Category: Book Reviews

The following 800 word document accompanies the book I offer faith seekers, much as some Christ Followers offer gospel tracts when out in public. The book is titled How Can Anyone Say God Is Good, written by Gary Miller of Christian Aid Ministries (CAM) Berlin OH. I wrote this doc perhaps 4-5 years ago, anticipating its distribution and here I am today, not so much anticipating, but rather now, contemplating my options to implement a plan.

So, after prayer and contemplation, I decided I should share this dream first with my blog mailing list of 230. And this opens another can of worms. I dare not call you subscribers because likely less than 30 of you actually subscribed; the other 200 were merely hijacked as former current or prior acquaintances or prospected from business cards, etc. I seriously more than once, have considered removing all 230 names from the blog list and then opening it up only to those who subscribe. That way, I WOULD KNOW those on the blog list actually chose to be part of this communal written adventure. The way it is now, the only thing I know for sure, is that you’ve chosen not to unsubscribe. You may never open, or, if you open, may never or seldom read. So, it is a rather tenuous relationship, at best, but certainly within the scope and confines of God’s ability to reassure me to continue in this mission of being an encouragement to seekers of Him, at least for now.

With all that out of the way, I am offering each blog reader a copy of this book. I think I’ve purchased at least 4 boxes of them from CAM thus far, because a box of 50 copies is only $50., and that is why I can afford to distribute them as tracts. I just checked thriftbooks and their price tonite is $7.39.

Both the author Gary Miller and CAM are evidently very serious about making this book available to those servicing, encouraging, inviting, confronting the billboard seekers out & about our communities, perhaps even the too comfortable in our pews, with this real deal Gospel message. So, if this is a book you desire to read, contact me immediately as we hope to be in Panama for the winter by early October. Seriously, I’ll mail you one. I’ll leave a supply at Kidron Mennonite for you locals, or while on your next trip to Berlin area between 8-4pm, you should just stop by CAM and buy your own box and have them handy in your car’s trunk to distribute whenever God so compels you. And He will! Get Blessed. Just imagine the lives God could change thru your actions for less money than it costs three of you to eat at your favorite Amish restaurant. No comparison!

Also, may I remind you we need to take advantage now of our freedom to disseminate literature and assemble to worship freely. I’m told assuredly by those in the KNOW that this may well soon change. We are not to be compelled by fear (false evidence appearing real) but rather, by the immensity of His love for all of mankind and that none would be lost from His eternal care, even if at the last moment as was the thief on the cross, being told “today, you’ll be with me in paradise.”

Folks, I had no idea all this would flow forth this afternoon when I sat down to write after lunch and a 75 min nap. Now I need to send Mr. Nisely and Paul Miller at CAM an email informing them we need to get this book available in Spanish ASAP. Perhaps it already is. I’m hoping.

Below is a rough draft of the insert I’m contemplating of including when each book is given out. If you buy your own box for distribution, I suggest you offer your contact info somehow someway for their follow-up. Feel free to contact me with your ideas, or simply adapt the document to make it work for you. Blessings

So, you’ve endured about all you can handle in this life? Do you keep thinking that somehow someway your life has got to get better soon?

Believe me, you are not alone. Five years ago before covid was launched, a study estimated 75% of the world’s population had suffered loss, trauma, or betrayal in a primary relationship.

Would it help you to know that 50+ years ago, not only had I personally suffered such loss and trauma, but then in its aftermath, I too set into motion the poisoning of relationship betrayals causing decades of more loss and trauma. God indeed was unbelievably gracious and merciful to me. Hence, David’s Psalm 51 holds a unique & special value to me and it is my personal burn for you to avoid any additional loss, trauma, and betrayal, and to gain a life of victory NOW! And, similarly, this is exactly where we pick up the loss, trauma, and betrayal story of our novel’s main character, Nick, in the 78-page novel titled, “How Can Anyone Say God Is Good?”

First, you need to know that beyond your Almighty Father God in Heaven, in this very community there are persons much like the Andy in the novel who has the bicycle shop; persons who are willing to listen to your problems, try to answer your questions, love you unconditionally, just as God is loving each of us right now. This book best exemplifies, other than the Bible, just how we are to love our neighbors, be they rich or poor, young or old, down on their luck or in the clover, sick or healthy, friendly or friendless, happy or sad, focused or totally confused, perhaps because of recent brain surgery; it just doesn’t matter. We all need to be loved, respected, encouraged, and accepted as active participants in just such a community as demonstrated to opportunity-less Nick, who is literally right now, at the end of his rope. So, first things first, read the book! Enjoy the hope that Nick experiences so vividly replacing his stinging loss, trauma, and betrayal.

