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Permission to Speak Freely

Susan K. Stewart — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 11:36:03 +0000

“What is one thing you feel you can’t say in the church?” author Anne Jackson asked on her blog. Hundreds of people had something to say.

That simple question became the foundation for the book Permission to Speak Freely: Essays and Art on Fear, Confession, and Grace.

Subtitled Essays and Art On Fear, Confession, and Grace, Permission is based on Ms. Jackson’s life and struggles with the church. Although I can’t relate to what she has overcome, I’ve not been there, I do relate to with struggles that are caused by the attitudes of some in the church.

This book is less about what was posted on her blog, and more about honesty. Not just honesty within the organization of the church, but honesty with ourselves. I came away feeling that much of the reason there are things I can’t say in church is that I have a hard time being honest about myself and with myself.

Ms. Jackson describes her childhood as a PK (preacher’s kid) and how it led her away from Christ rather than toward it. Her story is also the story of God never letting go of his children. While not the thesis, Ms. Jackson’s story is about how God does seek the one who is lost. No matter how far afield we may go, he will find us.

While not a mystery, Permission can be described as a page turner. It was one of those books that I had to limit my reading time or I would get nothing done until it was finished. Ms. Jackson’s writing is clear, powerful, and inviting. The story is so well-written that I nearly forgot that there is also emotion-invoking poetry sprinkled throughout also.

I was expecting to find more from FlowerDust readers. But the memoir that Ms. Jackson’s question invoked is compelling and reveals fears that I think most of us have but are so fearful we can’t express. I didn’t just want to shout “Amen,” but also “Me too, Sister.”

As she has done on her blog, Ms. Jackson tells of her diagnosis with bi-polar disorder. (FlowerDust.net) Mental illness is one of those taboo topics in many churches and with many Christians. Her candor about the diagnosis of a serious mental illness will help not just sufferers, but those who love them as well.

In publisher Thomas Nelson’s fashion, the book is printed on quality paper with appropriate graphic design. It invites you hold it, linger through the pages. It is not described as a gift book, and not packaged as such. But the gift-book quality should encourage people to buy it for loved ones. But don’t just buy it for someone else. Get and read Permission to Speak Freely, then share it with others.

Permission to Speak Freely isn’t just a memoir or a critique of the modern church, as has become popular today. It is an invitation to take stock of what it is we fear and the sometimes long road to discovering and overcome those fears. Don’t be afraid to find out what other people are saying; you might be thinking it as well.

To read some excerpts and confessions, go to www.premissiontospeakfreely.com

Permission to Speak Freely: Essays and Art on Fear, Confession, and Grace
Anne Jackson
ISBN: 978-1-4041-8780-1
$14.95
Kindle Edition Available
Audio CD Available

Misadventures in Travel: A Missionary’s Experience in Brazil

Susan K. Stewart — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 15:43:23 +0000

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old…or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!

Today’s Wild Card author is:

Paula Edwards

and the book:

Misadventures in Travel: A Missionary’s Experience in Brazil

Hannibal Books (June 1, 2010)

***Special thanks to Jennifer Nelson, PR Specialist, Hannibal Books for sending me a review copy.***

Far too often reading a missionary’s story is more about the horrors of living in far-away jungles. The heat, the bugs, the head-hunters become the focus of the tale. So much so the reader can begin to think that to serve in an overseas mission is about hardship and martyrdom rather than sharing the Gospel with the people they were sent to serve. Instead of inviting the reader to join the effort, many of these books repel people from the mission field.

Paula Edwards’ new book Misadventures in Travel: A Missionary’s Experience in Brazil changes that trend. This story of the Paula and her husband Van’s journeys through Brazil invites the reader to join them for an enjoyable adventure on the mission field.

The Edwards began their mission adventure later than most people, after their children were grown. At a time in life when most people start thinking about settling into retirement, Paula and Van pack up and head to South America. They signed on with the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention to map the need for churches in northeast Brazil.

Ms. Edwards tells of their experiences with the roads, or lack of roads, a car, or cars, that fail suddenly, and interesting people along the way. It is not a story; it is an adventure that the reader is invited to join.

To be sure, the Edwards have their share of trials and tribulations, not to mention lost in the jungle stories. But, Ms. Edwards does not portray their many trips along the east coast of Brazil as horrifying. If anything, I want to follow their trail.

I did find some of the escapades repetitive. Each chapter was about a different route. But, the themes of bad roads, shaky ferry boats, and vehicle break-downs were repeated. I would like to have read more about other aspects of their trips, such as misunderstandings due to language barriers. I also missed not being told more about the people and culture they encountered.

Humor is a pleasant change in this missionary’s story. Ms. Edwards’ wit and saucy attitude toward rough roads, no roads, and high water make for easy reading. Also, unlike many missionary books, Ms. Edwards in not afraid to share her emotions, even the “bad” ones. Because the Edwards are real and everyday people, the reader comes to believe that missionary work is not so bad after all.

