Books

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Short reviews of Dissident Discipleship, When Saints Sing the Blues, and Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters.

DISSIDENT DISCIPLESHIP: A Spirituality of Self-Surrender, Love of God, and Love of Neighbor By David Augsburger

Can we truly follow Jesus Christ? It’s not possible, says author and Fuller Theological Seminary professor Augsburger—it’s required. Augsburger says “tri-polar spirituality”—focusing on self, God, and neighbor—is the only Christ-following effort worth the claim. Pursuing “participation … in Christ’s life, death, and resurrection” is discipleship, and it will make us—inevitably—dissidents, not only in country or culture, but also in church. The question is not, “What would Jesus do?” but, “Jesus, what do you want me to do?”—Paul Hughes

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WHEN SAINTS SING THE BLUES: Understanding Depression Through the Lives of Job, Naomi, Paul, and Others By Brenda Poinsett

Brenda Poinsett, who has written two books about women’s depression (among her dozen titles), dares to identify depression as a fairly common experience among people whom God uses to perform his wonders. Poinsett refers several times to people having what she calls load limits. “Some of us have higher limits of what we can carry than others, but we all have a point at which we may collapse under the pressure of weight added to our load.”—Douglas LeBlanc

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STRONG FATHERS, STRONG DAUGHTERS: 10 Secrets Every Father Should Know By Meg Meeker

A pediatrician and author of the previously published Epidemic: How Teen Sex Is Killing Our Kids, Meeker tells fathers, “You are far more powerful than you think you are.” Meeker spends the majority of her book detailing the impact a father has on a daughter’s worldview and personal identity. In essence, a father provides the support necessary for a daughter seeking to learn humility, persistence, and self-respect. Most important, a father influences a daughter’s thinking about God.—Todd C. Ream

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Related Elsewhere:

Dissident Discipleship, When Saints Sing the Blues, and Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters are available from ChristianBook.com, Amazon.com, and other retailers.

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