The King of Syria - Seeking the Cure, Finding the Christ

Irredeemable
Naaman the Leper
The Servant Girl
Naaman's Wife
The King of Syria

The King of Syria

The king of Syria had been greatly blessed by Naaman, and therefore had a vested interest in his recovery. The world has a way of investing in people who can serve them until–when further service is impossible–they are thrown away. This king of Syria, later revealed to be Ben-Hadad,[1] is an enigma because he was clearly an enemy of Israel, but he had some sort of affinity towards the Living God (2 Kings 8:7–8) while actively doing evil (2 Kings 6:24–25) and worshipping false gods (2 Kings 5:18). If we learn one lesson from him before we look at anything else, he reminds us that people are complicated and God’s work is myriad and mysterious as he sends the rain on the just and the unjust.

Like many of the people prior to the gift of the Holy Spirit, Ben-Hadad’s spiritual state is not easily discerned, but of all of the enemy kings (save Nebuchadnezzar and Darius) faced by the Israelites and Jews, this enemy king is most to be emulated. Why?

Spend For Others

For one, he was happy to spend for others. Imagine with me for a moment that the cost to enter heaven were $1, and someone you loved dearly was only $1 short, would you pay for their eternal blessing? If you would–and I pray that you would–then we’ve set a precedent: people are worth spending for (Romans 9:3).

If you’d spend $1, then how about $10? $100? $11,700,000? More? Obviously the cost to enter heaven is perfection, so the analogy breaks down, and our sins are costly and we can’t even pay for our own sins, let alone for others (Psalm 49:5–9), but we can pay to get others closer to the one who can ransom them.

We could look at Romans 5:6–8 for an examination of spending for people we don’t love, but that’s not apt to this story because Ben-Hadad loved Naaman, and he was willing to pay for his healing. Ben-Hadad–as much as a pagan king can–loved Naaman and sought his highest and best usefulness. How does Ben-Hadad show us that? Not by his words, but by his actions (James 2:15–16). He put his money where his mouth was. Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. He showed us where his heart was by filling up what was lacking in Naaman’s ability to be redeemed.

The Holy Spirit–through Paul–said it better than I can:

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

Ben-Hadad wouldn’t have been so deep or eloquent or clear, but he knew he wanted Naaman healed and he knew he was willing to pay for it. It’s difficult to put an exact price tag on what Ben-Hadad was willing to spend, but we can get close enough to know it was a lot. He sent ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing. A talent weighed about seventy-five pounds, a shekel was just less than half an ounce, and the clothing was certainly ornate and valuable. I don’t know we can accurately put a value on the clothing, but silver and gold have standard weights so we can be pretty accurate in our estimate that Ben-Hadad sent $900,000 worth of silver and $10,800,000 worth of gold.[2] Naaman was worth a lot to Ben-Hadad.

Now, I don’t want to give too much credit to this king, because surely he was hoping to receive some gain for his efforts, but we rejoice when the kingdom of heaven is furthered even for impure motives or selfish ambition (Philippians 1:15–18). The king–almost certainly without knowing it–was proving “I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls” (2 Corinthians 12:15).

A Sense of Urgency

Next, we’ll see that Ben-Hadad not only funded the trip, he enhanced the urgency by saying “Go now!” He sends Naaman on his way right now, immediately; other translations say “By all means go!” and “Go to. Go!”

There is no time to wait, to try another cure, to pray about it, to see if he’ll recover naturally, to consider how God can heal such a man, nor even time to count the cost. The cost had already been counted, Naaman’s life is lost without a miracle.

It has been said that the devil’s favorite day is “tomorrow,” so I wonder if Ben-Hadad was tempted to yell “Today is the day of salvation! Stop talking and start seeking the cure!” When should someone flee to Jesus for salvation? Right now! If redemption is possible we want to move people in that direction as soon as we can!