I recommend this book to families. Children need to know that going to unreached populations doesn’t have to be harrowing or without some fun along the way. Parents, too, will benefit as they read and talk about these missionaries’ experience. Maybe more people will consider short-term or even long-term mission trips after reading these misadventures.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Paula Edwards, a native of the piney hills of north Louisiana, received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music from Louisiana Tech University. Besides having served God on the mission field, Paula also has been a schoolteacher and enjoys riding and training horses. She and her husband, Van, are parents of two grown daughters. The Edwardses live in North Louisiana, in which Van serves as pastor.

Product Details:

List Price: $14.95
Paperback: 192 pages
Publisher: Hannibal Books (June 1, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1934749796
ISBN-13: 978-1934749791

AND NOW…THE FIRST CHAPTER:

Chapter 1 — The Beginning

Everything started innocently enough. One evening we were sitting in our living room doing the usual things. The TV was on, I had a magazine of some type; my husband, Van, was browsing on his laptop. I had no idea what he was studying on his computer, although I was reasonably certain it was something harmless. Wrong assumption.

All of a sudden Van called out, “Found us a job.”

That was interesting to me, because I didn’t know we were looking for one. Anyway, what he said got my attention. To learn more I leaned toward his chair. Turns out he was browsing the site of the International Mission Board of the Southern

Baptist Convention; he was surveying opportunities to serve overseas.

At the time Van was the pastor of a small Baptist church in North Central Arkansas. We had been at this church for about three years. In some ways our time there had been good, but we also had experienced many challenges. Recently we had talked about believing that our usefulness at this church had reached an end and that God seemed to be calling us elsewhere. The way God speaks to His children is amazing. We both heard Him; we both heard the same thing—which brings me back to Van’s announcement.

“What?” I asked

“I said I found us a job.”

“Oh, yeah? Where?”

“Brazil.”

“Brazil? Doing what?”

“Mapping.”

“Mapping? What does that mean?”

Van can be maddeningly persistent in making me drag everything out of him without offering any unnecessary information that I don’t specifically ask for.

“For Pete’s sake, tell me!”

“It says ‘mapping team needed to explore fishing villages in northeastern Brazil’.”

My heart went thump-thump. I figured he could hear it, but I wasn’t ready to reveal the excitement those simple words caused in me.

“Hmm. That could be interesting.”

We spent a few minutes discussing the possibility; then I picked up my magazine and pretended to become absorbed in an article while at the same time I watched Law and Order. Actually my mind was spinning. I can be maddeningly persistent in hiding my true feelings . . . for a while anyway.

The next day while I was at my job as a band director/ music teacher, I had the opportunity to check out the job for myself. I had a study hall that had only one student in it. Our relationship was more one of friendship than teacher-student. I read the job description and then turned and looked at her.

“I’m going to Brazil,” I stated bluntly.

She gave me a confused look, so I told her about what had happened the night before and read the job description from the computer in front of me. A slow smile spread across her face. She said, “You’re going to Brazil.”

I really believed this was going to happen, but at the same time I couldn’t imagine going back overseas. I have two grown daughters whom I love fiercely; at the time I had two small grandchildren. How could I leave them for two years? How could I miss out on everything that would be going on? On the other hand, I knew God was speaking to me. If you have ever been in that position, then you understand that when He calls you to a job, you never will be happy doing anything else. If you never have been in that position, you won’t understand the way I was feeling at that moment. Believe me, the call is unmistakable.

For two weeks I wrestled with the idea, even though I knew what the final decision would be. I knew I would go to Brazil, but convincing myself actually to admit it out loud in words was difficult. Finally one Sunday after church Van and I went out to eat. Van had mentioned the job in Brazil a couple of times, but he hadn’t pressed the issue. He was absolutely ready to go. Now. This minute. But, you see, when a couple accepts a call to missions, it has to be a joint acceptance. If both parties aren’t completely on board with the idea, then some sort of compromise has to be reached. This decision is best not forced on anyone. So Van hadn’t pressed, but I knew exactly where he stood. The time had arrived for me to let him in on the fact that I was right there beside him. For a long time we sat in the restaurant and talked. I cried. I was so torn. I knew what God wanted me to do. And I wanted to do it, too, but I still had that nagging desire to stay near my family. After spending the biggest part of a year serving in Guatemala in a previous short-term missions assignment, I knew how difficult the separation would be. Ultimately, though, I knew I couldn’t put my family and my desires ahead of God’s will for my life. So we left the restaurant knowing we would pursue employment with the International Mission Board.

To be accepted for service with the IMB requires an exacting process, but we were hoping the fact that we had served before would hasten the schedule. It must have, because we went home that Sunday night and emailed the IMB, which meant that on Monday the agency received our communication. On Tuesday we had a response. We could begin the procedure to fill the mapping-team position. We were ecstatic. Having finally crossed that line to submit to God, I now was eager to get things on the road. All of this happened in February, but we had lots of things to do before we actually could go to Brazil.

The first item on our list was to resign from our present jobs. I was teaching, so I finished the school year. At the end of May Van resigned his post. In June we sold our house and most of our possessions and moved across the state to Fort Smith to be closer to our daughters while we made preparations to go to Brazil.

Another thing we had to do was to go to Richmond, VA, for training. While there we talked to our advisor. We learned that we could go to Brazil either for two years or three years. We chose to extend our term to three years. In the back of our minds we were thinking we eventually would spend even more time than that in Brazil. We also learned about the requirements to get a visa to Brazil. This sounded as though it was a very straightforward procedure, but from conversations with missionary colleagues in Brazil we knew that getting a visa for that country would be tougher than for Guatemala. The process turned out to be much tougher. Van, the planner and detail person in our unit, began gathering all the things we would need such as his diploma from seminary, his ordination certificate, and birth certificates and our marriage license. Once he was satisfied everything was ready, he sent it to the mission office in Richmond. The mission office promptly wrote back and said the birth certificates and marriage license we had submitted would not be acceptable at the Brazilian consulate. We needed certified copies of our birth certificates and our marriage license. Both of these things had burned in a house fire. So, even though we had the certified copies we had gotten for Guatemala, we would have to get new ones for Brazil from the agencies in the states in which they had been issued: Louisiana and New Mexico. When we checked online about having them sent to us, we discovered that just going to get them would be about as inexpensive and much quicker, but that required a road trip to those two states. We combined business with pleasure by visiting with family in Louisiana and then made the long trek to New Mexico to get my birth certificate. At last we believed we had everything we needed. All that remained was to go to the consulate in Houston and present everything to Brazilian officials there. Two days were necessary to get in to see the consul. When we finally sat down with him, he sat on one side of the glass and we sat on the other as he flipped through the huge pile of documents in front of him. He arrived at my birth certificate—the one we had traveled all the way to New Mexico to get.

“Who’s this?” he asked.

“Me,” I replied.

“I don’t need this,” he sneered as he tossed it back to us through the slot at the bottom of the window.

We were flabbergasted. They had specifically asked for originals of our birth certificates.

“But, you asked for it!” Van exclaimed. “We went to New Mexico to get it!”

“No, we never ask for that. It is not in our policy,” he asserted.

“But . . .,” Van began; then, thinking better of the matter, he let it drop.

After checking through the rest of the papers, the consul told us we could return the next day to get the visas. We were so relieved! The process had been long and tedious; at last it was over.

We were so excited as we arrived early for our appointment the next day. In just a matter of minutes we would have the visas in our hands and we would be on our way.

The consul entered. We sat together on a love seat; he took a chair near us. Although his attitude seemed a little lighter than it had the day before, he still was a pretty sour person. He began to speak, but we were surprised that he didn’t talk about us; he talked about his job and what a thankless position he held. He complained about his co-workers and his work environment. He was a miserable little man. I felt sorry for him. Then he shifted the subject to our visas. That was more like it. I was squirming in my seat.

“Your visas have been approved. You may return to this office next Friday and pick them up.”

My sympathy evaporated. Sometimes I am too impulsive; I opened my mouth to argue with him, but Van beat me to the punch.

“Next Friday will be fine. Do we both need to be here, or can I pick them up?”

My jaw dropped as I gaped at my husband. Then I realized the wisdom of his words. Even though this would require another trip from Arkansas to Houston, the process would be over. If we argued, who knew what additional hoops they could find for us to jump through?

The miserable man did his best attempt at a smile.

“You may come alone. We will see you next week.”

The next week we did get the visas. We were only a month behind our expected departure date. That was not bad.

On January 21, 2007, we boarded the plane for Brazil. It was a trip into the unknown—the first of many adventures . . . although the word misadventures ultimately would describe much of what lay before us.

Thin Places: A Memoir

Susan K. Stewart — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 14:00:40 +0000

When I agree to review a book, my goal is to actually read the entire book—whether I like it or not. After I read the first couple of chapters of Mary DeMuth’s new book Thin Places: A MemoirI mentally groaned. Would this be a book which I have to slog through someone’s jaded past that points to a happy Christian testimony? Not so.

Ms. DeMuth’s memoir is less about her and more about leading the reader to recognize the thin places in life.

Even though I decided that this was not the typical Christian memoir, I still wondered if anything in her story of an abused and neglected child would have meaning for me. Was there anything that I could touch? Yep, there sure was.

