Reviewed by Leonard Smuts for Readers' Favorite

End Times prophecy has been with us for millennia and, in that regard, the Christian Bible has a rich tradition. For example, the Old Testament prophet Daniel gave a vivid account, while the enigmatic New Testament book of Revelation is even more graphic. All of this has been the subject of wide interpretation. In writing Living in the Last Days, Carol McCormick seeks to provide clarity and guidance by linking the predictions of the past with current events. The underlying theme behind the prophecies is well known. It symbolizes the final clash between good and evil, with the return of Jesus heralding a new golden era. There will be a time of Tribulation, a Judgement Day, and the final battle of Armageddon. Despite the hope provided by the Rapture, which will uplift Christians, it will not be an easy journey. Even committed Christians will be tested and may be subjected to humiliation, hardship, and even death during the Tribulation. The rise of the Antichrist and the Mark of the Beast is dealt with in detail, with new insights provided. A stern warning is sounded that a new world government is being formed with a 2030 target date to impose what the author refers to as The Great Reset, which will require the digital chipping of individuals and the erosion of freedom. Signs that humanity is entering the Last Days abound and are evaluated in detail, with advice on how to achieve eternal life through Jesus.

Living in the Last Days is an in-depth analysis of the available Christian literature on the subject, backed by considerable research and some fresh interpretations of the scriptures. Internationally acclaimed author Carol McCormick underlines the traditional wisdom of Christian teachings while relating them to present worldwide political and spiritual trends. There will be false prophets. The information regarding The Great Reset and its sinister agenda is a significant departure from the conventional approach to End Times predictions. This is highly relevant as digital technology, smart bank cards, and a host of electronic devices already enable intrusive surveillance and allow the tracking and control of individuals. Further danger threatens in the form of a one-world government, a single world currency, and combined religions, which will undermine traditional Christian beliefs and suppress opposition. These modern phenomena are compared to biblical predictions and a remarkable match is apparent, sounding an early warning of troubled times ahead. Christians will have to stand by their beliefs and preparation is essential. The book is aimed at a wider audience than practicing Christians and the author reminds readers that it is for all people, particularly the lost.

Reviewed by Natalie Soine for Readers' Favorite

In The Prisoner's Cross by Peter B. Unger, Don Campbell returned from his summer job at the Ford plant in May 1993. Don’s father Jim, a Ford mechanic, and his mother Alberta came from a working-class background. Don and his sister Sue had been witness to Jim’s lifelong relationship with alcohol addiction and abusive behavior. A tragic accident brings pain, sorrow, and anger to the family. Don’s years of being bullied and traumatized cause him to become detached from people. After studying at a seminary, Don meets Jop de Vries, a bookstore owner and Japanese POW during the Second World War. Don had agreed to interview Jop who also grew up with an abusive father until he obtained a college degree, and then went to Indonesia in 1938. Jop shares with Don his experience in the POW camp and how it impacted on his life as a Christian.

Author Peter B. Unger produced The Prisoner's Cross based on his father's experiences in the Japanese WW2 POW camps. Peter shares how God's love and grace - uncorrupted by politics, sectarianism, and church institutionalism - could transform lives for the better. The story is professionally researched and beautifully written with an interesting array of characters from all walks of life including students, professors, POW soldiers, and their captors. The scenes and locations come to life in the story as Don joins the seminary and interviews Jop about his time in the POW camps. The Prisoner's Cross is a remarkable story, highly recommended to young and old.

Reviewed by Edith Wairimu for Readers' Favorite

Resurrected Faith: The Heart of a Contender by D. Greg Ebie is a profound work that inspires Christian believers to look to God to reawaken their faith. The work explores a process it refers to as faithing. Faithing is defined as a journey and a lifestyle that involves living by what one believes. It is submission to the Holy Spirit who enables us to live and become more like Christ. It examines symptoms of dead faith which include spiritual pain and numbness. It encourages believers to contend for the faith and defines a contender of the faith as one who takes a firm stand for biblical truth and wholeheartedly strives to seek and know Jesus as he is. It explains the process of contending as a demanding journey of knowing and believing God’s doctrine revealed through Jesus.

While reading Resurrected Faith, I appreciated its emphasis on not only learning biblical doctrine but living it out in daily life. In an often challenging and chaotic world, D. Greg Ebie’s words reminded me I have constant help and counsel from the Holy Spirit in becoming like Christ. I also loved that the work helped me remember that contending for the faith is a continuous journey and not an instant event in an age that demands instant results. Resurrected Faith by D. Greg Ebie is a powerful book with crucial advice for any Christian seeking inspiration to know Jesus and make him known. Its truths are countercultural, reminding us of biblical doctrine and guiding us on how to live our faith in a practical way.

