When I was recuperating in the hospital ward following my brain haemorrhage, I had some really nice fellowship with an older brother in the bed next to me, who was from the Brethren assemblies. He shared some good and some funny stories with me. One thing he let me into was how elders within his denomination mark out young men for ministry: if they pray to God, addressing Him with ‘thou, thee and thy’, it showed respect and propriety. He agreed how ridiculous it was but stated that was how many of them made judgements. Safe to say that they’re not the only church or denomination to have quirks like this!

In my Linguistics Masters, I am doing a module on the history of the English language. I was surprised to discover that up to around the 17th century or so, Middle English had two forms of you – plural you, and singular thou. Just as in French up to the present day, these were used in dual settings i.e. the plural used for formal addressing and introductions with strangers, and the singular reserved for informal greetings with friends and family. Tyndale, one of the pioneering translators of the early 16th century, realised that scripture tells us how informal we can be approaching God. We can say ‘Abba’, which means ‘Daddy’ (Mark 14:36; Rom.8:15; Gal.4:6). Tyndale made a conscious decision to use the informal singular form thou, thee, thy and thine in passages where someone addresses God. The compilers of the KJV decided to use a lot of Tyndale’s great work, long after he had been martyred for his faith, and retained this usage that he enshrined for eternity.

How ironic is it that now, many see this usage as archaic and formal, and ‘respectful’ towards God, when it actually stands as testimony to our INFORMALITY and familiarity with our Daddy in heaven?

This was the very aim of the KJV, and it succeeded. It became one of the most popular books ever published, and left its brilliant legacy for generations. It was a triumph for the gospel, and forms a part of our shared literature as much as Shakespeare, if not more. I shall give it due praise and  revere it as a historical landmark for the gospel and the English language. But that is what it is to me: historical. We have classes devoted to the reading of Shakespeare and Chaucer that look at the ancient forms of our language in academic terms, trying to interpret the old language forms and tracing the changes over time. The KJV fits into this, so leave it there. Speakers of 21st century English are hard-pressed to grasp it, so read to them from all the newer versions. There are MANY to choose from, and yes, some are better than others. You need to understand just how they work, their pros and cons, etc.

There is NO perfect translation; meaning can be hard to convey over different languages. But the KJV is NOT a particularly good one, to be honest. It is too literal rather than meaning-based. For example, if I said to a French speaker “you’re pulling my leg” it would make no sense to them. Their equivalent expression is “take my eye” with an attending gesture of the hand removing your own eyeball.

And there is a portion of the KJV that should not be there! Erasmus (a priest and scholar who advocated reform within the Catholic church) was compiling his Textus Receptus, consisting of all the original Greek texts of the New Testament, used to form the base of the Lutheran Bible, Tyndale’s work, and the KJV. Erasmus could not find 1 John 5:7 in any of the ancient texts and put out a call to all scholars to find one. A well-meaning monk decided such a verse of scripture should not be lost so back-translated it from the Latin Vulgate to Greek and sent it to Erasmus. Other parts were made up this way, but that verse has NEVER been found in any Greek manuscript dating before the 16th century! It should not be there.

Sorry if I bursted someone’s bubble, but the KJV is NOT the be-all and end-all version of scripture to warrant deliberate ignorance of all others, or even their detriment.

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‘Mr. Sladen . . . when you say estate, you mean . . .’

‘His business, naturally . . .’ the lawyer answers.

My mind fills with images of cozy restuarants, quirky retail shops, perhaps a small town real estate office . . .

‘Please,’ I say . . . ‘if you could tell me the name of my uncle’s company . . .’

‘Fairlawn . . . Your uncle has left you the Fairlawn Funeral Home.’”

Jennifer Graham’s husband has left her for their children’s nanny. She has lost her job and is living with her mother, Joella, and her two boys, Bugs and Clay. The only money she has is from the proceeds of selling the house where she used to live with her husband.

Jennifer thinks that selling her inheritance of a non-functioning funeral home will be an answer to her financial woes. Unfortunately, that’s not the way things turn out. The funeral home is in such disrepair that it will take all she has and more to make it sellable. She decides to spend the summer getting the business ready to sell. Never does she consider staying on to run the funeral home until something tragic happens that might just change her mind. Does she have what it takes to be a funeral director and all that goes with that life?

This is a very well-written story that tastefully deals with what could be a morbid subject. The characters are very likeable and are interestingly developed. It is a story about the power of prayer and God’s infinite love for his people, without being “preachy”.

I don’t like the “first person present” style of writing, but the story was good enough for me to overlook my discomfort with that perspective. This is the first book of a three part series, and I look forward to reading the next book with great anticipation.

I hope you’ll check it out!

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She always thought her name was June Bug and that her dad was really her dad. That is, until she saw her face on a lost child poster at Wal-Mart. Her name is really Natalie Anne Edwards, and she’s been missing for seven years. All she remembers is spending life in a battered RV, traveling the United States with the man she believes is her father.

