Thursday, December 28, 2017

Book Review: "Five-Word Prayers" by Lisa Whittle

Lisa Whittle, 5-Word Prayers: Where to Start When You Don’t Know What to Say to God (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 2017), 164 pp.  $13.99.

Prayer is a mysterious thing, and how God works through prayer is even more mysterious.  Several years ago, I was working in a ministry organization that really made me question my calling in ministry.  I loved the work and (most of) those I worked with.  However my supervisor was anything but a Christian leader.  Her morals were questionable, her work ethic was sketchy and her treatment of her employees was determined by how little she paid you (the more you were paid, the worst you were treated, which included public shaming).  I was a hospital chaplain, and had just come out of a great situation.  I loved where I had worked, however my contract was up and I needed to move on.  So I moved across town and immediately regretted my decision. 

Fast forward about four months to an incredibly draining weekend where I ended by day by being chewed out for ministering to the family of a dying patient.  It was not my unit, however I was the only chaplain available that weekend.  The problem was not that I was on a unit that I was not assigned to (necessarily).  The problem had been that I had agreed to go and minister to them.  By the time I got home, my family was already in bed. Oh, did I forget that I had to be back at 8:00 am the next day.  I collapsed into my recliner and simply prayer, “God, please do something now.”  It was five words, yet it was probably the most heart-felt prayer that I had ever personally prayed.  Five words.

The next day…I was fired.  I am still to this day not sure that “you’re the best floor chaplain that I have” is sufficient reason for firing someone.  But like I said, everything about this lady was highly questionable.  After being let go, I went back to my office to finish my paperwork (it was the deal to get my last paycheck).  I flipped open my phone (yup) and saw that I had a voicemail.  It was the hospital that I had previously worked for, and they were offering me a job!  “Please come to a meeting tonight to hear more details.”  Less than twenty-four hours later, and it seemed that God has answered my prayer.  I would go on to spend 2-1/2 years with that hospital, leaving only to accept my current full-time teaching position.  Five words.

Please do not misunderstand me.  I am not saying that simply praying a simple prayer will solve all of your problems.  What I am saying is that our prayers, especially in difficult times, can be simple prayers—even as simple as five words.  This is the beauty of Whittle’s little book.  It is theologically light, and can border on advocating the very approach to prayer that I am cautioning you against in this review.  However, her “five-word prayers” are practical.  Some of her prayers can be adjusted for more critical moments of life, such as the sudden, tragic death of a loved one (“Please give me strength now” or “I want to trust you.”).  Yet, in for the busy, connected world that we live in, this prayer guide might be just what you need to find guidance from and fulfillment in God.

Monday, December 25, 2017

Books I Read in 2017

I have used Goodreads' feature for the last couple of years to share what I have read in a year.  However, I cannot distinguish specifically what types of books that I have read.  So, here is what I have read categorically in 2017.  I hope you find some inspiration here!

- Fiction

  • **Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale
  • *Philip Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
  • Philip Dick, The Man in the High Castle
  • T.S. Eliot, The Wasteland and Other Writings
  • James Hannah, The A to Z of You and Me
  • *Madeline L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time
  • John LeCarre, Our Kind of Traitor
  • Dennis Lehane, Live by Night
  • Cormac McCarthy, Child of God
  • *Cormac McCarthy, No Country for Old Men
  • Arthur Miller, Broken Glass
  • **George Orwell, 1984
  • Philip Roth, The Plot Against America
  • William Shakespeare, Macbeth
  • *William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing
  • William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet
  • Jeff Vandermeer, Annihilation
- Biblical Studies

  • *David Bartlett, Romans
  • *Dave Bland, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon
  • *Charles Cousar, Reading Galatians, Philippians and 1 Thessalonians
  • **Peter Enns, The Bible Told Me So
  • Beverly Gaventa, First and Second Thessalonians
  • Robert Jewett, The Thessalonian Correspondence 
  • Derek Kidner, The Message of Ecclesiastes
  • Thomas Mann, Deuteronomy
  • Bonnie Thurston, Reading Ephesians, Colossians and 2 Thessalonians
  • N.T. Wright, Galatians and Thessalonians
  • N.T. Wright, Romans, Part One: Romans 1-8
  • N.T. Wright, Romans, Part Two: Romans 9-16
- Education

  • *Lorrie Blair, Writing a Graduate Thesis or Dissertation
  • Leisyte and Wilkesmann, Organizing Academic Work in Higher Education
  • *Stabile and Ershler, Constructivism Revisited in the Age of Social Media
  • *Ernest Stringer, Action Research
  • Marshall Welch, Engaging Higher Education
- Ministry


  • *Herring and Elton, Leading Congregations and Nonprofits in a Connected World
  • Ron Susek, Firestorm
  • **Thomas Tumblin, AdMinistry
- Preaching/Communication


  • *Jeffrey Arthurs, Preaching with Variety
  • Decker and York, Speaking with Bold Assurance
  • Gonzalez and Jimenez, Pulpito
  • *Hogan and Reid, Connecting with the Congregation
  • Eunjoo Mary Kim, Preaching the Presence of God
  • *Marshall McLuhan, Understanding Media
  • Lane Sebring, Preaching Killer Sermons
  • Frank A. Thomas, They Like To Never Quit Praisin' God
- Psychology/Leadership

  • *Brene Brown, Daring Greatly
  • *Angela Duckworth, Grit
  • **Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning
  • *Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed
  • Sebastian Junger, Tribe
- Theology (Systematic, Spiritual)

  • *Bland and Webb, Creation, Character, and Wisdom
  • *Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Creation and Fall/Temptation
  • **David Congdon, The God Who Saves
  • *Zach Hoag, The Light is Winning
  • Kyle Idleman, Grace is Greater
  • *Kelly Kapic, Embodied Hope
  • *C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed
  • *Kevin C. Neese, The Gospel According to Star Trek
  • John Walton, The Lost World of Adam and Eve
  • Lisa Whittle, 5-Word Prayers
  • *Brian Zahnd, Sinners in the Hands of a Loving God
- Miscellaneous

  • Harriot Castor, Starting Chess
  • *Richard Rothstein, The Color of Law
The books marked with an (*) are the ones that I enjoyed a little more, and the ones marked with an (**) were my favorites from 2017.  What did you read?  Did you read any that I did?  What recommendations do you have?  Leave your comments below or connect with me on Twitter.  And happy reading in 2018!