| Title | : | Sons of Encouragement: Five Stories of Faithful Men Who Changed Eternity |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1414348169 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781414348162 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 736 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2008 |
Sons of Encouragement: Five Stories of Faithful Men Who Changed Eternity Reviews
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This collection is a nice companion to Francine Rivers' "Lineage of Grace" series. Though I personally enjoyed "Grace" more than "Encouragement."
Both sets are written from a biblical character's point of view - which I like. Novels like these show the Scriptures in another perspective. Instead of listing an account of history you're there with the person living the history. This greatly helps to understand the period in which the events take place.
It can get kind of tricky writing books of this kind so close to biblical verse and the author handled it pretty well. My only criticism is directed towards two particular novels: The Priest (Aaron) and The Prince (Jonathan). We know a whole lot about these two guys in the Bible so the books leave little to be explored. This is not a bad thing at all, more praise to her for being so precise and careful with the source material, but reading them was a long and almost dry going. On the other hand the other three, The Warrior (Caleb), The Prophet (Amos) and The Scribe (Silas), engaged me more because we know minuscule information about them, which makes the author's view on who they were especially fun to read.
But please remember that these stories are just a companion to Scripture. They do not replace the inspired Word of God at all and for that reason Francine Rivers gets extra points for including Bible studies after each novel. -
I really enjoyed these. 5 novellas, each about a lesser-known person from the Bible: Aaron, the priest, who encouraged and stood behind Moses; Caleb, the warrior, who stood and fought beside Joshua; Jonathan, the prince,who stood between his father Saul and his friend; Amos the prophet, who spent years pleading with the Israelites to turn back to God; Silas, the scribe, who traveled with Paul and Peter to spread the Good News.
I often find that these Biblical retellings make me much more aware of timelines - how long people travel, or how long a war goes on, or how old people are when certain events happen - and that gives me even more insight into the motivations and possible thoughts at the time. These were no exception.
Each was very well written, and very close to the information you'll find in the Bible. (I think Silas was the most fictionalized, but really she just rolled other unnamed characters into "Silas" because we know so little about him.) And the best part, for me, wasn't the discussion questions (though those will be good another time) but including the relevant Bible passages at the end of each story, so you can read the truth for yourself and immediately see where certain details came from. This is one to buy! -
MY REVIEW:
Can I just tell you how much I love this book? Okay! Well let me share!
Francine Rivers makes you feel as if you are back in time as these men of faith - Aaron, Caleb, Jonathan, Amos, and Silas - are living their lives. While it is a combination of Biblical facts woven into her well researched imagination, it offers a glimpse of what was and what might have been making the Bible come alive in your mind and heart. Understanding the Bible times on such a personal level helps you understand the mercy and grace of God and how it has spanned time to apply to your life even today. Francine's writing is real, fresh, and inspiring!
Some portions of this book can be a little detailed and hard to read through, but most anyone will enjoy this book even if they have to skip a page or two! This is a great book for both teens and adults. -
El sacerdote: 3 ⭐️
El guerrero: 3.5⭐️
El príncipe: 4 ⭐️
El profeta: 4 ⭐️
El escriba: 4 ⭐️
En general me parecieron buenas historias. Pero junto con el estudio bíblico que hay al final de cada relato, la experiencia es incluso mejor. -
Started reading Nov. 6, 2019 🙃 not as engaging as lineage of grace.
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The entire book gets a 3.75 star rating. This was a hassle to read and get through. I ended up wanting to DNF if it partially through and then opted to listen to the audiobooks. Didn't truly meet my expectations, but that's my own personal fault.
The Priest - I'm going with a 3.75 star rating for this novella. I enjoyed it, but I felt like it dragged too much which is why I can't give it a full 4 star. Moses is amazing in leading the people. Though they complained and griped he still followed God's command and led the people. He did have his downfall when he allowed man to drag him down. Miriam irritated me with how she acted entitled. Aaron was easily influenced by others and acted like a brat. All three reminded me of how much we can fail as humans no matter how much good we believe we are doing. Man will always fail.
The focus was on Aaron as the spokesperson for Moses during the ten plagues and the exodus. Aaron was an annoying character for me. He whined, acted like a little child and was easily swayed by the opinions of others rather than sticking to his faith. I was more so intrigued by Moses and Joshua than I was for Aaron.
