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- Starts with a bang...ends in a whimper
- Writing style doesn't work for Robinson
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The Years of Rice and Salt
Kim Stanley Robinson
Manufacturer: Spectra
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 Robinson, Kim Stanley
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ASIN: 0553580078
Release Date: 2003-06-03 |
Amazon.com
Award-winning author Kim Stanley Robinson delivers a thoughtful and powerful examination of cultures and the people who shape them. How might human history be different if 14th-century Europe was utterly wiped out by plague, and Islamic and Buddhist societies emerged as the world's dominant religious and political forces? The Years of Rice and Salt considers this question through the stories of individuals who experience and influence various crucial periods in the seven centuries that follow. The credible alternate history that Robinson constructs becomes the framework for a tapestry of ideas about philosophy, science, theology, and politics.
At the heart of the story are fundamental questions: what is the purpose of life and death? Are we eternal? Do our choices matter? The particular achievement of this book is that it weaves these threads into a story that is both intellectually and emotionally engaging. This is a highly recommended, challenging, and ambitious work. --Roz Genessee
Book Description
With the incomparable vision and breathtaking detail that brought his now-classic Mars
trilogy to vivid life, bestselling author KIM STANLEY ROBINSON boldly imagines an alternate history of the last seven hundred years. In his grandest work yet, the acclaimed storyteller constructs a world vastly different from the one we know....
The Years of Rice and Salt
It is the fourteenth century and one of the most apocalyptic events in human history is set to occur–the coming of the Black Death. History teaches us that a third of Europe’s population was destroyed. But what if? What if the plague killed 99 percent of the population instead? How would the world have changed? This is a look at the history that could have been–a history that stretches across centuries, a history that sees dynasties and nations rise and crumble, a history that spans horrible famine and magnificent innovation. These are the years of rice and salt.
This is a universe where the first ship to reach the New World travels across the Pacific Ocean from China and colonization spreads from west to east. This is a universe where the Industrial Revolution is triggered by the world’s greatest scientific minds–in India. This is a universe where Buddhism and Islam are the most influential and practiced religions and Christianity is merely a historical footnote.
Through the eyes of soldiers and kings, explorers and philosophers, slaves and scholars, Robinson renders an immensely rich tapestry. Rewriting history and probing the most profound questions as only he can, Robinson shines his extraordinary light on the place of religion, culture, power, and even love on such an Earth. From the steppes of Asia to the shores of the Western Hemisphere, from the age of Akbar to the present and beyond, here is the stunning story of the creation of a new world.
From the Hardcover edition.
Download Description
With the incomparable vision and breathtaking detail that brought his now-classic Mars trilogy to vivid life, bestselling author Kim Stanley Robinson boldly imagines an alternate history of the last seven hundred years. In his grandest work yet, the acclaimed storyteller constructs a world vastly different from the one we know....
It is the fourteenth century and one of the most apocalyptic events in human history is set to occur -- the coming of the Black Death. History teaches us that a third of Europe's population was destroyed. But what if? What if the plague killed 99 percent of the population instead? How would the world have changed?
This is a look at the history that could have been -- a history that stretches across centuries, a history that sees dynasties and nations rise and crumble, a history that spans horrible famine and magnificent innovation. These are the years of rice and salt.
This is a universe where the first ship to reach the New World travels across the Pacific Ocean from China and colonization spreads from west to east. This is a universe where the Industrial Revolution is triggered by the world's greatest scientific minds -- in India. This is a universe where Buddhism and Islam are the most influential and practiced religions and Christianity is merely a historical footnote.
Through the eyes of soldiers and kings, explorers and philosophers, slaves and scholars, Robinson renders an immensely rich tapestry. Rewriting history and probing the most profound questions as only he can, Robinson shines his extraordinary light on the place of religion, culture, power, and even love on such an Earth.
From the steppes of Asia to the shores of the Western Hemisphere, from the age of Akbar to the present and beyond, here is the stunning story of the creation of a new world.
