right now is just precious, One Christmas Bear, written and illustrated by Anne Vittur Kennedy.

Count the joys of Christmas with Christmas Bear and his arctic friends in One Christmas Bear, the new holiday-shaped board book for toddlers and preschoolers by Anne Vittur Kennedy. With beautiful illustrations and simple, rhyming text, One Christmas Bear is perfect to help little ones learn to count, and wonderful for families to enjoy together. Little ones will love to count seasonal elements, such as crunchy candy canes, colorful ornaments, and frosty snowflakes, and parents will appreciate the emphasis on family, friends, and the sweet depiction of the reason for the season—Jesus’ birth!

Anne Vittur Kennedy has been delighting young children with her humorous and playful books for thirty years. Her awards include American Library Association’s Notable Books List, Teacher’s Choice, The Green Earth Book Award, and The Green Prize for Sustainable Literature.

What I really like about this board book is the size. It's big enough to really see the story well and yet still small enough for your little one to help hold too. This is one book I know I will enjoy sharing with the little ones in my life.

You can find One Christmas Bear at many local retailers and online at Amazon and Christian Book Distributors.

This reviewer received the product free or at a discounted price in order to bring you an honest review. No other form of compensation was given. All opinions are those of the reviewer.