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The Warrior - I feel like the beginning of this book was far fetched and so I have to settle on a 3 star rating. This follows Caleb, but it starts from the time of him living in Egypt under his Egyptain name. I was completely thrown off guard with the first three chapters and didn't really like how Joshua was written as an indecisive, weak person. The way Joshua was portrayed seemed to bother so much that it completely took me out of the story. The last two chapters did grip my attention, but overall, I was just not invested.
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The Prince - This was an excellent biblical fiction story on the life of Jonathan, son of King Saul and friend of David. Giving this a solid 4 star rating! I loved the characters and how true to their nature they were. I loved the bond between David and Jonathan. I loved how much Jonathan tried to stay with his father. I loved seeing the scripture played out. From chapter one to the epilogue I was sold and hooked on to each word. My favorite thus far!!!
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The Prophet - Going with a 3.75 star rating for this. Wanted to give it a full 4, but that ending was very anticlimactic so I just couldn't give it that full star. Amos was an interesting prophet and his story was a bit all over the place. I enjoyed seeing him have visions and seeing him go against the "norm" of his people's ways.
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The Scribe - Giving this a solid 4 because I love the way Silas told the story of Jesus, Peter and Paul. I felt like I was sitting with him as he was speaking about what he learned and saw. I was pulled in from beginning to end. This was scripture heavy, but was written in such a fantastic way.
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Overall, this is an okay novella. Glad I own it, but don't see me re-reading the first two novellas ever again. The last three were pretty good! -
The entire book gets a 3.75 star rating. This was a hassle to read and get through. I ended up wanting to DNF if it partially through and then opted to listen to the audiobooks. Didn't truly meet my expectations, but that's my own personal fault.
The Priest - I'm going with a 3.75 star rating for this novella. I enjoyed it, but I felt like it dragged too much which is why I can't give it a full 4 star. Moses is amazing in leading the people. Though they complained and griped he still followed God's command and led the people. He did have his downfall when he allowed man to drag him down. Miriam irritated me with how she acted entitled. Aaron was easily influenced by others and acted like a brat. All three reminded me of how much we can fail as humans no matter how much good we believe we are doing. Man will always fail.
The focus was on Aaron as the spokesperson for Moses during the ten plagues and the exodus. Aaron was an annoying character for me. He whined, acted like a little child and was easily swayed by the opinions of others rather than sticking to his faith. I was more so intrigued by Moses and Joshua than I was for Aaron.
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The Warrior - I feel like the beginning of this book was far fetched and so I have to settle on a 3 star rating. This follows Caleb, but it starts from the time of him living in Egypt under his Egyptain name. I was completely thrown off guard with the first three chapters and didn't really like how Joshua was written as an indecisive, weak person. The way Joshua was portrayed seemed to bother so much that it completely took me out of the story. The last two chapters did grip my attention, but overall, I was just not invested.
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The Prince - This was an excellent biblical fiction story on the life of Jonathan, son of King Saul and friend of David. Giving this a solid 4 star rating! I loved the characters and how true to their nature they were. I loved the bond between David and Jonathan. I loved how much Jonathan tried to stay with his father. I loved seeing the scripture played out. From chapter one to the epilogue I was sold and hooked on to each word. My favorite thus far!!!
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The Prophet - Going with a 3.75 star rating for this. Wanted to give it a full 4, but that ending was very anticlimactic so I just couldn't give it that full star. Amos was an interesting prophet and his story was a bit all over the place. I enjoyed seeing him have visions and seeing him go against the "norm" of his people's ways.
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The Scribe - Giving this a solid 4 because I love the way Silas told the story of Jesus, Peter and Paul. I felt like I was sitting with him as he was speaking about what he learned and saw. I was pulled in from beginning to end. This was scripture heavy, but was written in such a fantastic way.
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Overall, this is an okay novella. Glad I own it, but don't see me re-reading the first two novellas ever again. The last three were pretty good! -
YAY I FINISHED FINALLY!
This was so so good!
Each story revealed different attributes of faith to me — each character wrestled with a different challenge to following God and/or a different strength that defined their faith in God. It all came down to obedience. Ultimately, every character obeyed God, despite everything else — circumstances, doubts, risk, other people’s hate, physical harm, death. They continued to stay true to Him. And each of their different circumstances & historical eras helped to reveal the different parts of God and our faith.