When another woman also notices the poster, June Bug slowly watches her life, as she knows it, start to unravel. Reluctantly, her dad begins the long trip back to Dogwood, West Virginia, to return the girl to her family, and to take care of some unfinished business. There are a few surprises along the way, and June and her dad are both afraid of what awaits them at the end of the journey.

This was a well-written drama told from several different perspectives, which made the story telling interesting. It was engaging from the beginning, and June Bug is a delightful character. It is gruesome, as June’s dad recalls the airplane diaster he came across as a child, but it is realistic in the telling. The ending was unexpected and, I might say, a little far-fetched, but it was still overall a great story.

I hope you’ll check it out!

Marshall Becker is an architect and a drinker. His partner and friend, Gary tricks him into taking a job in France to restore an old castle. While in the castle, Becker witnesses strange phenomena like things being destroyed. Slowly, Becker learns the history of the castle as he works on finishing the restoration project by the owner’s wife’s birthday bash. At the same time, you get to read the story of two french maids decades earlier during Nazi occupation. As the strings of the varying plot lines drift together, Becker and the on-site nanny become involved, but that’s a complicated storyline.

Most stories that involve a man and a woman usually end up with a romance. Becker and the nanny, Jade have their struggles. Becker is an alcoholic and tries to quit drinking without help. Jade has a secret illness and she’s not forthcoming about it. The reader will become tense as she nears the middle of the novel to find out why Becker drinks. It’s shocking. Shocking still that by the end of the novel, Jade was never told of the reason for Becker’s drinking. That would be a typical novel. Michele Phoenix writes a different kind of novel.

It doesn’t involve romance and Becker’s character is rough. You’d think with such a rough, loud, and unpleasant character a reader would not like him. This reader liked Becker. In spite of the roughness, you saw a bit of the tenderness he hides behind the bottle. He often loses his temper, even in front of the children. Then, there’s JoJo—the squatter on the property.

JoJo doesn’t talk. He’s great with horses and wood. As the plots start to come together to complete the puzzle, the reader is left in an aha moment. It all makes sense now. The end of the story is vaguely unsatisfying. You wonder if the end was left that way for a sequel. That being said, I enjoyed the story and the complex characters. I gave this novel four stars.

*Book given by publisher to review.

But I wonder if, in the interest of communicating better with the populace at large, we should change (or at least add to) the language we use when talk about these issues. Because, while I think freedom of religion is an important principle, an increasing number of Americans seem to have a decreasing amount of respect for the principle. And part of the problem, I think, is that they can’t empathize – they feel like Christians are just sort of following the instructions in some book we have because that’s what we do, by golly.

But, while not everyone has some holy book they can point to, everyone has a conscience, and everyone can imagine what it would be like if someone forced you to violate that conscience. It isn’t just that Tyndale doesn’t want to pay for abortifacents because they’re following, in a detached sense, the instructions of some book they like. No, rather, they believe in God, believe that the Bible contains messages from God, and believe, with their hearts as well as their minds, that it would be a great evil for them to have any personal involvement in an abortion. And the freedom to obey your own conscience is a freedom cherished by everyone.

Title: A Voice In The Wind
Series: Mark Of The Lion
Publisher: Tyndale House
Published: September 21, 2012
Pages: 544
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Hadassah’s life has changed forever. Her family is dead and she is now a slave girl to the Valerian household. She now finds herself under fire for not only her race but her faith as well. Hadassah now has to struggle with obeying her master and following her faith and obeying God’s calling, even if it costs her everything. Even if it costs her a life with the handsome son of her master.

Marcus’s life has always involved chasing pleasure and he sees no reason why it’s wrong. When he meets the bony plain looking Jewish girl he thinks his parents are insane to take her. Until he starts to get to know her and see the beauty within. His former life now has little temptation and he wants nothing more than his sister’s little Jew. If only she would let him.

While their attraction grows, Hadassah’s master, Julia, grows more debased looking for the pleasure she tries to find in all the wrong places. Hadassah feels a love for her master but it’s the love for her sister’s brother Marcus that scares her. She can’t have a life with him if he scorns her faith and she feels like a failure because she can’t show him or Julia that God is so much more than what they’re looking for.

Will Julia turn to God or will she continue to live a lifestyle that will slowly kill her? Will Hadassah show Marcus who God is or will Marcus scorn her for her efforts? Can Hadassah and Marcus have a life together despite their differences or will those differences tear them apart? Will Hadassah’s fear overcome her faith or will she stand firm in the one area she’s scared most to talk about?
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I had no idea what to expect with this book, but I can tell you that this is nothing at all what I would’ve expected. If you’re looking for a light-hearted romance novel with a perfect ending, skip this novel completely. If you want a gritty, realistic novel with a heart-tugging ending, then pick this one up. This book tugged at my heart and I found myself with years in my eyes on quite a few occasions. Also, if you want a fast-paced book, move along, unfortunately, this book can get a little boring at some parts. But the overall story is worth the slow parts.