If you tarry ‘till you’re better, you will never come at all. ~ Joseph Hart

There are two reasons to “Go!” quickly to Christ, first because you’re not promised tomorrow, and second because he’s worthy to be served as soon and as early and as long as possible. Whether you are old or young reading this, know that the best time to come to Christ was as soon as you could hear his voice, the second-best time to come is right now! The best time for Naaman to have sought the true and living God was when he found out there was a true and living God, the second-best time, according to the king of Syria, is now, “Go! Now!”

Love commands urgency; pleading, commanding, urging, pushing, begging, warning, compelling, imploring people to seek the Lord while he may be found. If you tarry ‘till you’re better, you will never come at all! What are you waiting for! Go! Now!

An Advocate

The king of Syria was not a perfect king nor a follower of the living God, yet he did do many things right. One of the greatest gifts God has given to men is someone to ally with, to plead our case, to be our intercessor, and to help us open doors we couldn’t open ourselves. Ben-Hadad proved this by being Naaman’s intercessor.

Imagine if Naaman had gone to Samaria of his own volition and approached the king of Israel stating, “I’m here because I heard there is a prophet in Israel who can heal me.” Imagine the whispers and the pointed fingers and the snarled lips. They know who he is, they recognize him, they have learned to fear him, and they have learned to hate him. Imagine the accusations, “You’re here as a spy!”, “You’re looking for more little girls to steal!”, “You’re here as an enemy of Israel!”, “You’re here to get stoned!”, and “Yeah! We’ll end your leprosy…by ending your life!”

Naaman needed a letter of introduction and a powerful ally. The king of Syria does not disappoint: he says, “I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” This letter becomes Naaman’s lifeblood, without it he would have been perceived as a spy, and his chances of receiving grace and help in his time of need would be greatly diminished.

Consider another letter written by the Apostle Paul and given to a man named Tychicus to carry to a far-off church (Colossians 4:7–9). This letter explicitly tells the church to welcome a man named Onesimus with open arms–and more so–it tells his owner, Philemon, to receive him back–not as a runaway slave–but as a brother (Philemon 1:15–16). During the entire journey from Rome, I imagine Onesimus would badger Tychicus to confirm that he still had the letter and that it was still safe.

The letter to Philemon, comprising so few words it is not even broken into chapters, was Onesimus’ entire hope. Without it–as a runaway slave–he legally could be executed as a warning to other slaves. Now, of course his hope was in the living Christ for his eternity, but his earthly hope was that God was using his friend Paul’s influence and network of Christian brothers to plead his case before his earthly master.

Some people would call this “the good-ole-boy club,” where “it’s not what you know, but who you know,” and they would say so disparagingly. Indeed, this system can be horribly abused when connections are based on partiality and cliques rather than merit and love. But, God’s church is built on networks and who you know. One of the first things I do when I move is contact that nearest Baptist association; God has blessed us abundantly through this networking, but the allies we have in our conventions, synods, associations, alliances, and churches is nothing compared to our greatest ally.

The wisest bumper sticker I ever read said, “I am not, but I know I Am!” The great I Am, if you know him, is pleading your case even as you’re reading this. His will is your sanctification, your highest and best usefulness, and his glory. Robert Murray M’Cheyne, who accomplished so much for Christ, knew that he was pleaded for continuously,

If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me.

And one of my favorite hymns puts it this way,

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea
a great high priest whose name is love
who always lives and pleads for me. ~ Charitie Lees Smith

I love the question D. James Kennedy would use to open an evangelistic conversation, “If you died tonight and God said, ‘Why should I let you into heaven?’ how would you respond?” It’s a question that cuts right to the heart of the matter.

There are lots of ways to point that question to Jesus. Going back to Shai Linne’s song Penelope Judd, I love how he tells the story of a little girl who goes on a journey to meet the king. Penelope is from the land called “mud,” and she is wholly unfit to enter the palace. When she knocks on the door her only hope becomes the invitation she is carrying, which she quickly presents.

