Earlier today I was looking for something at Amazon and Amazon thought I might be interested in buying a copy of Sarah Young’s Jesus Calling: 365 Devotions For Kids. I reviewed Jesus Calling a short time ago, but it came as a surprise to me that there is now a children’s edition. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. I spent a few minutes browsing through the sample Amazon provides. 

My main critique of Jesus Calling is that Young positions her book as a collection of devotionals given to her by God. God has spoken to her (she calls herself a “Listener”) and now she is sharing the words God has given her. This raises an all-important question related to the authority her words carry. If they are truly given by God, aren’t they authoritative and binding on us? She does not answer well. Though she says that her writings must be subservient to the Bible, she does not actually tell us what they are or how we are to regard them. Are they authoritative? Are they in any way binding on her or on us? If they are not inspired and not inerrant, what exactly are they? It is one thing to say that God has spoken to you, and another entirely to set these words within a context that continues to honor the authority and uniqueness of Scripture. These are not unreasonable questions, and especially so now that Young is modelling her form of listening to not only adults but to children and encouraging them to participate in it.

I found the Introduction to the children’s version of her book quite interesting. She repeats her claim that these are words given to her by God while affirming that only the Bible is perfect. But what is equally interesting to me is that she appears to have either received 365 new words from God for children (the devotionals in this book are very different and very obviously targeted at children) or she has adapted existing devotionals, but without stating that she has done so. Either way, this book seems to muddy her claims. Either God has given words to her specifically for other people (in this case, for children)—some form of prophetic function—or she has taken God’s words and translated or adapted them to fit a new audience. In either case, I think it’s time we saw this for what it is.

Here is the book’s Introduction:

I had no knowledge of either the book or the author when I began reading Sarah Young's Jesus Calling (having been asked by some of the readers of this site to do so). I had seen the book as a fixture on the Christian bestselling lists, but had never taken a look at it. The first thing I learned is that it has over 450 reviews on Amazon where it is holding down a 5-star average, something that is no small accomplishment. I downloaded it to my Kindle and began to read.

Sarah Young is the wife of a third-generation missionary to Japan who has earned post-graduate degrees from Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, a Presbyterian seminary. Her book is a devotional, a year's worth of short reflections on the Christian faith. But it has one major, all-important twist.

I will review the book under 2 headings: What She Says About What She Says and then What She Says. In other words, the first part will discuss the foundation of what she says and the second part will look at the actual content of the devotionals.

What She Says About What She Says

This is a book about experiencing the Presence of God (Presence is always capitalized in the book). It is about growing closer in relationship to the Lord, something every Christian craves. Young uses Presence to describe a very tangible feeling of God's presence. Here is some background, the first time she encountered this Presence:

One night I found myself leaving the warmth of our cozy chalet to walk alone in the snowy mountains. I went into a deeply wooded area, feeling vulnerable and awed by cold, moonlit beauty. The air was crisp and dry, piercing to inhale. Suddenly I felt as if a warm mist enveloped me. I became aware of a lovely Presence, and my involuntary response was to whisper, 'Sweet Jesus.' This utterance was totally uncharacteristic of me, and I was shocked to hear myself speaking so tenderly to Jesus. As I pondered this brief communication, I realized it was the response of a converted heart; at that moment I knew I belonged to Him. This was far more than the intellectual answers for which I'd been searching. This was a relationship with the Creator of the universe.

With Disney's adaptation of Prince Caspian having just arrived on the big screen, we have seen a flood of Narnia-related books hitting the store shelves. Readers who searched for books to coincide with the release of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe will be familiar with many of the authors and their books. Devin Brown's Inside Prince Caspain is written in the same style and format as Inside Narnia. Leland Ryken's and Marjorie Mead's A Reader's Guide To Caspian is the sequel to A Reader's Guide Through the Wardrobe. And Christin Ditchfield's A Family Guide to Prince Caspian is a follow-up to A Family Guide to the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

One thing that keeps book reviewing an interesting task is the sheer variety of the books I am privileged to read. In the past month I’ve read biographies, theology and devotionals. I’ve read about marketing the church, reclaiming the church and new ways of doing church. And now I’ve read about singlehood, admittedly a topic I know little about. Because my wife and I began dating when I was eighteen and we married when I was twenty-one, I have difficulty relating to the situations of men and women who find themselves single or single again in their late twenties, early thirties and beyond. Because of this I assumed that Single Servings by Lee Warren would have little to offer me. But it turns out that I was wrong.

Single Servings is a devotional book targetted at single adults. Author Lee Warren ministers to singles as a columnist for Christianity Online. He has been published in several other publications and often travels to speaking engagements. He is well-qualified to write a book to challenge and encourage other singles.

The Passion of Jesus Christ was rushed to press in time to be available for the release of Mel Gibson’s blockbuster The Passion of the Christ. The book sold some two million copies, though many of these were through a promotion that provided the book at cost when purchased in bulk. Many churches gave the book to those who expressed interest in learning more about Jesus in the aftermath of the movie. Those who are familiar with my book reviews will know that I have struggled with Piper’s books in the past - not on the basis of content, but on the basis of Piper’s writing style. These people may be glad to know that this is the first book by Piper that I have enjoyed from cover-to-cover.

Sometimes I read a book that has come with such numerous and lofty recommendations that really it can only be disappointing. Having heard so much about how the book will change my life and cause my faith to grow in leaps and bounds, I have often found the reality to be disappointing. Conversely, sometimes a book comes unhyped and unheralded and takes my heart and mind by storm. Such is the case with The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy.