Call of Duty is a first-person shooter video game available on Microsoft Windows, Playstation 4, and Xbox One. Infinity Ward develops this game, and the plot of this game involved combat taking place among a CIA officer, British SAS forces, rebels of a fictional country Urzikstan and the Russian troops. The CIA officer and British SAS forces have joined their hands together to assist the insurgents of Urzikstan, which is fictional to fight against the Russian troops.
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I’ve always been the one to ask the questions. As a kindergartener, I embarrassed my mother when I inquired, “Where did I come from?” Years passed, as a teenager, I made unhealthy life choices, experimented with alcohol and street drugs, and wondered, “What am I here for?” As a young adult, in Bible College; I asked God to take control of my life and questioned, “What’s my purpose?” Maybe you, too, have had or now have questions? These concerns may even keep you up at night? Doubting ourselves or God may be criticized as a lack of faith. I disagree. Doubt is the in between. Doubts need to be addressed. If doubts are not considered, they will rot our faith from the inside out. When we doubt, we are able to be honest with ourselves and God. We should not be afraid to doubt.
Sheryl Giesbrecht Turner’s “It’ll Be Okay: Finding God When Doubt Hides the Truth” is a short but powerful work of nonfiction that addresses the doubt that we all feel at one time or another. As with the fact that trees grow deeper roots when they are exposed to winds and storms, so it is with our faith in God. Trials may cause us to doubt, but as long as we continue to talk with God and spend time in the Bible, doubt can make our faith grow. “Life offers opportunities to doubt or believe God through many unwanted circumstances, and you will find him present, faithful, and true in all of them.” God will never let us down, and He will work all things for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28), even if we can’t see it. He understands our emotions, and He desires for us to discuss our doubts and fears with Him and to read His Word; doing both will ensure that doubt does not become unbelief, a distinction that the author makes in this book. Furthermore, she makes the point that never doubting is dangerous because it means that you are not connecting with God and His Word.
Part of what makes this book so relatable to readers are Giesbrecht Turner’s personal anecdotes. Through the hard times of her own life, she demonstrates how she has learned to draw closer to God despite tragedy and seemingly overwhelming situations. Because, she affirms, “Disruptive moments are opportunities for God to strengthen us and deepen our faith if we let him. They are opportunities to place our trust in an all-knowing God rather than rely on our limited human perspective.” While this book does not have any particularly revelatory information, it serves as a ready reference for times of spiritual drought, when God seems distant and our problems appear magnified. When we choose to confront doubt, faith moves to the forefront and becomes more resilient. “As believers, a Christ-centered hope must be the foundation of our lives”, so start doubting your doubts and leaning into the Lord and you truly will be okay.
I recommend “It’ll Be Okay” to everyone who is facing doubts, big or small, in their lives. It is an easy book to understand but still contains plenty of insights into life’s nadirs. Each chapter opens with a relevant quotation and concludes with a “Can you relate?” section that includes discussion questions for individual or group study. The only real issue I had was that, throughout the book, “He” and other personal pronouns referring to God are not capitalized, but because this is a work of nonfiction, it is clear Who is being referenced. I do love the “Love Letter to My Readers” that Giesbrecht Turner includes at the end; it summarizes the main tenets of the Christian faith and offers a prayer for devoting (or recommitting) your life to Jesus.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Celebrate Lit and was not required to post a favorable review. All opinions are my own.
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Older & Smarter?, January 10
For the Love of Literature, January 11
Texas Book-aholic, January 12
Artistic Nobody, January 13 (Author Interview)
For Him and My Family, January 13
God is Love, January 14
Genesis 5020, January 15
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Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, January 17
Emily Yager, January 18
All 4 and About Books, January 19 (Author Interview)
Mary Hake, January 19
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Funnily enough, I read this book last even though it was the first one that Summers wrote on the subject. Stranger in the House focuses on the men returning from the war and the effects that the war and separation from hearth and home had on themselves and the women in their lives. In the early 20th century, there was no real understanding of PTSD of which many POW (especially those who were imprisoned in the Far East and worked on the Burma Thailand Railway) suffered. On average, they were only expected to live a further 15 years because of the severity of their wounds and the maltreatment that went on for such an extended period of time. Those that lived beyond this were not considered 'lucky'. Most of the men who returned from war never again connected with their families because they were so changed and nothing of their experiences was ever discussed. Because Summers used secondhand accounts from the wives, daughters, and granddaughters coupled with primary written sources this is a unique perspective on a much discussed topic. 8/10
What's Up Next: The Gods Themselves by Isaac Asimov
What I'm Currently Reading: Kindness and Wonder: Why Mister Rogers Matters Now More Than Ever by Gavin Edwards
What if everything you thought was true and good—wasn’t?
