Book Review

I recently received this book in the mail:

Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps & Charts, 3^rd Edition

At almost 500 pages, this volume is filled with tables, charts, maps and diagrams for each book of the Bible. This book goes beyond providing just charts and maps, as it also contains background information, cultural norms of the time, outlines and summaries for each book. Of course, the summaries are on the brief side, as this is not a commentary.

As a Bible teacher I am often in need of a visual aid to help in explaining the Bible. I was impressed with not only the many charts and maps, but especially some of the Comparison Charts (for example, themes in James are compared to the Sermon on the Mount).

I found this to be a really handy reference and I know that I will turn to it again and again. When you purchase the book you are also entitled to download all the maps and charts online. This is a wonderful resource, which I am sure to use. I would have preferred if the downloadable maps were labeled better, but this does not take away from the value of this book.

I received this book courtesy of Thomas Nelson Publishers in exchange for reviewing it.

The opinions expressed are my own.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to all!

They do celebrate it here in Japan, but it is a little different: girls will buy chocolate for boys and boys don't have to do anything! Of course, they also have "White Day" in March where you are supposed to reciprocate.


Being a Sunday, we decided to have a "Love Feast". Basically a potluck with a love theme. We transformed the sanctuary with tables and decorations.


There were a lot of games and music, and I was priviliged enough to speak on love. I mentioned how God expects us to have agape love (unconditional love) towards others, and that includes our spouse.


It was a fun night!

Josh Hamilton Video

Tonight was day 1 of the Mark Cahill Men's Leadership Conference. It has been great so far; I'm really looking forward to tomorrow. I didn't get any pics, but they started the conference with this really interesting video featuring Josh Hamilton, who plays for the Texas Rangers.

Men's Conference

Mark Cahill is coming to Okinawa.

He will hold a Leadership Conference on February 5 & 6.
Cost is $20.

You can sign up here.

One Thing You Can't Do in Heaven - Watch more Videos at Vodpod.

Book Review

I received this book in the mail the other day. I was familiar with Charles Stanley's radio program, In Touch, but had not yet read his written work. So I looked forward to reading, "How to Reach your Full Potential for God."

I will admit to wondering if this was another book that mixes "Religion" with "Secular Philosophy", due to the subtitle, "Never settle for less than His best." It was a relief therefore to find that this book is Biblically based and never gets into "Name it and Claim it" promises.

Rather, after establishing that we were created for a purpose, Stanley lays out seven "essentials", or principles to being in God's Will and fulfilling His purpose: “A Clean Heart”, “A Clear Mind”, “Using your Gifts”, “A Healthy Body”, “Right Relationships”, “A Balanced Schedule” and “Taking God-approved Risks.”

Each of these principles is given its own chapter. By following these principles we will put aside the things that come between us and God. We will then be free to hear from God and be led by Him.

I found this book to be timely, well written and Biblical:

• Timely, because too often people wonder "why they are here", or "why God isn't speaking to me?", yet they take no action to find out why.
• Well written, because Stanley uses a balance of logic and true-life experiences, yet bases them all on God's Word.
• Biblical. Stanley neither adds to, nor twists scripture to fit his thesis.

I appreciated the positive, Biblical message; it truly encouraged me to reach for my full potential for God. If you are interested in becoming your all and doing your all for God, then I would recommend this book.

Frank W Pallmann (1939 - 2010)

This week my father passed away. The son of German immigrants, growing up in Brooklyn was not easy. He was the "stereotypical" German: hardworking and stubborn, although he never drank beer.

We were not able to make it back to New York for the funeral, but if I were there I would have shared this:

My father was a good man. If I had to describe him using just one word, I think that word would be "Faithful." He was faithful in many ways:

• He was a faithful worker. I remember how he tried hard to be honest even when everyone else was ripping off the company. I remember how he tried to be a light, by sharing his faith, even though others did not seem interested.
• He was a faithful husband. He was faithful to his one and only love, my mother. He stuck by her through 2 bouts of cancer. As my brother put it, "Even after her death 15 years ago, a day did not go by where he did not think and talk about her." Thankfully they are together now.
• He was a faithful Christian. My earliest memories are of going to church. He was always helping out with teaching or ushering. But I especially remember that he was the one to lead me to the Lord. He later volunteered with the Gideons.

Although I regret that my daughters did not get to know him, they will still "know" him in a sense: he has passed on many positive attributes to his four sons. I know that he was proud of all of us and we will all miss him.

Expo

As we have done the past few years, we went up to Expo, in Motobu. They have a special (free!) program for New Year's.

It's pretty much a display of traditional Japanese and Okinawan culture. In addition to enjoying Okinawan music and the Lion Dance, you can pound mochi and make some traditional crafts (tops, shuttlecock, kites, drums)

The girls made puranku, a type of drum this year, since we made kites last year.

On the way up we stopped at our favorite Soba shop in Nago, Ufuya.