"Hugo winner Robinson follows three characters over seven centuries on an alternate Earth in which Islam and Buddhism are the dominant religions... Blessed with moments of wry and gentle beauty as friends and antagonists rediscover each other under different guises in exotically dangerous locales."
KIRKUS REVIEWS
Customer Reviews:
Starts with a bang...ends in a whimper.......2007-08-17
As stated by many others, the premise is intriguing, but it fails to deliver what it promises. The opening chapter is gripping, from its goose bump-inducing title of "Awake to Emptiness" to the description of a desolate and plague-ridden land, to the amazing scope of the adventures of its characters. I found the book enthralling at first, and somewhat interesting all the way through Warp and Weft, at least it seemed to be building toward a world-changing/shaping climax. Simply consider; no Europeans: a complete and total elimination of the pressures applied to the rest of the world by the authors of the crusades, the inquisition and imperialism. Yet the world created by the author does not really change. The fact that no change was forthcoming appeared first in the dreadful chapter Widow Kang and continued all the way until the pathetic attempt at closure in The First Years. As I finished the book, I was left scratching my head wondering if the author underwent a life-altering experience or a drastic change in his diet that could account for the complete collapse of such a promising story.
The writing is still strong and I even understand the concept of reincarnation as a vessel of returning the basic characters over the ages as a means of attaining some semblance of cohesiveness; otherwise the book could easily be a collection of short stories set in an alternate world. However this reincarnation theme is not just a stylistic tool but a recurrent philosophy of the author which further fuels a cyclical plot devoid of historical change. Simply put, this makes for boring reading. I will not presume to add to the detailed reviews already here which discuss all the little historical details that the author overlooked, but consider that this is an alternative history novel, and just because we like a particular event or are interested in a group of people does not mean that they must have played an important role in this version of history. However, it is highly naïve to believe that the defining events of world history progress unaltered despite the eradication of an entire continent. I am just speculating here, but I think the book falters in its later half because the author declines to choose sides in answering a simple question: Would the world be a better place with or without European/Western influences? This is a loaded question, but the premise of this book demands its answer, instead we are left with a world almost exactly the same as what we have now. For someone who expected intelligent and imaginative alternative history, this proves to be disappointing.
Writing style doesn't work for Robinson.......2007-07-22
The Years of Rice and Salt had great promise. After all, it was written by master storyteller Kim Stanley Robinson (Antarctica; Green, Red, and Blue Mars). However, if there was no cover on this book, and I had to guess an author, it would have been James A. Michener, champion of the "sweeping historical saga" genre. And I would have been wondering what happened to the fire in Michener's writing.
The Years of Rice and Salt revolves around a cataclysmic event - the eradication of 15th century Europe because of the plague. Asian, African, Middle Eastern, and Native American cultures fill in the "gap" here, inventing the wireless, atomic power, medicine, et cetera. They bring the flavor of Islam and Buddhism on to the world's stage. The theme of reincarnation flows throughout the text.
You can't help but think of Jared Diamond's book, Guns, Germs & Steel, about the reasons for the patterns in human society, in relation to The Years of Rice and Salt. How would Robinson's story have changed if he would have read Diamond's book first?
Finally, the ending was laborious and prolonged, right when the story really needed a pick-me-up. Seeing as this was different from Robinson's main body of work, perhaps this book was an experimental phase for a successful author. Given his sci-fi experience, this book could have improved with a healthy dose of his futuristic vision, as opposed to squeezing current technologies into different cultures and languages.
Slow paced journey runs out of steam.......2007-06-08
For the most part this is a well written story of an alternate history where Europe is taken off the map figuratively. Made even better by the device of 3 main characters and some minor characters reincarnating through history. The novel focuses primarily on China and Islam, i.e. the middle and far east but some time is given to the natives of North America becoming a power unto their own and the influence of India. For the majority of the book it is a very interesting revealing of how things may have gone.
