Running For My Life by Lopez Lomong

With the Olympics rolling along full force, now is the perfect time to read this amazing story.  But even if the Olympics weren't on, now would still be the perfect time to read this book.  It's that good. 

Running For My Life: One Lost Boy's Journey from the Killing Fields of Sudan to the Olympic Games by Lopez Lomong is a story of hope, determination, support and dreams.  Most people have heard of the Lost Boys of Sudan, the children separated from their families during Sudan's long and violently bloody civil war.  But how many of us stop to think of where these boys have ended up as they have grown into men?

This story tells the tale of one of those boys.  Lopez, also known as Lopepe (his Sudanese name) and Joseph (his name given at his baptism), was taken from his family and wrenched from his mother's arms by rebel soldiers when he was just six years old.  He was able to escape from the soldiers' camp and ran for three days and nights with three other boys.  While running to what they thought was home, they were actually running straight towards the Kenyan border.

Lopez spent the next ten years in a refugee camp and through a set of circumstances he attributes solely to God, he was able to come to the US at age sixteen.  Through another set of circumstances, which he again gives God the glory for, he becomes a runner who is good enough to run collegiate races and eventually turn pro.  Lopez ran in the 2008 Olympic games and competed again in 2012 in London.  This book tells of all of the remarkable twists and turns his life took as he grew from a little boy torn from the only home he's ever known to a pro athlete on the other side of the world whose greatest dream is to give back to his home country.

Read this book.  You will learn something, you will be challenged in your faith and you will want to cheer your heart out for a remarkable young man who was once a Lost Boy.

Miraculous Movements by Jerry Trousdale

A book that encompasses both techniques for reaching nonbelievers and a collection of compelling stories of Muslims who have embraced Jesus, Miraculous Movements is definitely a book worth reading.  The book alternates between introducing and explaining the principles behind the Disciple Making Movement in a way that is understandable and relevant and stories of dozens of former Muslims and their amazing and often miraculous coming-to-faith stories. 

I think this book would be ideal for anyone who is preparing to become a missionary, whether abroad or in service in their own country.  The ideas presented would be easy to implement, are detailed but not constrictive and are biblically based.  In fact, the principles given in this book are useful to any Christian who wants to serve the community that they live in and reach others for Christ.  Although the book is focused on reaching Muslims, the approach that is explained would work for any people group.

The stories of Muslims who have become Christians were the most interesting part of the book for me.  I was surprised and amazed at the numbers and the research presented, but the personal stories of miracles and redemption were my favorite part of this book.  Weaving them into the explanation of the approach of Disciple Making Movements was a very engaging way to write this book and allowed personal examples to illustrate the points that were being made.

The 13th Tribe by Robert Liparulo

Robert Liparulo writes a novel that is engaging, fast-paced and an intriguing and fresh perspective on an age-old legend - immortality.  The 13th Tribe is a book that asks reader to believe that anything is possible, and Liparulo makes it easy with his detailed characters and command of story sequence.  Woven with mystery throughout, as soon as one question is answered, three more spring up in its place and kept me turning pages until past my bedtime.

The 13th Tribe begins with the idea that a group of Israelites has been punished with immortality for their sin of worshipping the golden calf in the time of Moses.  Since then, this group of forty people of all ages has been wandering the earth, searching for a way to end the curse.  Using their remarkable knowledge and power that they have gained over the last three thousand years, they have come to believe that ridding the world of evil is the mission God has given them.

The main character, Jagger, has his own demons to battle and has come to a remote archeological dig as a security guard as he tries to piece his life back together.  An unavoidable collision between this man and the Tribe's mission brings the reader on a fast-paced ride of intrigue, adventure and mystery.

This book was entertaining and made me think...immortal beings roaming the earth for thousands of years as part of God's curse for their disobedience doesn't really make sense theologically to me.  However, I am enough of a conspiracy theorist to leave a tiny margin of possibility, at least enough to allow me to enjoy this book.  And enjoy it I did.

I Am Second by Bender and Sterrett

I have to admit, it was the cover that drew me in first.  Clean, crisp white with just a boxy armchair and an intriguing title.  But once I read the snippet about the book, I knew I wanted to read it.  Bender and Sterrett bring twenty stories to life, complete with photos and QR codes which link to videos on the I Am Second website.  This book is a twenty-first century experience, multimedia, raw and real.