Once you’ve finished reading the book, you may choose to contact the person who gave it to you, and catch him/her up on what has happened since you first spoke. And at some point, you may consider the following suggestions:

1.  If you already have a church home or are periodically visiting one or several, I suggest you meet with a staff person from your favorite congregation and indicate your interest in strengthening your relationship with Jesus Christ and being mentored by a mature disciple like Andy from the bicycle shop to strengthen your faith and coach you on the narrow way.
2.  I’m told living a joyful victorious Christian life involves three simple modules:

First, we get our directions from the Word of God by reading and studying the Bible.

Second, we dedicate ourselves, including our desires and emotions to the specific Will of God for us.

Third, we are obedient to His instructions to perform the Work of God.

More on those specifics later. Also, if you don’t have one, I strongly suggest you get a One-Year Bible to begin reading the Bible daily, but there are other programs utilizing your primary Bible, even your phone or tablet. I keep a supply of used One-Year Bibles available.

•  Perhaps after reading the book, you realize you have never met a person quite like Andy, so generous and so loving to so many people. And, unfortunately, most of us in this culture of separation, individualism, self-protection and self -promotion, seldom do meet such a person as Andy. But down thru history, for the past 2000 + years, there are persons much like Andy who exist in your community, who are Spirit empowered to daily live, believe, and practice that God is good, and desire that you experience much more than merely becoming a convert with membership in a church somewhere by your profession of faith, while not fully understanding the accompanying doctrinal practices to move your faith far beyond merely the “academic head knowledge” to the “transformed heart experiential inspiration.” Nick witnessed this dynamic spiritual interactive tension every time he delivered mail to Andy’s bike shop, because he saw persons experiencing Jesus first-hand while they were being discipled, mentored, and coached in Andy’s faith community.
•  In the event you are without a church to contact, or if the one you visited is not yet similarly equipped, please contact us and we’ll do our best to find you a personal mentor to walk with you on your journey Living in Faith.
•  For more information, contact Merlin Erb merlin.erb@gmail.com (330) 465-2565 Blog: merlinsmustache.com, Request a Word doc: Ten First Steps for the New Christian by Woodrow Kroll, Back to the Bible.

I do try to eat twice daily, 11 am & 6 pm, while skimming devotionals for pertinent future blog inspirational material, frequently getting inspired “out of my gourd,” so to speak; terminology from Hesston College days perhaps? I’m personally processing some rather heavy stuff with a very tight schedule for the next 30 days, such that I was seriously considering while driving to my 9 AM to see our accountant, thinking that I should really shut down the blog for the next 60 days, and give “everyone” a break!

Doug’s advice to us this morning was the word “simplify” and that I too sensed from the Lord, as i had just been processing taking a blog break. Understand, not only was our auction a trifle disappointing, but the way we added additional properties into the mix over the years, now exempt from our home tax exemption was not helpful either, for now it raises our tax liability. But you know what, our family was so very blessed those 41 years on those 10 acres in a community of paradise, both spawning and maturing each of us for our life’s destinies, that now I can only say, so what? After 41 years of tax breaks by running a business at home, and getting those breaks when we really needed them, how dare I quibble now over a possible tax liability of a good used car, or two, depending on your tastes? Again, it really is all about perspective; HIS, NOT ours!

Moving on, I spent 5 hours Tuesday PM in Aultman ER with my former neighbor of 17 years, Jeff, who had brain surgery in April and was initially given 1-5 years to live. After nearly a month in both Canton Aultman and the Cleveland Clinic, he was sent home with 4 different seizure meds that worked well the first month plus+, thru his first 30 day round of chemo & radiation, but for the past 4-5 days, he has fallen twice, with multiple seizures daily. So, after 10 hrs. in the ER, he was sent back to the Clinic by 11 pm for evaluation and med tweaking. Pray for Jeff’s healing and his newly found faith to thrive as he is a frightened 54 yr. old man with way too much baggage to process without Jesus.

Now, onto the “nugget” devotional I found while eating brunch and considering my tax liability, Day 152, from Robert J Morgan’s “All to Jesus” A Year of Devotions.

“For just as in Adam ALL will die. So also in Christ ALL will be made alive. I Cor 15:22

Dr. Bob Hill was a dear friend of mine and a member of my staff at Donelson Fellowship. He was 72 years old, has his degree in gerontology from Oxford, and had longevity in his genes. We assumed he’d live be a hundred years old.

When his mother passed away at 93 years, Bob drove to St. Louis to help conduct the funeral, and he opened the service with these words: We want to welcome everyone here to this memorial service for our mother. This is not a time for grieving but a time for celebration.”

Then Bob slumped to the floor and died of a massive cerebral hemorrhage.

I miss Bob terribly, but I often think of the incredible poignancy of his last words: “This is not a time for grieving, but a time for celebration!”

First Corinthians 15 is the “Resurrection Chapter” of the Bible. Apparently, some of the Corinthians had questions about the resurrection, and Paul tackled them in this glorious chapter. He began by reviewing the historical facts of Christ’s resurrection. Then he suggested that the bodily resurrection of Jesus provides the PROOF, POWER, & PATTERN for our own resurrections.

As in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive, “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet” (v 52).

Don’t worry about dying, and don’t over-grieve over loved ones in heaven. Christ arose, and all is well. It isn’t a day for grieving, but celebration!

BOTTOM LINE:

And as I have heard it explained over the years, we as His redeemed empowered & transformed believers, are already in a spiritual sense, living resurrected lives here on earth, merely awaiting our final transitioning. So, what’s the big deal about death & taxes? Really now?

Claim your birthright! Live your destiny in Him! Now! And none of this “someday I’ll….”

Always remember Dr. Bob Hill’s last sentence! Perspective at its best!

My Utmost For His Highest. Sept 3

He would not drink it, but poured it out to the Lord. 2 Samuel 23:16

What has been like “water from the well of Bethlehem” to you recently— love, friendship, or maybe some spiritual blessing (2 Samuel 23:16)? Have you taken whatever it may be, even at the risk of damaging your own soul, simply to satisfy yourself? If you have, then you cannot pour it out “to the Lord.” You can never set apart for God something that you desire for yourself to achieve your own satisfaction. If you try to satisfy yourself with a blessing from God, it will corrupt you. You must sacrifice it, pouring it out to God— something that your common sense (and our culture) says is an absurd waste!

How can I pour out “to the Lord” natural love and spiritual blessings? There is only one way— I must make a determination in my mind to do so. There are certain things other people do that could never be received by someone who does not know God, because it is humanly impossible to repay them. As soon as I realize that something is too wonderful for me, that I am not worthy to receive it, and that it is not meant for a human being at all, I must pour it out “to the Lord.” Then these very things that have come to me, even within sight of the Celestial City, will be poured out as “rivers of living water” all around me (John 7:38). And until I pour these things out to God, they actually endanger those I love, as well as myself, because they will be turned into lust. Yes, we can be lustful in things that are not sordid and vile. Even love must be transformed by being poured out “to the Lord.”

BOTTOM LINE:

If you have become bitter and even outright sour from too much self-indulged sitting and soaking, perhaps it is because when God gave you a blessing you hoarded it? Yet if you had poured it out to Him, you would have been the sweetest person on earth. If you are always keeping blessings to yourself and never learning to pour out anything “to the Lord,” other people will never have their vision of God expanded through you. Perhaps scenario three is not so much about our rights, but rather about our responsibilities to others!

Further Reflection on WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The remarkable thing about fearing God is that when you fear God you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God, you fear everything else. “Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord,” from The Highest Good—The Pilgrim’s Song Book, 537

In April Loretta and I watched a 2006 movie titled “The Ultimate Gift,” based on Jim Stovall’s novel so titled starring Abigail Breslen, Ali Hillis, Drew Fuller, Bill Cobb, Lee Merriwether, and James Garner in his final live action film appearance before his death in 2014.

Last evening two close friends and I viewed it together and once more, I was greatly enamored with its message. Reading its reviews today though gave me a nagging chill, as I must assume I’m quite out of my league in predicting what constitutes a professionally done and a worthy inspirational flick. That being said, there are times you must trust what you’ve known and credentialed in your heart for years experientially, even when some friends & family, etc., are momentarily convinced that their sources, are the new norm and worthy of your acceptance.

I still like the film, even if the ratings are low, and a ponzi scheme may have been involved, as “Its sincerity, optimism, and its tight and often compelling screenplay, sparkling dialogue and ‘first-rate’ production values,” flies in the face of Rotten Tomatoes, who gave it an approval rating of 33% based on 60 reviews, or a 5.20 /10.0.

I was also enamored with Carl’s message yesterday such that I posted it detailing the three major invitations Jesus offers us at the Starting Gates of Life and beyond:  First Decision, which gate; followed by which Direction we choose to travel, that ultimately, determines our final Destination.  

May I make a suggestion? I think “The Ultimate Gift” movie is an excellent follow-up and conversation starter for these three scenarios: 1.) for the seeker approaching the Starting Gates, or 2.) for the struggling soul under conviction as they are being propelled down on the broad road as if in a stampede, or 3.) for those on the narrow road approaching their final destination having checked the Decision  and Direction boxes with authenticity, even joy, but now with the Celestial City Destination in view, you’re experiencing a fall chill in the air, and you’re at a loss to risk engaging conversation, for what would others make of your questions, concerns.

So, as I say frequently, when we are in the third scenario, and quite apt to just sit there, soak, and eventually sour, I suggest you first consider professional empowered focused Christian counseling. Why, because if you’re thrived thus far on your journey, you know the basics, you are established, your close friends have shared so many exquisite bonding encounters with you, etc., so that now, I suggest this seeing a professional is merely helping you gain a new perspective, by helping you noticing the clues about you much as Andy Andrews does in his book “The Noticer,” when actually this fictitious Mr. Jones is the undercover professional focused Christian counselor, in that he has been given a gift of noticing things that others, for whatever reason,  simply miss, and he even points this out frequently to those with whom he therapeutically dialogues.   

Now, if telling you to seek out a counselor offended you, just chill and read the book, or watch the movie, “The Ultimate Gift.” I also highly recommend reading two other books if you’re in the third trimester of approaching the Celestial City and are already experiencing a chill in your spirit pending your transitional delivery: 1.) “Going ‘Till You’re Gone” by Berlin OH. Christian Aid Ministries (CAM) prolific author, Gary Miller, and 2.) John Burke’s two most recent books, “Imagine Heaven” and “Imagine the God of Heaven. Three very different books but so uniquely spiritually anointed to minister to those of you struggling in scenario three as you prepare for eternity.

I’ll not bore you again but I credit my remarkable recovery after my 9/18/18 accident and instant unplanned retirement, such that within 12 months I stupidly racking up a $100,000 in debt; to first of all developing a daily routine including writing this blog, now over 400 posts (actually, I’m told writing is excellent therapy improving one’s mental health!), reading & reflecting on Utmost, reading & reflecting on dailylightdevotional.com, reading & reflecting on One Year Bible, Loretta’s major love and research, and John Burke’s Imagine Heaven book.

This post this Labor Day evening, 52 years after we buried my mother, Stella Mae Gingerich Erb, Labor Day 1972, 2 PM, came out of last night’s movies ferment. I almost forgot to include the 12 valuable life lessons the movie illustrates and follows on the screen after the credits. Profound. I didn’t even know there was Fox Faith production entity.

The Ultimate Gift based on a novel by Jim Stovall

The movie highlights the twelve gifts of Life:

1.) Work: “when you enjoy work like you just did, you can do anything.”

2.) Money:

3. Friend: “I plan to know Jason for the rest of my life.”

4.) Learning: “Do you truly know how to learn?” 

5.) Problems: “You don’t begin to live until you’ve lost everything, heck, I’ve lost everything 3 or 4 times, it is the perfect place to start.”

6.) Family:

7.) Laughter:

8.) Dreams: Your need to be free to dream…  “Actually, I don’t know if I can dream. I do know I can help others fulfill their dreams though.”

9.) Giving: “I do have to give away some money away….”

10.) Gratitude: “apparently, someone came by and paid my back rent, was it you? Thank you.”

11.) A Day

12.) Love: I love you Son. Good-by

Sometimes I think that this movie ought to be a requirement prior HS graduation, sorta like I now realize I should have taken some Home EC cooking classes. Same principle in operation.

Leading actors/actresses

Emily Rose – Abigail Breslen, Alexia – Ali Hilis, Jason Stevens – Drew Fuller, Theophilus Hamilton – Bill Cobbs, Miss Hastings – Lee Merriwether

Music:

“My Mom Says I’m Cool.” Arlen, RAE MUSIC

Dodge City Rockers

“Crazy” written by Willie Nelson, performed by Patsy Cline

“Gotta Serve Somebody.” written & performed by Bob Dylan

“Simple Gifts.” Shaker Hymn adapted and arranged by Aaron Copland

“The Thrill Is Gone.”   written by Rick Darnell & Roy Hawkins performed by BB King

“The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba” written by G. F. Handel performed by the LA Guitar Quartet

“Caramba” performed by Tierra Caliente

“Arrullo” performed by La Voz De Ninos Dios

“On Fire” written by Jon Foreman and Daniel Victor, performed by Switchfoot

“Breathe Me” performed by Dan Carey & Sia Furler

“Something Changed” written & performed by Sara Groves

“Legacy” written by Kelly Morrison & performed by Ed Goggin