Reviewed by Susan Sewell for Readers' Favorite

Do you feel overwhelmed and frustrated with your life? Do you feel like you should be more fulfilled as a Christian? You Can Hear the Voice of God Through All Your Spiritual Senses (The Awakening Christian Series: Book One) by Sallie Dawkins teaches us that God gifts us all with supernatural spiritual senses. Encouraging us to release our old ways of thinking, outdated beliefs, and practices, we become more open to allowing God's miracles into our lives. By letting go of antiquated doctrines and limiting beliefs, we can learn how to activate our spiritual senses and, by taking every thought captive, we fully align with God's voice. Complete with frequently asked questions for clarification, application challenges, and prayers at the end of each chapter, this study guide will increase your spiritual knowledge and enhance your love of yourself and Christ.

The non-fiction spiritual book, You Can Hear the Voice of God Through All Your Spiritual Senses by Sallie Dawkins lovingly reveals what's truly broken in the belief system of the Church. I'm impressed with how the author, Ms. Dawkins, gives her testimony. Her eloquence speaks to the reader, her writing shows glowing heartwarming honesty and humor. Incredibly intuitive, Ms. Dawkins teaches us how to experience God's incredible love through faith and belief. Unconditional love from the Divine Source can potentially transform the world. A must-read for those who long for and are seeking more from their relationship with Christ. It is a powerful read and a splendid and uplifting tool for those who wish to enhance their spiritual lives.

Reviewed by Dr. Jordan Alexander for Readers' Favorite

I was curious to see how meditation was blended into Lawrence Keller’s book, Guided Ignatian Contemplation: Meditations on the Gospels to Come Closer to the Heart of Jesus. I have tried on more than one occasion to read the Bible and believed that meditation and this book could help me come closer to the ‘heart of Jesus’. I’m so glad I gave it a try! First off, Ignatian contemplation as a ‘form of prayer’ was not something I had ever tried. It involves the reader using their imagination to bring the stories of Jesus to life. Here’s the best part, Keller gets you started as a fantastic guide using warm scenes and colorful passages to take you to different experiences and points in time. Guided Ignatian Contemplation takes you through fourteen other stories right there with Jesus. I found myself appreciating more about the different characters – all real and depicted with their full gamut of human emotions and foibles like pride, humility, and arrogance. Keller’s story choices in Guided Ignatian Contemplation are presented in the order that Jesus lived them. For me, the book was like a crash course in the Bible. The author has done all the heavy lifting, peppering scripture and Old and New Testament references.

I highly recommend Guided Ignatian Contemplation: Meditations on the Gospels to Come Closer to the Heart of Jesus to those that study the Bible as a reference to quickly put yourself into different scenes that you can meditate upon and grow your relationship with Jesus. It is simple but powerful and integrates what you know with more color and diverse perspectives. The book is also great for those with a bit of fear around Bible stories – especially if you've tried and failed on earlier Bible texts that were too hard to follow. Trust Lawrence Keller to take you to delightful new places, leaving you there to mingle with the key actors, including Jesus, and to reflect on passages and verses, where you’ll learn more about the Bible. Keller has found a way to bring peace and calm while learning and reflecting on some of the most famous stories of Jesus’ life. A must-read.

Reviewed by Lois Henderson for Readers' Favorite

In these days of rampant turmoil and uncertainty, Yvonne M. Morgan’s Rest in God: A Prayer Journal with 100 Prayers and Scriptures for Daily Needs comes like a healing balm to the soul and like a soporific to the anxious heart. Morgan’s personal experience, both as a mother and grandmother and as founder of the Orphan Relief Effort for Nepal and Myanmar, has led her on an ever closer journey to God. The Prayer Journal focuses on relieving the spiritual suffering of those of the Christian faith, with daily prayers revolving around short excerpts from the Bible, and focusing on such reassuring themes as comfort, guidance and harmony. In addition, the author provides the texts of specific prayers that come from various Christian denominations, and which include the Catholic Prayer, St. Patrick’s Prayer for strength and John Wesley’s Covenant Prayer.

Yvonne M. Morgan’s multicultural experience comes to the fore in Rest in God: A Prayer Journal with 100 Prayers and Scriptures for Daily Needs—she clearly has wide-reaching compassion for, and empathy with, Christian believers across the globe. I especially love the way in which she encourages the believer in their personal journey with God. By leaving open sufficient space after each prayer and reading for the diarist to develop their own prayers, and to record how they have been answered, Morgan promotes the strengthening of individual faith and the burgeoning of a joyful spirit of thanks. Truly, this is a journal well worth acquiring, no matter whether you’re at the start of your journey with Christ, or a believer with many years’ experience, but who sometimes falters and doubts.

Reviewed by Christian Sia for Readers' Favorite

Murder-Bears, Moonshine, and Mayhem: Strange Stories from the Bible to Leave You Amused, Bemused, and (Hopefully) Informed by Luke T. Harrington is an unusual collection of biblical stories that will not only entertain and stun readers but will equally push them to question the morality of some of the biblical heroes. Eccentric in nature, this nonfiction book tells readers stories they won’t hear from the pulpits, but that are documented in the Bible. From David, the favored king of Israel who danced naked, to Noah the hillbilly, to Herod who was eaten by worms, to Jesus being vain by cursing the fig tree, to Lot being raped by his own daughters, and many more.