It was also so cool to read about less-talked-about Bible figures. Shows that we all can play a valuable part in God’s plan, no matter how visible/recorded our impact is. :)
The writing style seems both like historical fiction (drama woven into characters and events, plot stakes, expressive language, imagery, etc.) and like biographical accounts (don’t follow the normal hero’s story arc, feels more like regular life, drawn out, a little less climactic). The biographical-ness of the stories is what made me read more slowly I think — it didn’t hold my rapt attention as much as classic fiction. BUT tbh I think that’s a worthy drawback, because it’s good that Rivers stuck to conveying real/plausible history as much as possible.
My fav stories were Jonathan and Silas. Idk how Jonathan kept on keeping on. He was in a TOUGH pickle. But he walked a narrow path with grace and humility and I am inspired. And Silas, wow, talk about a difficult time in history. He endured so many hardships and risk and persecution. But he continued to GO, and he kept his eyes on eternity.
The other stories were amazing too. Caleb reminded me of the importance of seeking God’s wisdom for every decision, and going where He leads with confidence, without question. Amos reminded me that God is ever present and powerful, even when it doesn’t feel like it. He has the world in His hands, and He will do His will, and when we trust Him, He provides everything we need.
It’s been so long since I read Aaron’s story that I can’t remember what stood out to me about his… oop. Still good though! -
Extremely happy that Rivers used Amos as one of the "sons of encouragement." Amos was a man of few words. He encouraged me because despite his brevity, God used him to deliver a strong message. He was the "blue collar" man, the prophet among the common people to show that God uses the meek; He gets all the glory! God selects what people reject. From Rivers' story I can see how it may not have been easy for Amos to say yes to the call to prophecy. However, his humble profession did not disqualify him from the call nor did it excuse him from ministry. That I can be as obedient as Amos is my prayer.
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I totally recommend this book for anyone who loves biblical fiction.
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I really enjoy being able to dive more into the men of the bible!
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A set of 5 historical/biblical novelisations of the characters Aaron, Caleb, Jonathan, Amos and Silas. Having started with many reservations, I won't say I've become a Francine Rivers fan... but it wasn't too bad! I do enjoy the way this kind of retelling draws out the flow of the biblical story in ways that can sometimes be obscured by the genre of the biblical books (not always being narrative) or by our bible reading habits (reading a few chapters a day). To make it work Rivers has to highlight overarching themes, character developments and plot twists. Sometimes this is great, when these are biblical -- for example, Israel's continual struggle ('contending with God') vs God's endless grace is very clear in the first 2 stories. The 'suffering prophet' image of Amos was helpful, and I loved the depiction of the network of relationships between the apostles and missionaries in the Silas story. However, sometime Rivers has to draw some fairly unlikely biblical conclusions -- or flat out make stuff up -- in order to craft a convincing story (in the early lives of Caleb or Silas for example) and this undercuts the credibility of those stories. Finally, I don't think Francine Rivers was quite able to make the transition from her usual female audience to a male readership. The overall tone was a bit feathery and fluffy with plenty of emotional introspection -- which meant I just wasn't highly motivated to pick the book up and read it, making it a bit of an exercise in discipline. I mean really, how many blokes want to read about (the promo line) "five men who quietly changed eternity"?! I suspect this is a book aimed at women who want to buy a book for their husbands. And while it didn't tick all the boxes for me, it was worth reading none the less.
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I picked this book after reading ‘Lineage of Grace’ with high hopes and expectations. I found it winding and too wordy, didn’t enjoy it as much. Favourite stories were Jonathan and Silas.
I found a poignant central truth running through the stories of Aaron, Caleb, Jonathan, Amos and Silas and it is this - the nature of man is constantly at war with the righteousness of God and it takes the man willing to enslave themselves to Christ to win this battle.
Favourite quotes
“They all seemed intent on taking care of their immediate needs that they scarcely looked up.....they were busy drinking the water God had provided to stop and thank God for providing it. “
“It is not enough to want to fight. All me have it in them to fight! You must know the One who leads you into battle.”
“The old moaned and mourned, grumbled and groaned, and died. The young praised and practiced, rejoiced in and reverence’s God, and lived.”
“Men without God put their trust in a spider’s web , not even knowing they had been captured and bound.”
“The safest place I can be is in the will of God”
“Of course. Life is hard. Knowing God makes a vast difference in how we live.”