Likewise, in John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress, the scroll becomes the most prized and important possession to meet the true king. In Bunyan’s story a man is cast from the very gates of heaven when it is discovered he does not have an invitation, which had been freely offered at the cross; his lack of a scroll reveals that he had not come by way of the cross.

Reader, do you have assurance of salvation purchased in the cross of Christ? Is he pleading your case ready to stand at the gates of heaven to welcome you in? Are you pleading the case of lost sinners continually before the throne of grace? Are you interceding before men for the help of Christ’s church? When a saint moves to a new city or church, as is common in our modern world, a letter of recommendation can be the difference between a thriving ministry in a new church and starting from scratch and wasting years earning trust. It grieves me that so many churches and pastors think these letters are just old-fashioned nonsense.

It was not nonsense to Naaman or Onesimus or John Bunyan or me. The church has a lot to learn from the king of Syria, and I pray you will learn that lesson well.

Because of the faithfulness of Ben-Hadad, Naaman now has this letter of introduction that is going to keep him safe, lead him to the right people, and hopefully cure his leprosy. In urgent obedience Naaman takes the letter straight to the king of Israel.

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[1] The Bible probably refers to his title rather than his name, history tells us his name was likely Hadadezer.

[2] At the time of this writing.

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Naaman's Wife - Seeking the Cure, Finding the Christ

Irredeemable
Naaman the Leper
The Servant Girl
Naaman's Wife

Naaman’s Wife

Naaman’s Wife gets only two verses and we don’t know much about her, but there is just enough here to know that she is worthy to be praised. Any military wife will tell you that being married to a soldier–especially a general–is a full-time and difficult job. Late nights, long trips, curt responses, necessary secrecy, constant worry; it takes a special kind of woman to be a good wife of a military man. Many years ago my dear wife took to telling me that dinner was “classified,” because so often I had to tell her I couldn’t disclose what I was working on at the office or why my constant trips were necessary.

Naaman’s wife was in a unique position when the servant girl told her that there was a prophet in Israel that could heal her husband.

Truth, No Matter the Source

First, Naaman’s wife had to have faith that the girl was telling the truth. Like many terminal diseases, hopelessness can breed despair that leads to desperation and ignoring reason. There is a whole healing-tourism movement where people will spend their life’s savings to seek their health or the health of a loved one by flying thousands of miles to a faith healer.

Naaman’s wife doesn’t exhibit this blind despair, but she is also faced with the conundrum of trusting this little girl. There was a lot at stake in believing there might be a remedy over a hundred miles away which was at least a journey of ten days round trip. Why did she believe the girl? Perhaps the girl’s conduct was impeccable, her service was unmatched, and her faith was a shining light to Naaman’s wife. Maybe she had told the stories of Elisha’s raising of the boy? What else could that little girl have trained her mistress to know about God?

Truly this little girl embodied the idea of the starry cluster long before Amy Carmichael coined that term, and long before Daniel wrote, “And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever” (Daniel 12:3). Naaman’s wife listening to and believing the word of truth from this girl’s mouth made all the difference in this story.

How much truth is lost not because it’s not preached, but because it’s not heard? It’s not enough to hear the truth, you must believe it, and Naaman’s wife believed it, regardless that it came from a completely unexpected source.

The Titus-Two Woman

Titus chapter two tells the elder women to train the younger women; it has long been pointed out that this is not measured in age, but in maturity. The girl, though younger in age, was greater in maturity, and Naaman’s wife, though decades older than the girl, was newer in maturity. I continually praise that little girl for her faithfulness, and I praise Naaman’s wife for humbling herself to understand the Psalm,

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babies and infants you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger. ~ Psalm 8:1–2

Naaman’s wife humbled herself to receive the Word of the Lord from a little girl and to see that God doesn’t measure character by what’s on the outside, but what’s on the inside. God thrives in the practice of saving through unlikely means. Hosea declared, “I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen” (Hosea 1:7). If Hosea was writing about this little girl, he might have added, “The Lord will save them by a little slave girl.”

