Good resource for Christians
583047
This book is really supposed to be read by someone with a Christian mindset, so don't go into this one expecting to get a thorough explanation and history of every single religion, especially in only 15 minutes a day. The book tends to go over the highlights so if you're completely unversed on most world religions, this may not be enough for you. Instead, this is a good overview of the beliefs that create our world's religions. The writing style is easy to read. It's a good resource for a basic rundown of common religions. I received this book to review. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.
2575168
I found this book an encouraging , and helpful resource for Christians. It is well written and down to earth, and very personal.
4664256
This book gives a very good overview for the tools that Christians need to begin to defend the faith.  Many Christians may feel overwhelmed trying to debate scientific evidence.  I believe, as this book rightly points out, that in order to help someone see the error of their ways, you need to know how to defeat their worldview.  In addition to scripture, the best way to accomplish this (in my opinion) is to have a firm understanding of philosophy and logic.  Since atheists must base their worldview on faulty logic, the knowledgeable Christian will rather easily be able to dismantle their position to absurdity.  Of course, this doesn't mean that the atheist will change their mind but you can, at the very least, be able to point out their inconsistent thinking.  This book is a good start and below I will list a few other books that you should consider to increase your knowledge on specific topics

1.  Understanding Genesis by Dr. Jason Lisle.  This will help with defending scripture
2.  Biblical Logic in Theory and Practice by Joel McDurmon.  This will expand your understanding of logic from a Christian perspective.
3.  The Love of Wisdom by Steven B. Cowan and James S. Spiegel.  This a very good (and reader friendly) overview of philosophy from a Christian perspective.

These "tools" along with scripture, will allow you to fulfill the requirements of 1 Peter 3:15
1077585
This is a wonderful resource for planning lectionary-based worship services. I always felt like I was saying the same prayers all the time. It's nice to have other perspectives on scripture-based prayers. One thing I'd like to see changed is more pastoral prayers rather than so much responsive readings particularly for invocations and benedictions.
1516084
This book is a good resource for local Christian Education programs. I would recommend it for this level of learning.
4857151
I was surprised with how much of the Bible is covered in this book. I teach Bible clubs and Sunday School and have found this a helpful resource to be sure I have the correct focus and application for my lesson. So many times we teach kids "obey God" or "be loving" when the real point is  "see how powerful God is" or "worship Jesus as the mighty King". This book helps me tweak my lesson to point to God instead of to ourselves.
4737157
I used this book for my Church History college class. It provides a good overview of the Christian church, highlighting key figures, councils, and beliefs throughout the various time periods. I appreciated the fact that I was able to read a chapter or two and have a good idea of what would be discussed more in-depth in my other textbooks for the class. Each chapter gave a good preview and quick look at each "era" in Christian history. The chapters are a fast read, and overall the book was enjoyable. Good value for a short summary of Christian history.
4896364
There are certain authors whose names are associated with great books. Josh McDowell is one such author, and his son seems to be following in his footsteps. The two of them combined their efforts and came out with a great book and tool. They cover a lot in this book, 77 topics in all, and answer them in a Biblically-based way.

The book is split into two sections. The first section is all questions about God, and the second section are all questions about the Bible. The topics/questions cover about everything you can think of - some examples given above, and the authors do a great job of answering them in a way that doesn't still leave questions. This is the kind of book that would be great for new Christians, but none of us know everything we need to know, so this would be good for the most mature Christians among us. I have been reading the Bible since I was a kid, attended church, Christian school, and Bible college, and I still had some questions - some of them covered in this book.

It is an informative and helpful book that is also easy to read. The chapters are short, most of them 2-4 pages, and is the kind of book that you can read small portions daily. I would highly recommend it to be in any Christian's library.
4947707
This is a good devotional for new Christians. She goes into the basics of what makes a good spiritual life that is obvious to life-long Christians, but not to the novice. She takes the reader step by step to be closer to God by understanding him better and understanding ourselves better. My favorite month in her year-long devotional was November: Maintaining a relationship with God through difficult times.
1013371
Covering a vast span of church history, Daryl Aaron's book, The 40 Most Influential Christians . . . Who Shaped What We Believe Today, provides an overview of Christian theology and the men and women who shaped it over time.  Each chapter covers the contributions of one particular Christian leader/writer/theologian, etc. in history, his or her beliefs, teachings, brief life experiences and how they impacted his or her influence.