Even the best of the book though is slow-paced and for the final portions the pace becomes glacial. Progress stops, history does not move forward very much and page after page is devoted to speechifying by two of the main characters in one incarnation or another. In this way the book just runs out of steam and stops. A tightening up of these sections and showing progress up through the space age would probably have made for a better novel.
Was it worth reading? Yes.
Did it require effort? Yes.
Was it enjoyable? Mostly.
I feel happy and mostly rewarded that I finished the work, but I would not consider it to be pleasure reading. If the premise intrigues you give it a shot but be prepared that getting through might be a bit of work.
Ruined by one sentence!!.......2007-02-26
I was entranced by this novel--up to the section "Nsara" and the final section, "The First Years", although it began to tire me in the chapter called "Widow Kang" where I noticed the accumulation of certain historical and political assumptions that seemed dubious.
Robinson quite obviously relied on China-centered historians, and is far too complimentary to both Medieval East Asian Buddhism and Tokugawa Japan. He should have studied Korean historians like Lee Ki-Baik for an entirely different perspective on East Asian and Buddhist history--and learn that the Buddhist monks formed a sinister, self-serving political party dedicated to its own accumulation of wealth, and in Japan, Korea and China to military conquest. Nor did the Chinese win the late 16th century war with Japan; Korean military leader Yi Sun Shin did. If China managed to come out of its self-imposed isolationism to resume trading I wish the author had given reasons for it. Discovering America won't suffice. Chances are that in our world several Chinese traders made occasional landfall up and down the West Coast, but founded no colonies. In fact, I thought Robinson's understanding of colonialism was not as convincing as L. Sprague de Camp's in THE WHEELS OF IF, written over sixty years ago.
Robinson's choice of the Iroquois League (Hodenosaunee) as a democratic(!) unifier of North America, while barely possible, is implausible. Read Allan Eckart's weighty biography of Shawnee leader Techumseh, A SORROW IN THE HEART, and you will learn the low opinion of the Iroquois League by surrounding tribes who suffered from the League's self-serving collusion with white settlers. The other tribes, led by the Shawnee, called them "Snakes." To bring the independent Shawnee into the Hodenosaunee confederacy during the 18th century, even as newcomers, seemed ridiculous. In fact, the "-saunee" of Hodenosaunee means "people", so that the Shawnee, who scattered the same word from western Pennsylvania as far south as the Sewanee River, were the original "people" who needed no qualifier like "Hodeno-" ("of the long house").
What happened to the Mayans and Aztecs in this book, other than an occasional brief mention? What of the Native American Mound Builders, Pueblos, and the Pacific Northwest Haida, Tlingit and related tribes--all of them highly structured agricultural societies. Were most of these so easily assimilated by the Hodenosaunee? I doubt it, even if we assume, since British Columbian art shows affinities with Polynesia and coastal Asia, that China or Japan colonized the whole West Coast up to Alaska. As others have asked, what happened to the Polynesians? Where did the Australian aborigines go--a people who are closely related to the Dravidians of Robinson's high Travancori culture?
The 14th century in Europe is my specialty area, and for the previous two centuries Europe had been enjoying a Renaissance--not only in agriculture but in physical science (especially optics, mechanics and prime movers), in vernacular literature, and in the pre-plague 14th century, in revolutionary political thinking, like Marsiglio of Padua's treatise on representative democracy, DEFENSOR PACIS, and William of Ockham's even more radical DIALOGUS. Could all these important writings disappear? That seems doubtful, considering the eagerness of European intellectuals to read Islamic texts. Yet there is no mention of any European written material except perhaps the Latin texts of chant in "Nsara".