Wife, Respect Your Husband

Naaman’s wife had to care enough about her husband to relay the message. If you’re a Christian reading this, you probably instantly think, “Well of course she would want the best for her husband!” If you instantly thought that, then you’re not to be faulted, and I’m sure it’s because you’re surrounded by godly examples of service and hope. But the whole world is not seeking the welfare of their neighbors. In the last six months I’ve heard three different homeless or addicted women say–unsolicited–if they could afford to hire a hitman against their husband or ex-husband, they would do it.

Consider how easy it would be for bitterness to take over this woman’s heart and for her to say, “Serves him right for always being gone! And another thing, who knows where he got this disease, may he suffer long and may it be a miserable death! He’s getting repaid for what he’s done to me for so many years!” Maybe she wondered if he had contracted this disease from a random Moabite or Amalekite girl. Our culture says, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” Surely Naaman’s soldiers had similar sayings about their exploits. We know the truth is that what happens on escapades will be judged in eternity; actions have consequences.

Would you fault Naaman’s wife if she had held Naaman’s leprosy against him? What if Naaman denied her accusations? Easy, she just doesn’t believe him and responds like Job’s wife, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity?!” (Job 2:9). Bitterness can invent all sorts of sins and once you believe them, there is no way for the accused to defend themselves. How can you repent of something that you’ve only done in someone else’s imagination?

Naaman’s wife could have reduced her husband to a mere title: Leper! Labels strip away our humanity and have a terrible way of ostracizing us from one another. They blind us to seeing people as eternal souls meant to be loved and cherished, transforming them instead into perpetrators to be feared and enemies to be avoided. Naaman’s leprosy–which had already strained the marriage physically–could have easily divided them spiritually and emotionally.

She could have proved these verses,

It is better to live in a corner of the housetop than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife. ~ Proverbs 21:9, 25:24

A continual dripping on a rainy day and a quarrelsome wife are alike; to restrain her is to restrain the wind or to grasp oil in one’s right hand. ~ Proverbs 27:15–16

She who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones. ~Proverbs 12:4

It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman. ~ Proverbs 21:19

But, by the grace of God, she did not prove those verses. Whether Naaman had contacted the disease accidentally or through sin he needed his wife to respond in a loving and God-honoring way.

I bet we’d have another adage if this story had gone differently,

It is better to die of leprosy than be married to a woman scorned.

Instead, she proved herself to be an excellent wife, and I would posit that she has become the “crown of her husband” (Proverbs 12:4), as she could have ended this story right here by remaining silent in her bitterness, and in so doing she would have defiled many.

Maybe she was discipled by this little girl on how to love her husband well and seek his highest and best usefulness? Maybe the girl had shared Proverbs 31:12, “She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.” We will have to wait until we get to heaven to learn the answer to this question, but I wonder if Naaman’s wife wasn’t led to trust the Living God first in this family, and subsequently sought the salvation of her husband?

Would she have said amen to 1 Peter 3:1?

Wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct.

Had she begun to learn the lesson to be a friend to her husband[1] blessing him with her prayers and seeking his highest and best usefulness? Had she grasped the power of a submissive wife as described by Titus 2:5? How do you know, o wife, whether you will save your husband (1 Corinthians 7:16)?

Wives have striven against their husbands from the beginning (Genesis 3:16). They don’t naturally want to put “obey” in their wedding vows. They kick against the goads of winning their husbands without a word. And the husband of the contentious wife may wonder why the Holy Spirit needed to come to convict him when he has his wife ready and willing to show him every wrong he has ever committed.

The more I read the passage the more I am convinced that the little Israelite girl had done far more to bless more people than just Naaman, as Naaman was blessed by a helpful and fruitful wife long before he sought Elisha who pointed him to God. But these were not the only helpers on Naaman’s journey towards redemption.

