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Showing posts from March, 2011

Book Review: How To Be God's Little Princess, by Sheila Walsh

I recently received a review copy of How To Be God's Little Princess , by Sheila Walsh, from Thomas Nelson at no charge. As soon as I saw the title and description (not to mention the subtitle, "Royal Tips for Manners, Etiquette, and True Beauty"), I knew it had a chance to be just right for my 9-year-old daughter. I was correct. She loved it. This book contains valid guidance throughout, but never takes itself too seriously. Walsh never pretends this work is going win a Pulitzer. She sets out to produce a fun book for girls, and she succeeds. Although much of the material is focused on outside appearances, a large portion rightly devotes itself to more substantive topics which have nothing to do with jewelry or fashion. There are sections on how to be positive, make others feel important, use good manners, and even how to handle passing gas (I didn't jsut throw that in to see if you are paying attention; Walsh really addresses burping and, as she puts it, gas whi

Quick thoughts on Rob Bell

Rob Bell's new book "Love Wins" has been a hot topic in the Christian community these last few weeks. Generally speaking, people are taking sides for or against Bell and his book according to what they already believed going in. That is, some are slamming Bell, and those people tend to have theological perspectives that are somewhat rigid. Others who liked Bell already are inclined to speak out against those who would dare speak out against Bell, especially since many of them didn't read his new book. Criticism based on the promotional video alone is valid. In the clip, Bell specifically scoffs at the notion that Gandhi might not be in heaven right now. His points are made strongly enough that those who haven't read the book are certainly entitled to offer comments on the clip. Jesus specifically said that many people will do good things, even spiritual things, and be shocked to hear “Depart from me, evildoers, I never knew you.” Whether Gandhi is in heaven or