PIC No. 25:
• Title: A Well-Planted Faith in an Uprooted Culture: A 30-Day Devotional with Guided Journal Entries
• Author: Ed McDowell
• Publisher: Standpoint 360 (Feb. 2, 2022, 133 pages)
• Management Bucket #5 of 20: The Book Bucket
Welcome to Issue No. 25 of PAILS IN COMPARISON, the value-added sidekick of John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. This blog features my “PICs”—shorter reviews of helpful books—with comparisons to other books in my 20 management buckets (core competencies) filing system.
Write a Letter to God!
If you're looking for a low commitment, no harm/no foul, easy-way-to-grow spiritually...well, keep looking! Ed McDowell is going to make you work.
A Well-Planted Faith in an Uprooted Culture: A 30-Day Devotional with Guided Journal Entries features 30 topics in 30 days, but note this caution! While McDowell has tilled the ground, he's left the planting to you. (Well, actually, God is also very much involved.)
He writes about "a faith so well grounded in the truth of God's word and the surety of God's character that it cannot be dissuaded by a culture uprooted by self-seeking and self-truth." He adds,
"The beautiful truth that God goes before us as we seek Him each day is evidenced by the way He prepares us for what's coming when we spend time with Him."
Each of the 30-day growth-prompters are four pages:
--2 pages of Scripture, brief commentary, and a short paragraph each for Reflection, Encouragement, and a Prayer.
--2 pages for your "Guided Journal Entry" with a brief (but convicting) question to get you started.
Example: For Day 21, "Renewal through Waiting," the journaling prompt asks you to "write a letter to God thanking Him for rest and rejoicing in the blessings He provides." (Have you ever written a letter to the Lord?)
On your journey (and your journaling) to a well-planted faith, McDowell's 30-day trip includes authentic stops on:
• Overcoming Worldly Temptation (Day 8)
• God’s Generous Refreshment (Day 9)
• Brevity of Life (Day 13)
• Just Stay Calm (Day 15)
• Holy Endurance Needed (Day 27)
• The Complete Alignment (Day 28)
You'll want to invest 60 days in this very helpful devotional (I'm going through it twice).
P.S. Gratefully, Ed McDowell, has added a second book to this series, A Well-Planted Faith in an Uprooted Culture: Culture-Changing Community (Sept. 7, 2022). Order from Amazon.
PAILS IN COMPARISON: Reading this book reminded me of several other must-read books in the Book Bucket, plus other buckets/core competencies.
[ ] A Diary of Private Prayer, by John Baillie (order from Amazon)
[ ] Leadership Prayers, by Richard Kriegbaum (read my review)
[ ] Read my reviews of Highly Recommended Spiritual Growth Books (Dec. 30, 2019)
To order from Amazon, click on the title for A Well-Planted Faith in an Uprooted Culture: A 30-Day Devotional with Guided Journal Entries, by Ed McDowell.
To order the companion book (Sept. 7, 2022) from Amazon, click on the title for A Well-Planted Faith in an Uprooted Culture: Culture-Changing Community, by Ed McDowell. For more book reviews, visit John Pearson’s Buckets Blog and subscribe to Your Weekly Staff Meeting.
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