Book Review: Start! The Bible for New Believers (NKJV)

I recently received a copy of Start! The Bible for New Believers (New King James Version) through BookSneeze. If you’ve been following my blog, you probably already know that BookSneeze is a program that provides free books to bloggers in exchange for honest reviews.

The Start! Bible, edited by Greg Laurie, is specifically designed for new Christians and it has some great features, including introductions for every chapter and small sections titled Live, Learn, Know, and Grow throughout. As described on the back cover: Live messages focus on various aspects of salvation, Learn notes provide mini-commentaries on key passages for spiritual growth, Know articles expose the core beliefs of Christians, and Grow entries reveal the key disciplines of the Christian life. I found that these sections really enhanced the Bible reading experience and helped me to have a better understanding of the scriptures. Additionally, Start! begins with a short section about the plan of salvation, followed by Greg Laurie’s “Secrets to Spiritual Success”, both of which would be quite useful to a beginner and great refreshers for those of us who are not new to the faith. Rounding out the special features is, of course, an extensive topical index.

The language of the New King James Version is easier to understand than that of the old English found in KJV, although personally I still prefer the New International Version. However, aside from my own personal translation preferences, I think this really is a great Bible. As I hinted at earlier, despite being aimed at new believers Start! could also be quite useful to the seasoned Christian looking for a fresh perspective. The structure is similar to that of the NIV Study Bible, but it provides new insight in its chapter introductions and offers a lot of great hints on how to apply Biblical principles to your life in the Live, Learn, Know, and Grow messages. Whether you’re just starting out on your walk with Jesus or you’ve been getting to know Him for years, this Bible is definitely worth checking out.

Free download: Veggie Tales The Incredible Singing Christmas Tree

If you've got little ones, you'll want to head over to Amazon.com for this great freebie! It popped up in my gold box yesterday, and it's definitely legit. The entire Veggie Tales mp3 album, The Incredible Singing Christmas Tree, is completely free. I don't know how long the price will stay at $0.00, so get it while you can!

Stocking Your Kids' "Dress Up" Box

Right now is a great time to pick up some "dress up" clothes for your kids! Today is the last day Target will be selling Halloween products, and all costumes left are 90% off. Pickings are slim, but if you're willing to sift through you may find a gem. Also, as of last night Walmart (in Latham) still had plenty of costumes left, all at 75% off. I was quite surprised at the selection available! Even if your kids are too young to enjoy playing make believe, it's never too early to start stocking up for the future at a great price. Happy saving! :)

Book Review: Cast of Characters from the writings of Max Lucado

I recently had the privilege of reading Cast of Characters, from the writings of Max Lucado. I received the book through a program called BookSneeze that provides bloggers with free books in exchange for honest reviews. The description on the cover reads “Common people in the hands of an uncommon God.” Basically, this book is a compilation of stories from several books by Max Lucado. Each chapter is about a different biblical character and illustrates not only how God used these common people for his purposes, but also tells of what these people would look like in modern day.

While the majority of the chapters tell of people most of us are familiar with (Job, Paul, and Lazarus to name a few), one of my favorites was about the lesser known Jairus, from Luke 8:41-56. Oh, everyone knows about his daughter, whom Jesus raised from the dead, but this story is about Jairus. A leader of the synagogue who begged Jesus to heal his little girl, Lucado compares him to a modern day church leader. “The kind of man you would find leading a prayer at the football game or serving as president of the Lion’s Club…He was a good man. His marriage wasn’t all it could be, but it was better than most. His church was full. His name was respected.” I felt a connection to this man that I never had just skimming through his story in Luke. He is brought to life in a whole new way by his story in this book, as are all the others who are part of this Cast of Characters.