Results tagged “biography”
Book Review - Calvin (10/06/09 - 7 Comments)
It is here at last. For years now I have been waiting for a great biography of Calvin--the kind of biography which I would recommend without hesitation for those who would want to learn about the life of the great Reformer. In a year that has seen the arrival of at least half a dozen biographies of Calvin, this one, I believe, stands as the best. Written by Bruce Gordon, professor of Reformation History at...
A Faithful Servant (08/26/09 - 6 Comments)
A few years ago I wrote about Edwin Alden, a missionary and pastor who served in the United States in the nineteenth century. I have since updated the article and thought I'd share a little bit of what I found. Edwin H. Alden, was born in Connecticut River Valley, on January 14, 1836, born into a line directly descended from the Pilgrims. He went to Dartmouth College and then to Bangor Seminary in Maine. After...
John and Betty Stam (05/09/09 - 4 Comments)
"The fateful day began with deceptive normalcy at John and Betty Stam's missionary residence in Tsingteh, China. Both the wood-burning stoves had been lit and were starting to heat up nicely, helping to lessen the chill that gripped the large old house that cold, early December morning. The Stams, along with the six Chinese who lived with them in the house, had already eaten breakfast. "John hoped to study and get some correspondence done that...
Afraid? Of What? (05/02/09 - 9 Comments)
Last week I read a short biography of John and Betty Stam, missionary martyrs to China. Stay tuned for a review. In that book, written by Vance Christie, was a poem and the story that inspired it. I thought I'd share that today. ***** The poem, entitled "Afraid?" was written by Presbyterian missionary E.H. Hamilton following the recent martyrdom of one of his colleagues, J.W. Vinson, at the hands of rebel soldiers in northern China....
He Lives! (05/01/09 - 4 Comments)
This morning I cracked the cover of a new biography--one I spied while browsing the book tables at The Gospel Coalition Conference. It is titled The Life of Rowland Hill: The Second Whitefield and is written by Tim Shenton, a school teacher in England who has several previous biographies to his credit. Dr. Joel Beeke wrote the Foreword and he says this: "Here is biography at its best. Shenton marvellously brings Rowland Hill to life...
John Calvin: Pilgrim and Pastor (04/28/09 - 6 Comments)
There are not too many men whose five hundredth birthday is a cause for remembrance, not to mention celebration. Yet here we are, five hundred years after the birth of John Calvin, witnessing widespread celebration of his birth. This year we see many conferences dedicated to understanding Calvin's impact on the church and on society, even centuries later, and we see the publication of many books looking at the man and his theology. It strikes...
Book Review - Fearless Pilgrim (01/27/09 - 10 Comments)
Faith Cook is beginning to make her mark as a Christian biographer. While she has compiled short biographies of hymn writers and other noteworthy believers, more notably she has completed several lengthy biographies of such subjects as Selina, Countess of Huntingdon; Lady Jane Grey; and William Grimshaw. And now, in her latest book, Fearless Pilgrim, she chronicles the life of John Bunyan. It is interesting that the best-selling biography of Bunyan continues to be Grace...
Book Review - A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards (01/06/09 - 2 Comments)
Ask those who love biography and ask those who admire Jonathan Edwards and you will find the jury split on which biography best tells the life of Edwards. Some will vote for Iain Murray's Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography while others will opt for George Marsden's Jonathan Edwards: A Life. Most will say, rightly, that you cannot go wrong with either one; both are excellent and both are well worth reading. Several years after the...
Book Review - Incomprehensible Demoralization (12/20/08 - 9 Comments)
It's probably not a good idea for a drug addict to work as a pharmacist. Actually, I'd say it's definitely not a good idea for a drug addict to work as a pharmacist. And yet, in 1996, when Jared Combs graduated from school and became a licensed pharmacist, he was heavily addicted to all kinds of drugs--any kind of drug, really. As is so often the case, Combs had to be brought low--very low--before he...