This author gave a perfect look at Rome in the first century and you can see the parallels that we are taking in the way we live our life, though it wasn’t intentional. She described the lifestyle without too much drama or sugar coating it and made it extremely realistic. I learned quite a bit from this book about Rome and I always love to learn something new from a book, particularly from this timeline.

Like I said, if your looking for a romance with a perfect ending you will be sorely disappointed in this novel. The romance in this novel is more Marcus wanting her and Hadassah denying him. You pretty much spend the whole book hoping that it works out but kind of knowing that it probably won’t at least not in this book. Despite that feeling, I actually liked this ending, it made the book more emotionally involving.

The ending of this story will definitely drag you through an emotional roller coaster. Despite the fact that the ending isn’t picturesque and can be considered terrible because it’s the opposite of what you want, I loved it. I think it secured the author’s point more solidly and completely changes your view of everything. This book, including the ending changed me and my view of my faith.

This author had a huge hit with this book. It’s evident to me why over two million people have read and loved this book, because I’m one of them. This book makes your view shift and takes you into the view of the persecuted. It takes you on a journey that you hoped you’d never have to go on. I fully intend to get my hands on the other two books in this series, because you can’t just stop after the first book. I’m now a huge fan of this author.

Overall, a great look into the life a Jewish Christian in Rome, can be considered horrifying with some of the descriptions, though I don’t think it was intended to horrify just solidify the author’s point. I don’t recommend this for little kids, but adults will probably love this book. I give this this book a four and a half out of five.

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Tyndale in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.*

By Sheri Rose Shepherd

Bestselling Author and Bible Life Coach

I don’t know where you stand today with the man you love or loved—or if you are single, divorced, separated, or widowed. I can tell you, though, that if you’ve been hurt, you can be sure Your heavenly Father knows how hard it is to love and forgive the one who caused you pain. Yet regardless of the relational devastation you face, no one can keep you from finishing strong for God’s glory!

I was raised in a non-Christian home. My parents have each been married and divorced to three different people. As part of several blended families, all I understood about marriage when I was growing up was “unhappily ever after.” But then I became a Christian at twenty-four and married my husband, Steve, just a few years later. Because of my love for God and my husband, I honestly didn’t think anything could shake my own marriage or faith.

In the summer of 2007, however, my happily ever after was wiped out and my faith was tested. The family foundation I had worked so hard to build and protect was almost destroyed, along with my ministry, in that season of my life. I truly believed that God had forsaken me.

I had just finished writing my book for mothers about raising sons to become godly husbands. As I excitedly ran upstairs to e-mail the manuscript to the publisher, I suddenly felt as if something dark hovered over me. My passion for the book’s message was drowned out by the fear of an attack from the enemy that could come against me and my family if I stepped on his territory . . . young men and their future marriages.

I called the publisher and said I’d need to wait and pray for courage before submitting the manuscript. I went to my son, Jake, who was eighteen years old and a senior in high school at the time, and asked him if he had any plans of rebelling against his faith once he graduated from high school. I told him I was willing to give him freedom to find his own faith in Christ, but I didn’t want to put out a book about raising boys if my own son was going to walk away from the Lord. He reassured me that he was strong in his faith and that he felt I should publish the book. I decided to take the chance to make a difference and sent in the manuscript.

The book began climbing the charts, and everything seemed to be going well. I even began speaking with my son at conferences for mothers of boys. Then three months into my book tour, my fear of attack hit. My husband had taken a job that we had both prayed for. This job appeared to be a blessing; however, his new position required him to violate some of the boundaries we had put in place to protect our marriage, and we ended up separated.

There I was in the public eye of ministry, fighting to save future marriages, and somehow my own marriage was falling apart. My son was devastated by the division between me and his dad. It was too hard for him to deal with all his confusion, pain, and anger, so he took a break from his faith and began using drugs and alcohol to comfort himself. I had always known to run to God for cover when there was a great attack, but now I felt like He had left me alone on the battlefield to fight for myself. It appeared that all I had believed about God and all my effort to build a strong foundation for my own family had been shattered. My pain, my shame, and my life were an embarrassment. I felt as if I were battling an out-of-control fire that would burn up everything I loved and lived for. Every night I would cry myself to sleep as I struggled to understand why God had not protected me while I was attempting to accomplish something for His glory.

One night I could not take it anymore, so I fell to my knees and told God I either wanted Him to fix my family or I wanted to quit the ministry. Then I felt the Lord asking me a bigger question: Was My life, given on a cross for you, not enough for you to finish strong even if it means surrendering the life you wanted? For the first time I realized that my heart’s true desire was to feel loved and secure, and yet no man on earth could love me the way my Lord does. In that moment of crisis I found the true meaning of following Christ. God had not forsaken me, but He did want to free me from depending on others to give me my happily ever after.