As other reviewers inquired, why are there no Jewish protagonists? The Ashkenazi might have expired in Europe, but most of the Sephardim probably would have lived and they were People of the Book, protected by many Islamic scholars and rulers. I kept expecting European Christians to reappear somewhere; they too were People of the Book and no longer dangerous. Since a pocket of Caucasoids survived in the Orkneys--why not also in the Azores or Canaries, on isolated Baltic and North Sea islets? Laying aside the unlikelihood that disease, whether bubonic plague or anthrax, would single out fair-complected people, if 10% surivived we could expect the far north from Russia to Iceland to be rapidly repopulated by persons of fairer skin--even if they were reduced to the stone age. The Saami apparently survived. Robinson evidently doesn't realize that before our era of processed vitamins, the easy assimilation of Vitamin D through fair skin gave light-colored people a survival advantage in the cloud-covered far north, where darker ones succumbed to rickets--just as dark-skinned people prevailed in the tropics because, before artificial light and air conditioning, pigmentation that blocks lethal overexposure to sunlight and UV was very useful.
And that brings me to Robinson's strange avoidance of Africa. The first chapter seemed promising, introducing us to an interesting, rebellious protagonist from East Africa, and Robinson seems to have admired Moshesh (more correctly, Moshweshwe), the brilliant, unifying king of the Basotho, although he does not understand the category prefix system of the Bantu languages. But what happened to the powerful late-Medieval West African nations--Mali? Ghana? Ife? Benin? Senegal?--many of them protected from slavers by having converted to Islam? Without Portuguese raids they should have thrived, as they had been doing. We need to remember that the University of Timbuktu in black Africa predates any university in Europe, or for that matter, in Asia.
I could have accepted the author's neglect of Africa, but the entire book collapsed for me on page 650 in the most racist statement I've seen in a mass-market novel since I read Buchan's PRESTER JOHN sixty years ago! This is when Madame Suriri, the Zott (Gypsy) fortune-teller goes into a lecture on reincarnation that sounds a lot like Robinson preaching his own themes. She ends by saying, ". . .on the streets of the city I see Africans, or other peoples from across the sea, who are very clearly more animal than human." I was shocked. A decent editor surely would have noticed that, so it is probably no error caused by text omission.
How anyone could read such nonsense and ever again take any of Robinson's opinions seriously, is beyond me. Although well-written and interesting, even gripping in certain chapters, this book is primarily a soap-box and megaphone advertisement of Kim Stanley Robinson's opinions!
The Years of Rice and Salt.......2007-01-19
The Years of Rice and Salt is one of Robinson's best efforts. I enjoyed it much more than 40 Signs of Rain.
Customer Reviews:
Interesting exploration of spirit.......2006-06-01
I was prompted to write this mostly in response to the other review already posted. While the context for the book is a world in which civilization develops in a history where the Black Death was much much more deadly, that is not, I believe, the point of the book. This book is an interesting exploration of reincarnation, the cyclic learning, success, failure, and growth of souls through many lives, and the mutual evolution and growth of a collective that are linked together outside of normal reality.
This presents its own problem, as it means that the reader is constantly having to switch contexts, relearning new settings and characters; ideally, you would find yourself attached to the 'soul' that is constant through the stories, but there seems to be a missing piece or perhaps lack of depth that makes forming the connection difficult.
As a spiritual exploration, though, this book is fascinating and extremely well fleshed out as an Idea. I'm not sure it succeeds as a work of entertaining fiction, but it is very much worth the read, particularly if you have appropriate expectations for it.
Boring and incoherent.......2006-05-14
The topic of this book is what would the world look like if European civilization never came to be? The author imagines a world where Europe was wiped out in the Black death. But then much of his imagination stops. Finally the world develops in about the same way as it has actually done, but in the Far East instead. You can learn a few facts about the history of Islam and Buddhism, the only merit of the book which is mainly boring and without any plot whatsoever. And the interludes in the "bardo" where the main characteres are reincarnated is a disturbing ingredient which add nothing to the continuity of the story. I think his Mars trilogy was much better.
Average customer rating:
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The Years of Rice and Salt
Kim Stanley Robinson
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Contemporary
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Historical
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ASIN: 0002246791 |
Customer Reviews:
Bait of Satan.......2007-09-28
First... in reading his first page... my response: YOU ARE GREEDY.
Did you not know this is too a bait of satan?
Anyway, the bottom line is something I already knew... save yourself the trouble... use the God given gift of Discernment the Good Lord gave to you to use in the first place.
the whole book surrounds OFFENSE.
Hey people, if you aren't offended in this day and age there is something wrong with you. It is how you respond to those offenses that matters.
and if you think you want to teach a class on the subject... go to the Bible; not to this book. He tells you not to COPY it in any formation at all... even if you want to discuss it! Well Mr. Bevere, how do think a class is suppose to discuss something without viewing it? Oh, that's right... plug in... each person has to PURCHASE the B"OOK. Marketed Christianity for certain. Just read the New Testament... and it will teach you something about OFFENSES.
Everyone's been offended... but what should we do?.......2007-05-16
Every single person has been offended one time or other. How do I know? The Bible says it is so! No one who lives in a time like this is free from offense, but the offense does not need to color the way we see things, how we view life, and how we perceive the people who have offended us. The offense can grow to become bitterness and take root in our lives. This book helps us identify that we have been offended, and the great need to forgive and release the offense.
"Offended people produce much fruit, such as hurt, anger, outrage, jealousy, resentment, strife, bitterness, hatred, and envy. Some of the consequences of picking up an offense are insults, attacks, wounding, division, separation, broken relationships, betrayal, and backsliding." (pg. xiv)
Why is the book entitled "The Bait of Satan"? Well, Bevere explains that the Greek word for "offend" in Luke 17:1 comes from the word skandalon, which originally referred to the part of the trap which the bait was attached. Hence, the word signifies laying a trap in someone's way. In the New Testament it often describes an entrapment used by the enemy.
The following are some quotes from the book:
- Our response to an offense determines our future.
- An offended Christian is one who takes in life but because of fear, cannot release it.
- When we filter everything through past hurts, rejections, and experiences, we find it impossible to believe God.
- There is only one person who can get you out of the will of God, and that is you!
- It is righteous for God to avenge His servants. It is unrighteous for God's servants to avenge themselves.
- Acquiring an offense keeps you from seeing your character flaws because blame is deferred to another.
- When we ratain an offense in our hearts, we filter everything through it.
- Jesus offended some people by obeying His Father, but He never caused an offense in order to assert His own rights.
- A slave is one who has to serve while a servant is one who lives to serve.
- A person who cannot forgive has forgotten how great a debt God has forgiven them.
Definite Must Read.......2007-05-11
John Bevere's book "The Bait Of satan" is phenomenal to say the least! He covers all the angles of forgiveness, unforgiveness, grudges and offesnses, and backs everything up with good solid scripture. I dealt with holding grudges and unforgiveness for many years, and after reading this book, the Lord set me free! Believe me, if you have issues with being offended, and not being able to let go, you have GOT to read this book. It will change your life!
Truth, truth, and more truth.......2006-12-19
My flesh hated this book but my spirit loved it! The author confronts an issue of which none of us are immune. For the sake of our own souls we must never hold offense.
A book study for every Church........2006-12-18
My Church did this as a Bible Study and now it is required for membership. It was a life changing experience for me and many friends who do not even attend church. The Liar, Deciever, the devil will do everything possible to get you out of your Church and hate God and die and this is the ultimate way to do it by being offended with your brothers and sisters.
Don't be decieved.
Learn, grow, love, forgive. Bless the Body of the Church.
Know what you are up against. You will be able to spot an offense as soon as it hits and rise above it in Christ.
Customer Reviews:
book.......2007-10-03
Interesting book that is highly focussed on how we should react to offenses. It is helpful to study this book in a small group rather than just reading it.
An Important Book - Forgive so that You May be Forgiven.......2007-09-21
The Golden Rule states to do unto others what you would have them do unto you. That message was meant for good things, to treat others well in the hopes you'd be treated well in return. Unfortunately, too many people have used this as a license to treat others poorly just because they've been treated poorly themselves.
The Golden Rule is based on Matthew 7:12, where Jesus says that, in short, you should treat others the way you want to be treated.
