Review: Anointed to Heal: True Stories and Practical Insight for Praying for the Sick

Anointed to Heal: True Stories and Practical Insight for Praying for the Sick by Bill Johnson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is essentially a minuted version of Randy Clark and Bill Johnson interviewing one another. So you can search for the Audio Book or the DVD if you prefer those formats to reading this book. I felt that the book ended too soon - this is one of the few books whereby the authors could have probably added more content, elaborating on the existing material or supplementing them with more illustrations/examples/explanations of testimonies/personal insight.

I grew up in a thoroughly charismatic church and am studying in an Assemblies of God-affiliated seminary. However, my love and passion for faithful, exegetical preaching/studying of Scripture has drawn me toward my present expository-centered church, which has led to my leaning toward a more reformed position toward healing, miracles and deliverance - that these are not the normal operations of the Holy Spirit.

While I still am not a cessationist, I acknowledge that my posture toward pain and suffering - physical, psychological, economical etc. - is that of desiring more of a reality of God than for deliverance from the problem. I am therefore highly encouraged by Clark and Johnson, who challenge my theology and remind me how my brothers and sisters in Christ are so precious in God's sight and how we complement one another in ministry. I am also compelled to reconsider my level of faith and expectation for divine intervention when I pray for another person, even if he/she is a pre or post Christian. I highly recommend reading (and lending the book to others to read) Randy Clark's personal healing testimony (first chapter in Part 2 of the book).

If I enjoyed the book so much, then why the 4 star rating? While I understand the intention to faithfully reproduce the interviews, the impromptu follow up questions and a back-and-forth dialogue do not make for readable or thorough coverage of a topic/subject matter. I felt that many of the chapters, especially in the second part of the book (Bill Johnson interviewing Randy Clark) were abruptly cut off pre-maturely without covering what they were discussing. Hopefully in the subsequent editions these could be ironed out so that readers would not be left hanging.

I received this book from Baker Publishing Group's Chosen Books Blogger Review Program for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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Review: The Essential Guide to Deliverance: Finding True Freedom in Christ

The Essential Guide to Deliverance: Finding True Freedom in Christ by Larry Richards
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

As I read Richards introduce himself, I was very pleased to find out he came from a non-charismatic background, studied in and lecturered in more reformed seminaries and then was confronted with the reality of demons (I am roughly the opposite, raised in a charismatic church, schooling in a charismatic seminary but yet holding a more reformed theological position).

The book is highly practical, delivering a systematic and yet concise introduction to the topic. I did appreciate the easy-to-read language the book was penned in and mostly found part 2 of the book useful (a glossary of definitions on the topic of deliverance). I find it hard to accept Richard's proposition that demonised persons do not exhibit larger-than-life, extraordinarily dramatised behaviour. I was quite put off by the constant referencing to his own books repeatedly.

I received this book from the Baker Publishing Group's Blogger Review Program for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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Review: Jesus Talked to Me Today: True Stories of Children's Encounters with Angels, Miracles, and God

Jesus Talked to Me Today: True Stories of Children's Encounters with Angels, Miracles, and God by James Stuart Bell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Growing up in a charismatic church and having turned away from the faith entirely (which I attribute to dogmatic leaders, pastors who did violence to Scripture on a regular basis, and of course most of all, my own wretched sinfulness), I have found reformed theology and non-charismatic churches to be a breath of fresh air. However, the reverent interpretation, teaching and preaching of God's Word somehow comes with a lower emphasis on the supernatural.

This book's wonderful stories have compelled me to think back - does God communicate to his children directly and is the supernatural realm real? So much memories of my own personal encounters came flooding back, and whenever a book compels me re-examine my theology, I have to take a step back and reflect. I appreciate and cherish such experiences so very much.

Bell did a commendable job in compiling and editing so many stories; unfortunately I cannot give this book 5 stars because I am unsure of the authenticity of some of the accounts. The yardstick for me still is the bible, and some of the details did not match up with what Scripture tell us the supernatural and/or heavenly realm is like.

I received this book from the Baker Publishing Group's Blogger Team Program for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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