That night I gave my heart’s deepest desire to God and chose to follow Him at any cost. In exchange, He gave me something so much better; He gave me peace that was more powerful than my circumstances. My faith was no longer in people; it was in Christ alone. Although nothing outwardly had changed yet, I had been changed. Today, Steve and I have celebrated twenty-five years of marriage, and our son serves God with His whole heart. He and his bride have given us our first grandbaby girl. However, to be honest, restoring our marriage was excruciatingly painful and more difficult than either of us expected. As hard as this trial was, it taught me a valuable lesson: our Lord is the God of comfort and the author of a new beginning. He can and will rebuild a beautiful life out of any broken heart willing to make a change. He will use one sacrificial choice; one act of forgiveness; one sincere, repentant heart; and one woman who is willing to step out in faith and start rebuilding with His love for His glory.

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. (Psalm 121:1-2)

For more teaching from the Your Heart’s Desire book and Bible study, visit www.biblelifecoaching.com.

PHILIPPIANS 4:8 FINALLY, BRETHREN, WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE TRUE, WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE HONEST, WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE JUST, WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE PURE, WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE LOVELY, WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE OF GOOD REPORT; IF THERE BE ANY VIRTUE, AND IF THERE BE ANY PRAISE, THINK ON THESE THINGS.

Do you have the joy of the Lord in your life? I want the joy of the Lord in my life- in every moment of my life – yet I struggle with this lately. I feel a constant pulling within that I fight daily. So what is the secret to a joy filled life?

The Lord tell us exactly what it is. It is hard; it is a daily struggle but if we want the joy of the Lord in our lives; if we want others to see Christ in us; we must fight boldly for His joy in our life. And He says we are to think on THOSE things.

What about the load of laundry that is just piling up? What about those kids that just won’t stop fighting? And my spouse is never home enough? Our exchange student who is very sweet, but very lost and sick for home? Our church expansion which has us giving more than we can afford? Glory to God He always provides but seeing those numbers on the account get smaller and smaller…..What about….

NO!

Nowhere in His word does He tell us to think on THOSE things. If we want joy in our life we need to think on these things….Our salvation IN Christ Jesus; the breath we take each day; our children who are able to walk and talk and who are in our home learning and growing with us each day. Our husband may not be home enough but he is home and he is working hard – Bless the Lord for the job he has and the bills we are able to pay. Bless the Lord for that vehicle we have that is falling apart at the seams but still gets us from point A to point B safely. Bless the Lord for life and home and family.

Jesus says, “Come to me, all ye who are weary and whose burdens are heavy…”

We are told to “Cast ALL of our cares upon Him. ” He does not say some cares nor does He advise us to consider what we think are most important. He says, clearly that we are to case ALL of our cares on Him. Big and small – significant and unsignificant – they all matter to Him. When we try to decide what we should give Him and what we should hold back; do we not suffer all the more? Why challenge God? Why imply that we do not trust Hi to know what is best; to bless us as we need to be blessed?

Rene Descartes said, ” It is not enough to have a good mind; the main thing is to use it well.”

How true is that? And how simple? Reminds me of the saying “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”

Our mind is a powerful thing; we are blessed with the ability for free thought. With that comes great responsibility though. We need to be strong and sure of what we allow into our minds and what we keep within. Only, as He says, by focusing on those things with are pure and noble and right can we manage to maintain the joy of the Lord. Only in this way can we shew ourselves approved, to Him, and to others who are desperately in need of the joy that only He can provide.

“The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10).

As I struggle with finding that joy of the Lord I am grateful for the wisdom, for the powerful words of the Lord within this book and its companion (Did I mention the 40 days to a Joy Filled Life devotional and Workbook…Cool eh?) Let us strive to be someone who others see the Gospel within. As we read, and search His word, as we pray and seek the joy of the Lord in our lives, let us remember it is not about what we think, rather it is about how we think. Jesus calls us to be different; to be set apart from others. This includes how we think.

“The quality of our relationship will depend upon whether we are mature enough and faithful enough to focus on what is beautiful, excellent, and worthy of praise, in each other.”

As the back of this wonderful book says, Each moment is a fresh start…..change the way you think!

Let us be a blessing to one another.

When it comes to providing contraceptives in healthcare, the word preventative is a reference to preventing pregnancy, right?  In Obamacare, the meaning of preventative is twisted like a Chinese acrobat to mean preventing children from being born. The HHS mandate in Obamacare calls on all employers (Christian, Muslim, Roman Catholic, Jewish) to provide both contraceptive drugs and abortifacient drugs. Contraceptive drugs prevent babies from being conceived (preventing pregnancy), while abortifacient drugs prevent babies (who have been conceived) from being born. That is an enormous difference and an unbearable burden for the conscientious believer who believes in the sanctity of human life.

Obamacare mandates that all employers fund abortion-inducing drugs.  President Obama’s view on abortion is extremely liberal, even to the point of allowing infanticide (which is killing or “allowing” babies born to die). Sadly, such views are now enshrined in our law and are imposed upon Christians who run businesses.

Thankfully, about thirty Christian employers have filed lawsuits against this injustice. One case (the O’Brien case) has been thrown out by a federal judge who does not believe that providing baby-killing drugs is a substantial burden on the employer.  Hopefully, the other cases (like Hobby Lobby and Tyndale Publishing) will fare better in the courts.