“Forgive me Lord. Forgive me. I’m afraid. I admit it. I’m terrified. Not of death, but of dying. “
“It is not easy to look back..... but sometimes we must look back before we can move forward.”
“Even those who have accepted Christ and received the Holy Spirit contend with the sin nature......the problem, my young friend, is not to break the chains-God has already done that- but the willingness to enslave ourselves to Jesus, who sets us free.” -
The stories of 5 Biblical men told with solid Biblical facts mixed with some educated imagination. (Aaron, Caleb, Jonathan, Amos, and Silas)
I've read a handful of Francine Rivers' books, and this is my least favorite. I thought most of the stories were too drawn out and boring. The five characters she chose either had far too much information given in the Bible which led to the story being just a repetition of Bible stories with nothing new added, or far too little information which led to too much conjecture not founded on fact. I read this as part of a summer book club and all across the board people were mostly disappointed with the book. Especially when compared to Rivers' "Lineage of Grace" book that is done in the same format, which was a good read.
With that said, I did learn some new information. Mostly from the story of Silas. But the little profound nuggets were buried deep into a re-reading of the story of Acts straight from the Bible. As I am glad Rivers' sticks to facts when she has them, it was just not very exciting or interesting. -
Honestly I wasn’t as impressed by this series as I usually am by Rivers. But here’s my thoughts on each novella!
AARON:
Didn’t like Aaron but loved how earthy Moses and Miriam were portrayed
Rating: 1 Star out of 10 stars
Warning: graphic details about the plagues, Aaron’s sons deaths, and leprosy. Some racism against Moses African wives...
CALEB:
Didn’t like Caleb but loved his 2 wives
Warning : Caleb is a tyrannical narcissistic monster
Rating: 2 out of 10 stars
JONATHAN:
Totally loved him and the entire plot/characters
Rating: 10 stars
Warning: graphic details about war, sorcery, and murder attempts
AMOS:
Loved him but(SPOILER ALERT)was sad he was murdered by his own people who didn’t like his
prophecies
Warning: his tragic murder at end of the book
SILAS:
Kinda redundant but hey, it had romance !
Warning: none
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars -
Found this book hard to get through. It did not have the same flow or attention to the story line that the other books I have read by Francine Rivers. Sort of forced myself to read all the way to the end. I felt this book was rather violent and all about war. Very different from the stories of the women of the Bible.
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Even the wooliest atheist stands a good chance of liking this collection volume! Here's my review:
http://www.openlettersmonthly.com/now... -
This book was lent to my by a friend from church. It is fiction, but follows the stories of five Biblical men and imagines what they would have thought, said and done. It is very cleverly written, and really brought the characters to life, as well as linking in other people who were around at the time, and plenty of Biblical truths during their conversations. At the end of each book (this is actually five books in one), there is a chapter that can be used for personal or collective Bible study or reflection - I confess to having skipped straight over those bits. I was reading this as my fiction book, rather than a study book.
At first I found the book to be very slow, and if I'm honest, I didn't like Caleb's story to be immediately after Aaron's because I felt that a bit too repetitive. (Caleb's and Aaron's stories are interlinked, and the order of these books follow the order of the Bible, so chronologically it is correct.) However, I think both of these points could be because I was reading a real book (dun dun dunnnnnn!), and being five books in one, it is a hefty size! In the end, I bought the Kindle version myself, returning the original to my friend, and that made everything go a lot smoother and much more enjoyable.
The five books are all independent, and follow secondary characters to those written about in the Bible itself. It allows for some poetic license, but Francine really brings the characters and struggles of these people to the forefront. I particularly enjoyed the story about Amos. In the Bible, Amos is a fairly short book, all about prophesy, encouraging the Israelites to repent and return to God. There is not much there about the character of Amos himself, so it was good to spend some time thinking about what he could have been like as a person, following God's will, spreading a message that many others did not want to hear.
Would I recommend this book? Yes. I'd go so far as to say that you don't have to be a Christian to enjoy these stories. If you have the slightest interest in the Bible or ancient history, then this book would be a good read to help set the scene and see the different challenges that would have been faced in those times, but even if you don't, the writing is good enough to draw you into the story and relate to their experiences. I do have to repeat that this is fiction, but highly recommend that if you enjoy it, you read the Bible itself afterwards, so you can see how accurate it is for yourself. -
Following the sales success of her Lineage of Grace series, Francine Rivers returned to biblical fiction in 2004-2007 with a series of five novellas focusing on five different men in Scripture. Entitled Sons of Encouragement, the series was better written than Lineage of Grace, even if it had a less cohesive unifying thread. With Lineage of Grace, the five novellas followed the five women mentioned in the biblical genealogy of Jesus. The Sons of Encouragement are seemingly picked at random as Rivers writes stories on Aaron, Caleb, Jonathan, Amos, and Silas. (Come on, Francine, the name Barnabas literally means “son of encouragement” but he doesn’t make the list?)