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[1] The word here is philoandros, not a sacrificial love but the affectionate caring love of a friend. See Titus 2:4.

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Naaman's Servant Girl - Seeking the Cure, Finding the Christ

Irredeemable
Naaman the Leper
The Servant Girl
Naaman's Wife

The Servant Girl

Living in a very difficult situation was a little girl who had been kidnapped from Israel. The Bible is clear that she’s not just a girl, she’s a “little” girl, meaning that she is probably younger than ten. Having four little girls I am crushed to think of how her father and mother must have felt having lost her. We know the evil of the world and what often happens to slave girls; it was no different in Naaman’s day, and they must have worried themselves sick.

She was probably scared, angry, hopeless, distraught, and homesick for some or most or all of the time. But she had been raised in the fear and the admonition of the Lord.

She didn’t know it yet, but in the midst of her absolutely impossible situation, she was about to be used by God to start one of the most amazing redemption stories in all of history.

One of my happiest days was when my little six-year-old girl stood before a church business meeting to open us in our devotion and flawlessly quoted,

I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. ~ Galatians 2:20

I would hope that if my daughter were in such a hopeless situation, she would set her hope in her God and be a blessing to her captors. Heaven forbid that I ever have to find out, but undoubtedly some families and some children will find out.

Reasons to Keep Quiet

This little girl and her family did have to find out. She was serving Naaman’s wife and heard (and/or smelled) of his plight. If she were living in bitterness and hatred towards the Syrians, and especially towards the man who led the raid into her homeland and carried her off, she could have sealed Naaman’s fate. How easy it would have been for her to scream out, “Serves him right! I hope he dies a long painful agonizing horrendous death and burns in hell for what he has done to me and to my family and to all of Israel!”

Or she could have kept her mouth shut. The blessing of God could have been safely buried in her heart and no one would have been the wiser. John Calvin declared,

If the gospel be not preached, Christ is, as it were, buried.

She would not have known about Jonah since Jonah was still years from being born and had not yet refused to bring the blessing of God to the Ninevites. But her story could have been similar, this little girl could have said, “I would rather die than see Naaman healed or helped! The promises of God belong only to Israel and I will not share them with anyone, especially not him!”

She could have kept quiet in respect for pluralism. She could have seen them worshipping Rimmon and thought that their god worked for them and who was she to challenge? Who was she to tell the Syrians that their god was a product of their imagination at best and a manifestation of the devil at worst?

Or she could have opted to freeze in fear. What gave her the authority to speak? Would you be worried about being punished for bringing up the God of Israel in the midst of his enemies?

God’s Redemptive Work in Suffering

How often is the worst thing that can happen to you the best thing that can happen for Christ’s kingdom? I certainly do not wish for anyone to be kidnapped or imprisoned or held against their will, but nevertheless, I do want God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

We can look at Hadassah (also known as Esther) and Mordecai for a similar story of a girl who was thrust into the opportunity to seek the welfare of an enemy nation. She took her life in her hands to seize the opportunity she had been given (Esther 4:14–16). Another question to ask in heaven, “Was Hadassah bolstered and emboldened by this little girl in Naaman’s house? Would we have the book of Esther without this little girl’s faithfulness and example?” I imagine Hadassah had known about this little girl from the time she could understand the story.

We could also look at Joseph who spent years in prison before God used the evil that had been meant against him to save many (Genesis 50:20).

Or we could look at Richard Wurmbrand who was thrown into a Romanian prison for standing against the Communist Party and defying the churches that said communism could be reconciled with the doctrines of Christ. Wurmbrand led several prisoners and at least one guard to Christ while in prison, and summarized his time this way,

It was strictly forbidden to preach to other prisoners. It was understood that whoever was caught doing this received a severe beating. A number of us decided to pay the price for the privilege of preaching, so we accepted their terms. It was a deal; we preached and they beat us. We were happy preaching. They were happy beating us, so everyone was happy.

