1. Jonathan Edwards: Lover of God by Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeney (2010). This brief biography, much shorter than Marsden's treatment of this American philosopher, theologian and-most importantly- pastor, was a great overview of his life. I am looking forward to the next 4 books in the series. 4 stars.
2. Unpacking Forgiveness by Chris Brauns (2008). Brauns presents a Biblical view of forgiveness, that he entitles "conditional forgiveness"--which is contrary to a lot of the psychological forgiveness research that I have read when I was doing my master's thesis. I do think he is on to something here, however. It was certainly thought provoking, if nothing else. 4 stars.
3. Blame it on the Brain Ed Welch (1998) presents a Biblical approach to understanding "brain based" problems. There are some interesting points, though I am not sure that I agree entirely with him. Again, something I will need to be thinking about as I continue developing my own Biblical view of brain based problems. 3 stars.
4. Jesus the Evangelist: Learning to Share the Gospel from the Book of John by Richard D Phillips (2007). Phillips presents the importance of evangelism through the book of John. Specifically, he talks about how Jesus presented the good news to those around him. I particularly appreciated the appendix entitled "The sovereignty of God in Evangelism." I encounter a lot of people who seem to think that reformed folks don't evangelize, though this presents a strong case to the contrary. 3.5 stars.
5. The Five Dilemmas of Calvinism by Craig Brown (2007). Craig Brown wrote this short volume to attempt to answer some of the primary arguments, or concerns, people have regarding reformed theology. I think he does a pretty good job, but I think someone like RC Sproul probably would have developed a more eloquent argument for each of the dilemmas. 3 stars.
6. Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore (2006). I first encountered this book in a post by John Piper and thought it a worthwhile read. This book is a true story of two unlikely friends, a homeless man and an upscale art dealer. It is a deeply moving story that had me in tears at several points. It deals with Christian love, suffering and hope on a deeply personal level. Apart from some minor theological disputes, this book demonstrates the gospel lived out. 5 stars.
If you are going to read one book from this month, please read Same Kind of Different as Me
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