Luke T. Harrington knows his stuff and comes across as one who has meticulously researched not only the stories that are shared in this book but the culture and context in which they happened. While readers and Christians will adore prophets like Elisha, they will be surprised at their idiosyncrasies and acts of wickedness for the most idiotic reasons. The book features themes ranging from prostitution to gratuitous nudity, from butts and poop to rape, from unwarranted violence to magic, and more. While these are hilarious tales humorously told, they capture one of the essential elements that Bible devotees hardly see: biblical heroes were deeply human. They were men and women with flesh and blood running through their veins, and they got really crazy at times. Murder-Bears, Moonshine, and Mayhem is a fresh breath of air for readers who dwell too much on the morality of some of the characters in the Bible that they are called to follow. Beautifully written and never lacking the rare sting of humor to have readers doubling over with laugher.

Reviewed by Jose Cornelio for Readers' Favorite

Secrets of Broken Pottery: Seeing the Great Potter — Being Seen by Him pulls readers into the heart of God and shows them His tenderness and how He sees them. While it is easy to feel discouraged and despairing, especially when we are in difficult moments, this book reflects the way God sees us, not as sinners or broken things, but creatures that He loves deeply. Heidi McKendrick uses the example of the Great Potter from the Bible and explores the different scenarios and situations of the relationship the Potter has with His work. The author demonstrates, with compelling and convincing arguments, that God never abandons us, even when we feel terribly helpless and lonely. Like the Potter who cares about His work, he gathers the pieces — which are very important to Him — and recreates us. The author explores our human brokenness and shows how the pain in our flesh, spiritual, moral, and physical, can make us drift further away from God and then shows us what God does in moments like these.

This book shows readers the relationship between God and humanity, exploring the way God sees us with intelligence and in prose that is graceful and engaging. It is easy to see oneself in this book, and as the author comments on the stories and experiences of some of the prominent people in the Bible and their relationship with God, a clear image of God emerges, one that is loving, tolerant, compassionate, and patient. Heidi McKendrick shares wonderful lessons and articulates brilliantly on the Creator. This is a strong message of hope for everyone, as it reveals to them that they must have had a very wrong idea of God. Like the prophets and powerful men and women in the Bible, God has a way of transforming our inadequacy into a field where He exercises His creativity; the creativity of the potter. If you are looking for an inspiring book that defines your relationship with God, then Secrets of Broken Pottery is the book you should read. I discovered the God I never knew.

Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite

Jesus Ascended: What Does That Mean? is a work of non-fiction focused deeply on religion and the Christian faith, penned by author Scott Douglas. Subtitled ‘Jesus’ Final 40-Day Lesson’, this concise and detailed guide explores the transformative power of the Ascension and the forty-day period between the Resurrection and the Ascension of Christ into Heaven. Though most of the focus in other works is on the teachings that Jesus delivered publicly before his death, this work takes small details from the lives and records of the disciples and explores how they became transformed by additional teachings in that crucial time period.

Where most considerations of Christ and his teachings tend to cover the same ground with new applications for the modern-day, author Scott Douglas digs deeper to observe some of the lesser-known details and observations that can be gleaned from the life of Christ. Douglas’s prose is highly accessible, clear and respectful of his subject matter, but it is also engaging and laced with a friendly and inquisitive air that is sure to envelop even the most staunch students of the holy word. The ideas discussed fit well with the Christian theology overall, and present some really interesting questions about how we might solidify our faith over time and what it is that makes a true believer true. Overall, Jesus Ascended: What Does That Mean? is a highly engaging and fascinating read which will certainly give devout followers a lot of new information to think about.

Reviewed by Romuald Dzemo for Readers' Favorite

Fix Yourself: In Jesus (Pick Your Life) by Sally Hanan provides a tool for self-transformation, intimacy with God, and self-discovery. It is the perfect book for anyone who is longing for healing and meaning, for anyone who feels disconnected from God and self, and anyone seeking to redefine who they truly are. The author shows readers some of the lies they tell themselves about God and who they are and how negative experiences in the past and bad relationships can distort the way they see themselves and their belief in God. Articulating on a variety of themes, the author establishes the link between the lies we tell ourselves and the vows we make, the way we judge ourselves and how it has nothing to do with our relationship with God; the way our experience becomes the lens through which we see others, the power of forgiveness, the nature of evil, unveiling our true identity, and a lot more.

This is not your run-of-the-mill kind of book. It is a workbook that compels you to counsel yourself and dig for the truth. The book is filled with insights and sections for personal exercises. But there is a warning: Don’t use this book if you are not honestly seeking to become a better person, because it is designed to provoke a transforming encounter between you and yourself and between you and your Creator. It can be used in a group study and also as a personal guide to self-growth and personal development. I loved the spiritual insights and the biblical perspective that is masterly. Fix Yourself: In Jesus (Pick Your Life) by Sally Hanan is a gift of love and faith that offers a wonderful tool to redefine one’s life. It is one of those books that one needs to work on over and over again. Get a copy for yourself and for someone you love. It was a treasure trove for me, and a tool that will stay with me for a very long time.