The point of Bevere's book is offense and how to deal with it. The message is to forgive because the Bible is quite clear that if we don't forgive others, God won't forgive us. After all, fair is fair, and God is always fair and is the embodiment of that. It isn't about how wrong we've been treated or how justified we are to be mad at or upset with someone else. Judgment and justice belong to Christ alone so who are we to mete it out? It's simply not our place and by holding grudges and not forgiving someone, we are passing judgment on them by withholding our love and forgiveness from them.
Bevere hits the message home with a hard smack, as he's so good at. His writing style is simple and clear, but very poignant, frequently reminding the reader of what the Bible says about offense and forgiveness without pulling any punches.
This book is a true gem and a must for the serious Christian's bookshelf. It is also important reading for the non-Christian because, as it is with truth, truth is universal and applies to everyone.
This book is important. It is life-changing because it is based on a Word that can divide joints and marrow, and soul and spirit.
This Book is Based on Bad Theology.......2007-08-10
Forgiveness is important, vital to the Christian life, but this book does not give an accurate picture of the forgiveness taught by Jesus.
The premise of the book, stated in the first few pages, is this: Jesus forgives everyone, so we must forgive everyone.
Except that Jesus does not forgive everyone. Unlike love, forgiveness is conditional. He OFFERS forgiveness to everyone, but only gives it to those who have repented of their sin.
Forgiveness in the church is to work the same way. If someone who claims to be a Christian is in sin, (overlooking the small stuff) we are to confront that person in love. If they repent, then forgiveness is to be offered immediately and their offense is to be completely wiped off the books. If we can't forgive properly after someone has properly repented, then we are in sin and have our own idols to confront.
If however, the offending party does not confess their sin and clean up the mess they made (the biblical description of repentance found in Numbers 5:5-6), other Christians are not supposed to just forgive him and move on. Matthew 18 teaches that they are to confront him again in a larger group, then again by the local body as a whole, and then if they still will not make things right, they are to be turned out of the body. Those in the body are to continue to go to him and encourage him to clean things up and return, but Christians are not to be in good standing in the body of Christ when they will not repent of their sin. (1 Cor 5) Period.
This is an important process for weeding out the tares. If someone claims to be a Christian, but refuses to be held accountable after repeatedly being confronted lovingly from scripture, then he just might not actually be a Christian.
This book, based on the idea that all sin is to be forgiven and that Christians should just 'let go' of things that offend God, regardless of how rebellious the offending person is or how high up in ministry they are, is not biblical. God hates sin. He wants it addressed in His church. He says that those who don't address it frankly, share in the guilt of it (Leviticus 19:17) . This book not only teaches Christians to turn a blind eye to sin, it will lead to rampant abuse in the church where it is practiced.
Neither does it distinguish forgiveness and fellowship. If someone has sinned against us, and been turned out of the body for not repenting, then it is time for us who are offended to "forgive from the heart" (Matt 18:35), but that does not mean that fellowship is restored. It is not.
Bevere even goes as far as to give examples from his life and his ministry, where he failed to confront sin in others, even another pastor who was sinning against not just him but several people in the church, and presents them as if he was doing a good thing by not addressing the problem. He seems to feel that because it all worked out in the end, that what he did was right. Except that he was failing his God and his congregation by failing to act biblically in these situations. And how do we know that it all worked out in the end for the other people that were victims of the sinning pastor?
Further, this book calls God a sinner. One of the other premises of the book is that if you are offended, you are in sin. Jesus trashed the temple courts because He was offended that God's House was being turned into a place for profiteers. If the teachings of this book are true, then Jesus was in sin.
Not to mention that God spent pretty much the whole Old Testament being offended at the behavior of almost everyone. Anger and Jealousy are among the attributes of God. Taking Bevere's theology to its logical consequence, God Himself is in serious and habitual sin and is in need of repentance.
