I hope that you are all keeping safe and well.
In these very strange and unsettling times, a book can be of great comfort, it can inform and educate, gently guide and, of course, entertain. My suggestions this month are intended to try to cover the first three points.
God and The Pandemic by Tom Wright
Pandemic, Panic, Pangolin, Pandemonium…
What are we supposed to think about the coronavirus? Some people think they know: This is a sign of the End, they say. It’s all predicted in the book of Revelation. Others disagree but are equally clear: This is a call to repent. God is judging the world and through this disease he’s telling us to change. Some join in the chorus of blame and condemnation; It’s the fault of the Chinese, the government, the World Health Organisation….
Tom Wright examines these reactions to the virus and finds them wanting. Instead, he invites you to consider a different way of seeing and responding – a way that draws on the teachings and examples of scripture, and above all on the way of living, thinking and praying revealed to us by Jesus.
REF 3118 SPCK (RRP £7.99) ASLAN £6.99
Where is God in a Coronavirus World? by John C. Lennox
How belief in a loving and sovereign God helps us to make sense of and cope with the coronavirus outbreak. We are living through a unique, era-defining period. Many of our old certainties have gone, whatever our view of the world and whatever our beliefs. The coronavirus pandemic and its effects are perplexing and unsettling for all of us. How do we begin to think it through and cope with it? In this short yet profound book, Oxford mathematics professor John Lennox examines the coronavirus in light of various belief systems and shows how the Christian worldview not only helps us to make sense of it, but also offers us a sure and certain hope to cling to.
REF 3176 Good Book Company ASLAN £2.99
Broken by Fear, Anchored in Hope by Bob Merchant
One in four of us will experience mental health problems but true resilience is ours for the taking. When shame, fear and despair threaten to fill us, it can be all too easy to resort to self-medicating through consuming, working or other distractions. Rob Merchant has tried them all and discovered they don’t deliver. Drawing on his own experience, Rob shows how healing starts when we acknowledge and accept our vulnerability. Knowing our place before God and surrendering wholly to Christ, we can discover forgiveness and always find hope.
REF 3262 SPCK (RRP £12.99) ASLAN £9.99
Radical Gratitude by Peter Maiden
Peter Maiden traces the theme of thanksgiving in Scripture, and shows how we can genuinely live counter-cultural lives even in an age of rampant entitlement. With a pastoral heart, he explains how gratitude is the key to joyful, consistent Christian living, discipleship and mission involvement. He focuses on:
• How we can develop the habit of thanksgiving
• The benefits of gratitude
• How we can be grateful, even in hard times
As he has been writing this book, poignantly and to his great shock, the author learned that he was suffering from incurable cancer. Far from derailing his message, this unwelcome news energised his efforts as he poured out his vision on the page with his now-limited resources. This is authenticity at its best. This book will be the author’s last.
REF 3238 SPCK (RRP £9.99) ASLAN £7.99
All suggestions taken from the online July – August 2020 edition of Aslan Christian Books. Aslanchristianbooks.com or telephone 01373 823451 or I can order for you.
Lynn Winter
