Forgive me for sharing a list of 30 Minute Reviews even though I posted another batch yesterday. I have a big backlog of books piled up on my desk, and having spent at least 30 minutes in each one of them, I am eager to provide these short reviews. Publishers are releasing plenty of good books these days and I’m glad to be able to draw your attention to a few of them.

Come to the Waters by James Montgomery Boice - Though James Montgomery Boice died over 10 years ago, his words live on. In this new book, D. Marion Clark has compiled a year’s worth of daily devotionals drawn from Boice’s sermons and unpublished writings. They are based upon texts from Genesis all the way through Revelation. In his introduction to be book Clark writes, “These devotions are not intended simply to make you a better person. They are to lead you again and again to your only hope—Jesus Christ—for glorifying God. If you ever heard Dr. Boice preach or if you have ever read one of his books, you will know roughly what to expect here: systematic, God-honoring, Christ-exalting exposition of Scripture that is not only preached but also applied.

Everyday Prayers by Scotty Smith - One morning Scotty Smith decided he would open up the Bible, turn on his laptop, and begin praying through some of his favorite verses of Scripture. In order to force himself to move at a slow pace and in order to help with his concentration, he elected to type out these prayers. A few weeks later this had become a habit and from there a discipline and a delight. He began to share select prayers with a few friends, then with a list of people and then on a blog. I have often linked to or reprinted those prayers. Baker has now taken 365 of them and compiled them in a book aptly titled Everyday Prayers. What has always appealed to me about Smith’s prayers is that, compared to some other prayer books (such as The Valley of Vision) they are just so normal; they are in the language I use every day. For that reason I find them tremendously helpful.

Steve Jobs - I guess you’ve heard by now that Steve Jobs has had to retire as CEO of Apple. This article offers a look at his impact of his career. “Most people are lucky if they can change the world in one important way, but Jobs, in multiple stages of his business career, changed global technology, media and lifestyles in multiple ways on multiple occasions.”

The Oncology Waiting Room - In this month’s issue of Tabletalk, Mike Pohlman writes about the gospel and the oncology waiting room.

Insect Portraits - This is amazing stuff. “The 'portraits', taken with a scanning electron microsope (SEM) by Steve Gschmeissner, reveal the tiny world that surounds us, yet still evades our view.”

Who’s Your Daddy? - I must be getting old. “The freshmen class entering college this Fall has no remembrance of what life was like before the Internet, what this whole Communist Party fuss was about in Russia, and that Amazon was once just known as a river in South America. Ferris Bueller is old enough to be their dad, and they probably don't know the name of the bar where everybody knows your name.”

Don’t Eat the Placentas! - It’s not the article I am linking to here as much as one of the paragraphs; it struck me as being near-brilliant. “Most of the time I regard magazines as a treat. I read them when I'm taking a bath, when I'm traveling, or when I'm having a meal alone. They're the potato chips of my reading life: I can grab a handful, feel a twinge of self-indulgence, and yet feel good about not destroying my appetite for more serious stuff.”

Consecutive Expository Preaching - David Murray writes about the pros and cons of consecutive expository preaching (i.e. preaching through books of the Bible in a verse-by-verse fashion).

Dominionists - Douglas Groothuis: “In the August 15 issue of The New Yorker, Ryan Lizza asserts that Bachmann has been ideologically shaped by ‘exotic’ thinkers of the dominionist stripe who pose a threat to our secular political institutions. The piece--and the much of the subsequent reaction to it the media--is a calamity of confusion, conflation, and obfuscation.”

If you would have God hear you when you pray, you must hear him when he speaks. —Thomas Brooks

Every day, 7 days per week, Rasmussen Reports releases the results of a poll that measures what percentage of the American people approve of the way their president is performing his role. Here is a brief excerpt from yesterday’s press release: “The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday shows that 19% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as president. Forty-five percent (45%) Strongly Disapprove, giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -26.” 