Forgiveness is important, but it needs to be placed in context. The theological holes in this book are big enough to drive a truck through, and there are a lot more than I have mentioned here. My brother in law gave me a copy and I returned it to him with notes on every other page bringing his attention to the problems it has. I urge Christians reading this book to get out your Bible and read the passages I have noted here.
Books like this high light the importance of having a discerning mind and running all "Christian" books through the screen of inerrant scripture. ALL of scripture.
We trap by offenses.......2007-07-28
If you are a person that is offened by one person or another this is the book for you! This is a Great book and it is a must read for everyone who has been deeply hurt by someone's actions, words or deed!
Excellent book.......2007-07-04
It's well-supported biblically, practical,and able to positively impact relationships.
After reading this book, I bought copies for each of my 4 children, for my pastor and one of the church elders, who in turn bought copies for each of the church elders.
Customer Reviews:
The Bait Of Satan Study WorkBook.......2000-06-23
I bought this work book to correspond with the book. It is so very good, it helps you see areas that Satan uses to bring you down, to make you doubt God, and His promises. I highly recommend this workbook as well as the book to any Christian as it makes us see areas in our life that we may neglect.
It will open your heart to the truth!.......2000-05-15
This book is a must for anyone. We are of the flesh and tend to get offended. But this book guides through breaking the bonds of offense, and forgiving those who have hurt you, or you might have hurt. It is very humbling. I am the fourth person to have been handed this book to read and it has changed the way I view people, and how to love them through Christs eyes.
Customer Reviews:
Why waste time being offended?.......2006-01-04
I loved this book so much I purchased the curriculum. This book teaches that unforgiveness springs forth from being offended at any number of things, but it does NOT teach that we can not be indignant of actions, words, or authorities that go against the Word of the Lord. Neither does the book teach that we are to blindly accept those in authority over us. There's a difference between being offended and holy indignation.
Here's where I WAS: "I am smarter than you, stronger in character than you, and farther in my Christian walk than you are. What you say bears no relevance because I have already marked those in whom I place my earthly trust, and you are not one of them." What a dangerous place to be!
Here is where I AM NOW: We all say things and do things that are not in complete obedience to God, even if our walk with Him has been long and fruitful. At the very least, we might commit small sins of pride or vanity, regarding ourselves as indignant in a holy way, but we are really self-righteously indignant. Because of the teaching in this book, I have come to recognize that I can not affect how others behave, but I can affect how I react. I can CHOOSE to take the bait or I can CHOOSE to forgive, to learn, and to move on.
I'm such a different person now - like night and day. I had no idea that my being offended at so many little things was standing in the way of achieving my full potential as a Christian. Now I do.
For those who feel condemned when reading this book. Don't. Conviction in your heart isn't condemnation, for there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. Let the Holy Spirit minister to you! Be encouraged that Jesus cares enough to get involved with your reading, your learning, and your interest in removing the still uncircumcised calluses of your heart. I was out of my comfort zone for some time before diving into the Word in conjunction with going through this curriculum yielded revelation about myself and my character that I resisted knowing. I have been delivered!
In another CD teaching, a Deacon Dr. Bob McDonald said, "The size of your ego is exactly equal to the distance between you and God." How true! Let's just say there was quite the chasm between God and I before I overcame my unwillingness to be truthful with myself and really reap the benefits of this book.
Praise the Lord for His patience and mercy!
Product Description
Includes Book and 5 VHS tapes
Books:
- Things Not Seen
- Time Enough for Love
- Transmetropolitan Vol. 4: The New Scum
- Transmetropolitan Vol. 8: Dirge
- Two Heads Are Better Than One
- Ventus
- Warchild
- Warrior Brood (Warhammer 40,000)
- We Few (Prince Rogers)
- 100 Percent Erotica
Books Index
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- Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War
- Portal Through Time
- Neuro-Fuzzy and Soft Computing: A Computational Approach to Learning and Machine Intelligence
- Simon & Schuster's Guide to Mushrooms
- Kings of the Hellenes: The Greek Kings 1863-1974
- Mary Moses' Statement