Written mostly as a launching pad to Bible studies, the series is more focused on contemporary application than historical accuracy. The thematic point is pushed so strongly that, at times, it overwhelms the actual narrative. Rivers takes some liberties with the culture and text, but nowhere near as egregiously as in her previous series. Unfortunately, while improved, the series retains a formal, stilted tone. Rivers does a lot of “telling” rather than “showing.” The characters lack depth or nuance, appearing as caricatures of themselves.
The best installment of this series goes through the story of Amos and, perhaps tellingly, it’s the best story because Rivers spends most of her time away from the biblical text, formulating a fictionalized backstory for Amos rather than trying to fictionalize within the biblical narrative. The stories here at bit longer than Lineage of Grace, carry a bit more depth, and correct some of the weak points of the previous series. But that added length and depth doesn’t translate into a more interesting story, just more information. In a word, overall, this series is boring. They don’t live up to the standard one expects from a writer like Rivers. Francine Rivers is at her best when infusing biblical themes into historical or contemporary novels. Reversing that to pull contemporary themes out of biblical fiction is not something she does as well. -
Read these books awhile ago.remembered them as I was talking with Mom about the series. Read them alongside Lineage of Grace, it was cool reading them in order! It kinda confused me at first. I was thinking these books were all about His lineage. Then I understood these were men who stood in the shadow of others.
Aaron: It was interesting reading of the first high priest called by God through Moses. Interesting reading his mistakes,responses, and how he grew in understanding. Sad he never got to see the promised land.
Caleb: At first, I was wondering who he was. It's cool to think he was adopted into Israel. Don't know why she made it hard to look at the brass serpent... The Jericho sequence was amazing! Interesting he realized he'd overlooked his faithful daughter amid his faithless sons, and how he worked faithfulness into providing for her.
Jonathan: LOVED this story. He's in the shadow of two people, his dad and friend. Interesting he kept the laws Samuel asked his father to keep. In the end, you need to do the work to have a faith-filled, blessed life. His faith was strong, his experiences were amazing, and his humility helped him follow whoever God called, while still being by the side of one who failed in his calling.
Amos: I didn't know much about this prophet, and I don't know about this take... He's a great shepherd, but he just seemed so angry and intolerant towards his fellow man. Love helps people change, and it doesn't seem like many people felt his love... Reading the interaction between the old and young prophets (Hosea) was a kind touch to not judge others as they seek to follow God.
Silas: I thought it was interesting having him be the rich young ruler. As someone who tries to record her life in pages,reading about him burning his stories was kinda heartbreaking. All that family history flushed down the toilet! I understand why he did that... He wanted his fellow saints to look to Christ's words in adoration, not his own. -
I read Francine Rivers’
A Lineage of Grace many years ago and loved (and have reread it several times since) but I only recently became aware that there was a similar version for 5 of the men of the Bible.
The first 4 stories are of Old Testament men of God - Aaron (Moses’ brother), Caleb (one of the 2 spies of “the land flowing with milk and honey” fame), Jonathon (King Saul’s son and David’s friend) and Amos (the prophet), and the last story is that of Silas (secretary and companion to Peter and Paul) after the executions of Paul and Peter, but looking back over the time when Jesus was first starting his ministry and onward from there.
As I read this, I was continually reminded anew of how events of Old Testament times prepared the people and pointed the way toward the coming of Jesus, with Old Testament happenings foreshadowing how we live in Christ after the resurrection. I was also reminded that although times change, people’s attitudes don’t, as I could see similar attitudes of sin in my life as the Israelites struggled with in their time - the specifics change, the basics stay the same.