Each story was personal and honest, sometimes brutally so.  From famous athletes to former drug addicts, wealthy businessmen to reality tv show participants, the stories have a wide variety of components but one core message.  Jesus first, me second.  For every story in the book, there are links to one or more other stories just like it.  I did not take the time to explore the website, but it looks incredible at a quick glance.

I enjoyed this book, but more than that, I felt my faith was strengthened by it.  I believe the church is built up when we share our stories of meeting Christ and that is what this book is about.  It's not pretty or neat and it doesn't fit into the typical Christian box.  But it's real and I appreciated that.  I think others, Christians and nonChristians alike will appreciate it too.

This Thing of Ours by Cammy Franzese

With a subtitle like "How Faith Saved My Mafia Marriage", it was hard to resist this book.  Cammy Franzese writes a fascinating memoir about her marriage to a former Mobster, Michael Franzese and details how they met, fell in love and married.  She writes of the struggles and triumphs of enduring over eight years of Michael's incarceration and his parting of ways with the Mafia while raising their four children.

I always enjoy memoirs, and this book was no exception.  Franzese did a good job of sharing both the positives and negatives of her life story.  I appreciated her acknowledgement that much of what she dealt with in life was due to consequences of choices made by both her and her husband.  Many people seem unwilling to accept that some hardships are the results of decisions made, not just bad luck or random circumstances.  Cammy Franzese does not waffle about taking responsibility, and I can respect that.

I thought the book was a bit light, but it made for an easy read.  Transparent and honest, it told the story well, even if some parts were a bit vague.  I was encouraged by the main story line, which is that God can change and use anyone; our past is not always an indicator of our future.  God is in the business of changing people and this is one of those stories.  Overall, it was a pretty good book.

The Encounter by Stephen Arterburn

I chose this book because I've read at least one nonfiction book of Arterburn's and I am familiar with his name and story from attending Women of Faith events.  I was excited to read a fictional story by him, figuring that his life story and ministry would enrich any kind of tale he might tell.

The Encounter tells the story of a man so burdened by his past that he is compelled to go in search of the answers to questions that have tormented him his entire life.  The setting is rich in detail, set in Alaska in the wintertime and the characters possess the range of emotions that I would expect from Arterburn.  The book was easy to read; in fact, I finished it in one sitting while on vacation.

This book was more like a short story, or an inspirational read in a magazine like Guideposts.  It was short, but sweet.  Although it wasn't too "fluffy", it lacked the depth and detail that a longer novel could have developed and I was a bit disappointed by that.  Given Arterburn's history and other books, I expected richer character development and plot.  However, the book was still a good story and a good light read for my vacation. 

Ascent From Darkness by Michael Leehan

I have to admit I was a bit apprehensive when I chose this book, Ascent From Darkness, by Michael Leehan.  I have always believed in the presence of evil and also in the entity of Satan, but to read a book written by someone who used to follow the devil was a step beyond what I had ever experienced.

Here in America, I think we often discount or ignore the spiritual world around us because it doesn't follow our rational rules and it can be a bit...scary.  But it doesn't cease to exist simply because we don't acknowledge it.  Michael Leehan's life story shows how very real this world is as it chronicles the significant events in his life, his decision to become a satanist and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

I was impressed by how the author conveyed his story in an honest way without sensationalizing it or portraying it in a way that made it seem strangely attractive.  He was careful to state how very lost, alone and unhappy he was, even as he kept pursuing it for the power he felt it gained him.  At many points during the story, I was reminded of the fact that the demonic world is very much alive and that as a Christian, I have access to power and light that can quell any fear that might arise at that knowledge.  I felt strengthened by this book, not freaked out as I had feared when I contemplated reading it.

The only thing I wished had been included was a chapter or two more about his life as a Christian, what he does for his ministry, experiences he has had as he's turned away from evil and pursued the Lord.  I felt like a lot of time was given to his time as a satanist (and rightfully so as it consumed a larger time period in his life) but I would have enjoyed reading more about changes in him from his perspective and from the perspective of people who had known him before and after.  Although a section was included at the end of testimonies from people who know him , it seemed most of them were from people he has gotten to know as a Christian. 

Overall, I think this is a book American Christians should read, and anyone else for that matter!  It will open your eyes to the truth of the spiritual world, to the fact that there is light and darkness, good and evil; they are very, very real.