Karl's Reading List

Published by The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago/Moody Press: Chicago, USA, 1977. A few months back we had a Jewish trainee teacher arrive at work. We got along well, and I was interested to learn more about her faith. During her time here, the annual Founders Book Fair happened, and among the books on offer, I found this one. I read half of it at that time, but when Elise and I went to Australia, I put it down. This week I finally picked it up and finished it. Zola Levitt is a Jew himself, but one who has accepted Jesus as Messiah. This gives him an 'inside perspective' on Jewish culture and faith, along with an understanding of the main reasons why Jews can struggle to accept Christ. The history of Christians persecuting Jews is a big one(!), and is rightfully seen as a blot on our record. But even the fact that we call Jesus by a non-Jewish name can make things difficult. After all, Levitt points out, in Hebrew Jesus's name would actually be " Yeshua Hamashiah (...

Published by Moody Press: Chicago, 1988 (1984). First published 1900. A short but challenging book on prayer that I began a while ago, and then picked up again more recently, How to Pray is a loud call to, well, pray! There are moments when Torrey (writing at the turn of the 20th century) leans slightly into semi-legalism - he attacks the idea of Christians going to the theatre, dancing or smoking, for example - but considering the heart of his message I am quite prepared to forgive him this; to call people away from apathy and into a passionate relationship with Jesus will sometimes mean attacking much loved idols! The word 'passionate' is an apt description for this book. There might not be many 'wow, I never thought of that!' moments, but there are a lot of 'so true!' moments instead. For example, in a chapter on Praying in the Spirit, Torrey writes: "When we feel least like praying it is the time when we most need to pray. We should wait quietly before ...

Published by Fleming H Revell Company: Old Tappan, New Jersey, 1970. Edited by Robert E Coleman. Near the start of the year I heard about what was being called a 'revival' at Asbury College in the United States of America. It was a short-term movement but quite impactful, with students from the campus being involved in a spontaneous ongoing prayer and praise meeting. One night, while visiting Elise's parents, I happened to mention 'the Asbury Revival' and Elise's mother gave me this book to read, which outlined a previous revival at the same campus back in 1970! The book is not an outline of events, but rather various chapters telling the different perspectives of those caught up in the movement, each highlighting different elements of what God was doing at that time. Having a book written at the time of a revival that has now finished is quite interesting; the book is simultaneously challenging and slightly melancholic to read. Melancholic in that the hopes tha...

Published by Paul Brand Publishing: Seattle, WA, 1976. Granny Brand is a missionary biography with a bit of a difference. This is the life story of Evelyn Brand (nee Harris), who went to India as a missionary, fell in love with and married fellow missionary Jesse Brand, and then carried on working in India following Jesse's death from blackwater fever. What makes Evelyn so different from most of the missionaries you read about in these sort of books is that she is portrayed throughout as a fairly stubborn, strong-willed, slightly argumentative woman, happy to butt heads with anyone who doesn't see eye to eye with her. She reminds us that God is looking for willing hearts, rather than particular personalities. In fact, Evelyn's personality helps her to continue ministering in the 'Mountains of Death' region of India even after she officially retires from missionary service. The mission organisation overseeing that region are occasionally shown to be opposed to her ch...

Published by Inter-Varsity Press: Leicester, England, 1987. I picked this little book up from a pile my mum was giving away, then found it in my reading pile when I couldn't sleep a few nights ago. The authors, Bill and Shirley Lees, tell of their time as missionaries in Borneo, along with their call to the mission, some of their courtship and family stories.  Within the book, Shirley mentions an earlier book that she wrote, Drunk Before Dawn, which apparently tells the history the mission they were involved with more thoroughly. That allows this book some freedom to focus on particular themes and topics rather than needing to be tied to a larger arc. In some cases this would be an issue, but Is It Sacrifice? is very easy to read. The chapters are short and interesting, and the authors end each of them with a few questions to think about, as well as including a recommended reading list of other books on the theme of the chapter (some of which I might hunt out). Some parts of the bo...

Published by Penguin Group (NZ): North Shore, Auckland, NZ, 2010. In 1867 the influential missionary to the Māori people, Henry Williams, died. Williams had been in New Zealand since 1823 and had been responsible (among many other notable events in his life) for translating the Treaty of Waitangi. In the same year that Williams died, Bishop George Augustus Selwyn, the first Bishop of New Zealand, who had himself been in New Zealand since 1843, returned to England to take up a new post. This book tells the history of New Zealand - with a particular focus on the work of the early missionaries - from the first arrival of Europeans in these islands up until that point in 1867. Choosing to end the book with the death of Williams and departure of Selwyn seems fitting, as these two figures had massive influence on the shape of Christianity in the country, as well as influencing the shape of the country - and interactions between Māori and Pākehā. In the modern post-Christian worldview, the ea...