To quote Sir Walter Scott, “Oh, what a tangled web we weave!” Futuristic, science fiction books are not usually my choice of reading fodder, but the description for Richard and Linda Nathan’s “The Glittering Web” and the desire to expand my literary horizons led me to picking this one up. And wow! There is so much to be explored within this narrative that it will almost definitely require a re-read and further study. As such, I think that it would make a very interesting group Bible study topic, perhaps reading this book and then taking the New Age philosophies and contrasting them with the true Word of God. “The Glittering Web” is based on a true story of what the authors encountered in the 1970s, and although it is set in 2050, the events in it are already happening today, making it a prescient and cautionary tale.
As we draw closer to the end of the age, it becomes all the more apparent that we are headed toward a world akin to that inhabited by Loren and Eve Montcrest. Chosen as initiates to the Arcane Institute in Seattle under the New World Order, they are on the fast track to everything they’ve ever dreamed of, until that dream becomes a nightmare. What the Montcrests, and society, covet is power and authority, which culminates in not only wanting to be their own god but to be God Himself. If we’re being honest, this is true of all of us to some degree; we relish being in control, but while surrendering isn’t easy and can seem counterintuitive, it is only when we surrender ourselves to God that we become truly free because He is omniscient and completely good and will always work for our good and for His glory (Romans 8:28). When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, He sends the Holy Spirit to live within us, and thus we have access to the most powerful force in the universe!
The New World Order is eerily familiar to the way our society is progressing. A universal mandated religion that is purportedly all-inclusive has taken Christian principles and perverted them by weaving them into Eastern and mystical methods. With end goals of harmony and unity and achieving global godhood, dissenters such as Bible-believing Christians must be tamped out. “The Glittering Web” is a clarion call to everyone that what is going on in this story is also going on right now in real life, and it is truly evil, not harmless or virtuous. Psychedelic drugs, including marijuana, and their effects demonstrate one of the tools characterizing the deception, and opening oneself up to the darkness throws open the door to demonic possession. Virtual reality and technology suffuse the population to such an extent that “most people couldn’t tell anymore where fantasy began and reality ended. Nor did it much matter.” Some of the characters experience moments of conviction, demonstrating that the Lord has not abandoned His creation, and even though they stifle that conviction with flawed rationalization, not wanting to acknowledge what they know deep inside, the Lord still intervenes and invites them (and us!) to a relationship with Him, out of the darkness and into the light.
For the discerning reader who wants to be challenged to remove the veil of harmony and unity that our society is fabricating, “The Glittering Web” is an excellent choice. It is absolutely NOT a lighthearted read, but it is illuminating. I personally would have liked to see a bit more Christian influence earlier on, as the majority of the narrative was disturbing and it wasn’t until about 75% or so through the book, with a few brief exceptions, that the Christian element shone through. I am wondering if this could be a post-Rapture society. Regardless, this is a book that unambiguously depicts spiritual warfare and the dangers of complacency.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through CelebrateLit and was not required to post a favorable review. All opinions are my own.
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Older & Smarter?, October 12
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For the Love of Literature, October 16
Wishful Endings, October 17 (Author Interview)
Just the Write Escape, October 18
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, October 19
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, October 20
Texas Book-aholic, October 21
janicesbookreviews, October 22
A Reader’s Brain, October 23
Inklings and notions , October 24
Redwall by Brian Jacques has been touted as a classic but I'm not sure this is one I would recommend. I found it predictable, needlessly long, and frankly pretty boring. This is a difficult book to categorize as either a middle grade or young adult novel as it handles mature themes with a lot of gratuitous violence besides being a brick of a book (somehow this didn't bother me with the Harry Potter series but it did with this one). The story is a coming of age quest/adventure story set in the Middle Ages with rodents and various other wild animals as the main protagonists. Matthias, our hero, is a young mouse who is studying to be a monk at Redwall Abbey when a giant rat named Cluny the Scourge shows up on the scene. Matthias must then embark on a personal journey to seek the sword of a famous mouse warrior in the hopes it will turn the tide in the battle against the forces of evil. This is the first in a rather long series but I must be honest and say that I have no desire to continue with these characters. I really can't figure out what all the fuss is about so it's a 3/10 from me.
PS While I was double-checking my spelling of the character names I discovered that there is an actual cartoon of this book series. To say that I am shocked would be putting it mildly. That one is not going on my watch list.
What's Up Next: Born to be Posthumous The Eccentric Life and Mysterious Genius of Edward Gorey by Mark Dery
What I'm Currently Reading: When the Children Came Home: Stories From Wartime by Julie Summers