In Celtic tradition, a thin place is where the veil that separates heaven and earth is lifted and one is able to receive a glimpse of the glory of God. Each of us has those thin places in our lives; we need to learn to recognize them. DeMuth, in telling her story, helps us to look for the times in our own lives where heaven has been inches away but we didn’t see. The times when we are so close to the throne of God we can almost touch him.

As I continued reading, since I had gotten to the place where I couldn’t put this book down, I began to see my own thin places. I realized I could relate to DeMuth’s awful, dysfunctional family she grew up in. I didn’t grow up in the horrid conditions that DeMuth did, but there were dysfunctions nonetheless. And God’s face was shining through to me then, and now.

Ms. DeMuth has a way with words that I haven’t seen in recent years. Her descriptions are not only unique, they evoke the emotion of the moment. She writes, “Growing up, I find myself in a scrawny sort-of body—legs thin as broomsticks interrupted by knees so knobby they bang into each other as I walk.” I not only see this scrawny little girl, I feel her humiliation that her upbringing has given her.

Unlike other Christian memoirs, DeMuth doesn’t end with “I met Jesus and my life is wonderful now.” In fact, throughout her tale she confesses her continued struggles, the same struggles that many of us live through. She doesn’t offer any quick answers to the dilemmas of life. DeMuth, however, points the reader to the thin place to look for the moment at heaven peeking through. It is those moments that are a starting place for healing.

Don’t expect a gory retelling of an abused child. Don’t expect a fairy-tale, all-is-right-in-the-world ending. Expect to see your own thin places, and be moved by them.

I recommend this story to everyone, because everyone has a moment they can relate to in DeMuth’s story. I recommend not just reading it, but also feeling. Go back to your moment, and live the thin place in your life.

Thin Places: A Memoir
Mary DeMuth
Zondervan
ISBN: 978-0310284185
Paperback
Kindle

Interview with Jennifer Kennedy Dean

Susan K. Stewart — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 13:00:52 +0000

Jennifer Kennedy Dean

Jennifer Kennedy Dean is Executive director of The Praying Life Foundation and a respected author and speaker. She is the author of numerous books, studies, and magazine articles specializing in prayer and spiritual formation. Her book Heart’s Cry has been named National Day of Prayer’s signature book. You’ll find articles and daily quotes from Jennifer at the National Day of Prayer website. Her book, Live a Praying Life, has been called a flagship work on prayer.

Jennifer was widowed in 2005 after 26 years of marriage to Wayne Dean, her partner both in life and ministry. They are the parents of three grown sons. Jennifer makes her home in Marion, KY.

You are known for your extensive research and your fresh insights. Do you have a method for gleaning new concepts?

Of course, the truths are not new, but I think I sometimes am able to frame old truths in new ways. I always find that when I put the words of Jesus into their original Hebraic setting and experience the scene through the viewpoint of His real-time audience, some new little fragment of truth finds its way into my thinking. I like to let the Scripture breathe. To let it sit in my heart until its full aroma has time to emerge. There’s the hard-core research, and then there’s the marinating. Turn your imagination loose and unfurl your curiosity, and listen to the living Word.

You have a series of Bible studies in the format of Set Apart, designed to be interactive. This series of studies has video series and leader’s kits available. What is the advantage to this kind of format?

I try to produce a new Bible study with Set Apart every year. I like the interactive format because I like to pull the reader into the Scripture to experience the Word. I like to challenge the reader to interact with the thoughts and ideas and to take the time to absorb them and apply them, rather than just to read. The other thing I like about this format is that it can be done by an individual, or as a group. In the video series, I like to be able to teach the main points of the material and set the learners’ up for a productive week of personal study. I love feeling like I get to be part of your Bible study group! The kits have lots of other resources for leading a small group in the study.

Several of your studies have theme songs that go with them, as Set Apart does. How do these songs come about?

I have developed a song-writing relationship with a talented musician named Roxanne Lingle. I write poems, we turn them into lyrics, Roxanne composes and arranges the music, and Roxanne records the songs. For Set Apart, we have the theme song in the form of a music video, which is a new addition. In the leader’s kit you have the audio track, accompaniment track, lead sheet, and the music video. The theme song becomes an important and worshipful part of the study experience.

About the Book:

(Marion, Kentucky) – In a world of self-love and materialism it’s reassuring to know that God’s Word has a better plan for living. Renowned author and speaker, Jennifer Kennedy Dean, provides insight to the life of Christ, specifically the Sermon on
the Mount, in her new book, " target="_blank">Set Apart: A 6 Week Study of the Beatitudes.

Through careful study of the Hebrew traditions of biblical times, Dean leads participants into a deeper awareness of this early ministry sermon series by Christ.