With Andrew Quicke. Published by Hodder and Stoughton: Great Britain, 1981 (1980). This is another one of those incredibly challenging faith biographies that Elise and I seem to enjoy. Although not as well structured as some of the books (I would call it more of a 'memoirs' than a traditional 'biography'), the life story of Jackie Pullinger and her work in the Walled City of Hong Kong is both fascinating and immensely challenging. Jackie felt a call to missions from a young age, but after being rejected by a number of mission organisations, had some unexpected but inspiring advice from a friend who was also a minister: "If God is telling to you go - you had better go...If you had a job, a ticket, accommodation, a sick fund and a pension, you wouldn't need to trust Him...Anyone can go that way whether they are Christians or not. If I were you I would go out and buy a ticket for a boat going on the longest journey you can find and pray to know where to get off....

Published by Hodder and Stoughton: Great Britain: 1970 (1963). This book tells the true story of Elka, a witchdoctor from a 'primitive tribe' in South America, who becomes a Christian following the arrival of missionaries to his region of the Amazon. The unique aspect of the book is that it is told almost entirely from the (third-person) perspective of Elka himself, giving the reader an understanding of the tribal life and beliefs of the Wai Wai people before introducing the missionary element. Following Elka's conversion, we also get insight into the growing Christian understanding of his tribe. There is a fun 'innocence' to the way the Wai Wai people understand their faith, based partially on the newness of their faith, and also the very foreign culture that their understanding takes root in and develops from. The idea of marriage, for example, in the pre-Christian tribal life is very loose - 'sharing' of spouses is common, and a 'wedding' is simpl...

With Jamie Buckingham. Published by Christian Literature Crusade & Fleming H. Revell Company: Pennsylvania & New Jersey, 1974. More a collection of short anecdotes from her life than a straight-forward narrative, Tramp For The Lord tells of Corrie ten Boom's life and ministry following the events outlined in the book The Hiding Place. The stories don't take place in any chronological or thematic order, but are short bite-sized chunks of faith and challenge from a remarkable evangelist. Corrie came to fame as an unlikely evangelist following her experiences in the concentration camps of World War 2. In Tramp we see her travelling the world by faith, going wherever she feels the Spirit leading and speaking to whomever she feels God prompt her to. In humble and self-deprecating fashion, Corrie often highlights stories in which she has learned 'the hard way' some truth from God, but is also able to gently point to moments where her faith in God has been strong...

With David Hazard. Published by Word Publishing: Milton Keynes, England, 1989. This is the life story of Christian musician Keith Green, told by his wife Melody. Keith had a short but impacting life, only coming to Christ seven years before his tragic death, yet reaching hundreds of thousands through his music and ministry, both during his life and afterwards. I have read this book a number of times in the past and always found it challenging. Keith was a very "full on" personality, and his passion for God drove him to (as the title of the book states) accept no compromises in his faith. Very black and white in his thinking, Keith was not afraid to challenge his audience, his record company, or himself if he felt something needed to shift in order to become more 'authentically' Christian. Reading the book with Elise led to a lot of conversations about our own faith, and how we could also seek to deepen our walk with God. Being told from Melody's pers...

Published by Overseas Missionary Fellowship (IHQ) Ltd: Singapore, 1991. Based on an Indonesian original. The subtitle of this book is Cleopas Lumbantobing, Challenger of Demons, Evangelist, Educator and Peacemaker, and is not only a biography of that individual, but also of Ingwar Ludwig Nommensen, a German missionary (and later Bishop) to the Batak Highlands of North Sumatra, Indonesia in the late 19th century. Cleopas was born the third son of a raja (chief) and was prophesied of by the local batu (witch-doctor) as being someone who was destined to overthrow his father's kingdom, "and the very foundations of Batak tradition...He will lead our people astray into a strange new teaching." (prologue) The batu told Cleopas's father to kill him (thus the title of the book), but instead the raja sent his son and first wife away. When Cleopas grew up he became a Christian through Nommensen's teaching, and for the rest of his life served as a missionary to his own peo...