Some Christians would prefer to stay above the fray, as though there is a pristine approach to living Christianity without becoming embroiled in politics. I think such an approach is un-loving and too aloof to be considered gospel-worthy.  We are called to be salt and light. Failing to challenge injustice takes the sting out of our salt and the brightness out of our light. There are three reasons Christians must fight the injustice of Obamacare.

First, this injustice defies God. If anything, God is the God of life. He is the consummate life-giver. Every living thing is God’s personal creation (Genesis 1; John 1).  Every living creature gets his breath from God (Acts 17:28; Hebrews 1:3).  Jesus repeatedly referred to Himself as the life (John 11:25; John 14:6). God is decidedly pro-life. Death is a curse which entered because of sin (Genesis 3); and murder is the work of the evil one himself (John 8:44).  Abortion does not prevent pregnancy; it prevents a conceived human baby from being born. It kills a baby. That is not from God.  Abiding quietly by the practice for the sake of not “being political” is cowardice in the face of innocent children being slaughtered.

Second, Christians must fight this ungodly mandate for the sake of the 3,000 souls which enter eternity every single day through abortion.  Phil Keaggy wrote an apropos song which simply asks, “Who will speak up for the little ones?”  If not Christians, then who?  Those who know the author of life must speak for the little ones who do not yet have a voice.

Third, the view that Christians should not engage in political issues fails to understand the significance of being a Christian in America. Religious liberty is a fundamental (First Amendment) right for Americans, including Christian Americans.  Though Christians are to be first and foremost citizens of the Kingdom, we are also—at the same time—citizens of the USA.  As a result, we serve as standard bearers for freedom in the world. When freedoms are lost in the USA, they are also lost also in Pakistan, Nigeria, Libya, China, and North Korea.  We have a responsibility to the world. If freedom falls here, it will fall everywhere. It is the United States of America which tells the world that people should be free to worship and serve according to dictates of their own consciences. If we stop telling the world that people should be free, then who else will? The U.N? China?

In my opinion, we should be in prayer for those filing lawsuits against Obamacare and its ungodly mandate to fund abortion. We should pray that justice would prevail and that babies would be saved and that Christians around the world would be free to live out the gospel for the sake of humankind.

Related articles

• Tyndale House Fights Obamacare (thecynicalchristian.blogspot.com)
• Obamacare on ‘fast track’ back to Supreme Court (wnd.com)
• Obama HHS to Force Bible Publisher to Kneel to Contraceptive Mandate (pjmedia.com)
• President Brags about Religious-Freedom-Eroding HHS Mandate (nationalreview.com)
• Muslim Religious Freedom vs. Catholic Religious Freedom (frontpagemag.com)

To read more, visit www.thealabamabaptist.org.

This obviously combines three of my greatest passions: free things and reading and Jesus.

I signed up, oh, 10 minutes ago and already have enough points for a free Francine Rivers book.

You should probably go and check this out ASAP. Here’s my link; if you use it you get 25 points to start with, and it’s super easy to fill out your profile for points that will definitely get you to a free book or cool Bible.

Being bald and bespectacled makes my book reviews even better!

Even though blogging has its downsides (carpal tunnel and trucker butt), there are some pretty great benefits to being a blogger. Check these out:

1. All the coffee I make I get to drink… after I offer my wife a cup.

2. A chair that goes up, down, round and round, and also reclines!

3. Having a forum by which I can bare my soul, share my deepest thoughts and emotions, and help thousands… hundreds… ok, a couple dozen… AMAZING readers find tools and inspiration to pursue a deeper, consistent and more meaningful relationship with God.

And now, to put the proverbial icing on the cake, I am now part of a “Blogger Review Program” for Tyndale, Moody Publishers and BookSneeze! I love books, and to be able to get them free and be allowed to honestly review them will not only feed my soul, but help me to point you towards even more great resources to feed your soul.

The books are in the mail, so look forward to some reviews in the coming weeks!

Tyndale was an Englishman in the 1500s, exiled from his homeland and hunted down for his heretical views. England at the time was in the midst of incredible upheaval. The Catholic Church, which had exercised an iron-fisted rule over the whole of Europe, was beginning to see its authority erode with the effects of the Renaissance and the beginning of Martin Luther’s Reformation. Catholicism reacted to change as you would expect anyone in power for a millennia to react: violent persecution and unequivocal oppression.

The England Tyndale grew up in did not have the Scripture in their own language. English was considered a rough and backward language, far inferior to Latin. Many church officials serving in England would serve out their careers in England, never uttering a word of English. Lost in all of this was the common man, the Englishman who knew only English and could not read the Latin Bible. He had to trust in the Latin priest’s interpretation of the Holy Scriptures. By keeping the Bible out of the hands of the masses, the church exerted an incredible method of control over the population.

William Tyndale was the man who changed all that. As he grew in his knowledge of the Scriptures, he became appalled by the growing inconsistency between the teaching of the church and the truth of the Scripture. His simple yet profound conviction was this: the common man should be able to read God’s Word for himself, in his own language.