Jennifer guides readers to a heightened understanding of each beatitude, correlating the Ten Commandments with the Sermon on the Mount to tie these Old and New Testament principles together. Dean shares how living the Set Apart Life is an exciting and life-changing spiritual journey. Participants surrendered to Christ will see a total transformation: outward actions of holiness as well as inward attitudes of joy. Believers following along in this workbook will experience the life God intends. This blessedness comes from seeking and knowing God. Anything outside the realm of Jesus Christ results in emptiness–the ultimate opposite of blessing.

Each chapter includes interactive questions for readers to answer, emphasizing God’s desire to reproduce the character and attitudes of Jesus in each Christian’s life. Along with the Bible study book, there is a Leader Kit that includes six DVD sessions and a CD with bonus material for small-group leaders. Jennifer’s website, www.prayinglife.org, provides opportunities for previewing the Set Apart materials and extra resources for pastors and leaders.

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Susan K. Stewart — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:17:09 +0000

Fearless
Imagine Your Life Without Fear
By Max Lucado

I’ve heard there are 365 verses about fear in the Bible, one for each day of the year. Max Lucado only tackles twelve fears in his new book, Fearless, Imagine Your Life Without Fear.

Lucado is known for his easy reading, but poetic style of writing. He doesn’t write poetry, although a poem is inserted in this volume, Lucado does have a unique way of putting words together. His style is enough to sooth the fears.

Tackling fears such as violence or not protecting our children is rather common. This book even covers the fear of being grabbed by a gorilla or falling from the sky with a broken parachute. No fear is unreasonable, and Lucado doesn’t dismiss whatever may well up in the reader.

Fearless isn’t a trust-God-all-will-be-well book either. Lucado admits bad things happen to good people. But, it isn’t necessary to live our life in fear of those bad things. He points out there is so much more good in this broken world.

Bible verses are sprinkled through the text. They are not used a cure-all, but as a reality check that we are not alone in our fears. At the same time, he points out that fear can be overcome by faith in a God who has defeated the master of fear,Satan.

The soothing words along with the reality of common, and not so common, fears makes Fearless a book to keep for later reference. It will remain in my library for future reference and future study.

This is a book to purchase in pairs, one for yourself, and one for a friend.

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear
Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear
Max Lucado
Thomas Nelson Publishers
ISBN: 978-0849921391

Improve Your Prayer Life

Susan K. Stewart — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 17:33:00 +0000

9 Ways to Improve Your Prayer Life

From Prayer Power
by Peter Lundell

1. Establish a designated place to pray.

2. Set a designated time of day to pray.

3. Use written prayers or music to help get started.

4. Repent of the things that hinder your prayer.

5. Pray out loud–this clarifies thoughts.

6. Personalize Bible verses when you pray.

7. Let yourself get in a situation where you have to trust God.

8. Seek the Holy Spirit’s leading–and listen.

9. Be bold and persistent.

Prayer. It’s one of the most talked about subjects in religious circles. We have books, blogs and organizations focused on teaching Christ followers the correct way to communicate with God. In Prayer Power, author Peter Lundell shares his own personal struggle with communicating with God and provides insight from examples in Psalms and the gospels for Christians to examine to bulk up their prayer life. Lundell ends each chapter with growth gauges and suggested prayer activities to encourage and establish routine prayer time. You’ll find his honest approach to prayer refreshing, his transparency encouraging and his instruction helpful and practical.

Tomorrow: Interview with Peter Lundell

Peter Lundell – Interview – Prayer Power

Susan K. Stewart — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 14:22:53 +0000

Peter Lundell, a former missionary to Japan, is a pastor at Walnut Blessing Church in Walnut, California. He has an MDiv and DMiss from Fuller Theological Seminary and is the founder of the Walnut Valley Pastors’ Prayer Network. Lundell is the author of two books, and his articles have appeared in magazines such as Guideposts and Pray!

1. Many Christians don’t talk about hardships with prayer. Why do you open up about the struggles you have had drawing close to God in prayer?

My first draft of the book read like an instruction manual of all the things you ought to do to be spiritual like me. I realized that the more spiritual I tried to sound, the less honest I was being. I was hiding behind my words. No reader should have to put up with all that. And besides, it was boring.

So I determined to be totally honest. I rewrote the book and openly shared my doubts, struggles, and failures, because everybody goes through the same things. And if I’m not honest with readers, how can I expect readers to be honest with others or even themselves?

I take sort of an “I mess up and you mess up, but God loves us anyway, so let’s connect with him” approach. Readers often tell me how much they identify with that. And when they read about how God still worked amazing things in my life and in others’, it gives them hope.

I’ve discovered two things: First, honesty is liberating, and I don’t want to live any other way. Second, when we stick with prayer and don’t give up, answers and victories rise from our struggles. Answers and victory never rise from pretending.

I hope to connect with readers so that they’ll in turn connect with me and the victories I’ve experienced—so that they will experience their own victories.