Aaron does offer summation commentary at the end of the chapters, suggesting what was right or wrong, off balance, or perhaps questionable or controversial about the different perspectives.  Overall, he tries to stay fair and balanced here, even offering Christian leaders from various branches of Christianity, including Catholicism, Protestantism of various sorts, both liberal and conservative leaders.

In the case of a particularly divisive issue such as Calvinism versus Arminianism, for instance, Aaron urges readers to consider what the leaders really taught rather than extremes, stereotypes, and out-of-context third-party arguments for or against their theology.

In this book, you'll find Christian leaders you may have heard of (Calvin, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Jonathan Edwards, John Wesley, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer).  There were, however, many on the list that may be new to the reader; that was definitely true for me.  For those wanting to know more about what we believe and why we believe it, Aaron's book serves as a useful resource. He also connects us to the teachings of Christians going all the way back to the first century.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
3026635
This is a great textbook that provides the historical and theological overviews of each book of the Bible. However, it's one strength is also the weakness in that each book is treated in short treatises concerning theological themes, historical issues, arguments for/against authorship and dating, as well as contemporary writings. Overall, a great beginning resource (especially for those in their first/second year of undergraduate work), but don't expect too much from this resource. The conservative stance in this book is handled nicely without belittling those of critical stances, and the value from this book comes in the sheer simplicity in which it breaks each book down into key sections/themes/theological stances.
3922769
Easy to read and comprehend.  I am using it as an instruction tool with my children.  The layout along with the images and diagrams help explain somewhat difficult concepts to grasp for new and/or immature Christians.  I would recommend as a good addition to anyone's library.
3114486
I really enjoy this book. I like the concept of praying "the hours" and this book gives you a morning and evening selection for each day for eight weeks. It's a good amount of material to use interspersed with other sources if you want pray more "hours" throughout the day. It's definitely written from an Evangelical perspective and reflects the author's book "Emotionally Healthy Spirituality," which is a plus for me as I really like that book too. I appreciate the advice (guide?) toward developing your own "rule of life" and the section on praying the Lord's Prayer. This is a good resource that I'll continue to use for a long time through various "seasons" of life.
663521
Excellent resource for theological study.  The information is thorough and helpful.  Terms can be challenging for someone who does not have a good vocabulary, so make sure you have a dictionary handy when reading the text.
3232694
Wonderful resource book for  Christians with sufficient theological background - not for "newbies.
4035909
Mr. Grudem does a good job of explaining many different arguments that have been proposed for how Christians should relate to government and then presents a path that is solidly grounded in the Bible.  He doesn't present anything groundbreaking, just a classic biblical interpretation.  I would recommend this to anyone who needs an introduction to the subject or is struggling with an incorrect view.
532162
Crossway and The Gospel Coalition have published a fantastic resource in The Gospel as Center: Renewing Our Faith and Reforming Our Ministry Practices edited by D.A. Carson and Timothy Keller. Via TGC's website, "The Gospel Coalition is an evangelical movement dedicated to the gospel of Christ and a Scripture-based reformation of ministry practices." This book is a one volume compilation of their booklets that unpack their confessional statement. What I appreciate about this book is how much detail they put into the aspects of their confessional statement. I've seen a lot of statements and while they're necessary and I realize that all of them can't be the length of a book, it's nice to have a resource where these aspects are explained. The greatest aspect is that each part is gospel-centered. As Christians and local church bodies I think it's important that we seek to make everything we do gospel-centered. I'm thankful for an organization that seeks to make the gospel the center of their ministry and for providing material that focuses on Jesus in areas of ministry.

Special thanks to Crossway for providing this complimentary book to read and review.