Rick Randleman's Blog

5 Cities That Changed the World

rickrandleman — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:32:46 +0000

I was excited to read 5 Cities That Changed the World, by Douglas Wilson. I love history, and this promised to be an interesting look into the history of cities that defined, changed, and inspired their cultures and the world. The cites covered are Rome, Athens, Jerusalem, London, and New York. While portions of the book were interesting, (I especially enjoyed the history of philosophy in Athens and its connections to Scripture), overall the book left me wanting more. Of course, Wilson was challenged at narrowing hundreds to thousands of years of history into 5 forty page essays, but while Wilson is obviously very intelligent, much of the book felt like pieced together nuggets of a freshman level research paper instead of a flowing narrative. Wilson attempts to soften the heavy flow of information with occasional uses of humor, but most of those attempts fail and seem silly and out of place. At the close of each essay, Wilson wrote a section entitle, the legacy of each city. These sections were usually only one to two pages, and I feel more attention could have been given to this, as the title of the book is 5 Cities that Changed the World. These served as little more than conclusions to the essays rather than defining the actual legacies.
There is much in this book that I have outlined or otherwise marked to be used in the future for sermon preparation, but I would be hard pressed to recommend this book general reading.

Kabul 24

rickrandleman — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:59:32 +0000

I was pulled into the riveting story of the book, Kabul 24, before finishing the first page. It is a powerful story of eight Western aid workers and 16 Afghan workers associated with the organization “Shelter Now International” who were arrested by the Taliban for allegedly proselytizing Afghanis shortly before the events of 9/11.

Kabul 24 artfully tells the story of the arrests starting with the two American team members, Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer, who were invited to a home to show the “Jesus Film” Little did they know, that the family had been forced by the Taliban to invite them in and turn them over to be arrested. The book continues with the stories of the others who were arrested, and even with the escapes to Pakistan of some of the family members and other workers, weaving their way through Taliban territory to safety.

There is little doubt, as you read the story of those who were captured by the Taliban, that God is in control. Through persecution, mock trials, and horrible prison conditions, Kabul 24 tells of a group of believers whose faith never wavered, even as their frustrations and emotions rose. The prisoners expected that God would provide safety, without bringing harm to their captors. And He did.

Kabul 24 shows over and over how God came through at just the right time, providing food, comfort, and friends when needed. God is the central character in this story as these aid workers continue to pray for and even love their captors.

If you like biographies, or have a heart for what God is doing overseas, this is the book for you. If you have ever wandered about real life persecution of Christians, you need to pick this book up. But most of all, if you want to see how God can take even the most vile of circumstances and bring glory to His name, this is the book. Kabul 24 is about turning to God, when there is no hope elsewhere.

Fearless

rickrandleman — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 19:27:55 +0000

Fears. Worries. We all have them. Fear of making ends meet each month. Fear of how you’ll hold up in this economy. Fear that your marriage won’t make it. Fear for your kids safety, health, etc. Fear of swine flu. Fear of war. Fear of clowns. Fear of death.

In his new

book, Fearless, Max Lucado says “Fear corrodes our confidence in God’s goodness. We begin to wonder if love lives in heaven.

” In the pages that follow, Lucado takes fear after fear and reminds us that God is in control. In fact, the most common command from Christ is to “fear not”, or “don’t be afraid”, or “take heart!” He helps us to understand that as we learn to trust in God, we can lay our worries and fears at the feet of God.

I must confess tha

t the last book I read by Max Lucado was nearly 6 years ago. I just felt like his books weren’t connecting with me, so I moved on. However, for whatever reason, his new book, Fearless, appealed to me and I was pleasantly surprised. Chapter after chapter, Lucado points us to our Savior who commands angels and calms storms. Being a Christ follower does not promise an easy life. In fact, quite the opposite. But we can face the fears we have in all areas of our lives as we remember that “nothing fosters courage like a clear grasp of grace” and “courage does not panic; it prays. Cou

rage does not bemoan; it believes. Courage does not languish; it listens. It listens to the voice of God calling through Script

ure, ‘fear not!’ It hears Christ’s voice comforting through the hospital corridors, graveyards and war zones…”Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid!”

This book is an easy, comforting read. It doesn’t delve deep into why things happen, but acts as a calm voice encouraging us to look realisticly at our fears and see how they pale in comparison to our Lord. I was able to read it a chapter at a time over the course of

three or four days and thoroughly enjoyed it. I highly recommend.