2. What are some of the things God has taught you about prayer over the years – especially from the perspective of your leadership roles?

It’s good to listen before I talk. If I always dive into prayer and never spend time listening, I only dump my own “give-me list” on God. But his word says in 1 John 5:14–15 that when I seek and pray according to his will, my prayer will be answered. So the key is to first get in sync with God.

We’ve got to have a hunger, or thirst, for God. Without hunger, no program or technique or anything we learn will go anywhere. But with hunger for God, we could know almost nothing and still have a great prayer life. Hunger is singularly important—which is why it’s the first chapter.

When I pray with faith and don’t get what I ask for, God will soon show me why. There is always something to learn in unanswered prayer.

3. What do you mean by “praying boldly” and how can Christians learn to do that?

Praying boldly is the opposite of excessively polite prayer and of—I’ll just say it—wimpy prayer. Praying boldly is praying without intimidation, not caring what other people think, expressing ourselves to God without concern for being appropriate or religiously correct but rather with a passion from our guts that pours out, unashamedly. Bold prayer is not arrogant. It’s humble and faithful, because of its self-abandoned focus on God and expectation of what God will do.

People often assume they must be polite or solemn before God. Nowhere does the Bible teach this. Two thirds of the Psalms are complaints, and they are not polite. Most prayers in both Old and New Testaments are bold, expectant, and to the point. When Jesus teaches on prayer in Luke 11:5–10, he talks about an obnoxious guy who bangs on his friend’s door at midnight. Then he says we should bug him the same way by continually asking, seeking, and knocking. I often wonder if God gets tired of diplomatic prayers. Why else would he actually tell us to be bold and persistent—and use examples that, if we were on the receiving end, most of us would say are obnoxious.

There’s no real method to doing this. It’s a mindset that chooses to free itself from previous assumptions and uses the Bible as a model of how to pray.

4. How can we practice the presence of God and include him in everyday tasks?

Practicing the presence of God primarily has to do with developing an attitude, a continual awareness that God is always with us, and that in turn, we always incline our attention toward him.

The first thing most of us need to do is to slow down or cut unnecessary activities from our calendar. Busyness is an enemy to practicing the presence of God. Jesus repeatedly blew off other people’s agendas for him and continually focused on his purpose for being here. Pastors who do the same are always happier, closer to God, and more effective. And when we practice the presence of God, we increase our ability to be intimate with him when times do get busy.

Here are some practices that may help develop that attitude: My last thought before I sleep and my first thought when I wake up is centered on God. When I get mad or stressed, I try to see things from God’s perspective. When I am waiting for someone, I use that time to pray. I do menial tasks with an awareness and love of God. I often have a praise song on my mind as I go through the day.

5. You’re a proponent for creating a place of prayer and establishing a time of prayer. Why are these important elements for prayer?

These two disciplines are the most important external helps for maintaining a strong prayer life. Without them, our good intentions eventually drown under the assaults of busyness and distractions.

A place of prayer helps us concentrate in the face of distractions. That place could be the church sanctuary, an empty room in the house, a spot in the back yard, or even a rug laid out on the floor, on which the only thing we do is pray. The physical surroundings of a location devoted to prayer tell our brains, “Focus on God.” And if we ever feel bored or in a rut of over-familiarity with a place, a change of location can be stimulating.

Establishing a set prayer time engrains a habit of prayer into our minds, such that if we miss it, we feel anxious because something is missing or wrong—and it is! A set prayer time is not to force ourselves to pray as much as to create a boundary of protection from busyness. That boundary of time is like a protective fence around a garden, where we give ourselves freedom from intrusions to spend unhindered time with God. Preferably we’ll do this as early as possible in the morning, so we can lay the whole day before the Lord. And unlike a prayer place, I have never found benefit in changing my prayer time, so I highly recommend keeping it sacred, especially if we’re travelling or really busy. Whether short or long, this protective fence of a set time must be intentional, because no one else can do it for us.

6. What advice would you give to people who struggle with God when they pray?

True men and women of prayer will sometimes struggle in prayer, as did many figures in the Bible, like Jacob’s symbolic wrestling with the angel and Jesus’ wrestling over his fate in Gethsemane.

Like anyone else, I struggle with unanswered prayer or major decisions to do something by faith, when tragedy strikes, problems of injustice, and healings that take a lot longer than I’d like. The key is to keep struggling—don’t give up and too quickly assume something is God’s will before you know for sure. The angel commended Jacob for not giving up until he got a blessing. God the Father actually sent an angel to help Jesus wrestle in Gethsemane. Sometimes wrestling in prayer is God’s will for us.

Wrestling in prayer is actually a good thing. It draws us closer to God. And it changes us in the process. And that’s what most of us hope for!