Book Review - Called Out of Darkness (10/03/08 - 3 Comments)
Of all genres of books, memoirs may be the toughest to review. After all, how is a reviewer to evaluate the life experiences of another person? What is the measure of a good memoir and what is the measure of a poor one? Ultimately, as a reviewer, I can judge only the power and effectiveness of the writing, the truthfulness of what the author claims as fact, and, more subjectively, the personal impact of the...
Book Review - Jack (09/22/08 - 10 Comments)
I have often expressed my love of biographies. I consider them to be among the most helpful of resources in helping equip Christians in their lifelong quest for Christ-likeness. We can learn much from the examples of those who have run the race before us. We can learn from what God taught them, learn from their triumphs and learn from the times they were defeated. I have a passion for biographies. I also have a...
Book Review - Crossbearer (09/01/08 - 7 Comments)
The story has been told time and again. C.S. Lewis once walked into a room where a lively debate was in progress. A small group of people had been discussing the various world religions, seeking to understand what made them different from Christianity. As Lewis entered, they looked to him and asked for his response. His answer was simple and it was immediate. "Grace." Grace marks the great difference between Christianity and every other religion....
Book Review - Heaven Without Her (06/28/08 - 5 Comments)
I came very close to tossing this book away. With so many books coming my way these days, I need to move assess them quickly, determining which are worth a closer look and which are not. I cannot read them all. In this case, I saw the cover, I saw the title, I skimmed the back and thought “not likely.” But then I noticed that the author had included a little note inside. There she...
Book Review - Francis Schaeffer: An Authentic Life (06/24/08 - 3 Comments)
I think it is safe to say that, of all theologians contemporary or ancient, few have had as profound an affect on my life as Francis Schaeffer. Though I’ve read little of what he wrote, though he died when I was only a young child, and though I have never heard even one of his sermons, I know that my faith has been shaped by him. He was, after all, a major influence on my...
Book Review - A Passion for God (06/06/08 - 33 Comments)
A.W. Tozer is a man whose ministry has fascinated me. A man who held closely to biblical, Protestant theology, he was also a man who loved the old Catholic mystics. He had little formal education, yet had the ability to hold the most educated of men and women at rapt attention. He had a single-minded devotion to Christ and the highest respect for the Scriptures. Reading A Passion for God has only increased my fascination...
Book Review - Out of the Black Shadows (05/17/08 - 2 Comments)
I knew I had to read Out of the Black Shadows after I came upon Philip Ryken’s brief review of the book. Ryken wrote, “The book is a great read for Christians of all ages. The members of our book club would put Out of the Black Shadows in the very first rank of spiritual autobiographies.” The book tells the story of Stephen Lungu, now an evangelist serving with African Enterprise. Stephen was the oldest...
Book Review - "Still Growing" by Kirk Cameron (04/05/08 - 8 Comments)
I missed out on the Growing Pains phenomenon. Because my family had no television while I was growing up, the Seaver family largely passed me by. I caught occasional glimpses of the program but little more than that. It was only recently that I learned the show had propelled Leonardo DiCaprio’s illustrious career. The truth is I know more about Cameron’s post-sitcom career than the years he spent as Mike Seaver, one of television’s best...
"Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor" by D.A. Carson (02/27/08 - 18 Comments)
I try not to make a habit of posting book reviews two days in a row, but in this case I felt this book was so special that I needed to bring your attention to it. There are some Christians whose ministries God blesses in extraordinary ways. They preach to thousands and their books are read by millions. But this is the exception far more than the rule. Most Christians labor in relative obscurity, largely...
Book Review - John Adams (01/29/08 - 4 Comments)
I am a little bit late to the party with this book. Released in hardcover in 2001 and paperback in 2002, John Adams is regarded as one of David McCullough’s greatest achievements. This is no little praise for a man who had previously won a Pulitzer prize (for his biography of Harry Truman)—a reward he was to receive again for John Adams. The precursor to 2005’s 1776, this is a stirring biography and one of...