I also like the final section describing Silas’ travels with Paul and Peter - Paul passionate conviction in his letters often intimidates me and Francine Rivers describes some of the people that Paul and Silas meet or work with also feeling a little intimidated by Paul, so I’m glad that other people are similar to me in that respect! -
In this five-book compilation of the Sons of Encouragement series, New York Times best-selling author Francine Rivers illuminates the lives of five Biblical men who stood behind the heroes of the faith and quietly changed eternity. Aaron, Caleb, Jonathan, Amos, and Silas each faithfully sought after God in the shadows of His chosen leaders. They answered God’s call to serve without recognition or fame. And they gave everything, knowing their reward might not come until the next life.
Man planned but God prevailed
Whew I finally finished this book. I don’t know why but this book took me a while to get through. Over a year to be exact. I enjoyed the stories though and I took my time going through the Bible studies between each of these sons.
I love the way this author tells stories. It really. Rings scripture to life and think about emotions they probably felt. I don’t know about you but when I read the Bible I don’t often take time to think about how the person writing must have felt. The last story is probably stretched quite a bit because scripture doesn’t tell us a lot about Silas but I found it very intriguing to think about the grief and struggle Christians must have felt back then, constantly seeing their leaders and co laborers being killed as martyrs.
This book wasn’t as good as her others but I still liked it
I rate this book a 3 out of 5 stars. -
An ok read.
I absolutely love biblical fiction, but unfortunately, I can't say Francine is my favorite author for this genre. While I loved her "Mark of the Lion" trilogy and enjoyed the "Lineage of Grace" collection, this book fell flat for me. The characters were dull and uninteresting and made reading their stories feel like a chore. It got somewhat better in the story of "The Prince" (a.k.a Jonathan) but his story was the only one that was somewhat bearable. I don't know, I just was bored the entire time. I truly don't know what's worse, a bad book or a boring book.
Perhaps my standards are too high due to the fact I've read many biblical fiction books that were just so much better. It's sad because it truly did have potential but unfortunately wasn't executed as I had hoped.
What pushed my rating up to 3 stars was the fact that the stories were well researched, clean, theologically sound, and had a good message. But the stories in themselves were 2 stars. -
For this reading project, I'm reading and reviewing each novella in the Lineage of Grace series followed by Sons of Encouragement. When I complete each series, I will post a review of the entire set.
This series contains 5 novellas, with each featuring a Biblical fiction sketch of a man from the Bible. The featured men are: Aaron (Moses' brother, chosen to be priest), Caleb (Warrior who encouraged Israel to conquer Canaan), Jonathan (the crown prince who was David's friend), Amos (the prophet), Silas (Paul's Companion). Each narrative is followed by a six lesson Bible Study/ Discussion Guide called Seek and Find, which can be completed individually or in a group.
Prior to writing this series, Rivers published a similar series featuring women in the line of Christ. This series is called Lineage of Grace, which is where documentation of my reading project will begin.
Lineage of Grace, Rivers, 2000
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... -
This book is actually a compilation of 5 books on the Bible characters of Aaron, the priest, Caleb, the warrior, Jonathan, the prince, Amos, the prophet, and Silas, the scribe. It is fiction. That being said, Rivers takes the scripture and bases the story of their lives on the Biblical facts but in writing her narratives adds things that might have happened as in the time period as well as dialogue and emotions. It makes their stories come alive. However, I think it is very important to go back to the scriptures to see what is actually true, so that you don’t confuse fact and fiction. I felt like, in reading this, I came away with how incredibly rich the lives of these men were as well as an appreciation for their faith and dependence on God in hard times. It makes me want to strive to be more godly.
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Wow, just wow!! Another amazing novel by my absolute favorite author.
This is five books in one. All well researched and wonderfully written. There is something special in the way that these stories are told. Francine Rivers brings these men to life with such detail, I feel as though I actually knew them, personally.
Even though these stories are fictional, the characters are not. Reading this book has given me a greater understanding of God's word and I feel that His message is clearer having read Sons of Encouragement.
I highly recommend anyone who wants to grow closer to the Lord and/or enjoys biblically based fiction. -
A compilation of five retellings of stories in the Bible, each one centering on a man who wasn't necessarily the star of the story in scripture. Aaron, Caleb, Jonathan, Amos, and Silas. The author takes some liberties with fictionalizing the account, but the majority is based in scripture and most of it is quoted from the Bible. This book was a great way to dive deeper into the Bible and imagine the characters as they were - men of God, humans who made mistakes but honestly lived out their faith. It's a slow read but worth the time for those who want to better understand the important people who helped found the Christian faith.