Jesus Calling

Susan K. Stewart — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 17:35:44 +0000

I believe it is possible to have a personal, one-to-one relationship with God. Yes, the God Creator of the universe. A relationship that is personal has intimate conversations. Sarah Young shares her conversations with God in Jesus Calling, Enjoying Peace in His Presence.

Inspired by the anonymous writings of God Calling, Ms. Young began recording her dialogues with God in her journal. She took seriously, “Be still and know that I am God (Ps. 46:10). Those journaled dialogues became the 365 daily devotions in this book.

Written in first person, with I being God, each short devotion is like God whispering in the reader’s ear. Ms. Young does not claim that these are inspired words of God, but rather what God has impressed on her.

Although each day’s entry is short, they are not meant to be read quickly. The first person writing leads the reader to ponder, wait for what else God has to say. By using the three or four Bible verses to meditate, and waiting quietly, a person can “hear” what God is saying as well.

Jesus Calling may well become a classic devotion. Not because of the words written in the book, but because of the words and thoughts it inspires in the reader.

Jesus Calling
Sarah Young
Thomas Nelson
ISBN 978-1-5914-5188-4

Cecil Murphey – Interview – When Someone You Loves Has Cancer

Susan K. Stewart — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 17:41:58 +0000

A Word from The Man Behind the Words

by Cecil Murphey

When Shirley walked in from the garage, she didn’t have to say a word: I read the diagnosis in her eyes. I grabbed her and held

her tightly for several seconds. When I released her, she didn’t cry. The unshed tears glistened, but that was all.

I felt emotionally paralyzed and helpless, and I couldn’t understand my reaction. After all, I was a professional. As a former pastor and volunteer hospital chaplain I had been around many cancer patients. I’d seen people at their lowest and most vulnerable. As a writing instructor, I helped one woman write her cancer-survival book. Shirley and I had been caregivers for Shirley’s older sister for months before she died of colon cancer.

All of that happened before cancer became personal to me–before my wife learned she needed a mastectomy. To make it worse, Shirley was in the high-risk category because most of her blood relatives had died of some form of cancer. Years earlier, she had jokingly said, “In our family we grow things.”

In the days after the diagnosis and before her surgery, I went to a local bookstore and to the public library. I found dozens of accounts, usually by women, about their battle and survival. I pushed aside the novels that ended in a person’s death. A few books contained medical or technical information. I searched on-line and garnered useful information–but I found nothing that spoke to me on how to cope with the possible loss of the person I loved most in this world.

Our story ends happily: Shirley has started her tenth year as a cancer survivor. Not only am I grateful, but I remember my pain and confusion during those days. That concerns me enough to reach out to others who also feel helpless as they watch a loved one face the serious diagnosis of cancer.

That’s why I wrote When Someone You Love Has Cancer. I want to encourage relatives and friends and also to offer practical suggestions as they stay at the side of those they love.

The appendix offers specific things for them to do and not to do–and much of that information came about because of the way people reacted around us.

It’s a terrible situation for anyone to have cancer; it’s a heavy burden for us who deeply love those with cancer.

by Cecil Murphey

Interview with Cecil Murphey

1. The first sentence of your book reads, “I felt helpless.” Tell us about that feeling.

Because her doctor put Shirley into the high-risk category, I felt helpless. To me, helpless means hating the situation, wanting to make it better, but admitting there was nothing I could do for her.

2. On that same page you also write, “One thing welearned: God was with us and strengthened us through the many weeks of uncertainty and pain.” How did you get from feeling helpless to that assurance?

Shirley and I sat down one day and I put my arm around her. “The only way I know how I can handle this,” I said, “is to talk about it.” Shirley knows that’s my way of working through puzzling issues. “Let’s consider every possibility.” If her surgeon decided she did not have breast cancer, how would we react? We talked of our reaction if he said, “There is a tumor and it’s obviously benign. Finally, I was able to say, with tears in my eyes, “How do we react if he says the cancer is advanced and you have only a short time to live?” By the time we talked answered that question, I was crying. Shirley had tears in her eyes, but remained quite calm. “I’m ready to go whenever God wants to take me,” she said. She is too honest not to have meant those words. As I searched her face, I saw calmness and peace. I held her tightly and we prayed together. After that I felt calm. Since then, one of the first things I do when I awaken is to thank God that Shirley and I have at least one more day together.

3. When most people hear the word cancer applied to someone they love, they have strong emotional reactions. What are some of them? What was your reaction when your wife was diagnosed with breast cancer?

As a pastor, a volunteer chaplain, and a friend I’ve encountered virtually every emotional reaction. Some refuse to accept what they hear. Some go inward and are unable to talk. Others start making telephone calls to talk to friends.

Me? I went numb, absolutely numb. That was my old way of dealing with overwhelming emotions. I heard everything but I couldn’t feel anything. It took me almost two weeks before I was able to feel–and to face the possibility that the person I loved most in the world might die.

