Category: Book Reviews

It is strange reading a Christian book written by someone who was born and raised in India. Why is this weird to me? I don’t know, I guess it is just that most of the non-fiction Christian books I read are written by someone who was born here and knows our culture but very little about other cultures. It’s nice to read Mr. Zazharias’ points of view on Christianity.

What is “The Grand Weaver” about? The subtitle reads: How God Shapes Us Through the Events of Our Lives. However, every chapter of the book is titled with this “Your _______ Matters” – fill in the blank with words like Spirituality, Worship, Morality and even DNA.  The book like many non-fiction books did not immediately grab me, but  as I read I started to see that this book is more about motivating people to do God’s work than it is about the grand cloth that God is weaving out of our lives. Sure that remains the common theme, but the book could have just as easily been calling “What You Do For God Matters” or any number of inspirational titles.

I like this book because it actually does a lot of teaching about other religions. In the chapter titled “Your Morality Matters” Zacharias points out that Buddha and Muhammed built their religion around the basis that morality precedes redemption, then later points out that with Christianity it is the other way around. Christians are redeemed by God, not as a result of works, it is here the Christianity remains “distinct and definitively different”. (p.83)

There are times when I question my faith, we should, we should never stop seeking the truth, but there are some things you have to take on faith. Ravi Zacharias’ book The Grand Weaver is a definite “must read” for any Christian or non-Christian that wants to understand more about God and his plan for your life.

I don’t know if I mentioned the fact that I get free books to read from Zondervan and one other publisher so that I can review them on my website. I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had time to do much reviewing, however, I can tell you that I am reading Holy Discontent by Bill Hybels, The Case for the Real Jesus by Lee Strobel and Abiding Darkness by John Aubrey Anderson. So far my favorite is The Case for the Real Jesus which is an intellectually riveting read that is filled with fascinating information and insights about the life and historical information written about Jesus Christ.

Did you know that besides 1st and 2nd Peter there is a Gospel of Peter? Who knew! There are so many “Gospels” and literature written about Jesus Christ that people have gone through great lengths to find the truth. Lee Strobel does a brilliant job of showing us how we got to that truth.

In the above paragraph I mentioned “Abiding Darkness” by John Aubrey Anderson. It’s an intersting read but it started out a little bit like a play. There are introductions to the characters and who they are in the book. Do people do this with books? I thought part of the purpose of the book was for you to figure out who the people were and what their roles are while you are reading it? This is the first book in a trilogy and so maybe it will make more sense later.

The book starts out interestingly enough. It sort of reminds me of To Kill a Mockingbird meets Piercing the Darkness. A 1940’s setting filled with kids and demons and angels in a spiritual realm. I was intrigued at first and then there is this chapter where this demon takes possession of a water mocassin and he recruits other demons to also possess other water mocassion’s and they are traveling from all over to kill this little girl. Now I don’t mind dancing outside the realm of reality, but this is a way out there. I mean, the only mention of animals being possessed by demons was when Jesus cast out Legion into the pigs and they ran off the side of the hill.

If animals can be possessed and they act like Cujo or those Lions from the movie The Thief in the Darkness then I wonder why we don’t see more crazy animal possessions?

All I know is that my mind is ever being opened to new dimensions of possibility. For so long I’ve been close-minded about many things and instead of doing real research for myself to find truth, I just took someone else’s word for it.

I challenge you to do the same. If you believe in something, be sure that you know why you believe it. Find out some facts, don’t just do it because that is what your parents taught you to believe. Don’t be a democrat because your parents were Democrats, or a Conservative because your best friend is a Conservative. Go out and decide how you want the world you live in, the world your children will live in, will be shaped.  I love that about America, we have this amazing ability to change the world we live in, even if it is in the small things.

For example: I don’t like people begging for money on street corners, however, I used to feel sorry for them and I would give them money. That only reinforces their behavior and so the problem with panhandlers only becomes worse. However, if everyone stopped giving them money then they wouldn’t stand on the street corner because it would be a waste of time.  We, as a society, are the ones that make the decisions that rule this country, change takes time and patience and hard work, but if you really care about something strongly enough, then you can make a change.

The Power of Thinking Twice

I don’t do self-help books. I rarely pick up anything to read other than my Bible and fictional books that fall into the psychological thriller – murder mystery genre.  Business, corporate talk, money-making books, finance, get-rich-quick guides normally turn me off faster than my mom used to turn off the TV when she caught us watching The Simpsons.

But this book, this book is… powerful. Yes, that is the word that sums it up because it hits on all the important topics about being successful without bogging you down with unnecessary jargon or personal pontification.

One of my favorite “truths” from this book is a quote from Holly Lisle, “If you don’t accept the responsibility for your own actions then you are forever chained to a position of defense.”  Stop and think about that for a moment and see the simple wisdom in that statement.

If I took the time to recount all the great information in this book then there would be no need for you to go out and buy it because I’d have to put the entire thing on this site. Page after page I found myself gripped by the realization that this book was speaking to me. It was telling me to take action on things that I had put off in the past because I was afraid that I would fail. I wrote a book but never tried to get it published because I was afraid of rejection. I never even sent it to one agent! Now, almost 3 years later, it is collecting digital dust on my hard drive. At least if I had sent it out to an agent I would have gotten back some criticism or insight into what I could do different, but I chose the easier path of procrastination.

In this book Dr. Parrott points out again and again how it only takes 3 seconds to make life changing choices. 3 seconds to take responsibility for your actions, 3 seconds to decide to go the extra mile or to take the easier path, 3 seconds to look past the negative and to focus on the positive.

I already consider myself someone that has a “can do, whatever it takes” attitude. However, sometimes my motives have been less than pure. I did because of what I would get in return, not because it was who I was. I’m trying to changet that.

Another point that this book makes crystal clear is this, sometimes sitting back and taking the the easy way seems like more fun, but in reality, isn’t the real fun sitting in the drivers seat? What is the point of being part of a team if all you ever do is sit on the bench?

Take 3 seconds and make the decision to get this book immediately. It is published by Zondervan and is available at Amazon.com.