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Christian Novel Review

Having always been an avid reader, since becoming a Christian I have found a wealth of reading material in Christian bookshops and in various second hand bookshops. I have found that in Christian novels one often finds truths that help in one’s Christian walk. I enjoy reading about how the various characters deal with life, and I also find I am the richer for reading a really good Christian novel. Certain authors, through their books, give you a real insight into their joys and struggles, which I find very interesting. The books which I am going to review are those which I have really enjoyed, and have read at least twice – some books, for example the “Mark of the Lion “ series by Francine Rivers, I have read at least five times each. The first books that I am going to talk about are the latest two novels by Francine Rivers,


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Sunday 15 July 2012

LOVE'S SACRED SONG BY MESU ANDREWS

LOVE'S SACRED SONG by MESU ANDREWS is the story of Solomon's marriage to Arielah, a shepherdess from Shunem,  his treaty bride.  For Solomon, who already has many wives, it starts out as a contract to bring peace amongst the Israelites in the northern region, but he becomes totally infatuated with this godly woman who is so different from the many women he has known.  Solomon, with his upbringing in the palace, has never had the close family life that Arielah has had, and is thus unable to understand what love and commitment are all about.  Arielah's father, Jehosaphat, prince of Shunem, is to become the king's ambassador in the area in accordance with the terms of the treaty.  The people of Shunem are particularly angry about the fate of one of their daughters, Abishag, who comforted king David when he was dying, but who was looked upon as "tainted" and was not treated honourably by the royal family after his death.  
When Arielah is born Jehosaphat has a dream that his daughter, whose name means "lion of God", will marry the king and bring peace between Judah and Israel.
Arielah falls in love with Solomon when she sees him for the first time at the age of seven and knows in her heart she will marry him one day.  It is through the little shepherdess and her godly family that king Solomon comes to know what love really is. Although she is hurt by his behaviour she learns to forgive him and to love him unconditionally.  
God has given Solomon amazing wisdom, and in his desire to build his kingdom he makes treaties and trade agreements with  foreign kings and governors.  In exchange he is given many foreign wives.  Where he is so wise in worldly matters, he is sadly lacking in wisdom as far as love and commitment are concerned.  The wisdom God has given him serves him well in the world of commerce, but he lacks his father David's shepherd's heart.  David was a warrior king; Solomon is to bring peace to the land during his rule by using his great wisdom.  He is also to build the Temple that his father David wanted to build.  He is very aware of his duties to his people and the importance of obedience to Jehovah.
The novel is full of scriptural truth, and their love story follows the Song of Solomon.
There is intrigue, deception and jealousy, not only between the wives and concubines, but also between Judah and Israel.  There are men at court who do not have the king's or the country's best interests at heart.  These men, led by the cruel Ahishar, together with the twin Daughters of Jerusalem, stir up dissention and make the most of the jealousy in the harems and the pagan worship practised by the foreign wives and concubines, to try and usurp power in the kingdom.
The meaning behind Jewish betrothal and wedding practices are beautifully explained and we can't help but make the parallel between these and the betrothal and marriage that takes place between the believer and Jesus.
In this novel we are reminded of God's unending love for each one of us, how He alone brings about changes in our characters as we seek to be obedient to His will.  How it is perfectly safe to trust Him with our very lives and with the lives of those who are dear to us. He is the Great Shepherd, and it is often when we are alone, surrounded by His creation, that He speaks to us and shows us what to do.
We see Arielah's obedience, which very nearly leads to her death, and are reminded of the sacrifice of Christ when she speaks to the people of the north at the Passover festival, and her wounds remind us of the wounds of Jesus, our sacrificial Lamb.
God's mercy and grace, the importance of repentance and forgiveness and of obedience to His Law, run through the story from beginning to end.  
Jehosaphat is a godly man, and he is a father or "abba" to many, including to his son-in-law, king Solomon.  He honours his daughter's free choice and doesn't force her to marry the king, even though his heart breaks when he realizes what she will have to suffer to bring about peace in the kingdom and in Solomon's heart.
When Solomon is parted from Arielah after her attack, he not only realizes how much he truly loves her, but also comes to seek the Lord in true repentance.  This time, when he fetches her from her father's house, they do not go straight back to the court at Jerusalem, but they spend some time of restoration and refreshment at his vineyard.
The novel is beautifully written and the characters are very real and well portrayed.  Of course this is a work of fiction, but this does not take away from the truth of the story or the scripture that it is based on.  It is a really inspirational book and most enjoyable.
 

