Unchanging Witness by S. Donald Fortson III and Rollin G. Grams

Unchanging Witness is definitely a book for our current times. This topic is front and center in our nation today and Christians run the gamut as to what they think God teaches on this topic. Non-Christians stick to the typical verses to try to say "judge not" and all of the other typical arguments. To say that both of these groups are clashing is an understatement. 

Being that I am younger, I had no idea as to when the entire Gay Movement started and what all it entailed. I was surprised by my lack of knowledge towards this history. I appreciated that the authors spent time laying a strong foundation in the history of this movement and how we have gotten to this point in our culture now.

I have not been to seminary but I like to be challenged in my reading choices. With that said, I found this book to be very well written and it included any and every question I could think of. I appreciated that these questions weren't backed by opinion, but were backed by Scripture. Not having a seminary degree or lots of knowledge in the history and culture of certain texts, I really enjoyed this background. 

I wouldn't qualify this book as "light" reading, and I don't think that the authors consider this book to be taken "lightly." It deals with some weighty topics and is counter-cultural. It is definitely a book I'd like to reread because there is so much in it that I'm afraid I've missed!

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I received this book free from B & H Publishers in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.

The Things of Earth by Joe Rigney

When I read the back of this book, I couldn't wait to open it up and start reading it. I have long felt the conflict of loving the things God has provided because He is God and using it to bring glory to Him, to feeling guilty because I didn't want to make anything He gave me into an idol. It's was a toss up as to how I felt on different days and different times of my life. I wasn't certain that I quite understood it.

Joe Rigney does start out saying that he's a professor, so some of his wording can be a harder to read when you are tired. I felt like I needed to devote my full attention to what he was saying as I read, which is a good thing. I definitely understood it more than if he had used words that I didn't have to consider.

He starts the book by laying the foundation of who God is and what He has provided. If we don't understand that, we won't understand the main question of how to treasure God by enjoying His gifts. I appreciated that Rigney debated back and forth as to the flipside of the equation was when considering this question. It helped me to realize that I wasn't alone in my thought process and that it is okay to wrestle it out in my mind, even when it's hard to explain it.

Rigney constantly points the reader back to God. We enjoy God's gifts because we love Him and can use those gifts to bring Him glory. It's not necessarily bad to own a house or to have things. It's their use that makes it good or bad. Let me just say, reading this book has made shopping more interesting. I find myself pausing and actually thinking about the use of what I want, instead of whether it's a purchase for just me. It has helped in regards to my spending, too, because I'm checking my heart before I purchase.

If people are honest, I imagine many others wrestle with this topic of loving God and loving what He has given us. I learned a lot through this book and am thankful that it helped clarify some things for.me in Scripture.

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I received this book free from Crossway in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.

Blind Spots by Collin Hansen

When I saw this book was coming out, I was anxious to read it. To be honest, the cover, summary, and unique title of the book drew me in from the very beginning. Add to that the excellent marketing on social media, and I was looking forward to getting this book in my hands.

This is a short, yet extremely powerful book. I saw myself throughout the pages of this book. I realized, thanks to Collin Hansen's writing and teaching, that I am part of the problem with church. In fact, we all are, if we're honest. We're all gifted with compassion, courage, or commissioning. These are all excellent things to have, but they lead to their own set of blind spots. The blind spot for compassion leads to frustration that others aren't caring for the same group of people/issues as I am. Courage's blind spot can lead to pride and thinking that every thing that happens, whether in the church, your life, or political scene, is meant to argue until the other person comes around or until you are rejected. Commissioning has the blind spot of watering down the gospel because after all, the most important thing is they know and accept God. On the flip side, they have positives. Compassion moves us to action. Courage used wisely helps us pick and choose which issues we need to fight for and when to talk and when to stay quiet. Commission leads to church plants and the spread of the Gospel.

Needless to say, I had only ever seen the positives of all of these. I obviously was blinded by where my compassion might be a problem. This doesn't just cause a problem in my personal walk with Christ, but it causes a problem in the church. We tend to be with like-minded people. That's not how the church is to be. We should be challenged by those with the other gifts and learn to work together, being thankful for the gifts that others bring to the table.

This book would be an excellent book to use for small group study. It's only 118 pages with 5 chapters, but it's packed full of truth. Every person will be challenged by this book if you truly search your heart. Know your blind spot so you can fight against it. In the words of Collin Hansen, "let's see our differences as opportunity."

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I received this book free from Crossway in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.