4. “What can I do for my loved one with cancer?” That’s a good question for us to ask ourselves. How can we be supportive and helpful?

Many think they need to do big things; they don’t. Express your concern and your love.

Be available to talk when the other person needs it–and be even more willing to be silent if your loved one doesn’t want to talk. Don’t ask what you can do; do what you see needs doing. To express loving support in your own way (and we all express love differently) is the best gift you can offer.

5. Why do you urge people not to say, “I know exactly how you feel”?

No one knows how you feel. They may remember how they felt at a certain time. Even if they did know, what help is that to the person with cancer? It’s like saying, “Stop feeling sorry for yourself. I know what it’s like and I’m fine now.”

Instead, focus on how the loved one feels. Let him or her tell you.

6. Those with cancer suffer physically and spiritually. You mention God’s silence as a form of spiritual suffering. They pray and don’t seem to sense God. What can you do to help them?

God is sometimes silent but that doesn’t mean God is absent. In my upcoming book, When God Turns off the Lights, I tell what it was like for me when God stopped communicating for about 18 months.

I didn’t like it and I was angry. I didn’t doubt God’s existence, but I didn’t understand the silence. I read Psalms and Lamentations in various translations. I prayed and I did everything I could, but nothing changed.

After a couple of months, I realized that I needed to accept the situation and wait for God to turn on the lights again. Each day I quoted Psalm 13:1: “O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way?” (NLT)

I learned many invaluable lessons about myself–and I could have learned them only in the darkness. When God turns off the lights (and the sounds) I finally realized that instead of God being angry, it was God’s loving way to draw me closer.

7. Guilt troubles many friends and loved ones of caregivers because they feel they failed or didn’t do enough. What can you say to help them?

We probably fail our loved ones in some ways. No one is perfect. If you feel that kind of guilt, I suggest 3 things:

(1) Tell the loved one and ask forgiveness.

(2) Talk to God and ask God to forgive you and give you strength not to repeat your failures.

(3) Forgive yourself. And one way to do that is to say, “At the time, I thought I did the right thing. I was wrong and I forgive myself.”

8. Do you have some final words of wisdom for those giving care to a loved one with cancer?

Be available. You can’t take away the cancer but you can alleviate the sense of aloneness. Don’t ever try to explain the reason the person has cancer. We don’t know the reason and even if we did, would it really help the other person?

Be careful about what you say. Too often visitors and friends speak from their own discomfort and forget about the pain of the one with cancer. Don’t tell them about your cancer or other disease; don’t tell them horror stories about others. Above all, don’t give them false words of comfort. Be natural. Be yourself. Behave as loving as you can.

About the Cecil Murphey:

Cecil Murphey is an international speaker and bestselling author who has written more than 100 books, including the New York Times bestseller 90 Minutes in Heaven (with Don Piper). No stranger himself to loss and grieving, Cecil has served as a pastor and hospital chaplain for many years, and through his ministry and books he has brought hope and encouragement to countless people around the world. For more information, visit http://www.themanbehindthewords.com/.

When Someone You Love Has Cancer

Susan K. Stewart — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 17:45:32 +0000

I decided to read this little book, When Someone You Love Has Cancer, because I know author Cecil Murphey (disclaimer out of the way), and I’ve read other of his “When Someone You Love …” books. I knew it would be personal.

Personal, not because Mr. Murphey is telling his own story, but because the writing has the tone of a friend’s letter. Not just any friend, a friend who is walking the road with you, a shared experience.

Each little chapter expresses feelings I had during the cancer journey. The emotions that nag caregivers and family members: The guilt, the pain, the fear. Mr. Murphey has not written fluffy, feel-good words, but the gut-wrenching words that go through our minds, and sometimes out our lips.

The length is that of a booklet, making it easy to read. Just right for those odd moments that a caregiver has to capture time alone. I would have preferred, however, paperback dimensions to easily slip the book into a pocket or bag.

The one negative is has been categorized as a “gift book.” There is too much practical information to be simply a gift book. It appears much too pretty to have practical advice, and could be easily set aside.

An advantage of a gift book is the quality. The cover and illustrations are refreshing and design style indicate this book is more than a how-to. The small tome is a respite to return to during the long days and weeks of dealing with cancer.

Although the focus is on families dealing with cancer, all caregivers can use the inspiration along with practical advice.

Every hospice, oncologist, and church should have this book available for family members. Although it is Christian at its core, the words are for everyone, including professional caregivers.

Don’t be afraid to purchase When Someone You Love Cancer for yourself. It is a gift to yourself, and a gift for your loved one, as you help in the healing process.

When Someone You Love Has Cancer
Cecil Murpehy
Harvest House Publishers
ISBN: 978-0-7369-2428-3