At the moment, President Obama is not doing well; his rating is lower than it has ever been and continues what has been a long, steady decline from the +28 and +30 that followed his inauguration. A measure of -26 means that the number of people who strongly disapprove of the job he is doing is 26% greater than the number of people who strongly approve of it. As the report points out, these numbers are beginning to approach the levels that George W. Bush experienced near the end of his second term. Things are not looking too good in the White House.

You will not be surprised to hear that there is some controversy over whether these reports really mean a whole lot. Some suggest that they display a conservative bias and are therefore not as accurate as they ought to be. But what is clear is that the polls do show general trends as reflected in this graphic:

I found myself thinking about this yesterday, wondering what it would be like to have someone measuring my popularity on a day-to-day basis. It cannot be fun. I do not envy the president.

The death of a loved one is something we usually prefer not to think about…until we have to. If a Christian close to you were to die, would you know how to grieve biblically? That is, would you have a clear understanding of all that the Bible teaches on the subject of Christians in the afterlife, so that your grief could bring glory to God, as well as hope and comfort to your soul?

I doubt that many of us are really prepared to grieve to God's glory or—just as important for the sake of the church—to help others do so. When death strikes close by, we need something more solid to hold onto than a vague sense that our loved one is now “with Jesus.” We need the comfort, hope, and solace of Scripture. We need wisdom.

Grieving, Hope and Solace: When a Loved One Dies in Christ, is probably not quite like any book you have ever read, and this is largely due to the deep wisdom and intense God-centeredness of the man who wrote it.

Many of you will be familiar with John Murray, the late professor from Westminster Theological Seminary who wrote the classic, Redemption Accomplished and Applied. In regard to an upcoming conference at which he was scheduled to preach, Murray once said of this book’s author, "If Al Martin is to be there I really think he should be asked to take the three evening services proposed for me. He is one of the ablest and most moving preachers I have ever heard...I have not heard his equal."

Pastor Albert N. Martin shepherded the people of Trinity Baptist Church in Montville, New Jersey for 46 years. He was a Reformed Baptist at least a quarter-century before anyone considered it to be cool. Now retired from ministry, he has written this book to recount what he learned from the death of his wife, Marilyn, at age 73.

His book has been endorsed by Joel Beeke ("Al Martin weaves together personal tenderness and biblical teaching in this sweet book of comfort...), Steve Lawson ("Albert N. Martin is a seasoned pastor, skilled teacher, and gifted writer who has given us a priceless treasure in Grieving, Hope, and Solace.), and many others. Joseph Pipa, President of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, wrote,

Occasionally, serendipitously, we stumble upon a rare finding: turning the corner and being met by a glorious moonrise, discovering a painter or musician who touches us in the deepest recesses of our being, or reading a special book. This little book by Pastor Al Martin has been such an experience for me; written from profound biblical insight, tested by experience, Grieving, Hope and Solace: When a Loved One Dies in Christ is a delightful, edifying book, which you will want to read and re-read. Whether you are a pastor or counselor, one who is experiencing the pangs of grief, or a member of the church who wants to be useful to others, you need to read this book. Of particular use to me, is how the book helps one to train his mind and emotions for the 'rough door of death.’

When a book about death is being called delightful, something very interesting must be happening.

The early reviews confirm the promise this book holds out. Kevin Fiske wrote , “I had no idea that I'd be so immensely impacted in such a short amount of time.” And Terry Delaney at Christian Book Notes brought a unique perspective to his review: “I have worked in a funeral home the past couple of years… I have seen plenty of death and preached numerous funerals...It is a rare occasion when there is true faith in Christ present before, during, and after the time of death….Sadly, most members of local congregations are not prepared to die nor have they been taught to biblically grieve the death of a loved one or friend. Albert Martin, through his own struggle to correctly grieve and give God glory at the same time has penned a resource that is clear, concise, and necessary for the church today.”

Grieving, Hope and Solace is the August release from Cruciform Press, the publishing company I co-founded. Learn more about the book and read excerpts here. We put out a new, short book the first day of each month, and if you sign up for a subscription you can get them for as little as $3.99.