For this dangerous and radical idea, Tyndale was forced to flee his homeland and publish the first English translation of the Bible while in exile. The author describes beautifully what Tyndale accomplished, “Tyndale, for the first time in English history, gives God room to be God, and give the Englishman room to imagine God in ways that have been denied him – and with a new English that fuses glory with simplicity” (60).

In today’s age, a new translation of the Bible is nothing to get too concerned with. But in the death throes of medieval Europe, withholding the Scriptures from the people was one of the few remaining mechanisms of control that the Catholic Church retained. So it protected that right to the very death. More than just the translation, Tyndale’s views of God were what proved to be his death sentence.

The author writes, “Tyndale would not ultimately burn for the translation, which was an offense, certainly, but as a heretic whose ideas were too contaminated for him to live. Tyndale’s main injury to God was that he did not think like a Catholic” (238). By challenging the church’s unquestioned authority on all things spiritual, Tyndale condemned himself to death. The church hunted Tyndale relentlessly until he was betrayed and found, given a sham trial and ultimately burned at the stake.

Yet by the time of his death, it was too late. The damage had been done. The Bible for the first time was in the hands of everyday Englishmen, and there would be no going back. The church’s corrupt stranglehold on the people was irrevocably broken.

LESSONS LEARNED

The church has a horrific past of abusing religion for its own selfish ends. I’ve studied much on the history of the church, especially in the Middle Ages. What I read shames me as a Christian. Corrupt and violent men used the vestiges of the church as a medium to control people and enrich themselves. It’s no wonder why Europe has such a skeptical view of the church today. Its track record is horrible.

One man’s courage can change the course of a nation. Tyndale gave validity and a voice to the English language. He helped destroy the corrupt stranglehold the church had on the people. His determination to see the Scripture in the language of the people changed the trajectory for an entire nation. If you don’t think one man can make a difference, look no further than William Tyndale.

Leadership has a price. Tyndale paid a heavy price for his devotion to his cause. He was exiled from his homeland. He was constantly on the run. He did without many of the simple pleasures that we take for granted. After being betrayed, he was imprisoned and ultimately burned at the stake for his beliefs. Knowing all that would happen, Tyndale still embraced the cost as small compared to the good that he would accomplish. He truly was a saint living for another world.

We stand on the shoulders of giants. Tyndale’s impact on Christianity has lasted long after his death. Because he lived not for himself but for others and future generations, we still speak his name. He is a spiritual giant. I am able to preach and teach the word of God in English because of the brave actions of a man who lived 500 years ago.

QUESTION: What are you doing that will survive long after you’ve died?

About the Book

My Thoughts: Where Accused didn’t set well with me, Cantore came back with her follow-up and surprised me – pleasantly so. Structuring in the first book of this debut series struggled to find footing – or that was my impression of it, and it didn’t read well as a result. Centering again on police detective Carly Edwards, the second book of her story involves a kidnapped child and continued attempts at a reconciliation between she and her estranged husband Nick. Now both are Christians, Carly’s assumption is that they will easily work through their problems to eventually re-kindle what once they shared – that is a mistaken assumption. Her fight to rectify the trust they once easily put in each other becomes unimportant in the hunt to find a baby.

Personal issues and relationships in this story are important to the viability of its believability. It is almost as if it’s running interference in the background and is one Cantore sees through until the end quite nicely. It is a hard balance to strike since most of the time, setting personal issues to a tragedy doesn’t always go well but Cantore does it with ease. Admittedly, the character of Nick is not my favorite. His conversion is not impossible but I never felt like his persona was ever really revealed. It left me wondering so many things. Should I root for reconciliation between he and Carly? Or should I hope she puts her trust elsewhere? Instead of being able to decide for myself, as the reader, I am instead asked to put my trust in the heroine – a trust that demands we respect she is making the right decision. To be honest, I found this pacing and plot a great improvement over Accused, the first book. Its writing was sharper and there was more incentive to solve the mystery, and that compelled me to be more excited about reaching that final chapter. Up until that point, the book is exciting and gives the reader something good to want resolved and the emotions of the main and supporting characters are not hard to sympathize with.

In the chasm between Carly and Nick’s problems and the search for baby A.J., there is a lot of truth and “good” to be gleaned within these pages… it just didn’t “feel” right for me. Although it is sometimes mistake prone, Abducted isn’t a “bad” story by any means. It just didn’t have a “spark” to capture my undivided attention.

In Summary: Decent characters seeking to do good structure this story though the overwhelming amount of police brass and administrators makes the prose more confusing than good writing.

Synopsis: After solving the mayor’s murder and exposing corruption among the top brass in Las Playas, Carly Edwards is happy to be back on patrol with her partner, Joe, putting bad guys behind bars. For once, everything in life seems to be going right.

But then everything starts going wrong. Slow to recover from an injury, her ex-husband, Nick, begins pulling away just as they were starting to get close again. Meanwhile, when Joe’s wife lands in the hospital with a mysterious illness, their baby is kidnapped. As Carly chases down every lead in a desperate search to find the baby, her newfound faith is pushed to its limits.

With thanks to the publisher for providing a copy of this book for reviewing purposes; my apologies to the author and publisher for the delay in getting this novel read and a review posted in a prompt manner. 

© Copyright 2011-2012 Dreaming Under the Same Moon / Scribbles, Scripts and Such

About the Book:
Author: Janice Cantore
Publisher: Tyndale
Publication Date: 2012
Series: “Pacific Coast Justice” (book 1 of 3)
Genre: Christian Fiction, Suspense
Rating: 2 ½ out of 5

Synopsis: Detective Carly Edwards hates working in juvenile—where the brass put her after an officer-involved shooting—and longs to be back on patrol. So when a troubled youth, Londy Atkins, is arrested for the murder of the mayor and Carly is summoned to the crime scene, she’s eager for some action. Carly presses Londy for a confession but he swears his innocence, and despite her better judgment, Carly is inclined to believe him. Yet homicide is convinced of his guilt and is determined to convict him.

Carly’s ex-husband and fellow police officer, Nick, appears to be on her side. He’s determined to show Carly that he’s a changed man and win her back, but she isn’t convinced he won’t betray her again.

As the investigation progresses, Carly suspects a cover-up and strikes out on her own, uncertain whom she can trust. But when danger mounts, she begins to wonder if she made the right choice.

My Thoughts: As a police officer for 20 years, a relative newcomer to the world of fiction, Janice Cantore would be an expert at writing fiction set in the world of traffic tickets, arrests and sirens all washed out in a sea of blue. Or that would be the logical assumption. Though I have no questions as to the authenticity of Cantore’s writing – in fact, it almost comes across as too much so for the uninformed reader, this is not a novel I wish to re-visit. The constant use of police signals and codes becomes annoying as opposed to resourceful. Each term is explained and is comprehendible as a result but the consistent use of them becomes a poor use of such dialogue, confusing me more than informing – and for this reader, that is poor writing. Likewise, the number of characters introduced for some reason overwhelmed me. Normally novels do establish a great number of supporting characters but in my experience they don’t play a large role in the books or their purpose is used better. Here, Cantore brings in far too many in the same space.

Strictly reviewing this as a story, the plot isn’t bad. Sure, there are some holes in the best parts of it but overall, it is a decent depiction of a police story that is probably more accurate than most. Unfortunately, the over 300 pages aren’t always used to full advantage. Its demonstration that even the most lost can find God is touching but I didn’t always feel the genuine nature of every scene that is meant to elicit sympathy and depict those emotions as “genuine.” As characters who are supposed to be seen as everyday human beings,  not superhuman, I never warmed to Nick or Andi, or even Carly for that matter. Not a one of them meant much to me save for wanting to reach the last page and close out the story. I didn’t even hope for redemption for the wild Andi – nor was I bothered that I didn’t, or root for Nick to prove how he has changed to Carly. If this book sounded interesting to you, understand these are only one person’s opinions… but feeling detached from the characters is something no reader wants.

In Summary: Interesting premise that is unmistakably faulty puts this novel into the one-time-only-read category for this reader.

John Foxe tells us that one day an exasperated Catholic scholar at dinner with Tyndale said, “We were better be without God’s law than the pope’s.” In response Tyndale spoke his famous words, “I defy the Pope and all his laws. . . . If God spare my life ere many years, I will cause a boy that driveth the plow, shall know more of the Scripture than thou dost.”

And so Tyndale succeeded in bringing us the Scriptures in English. His translation is the basis for much of the KJV, which in turn is represented heavily in the ASV, the RSV, and now the ESV.

Last night I sat in Awana (our children’s ministry) thinking about Tyndale as my wife taught a lesson on the gospel. She handed out 14 verses on paper to children 3rd-6th grade. Those children that night read for all to hear the good news of Jesus Christ that was understandable in their own language.

I think of what Tyndale sacrificed, and his life was not lived in vain, because last night I heard a child read theses words:

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23

I have been in movie detox and trying to reprioritize my life.  I had let my God time slip and I wanted to regain that intimacy I had once known so well.  The foundation had been laid, then I had lunch with a friend at her work (Tyndale University College & Seminary).  She introduced me as “Jen, she’s going to be a student here.”  ”Maybe,” I would add.  ”Someday.”  I liked what I saw at Tyndale and was revived by their chapel service.  I hadn’t felt God stir in me like that in a long time.  But, it was still just a visit.  After chapel, we had lunch in the courtyard and talked.  We didn’t chat.  We talked.  There was nothing idle about our conversation.  At the climax of it, my friend bluntly told me that she had seen my faith life plummet in the last year.  I wasn’t where I used to be.

I pondered that.  I brought it home and pondered.  And pondered.  And pondered.

Then I decided to leave my church.

I had been considering it for months, but kept deciding to stay.  However, my friend’s words made me look at the situation with sharper eyes.  It wasn’t the church’s fault that I had grown dull, but it wasn’t the place that was going to pull me back, to sharpen me again.