Saturday 7 July 2012

RARE EARTH BY DAVIS BUNN

RARE EARTH BY DAVIS BUNN is another Marc Royce adventure. This time he is sent to Kenya by Ambassador Walton to investigate suspected underhand activities at Lodestone, a company with its headquarters in the States, whose operatives supply food, tents, etc, as well as security, in the drought-stricken and war torn country.  He goes in undercover as a former accountant and is put in charge of getting supplies to the refugee camps. An Israeli aid worker, Serge Korban, has been kidnapped and he is also looking for him.
In the camp he meets Serge's sister Kitra, who works in the camp clinic. She dislikes him to start with, as she holds Lodestone responsible for her brother's disappearance, but when she sees his compassion for the poverty-stricken refugees, she comes to trust him.  Marc feels that he may at last be ready to move on, as it is over four years since his wife died.  He and Kitra have feelings for one another, but Kitra's life is complicated and he doesn't know if he can give up his life to become part of hers.
We see Marc's respect for both the elders at the camp and also for those that he meets in the slums of Nairobi. They have been let down badly by white men in the past who are trying to take over their land, but they trust Marc, especially when Philip, a young chief who is a believer in Christ, says he is sure that Marc is the deliverer he has seen in his dreams. They like his humility and commitment to help. 
He doesn't hurry them in their deliberations and he allows them all the time they need to make decisions.
Marc has to use all the skills learned in the military and during his time in the C.I.A. in the dangerous situation in which he and his allies find themselves.   
Marc goes to Israel at Kitra's insistance and  stays with her parents in a Kibbutz in the Judean desert.  In this desolate place they extract elements from rare earth which are used to manufacture components for  mobile phones and nuclear reactors, to name but a few. Now he understands why the villages are being evacuated - they are going to be taken over by the Chinese, aided by rogue African mercenaries. The Chinese already have the monopoly in the industry and can thus charge exhorbitant prices. This is the secret that Serge discovered and which led to his abduction.
Marc and Crowden, and those who are with them, have full permission from as far up as the White House to do what is necessary to stop the Chinese from appropriating the villagers' land, so as to counteract their monopoly.
Serge and Kitra have come to Kenya to search out the rare earth in order to have a supply for their kibbutz. They have come to "heal the land", as their way of extracting the substances from the earth is not harmful like that of the Chinese. In fact there are people that are being treated by Red Cross doctors for  unknown diseases which are directly caused by the extraction factory. They do not want to take away anything from the Africans, but they want to work together for the mutual good of both countries.
God has brought about an amazing miracle in Kenya where people from warring tribes have come to faith in Christ and are now living as brothers. Marc, as a believer himself, relates well to them, and also to Kitra's parents and the occupants of the Kibbutz who are Jewish believers in Christ the Messiah.
Philip, his uncle Oyango, and the other elders see Marc's involvement in their plight as a miracle as well.  They are so glad he has come to help them in a situation where they feel absolutely hopeless and helpless.
Davis Bunn has a good grasp of the culture and lifestyle of the African continent. The story is convincing and one can feel the dryness of the landscape, the brooding of the volcano and the fog caused by the ash. This fog serves its purpose when the villains at the extraction plant are overpowered by Marc and his men, who seem to be far more in number and whose blowing of the "vuvuselas" make one think of the destruction of Jericho when the Israelites blew the trumpets!
The story is exciting, the characters are well portrayed and there is a strong Christian message.





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Sunday 1 July 2012

WINGS OF REFUGE BY LYNN AUSTIN

 WINGS OF REFUGE BY LYNN AUSTIN 
I have read every Lynn Austin book I have come across, and I have enjoyed them all and gained a great deal of spiritual insight from her novels, but if I had to choose a favourite it would be WINGS OF REFUGE.  The setting in Israel, the characters spanning generations and how their stories are interwoven, make this a fascinating and inspirational read. We start with Abby, a forty-two year-old wife and mother of two, a history teacher, who travels to Israel with a church group to do some holiday archeological excavations.  She is going on this pilgrimage to try and get over the hurt and betrayal that she feels when her husband has an affair with a younger woman. Her first impressions of the Holy Land are shocking when a kind Israeli man who sat with her in the plane and helped her overcome her fear of flying by quoting psalms, is brutally murdered at the Ben Gurion airport and dies in her arms.  
Through her friendship with Hannah, Ben Rosen's cousin, Ari, her son-in-law, and Marwan a Palestinian Muslim, she is given a crash course in Israeli politics.  Through them and their stories, and what they dig up about Leah, a first century Jewish woman who goes from being a slave to being married to a wealthy tax collector, she learns the necessity of forgiveness.  Each of the characters in this book have a choice of whether they will forgive those who have hurt them and betrayed their trust, even those who are their sworn enemies.
There is so much biblical truth revealed in this novel as we follow all the characters and see how the decisions they make affect their lives and the lives of those round about them.  Their stories are very effectively woven together.  The mosaic that Hannah gives Abby, which had belonged to her daughter, reminds us that only God sees the full picture and that we don't always see why certain things happen in our lives, but that God's plans for each of us are perfect when they are woven into His perfect mosaic!
Through all that Abby goes through, she goes from being a nominal Christian and church-goer, to someone who chooses to walk closely with the Lord.  He becomes her strength in a strange land and in terrifying circumstances.
Our enemies don't deserve forgiveness, but Jesus forgave His enemies when they nailed Him to the cross, and the forgiveness He bought for us was very costly - He paid for it with His blood!  This fact should give us the strength to forgive others, even our worst enemies!






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