Published by DayStar Books: Auckland, 2017. This is a book by a local (Nelson, NZ) author, Russell Smith, and covers the earliest days of Christianity reaching New Zealand, in fact, the first ten years (1814-1824). This is a very specific period of time, and lends for an interesting angle. Gone is the controversy of the Treaty of Waitangi, because the Treaty wasn't signed until 1841. Instead we get a glimpse into the politics and faith of the 'motley crew' of first missionaries, some of whom seemed to arrive with more 'pure' motives than others. There is treachery, there is adultery, pride and power. But there is also a drive to see the nations reached by Jesus. An interesting, if not life-changing book. Completed 28 September 2019. Previous Book ~ Next Book

Published by Zondervan: Grand Rapids, 2018 (2014). This is a very well written and interesting book. It tells the life story of Qureshi, raised as a Muslim in the UK, his faith journey, and eventually his conversion to Christianity. The book is written in a style that greatly appeals to my way of thinking; Qureshi debates and seeks logical answers to his questions, engages in apologetics, and - importantly - holds no animosity towards his former religion, despite now disagreeing with the evidence for it. Coming from a Christian perspective, I appreciated the way Qureshi explained Islam and what it holds dear. For example, from Qureshi I learned that " In our culture, dreams are carefully considered because, as a well-known hadith teaches, "The dreams of the faithful are prophetic." In fact, dreams are the only means I know of by which the average Muslim expects to hear directly from God." (page 65). He also is not afraid of pointing out elements within the p...

Published by The Westminster Press: Philadelphia, 1954 (1953). I came across this book accidentally, and was intrigued to read something that the wife of C S Lewis had written. Joy Davidman writes a commentary on the Ten Commandments while thinking about how each of them should be viewed/lived out in today's world. It is an easy read yet insightful too. For example, Davidman writes: " All over the world there are well-intentioned clerical politicians trying to write Christian marriage back into the civil statutes - to make non-Christians of their country live by a religion they do not believe. Two thousand years of failure have not taught some reformers that you can't stop sin by declaring it illegal. Two thousand years have not taught them that you can't save a man's soul by force - you can only lose your own in the attempt. " (page 93)  This particular quote strongly resonates with me, as it is something that I have believed myself for quite s...

With John and Elizabeth Sherrill. Published by... I remember reading this book when I was much younger, and being struck by it. Re-reading it with Elise, I realised how much I had forgotten, and how much more God had been doing in the life of Brother Andrew than I remembered. This is firstly a biography of 'Brother Andrew' (real name Andrew van der Bijl), particularly how he came to faith and began to serve as a missionary and smuggler of bibles into Eastern Europe during 'the Cold War.' But more than that it is a journey of faith and trust in God. So many times throughout the book Andrew is forced to rely on God because he has no other choice, and time after time God shows himself sovereign and powerful. One of the most powerful to me was actually something that Brother Andrew experienced before entering the mission field. At his Evangelism Training School Andrew and some colleagues were given one pound and sent out to do a two week evangelist tour. They were n...

Published by Monarch Books: Oxford, England, 2012. This is a collection of fifteen interviews conducted by the author (as part of her The Olive Tree radio series) with Jews and Arabs living in Israel and Palestine who each have come to faith in Jesus. We hear from teachers, pastors and business owners, each with their own reason for living in the region, but each bound by a love for Christ and for reconciliation between the two people groups. Many of the testimonies highlight the growth of Christianity within Israel and Palestine since the 1970s, and challenge the Western reader to not forget that we should not let our politics could what God is doing in an area. It is not easy to live for Christ in the face of such intense political and religious divides, and this book reminds us to pray for those living in these locations. A good "taster" book that might whet some readers' appetites to find out more about what God is doing in the Middle East. Completed 29 March ...

Published by National Council of The Evangelical Free Churches: London, 1902. I was given this book without knowing anything about Gipsy Smith, and found it quite interesting. It turns out Gipsy Smith was an evangelist from the late 19th - early 20th century who seemingly had a quite wide-ranging and effective ministry! Gipsy (real first name Rodney) was born an actual gypsy, and after his father and uncles were saved, found Jesus in turn. He trained as an evangelist with the "Christian Mission" (what became the Salvation Army), before going off on his own following some disagreements with the national body. The book is very old-fashioned in style, referring to 'well-known' figures without any explanation as to who they were; I found myself googling various people, sometimes without learning anything about them even then! Gipsy also quotes articles and letters about events that have happened, as a way of talking about himself and his accomplishments without ha...

Published by Moody Press: Chicago, date unknown. Originally published 1894. Charles Haddon Spurgeon is known as the "Prince of Preachers" for his oratory skills, and in reading this work of his I can see why! Spurgeon takes the concepts of grace, salvation, and forgiveness and unpacks them beautifully. He uses simple analogies to get his point across, and yet I never felt he was "dumbing down" any of the concepts. For a book first written in the 1890s it is an easy read, and yet still packs quite a punch! I found myself reading out numerous sections to my wife, and both of us would wince as Spurgeon said something like " Faith which refuses to obey the commands of the Saviour is a mere pretence and will never save the soul" (page 57), or "If we trust ourselves for our holding on we shall not hold on. Even though we rest in Jesus for a part of our salvation, we shall fail if we trust to self for anything" (page 107).  Spurgeon also direct...