I’ve had a hard time getting connected in TO.  My small group and few church friends were all I had.  I know that it can be tough to maintain tenuous friendships when the common ground is gone.  I don’t know that I will see much of that group in the future.  Since then, I have tried one new church and it was nice.  I don’t know if I will stay there, but I really believe God has a great spot picked out for me.

That was Tuesday.  It was Friday morning before I decided to send the goodbye email to friends from my (now) former church.  That same morning, I was reading Isaiah 48 and verse 3 caught me.  I even tweeted it.  This is what I wrote:  “[God promised long ago] ‘then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.’ Is 48:3 When it looks impossible, don’t give up. God is so, so able!”  The impossible is not impossible to our God.  It seemed like a nice point to ponder at the time.

Remember:  It is Friday morning.  Labour Day weekend starts in mere hours.  And I’m a teacher.

I don’t know what happened after that.  I’m really not.  Suddenly, around lunchtime, I had some very serious questions for the people at Tyndale.  I called and called and called.  It was nearly 2pm when I spoke with someone in the Admissions office.  We spoke until 2:15pm.  He told me I could start this semester, if I wanted.  I’m not even sure how that happened.  Did I ask?  Did I make comments about applying?  Did I just get accepted to a Masters program without applying?  He promised to email me by 3pm with course availability.

It was around this point that I stopped breathing.  I immediately called my Tyndale friend, received her wisdom and promised that I would pray about it.  How could I not pray about it?  I was obviously freaking crazy, but not crazy enough to do this without asking Jesus.

I prayed.  Through that prayer, I said to Jesus that I would walk through as many doors as He opens.  I asked Him for favour.  The more I thought about this program, the more I wanted it.  Step 1: Get a full course load. If I couldn’t do that, it wasn’t worth it.  Step 2:  Ask TDSB for a leave of absence.  Step 3:  Talk to my principal.

Just before 3pm, as promised, I received an email saying that they would have no problem accepting me and there was a list of all available courses.  There were enough for a full course load.

Step 2.

The due date for leave forms is March 1 and at least two weeks before the leave occurs.  March 1 was 6 months ago.  So, I called the board.  They’ll never approve it, I thought.  It’s impossible.  But, I asked for favour.  The receptionist repeatedly connected me to lines that disconnected or to voice mail.  I needed a person!  The sixth time was a charm.  I was connected to someone who could not answer my question, but he knew who could.  He gave me her email and advised that I email first, then follow with a phone call.  Once she’d had time to digest the news.

Check in:  3:35pm

In only five minutes, my board contact emailed my back.  She asked me a few questions and, at 4:11pm, my leave was approved – pending my principal’s approval.  Note that this person was (a) still in the building (b) before Labour Day weekend and (c) was qualified to approve the leave.  The statistics on that are not good.  (Insert your own “May the odds be ever in your favour!” impersonation here.)  The nice thing is:  Stats and odds don’t need to be in my favour.  Or God’s favour.  Sometimes, I think His favourite thing is going up against impossible odds, then succeeding without breaking a sweat.

Step 3.

I called the school.  No answer.  I called again.  No answer.  I didn’t have my principal’s cell number, but her work email goes to her BlackBerry.  I would have much rather told her the bad (chaotic) news in person, but there was no time.  She emailed back immediately.  (Check in:  4:32pm)  She asked the same questions the board person asked.  She needed to speak with the board and they had all gone home.  It would wait until Tuesday.

[I'm the biggest jerk in the history of teaching.  I know.]

Today is Tuesday.  After a few false starts (amidst staff meetings, home form organization, etc.), I sat down with my principal and she approved my leave.  They still need a great person to take over (we have one in mind), so I won’t leave until that happens.  I will go in tomorrow.  I might be in longer.  I might be done tomorrow afternoon.  No one knows just yet, but that’s ok.

[Side note:  I got some funny looks today when I said my Masters was in Theology.  One woman even said, "Science and Theology? They don't really go together, do they?  Except in the southern US."  She was genuinely baffled that I could study both.  My reply:  "I don't understand."  We got into a nice chat after that about God's stamp on creation.]

After so many years of feeling like, as with Friends, I was always stuck in second gear, I am excited to be living the dream again.  That will wear off when I get my reading list, but for now I am over the moon!  I am going to be a student!  I am going to do what I was made to do!  ”What is that?” you ask?  Following Jesus like crazy!  I haven’t felt this right in a long, long time.  I haven’t let the adventure of Jesus really take me places.  I have missed Jesus.  Now, I get to talk about Him all the time.  I wonder if the other seminary kids will get sick of it…

The program that I am entering is the Masters of Theological Studies (MTS), which is part of the seminary at Tyndale.  I’m going to a seminary!  Seriously.  It is a two year program (three, if I extend it to get my MDiv) and I will become a certified Spiritual Director.  (That’s kind of like a life coach, but faith-based.)  So, I now have no church, few friends, no job, a giant tuition bill and a crazy-fantastic relationship with Jesus that is only going to get better.  Fun, huh?