Or look at Richard Allen who was a slave owned by Stokley Sturgis. After Allen became a Christian, he witnessed to Sturgis and invited Methodist preachers to preach to all on the plantation. Through all of the evils of slavery, Allen was able to lead Sturgis to Christ and both will be brothers for all of eternity.

Light in the Darkness

This little girl only gets three verses in all the Bible, but she very well may be my favorite prophet. If you were to go outside and light a candle at noon, no one would be able to tell that it was lit unless you pointed it out. But if you wait until midnight on a moonless night, that single candle would illuminate its surroundings and be visible for miles.

Paul, in a similar circumstance would say,

“I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” ~ Philippians 1:12–14

Sometimes the worst thing that can happen to you is the best thing that can happen to you. The first church where I ever served on staff was filled with wonderful saints, scholars, and evangelists. But then our pastor was given a severe cancer prognosis. He was told by his doctor to go home and get his affairs in order because he had six months to live. When he resigned as pastor the church imploded because of a lot of reasons, not least of which the elders had quietly asked a fraudulent counselor–who had contributed to eight divorces and married the wife from the eighth–to leave the church and then they had discreetly covered it all up. As hundreds of faithful Christians left that church they were welcomed into many fledgling and struggling churches in the area. To this day I am sure that the church universal was strengthened because God shut that one church down instead of leaving it to thrive as the only faithful local church in the area. The pastor, now sixteen years later, is still alive and thriving and pointing people to Christ at a different church, despite him having a non-fatal heart attack during the writing of this book.

The little girl from this story was not where she wanted to be, not where she would have chosen to be, not where she prayed to be, but she was where God was using her for his glory, her good, and the salvation of many. I wish we knew more of her story after this event, but that is another question to ask in glory.

Point to the Healer

But dear reader, notice this: she doesn’t overstep her authority. She could have said, “What he needs to do is go plunge himself in the Jordan seven times, or maybe he could try the Abana or Pharpar.” Instead, she points him to someone she knows can help.

And how does she know about Elisha? I imagine after he raised a little boy from the dead that everyone–especially the boys and girls who were friends with him and other Jewish children roughly his same age–knew all about that story. John tells us that the church will overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the power of their testimony (Revelation 12:11). Let this little girl be a lesson to you to preach the Word and tell the story of how God has worked in your life and the lives of your fellow believers.

Dear reader, are you where you want to be? Are you where God wants you to be? You may be setting the stage and being used in the hand of your Saviour to be the means for someone else’s salvation. Would you trade that for comfort? I should hope not. Will you complain in your captivity? Or will you believe and act on,

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:16–19

Declare with Charles Haddon Spurgeon, “I have learned to kiss the wave that throws me on the rock of ages!”

Don’t get out preached by a little girl in a hopeless situation. You have a fuller picture of who Jesus is than she did, but you can’t have a fuller hope.

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Naaman the Leper - Seeking the Cure, Finding the Christ

Irredeemable
Naaman the Leper
The Servant Girl
Naaman's Wife

Naaman the Leper

Naaman was one of the most important people in Damascus, Syria.[1] He was a trusted and valuable advisor to the king, and he served as the commander of the army of Syria. The Bible has a surprising number of good things to say about him: he was great, held in high favor, selected by God to give victory to Syria, and a mighty man of valor. We could reasonably guess that in his youth, he was quite handsome. He was the Ulysses S. Grant of his day. Men admired him, soldiers would die for him, women counted him their savior, children pretended to be him.

In fact, his name means “pleasant, delightful, agreeable, sweet” and surely for all of the praise the Bible lauds upon him, he was Naaman indeed. But like Naomi (same root word), his sweetness had turned to bitterness when he contracted a fatal and debilitating disease called leprosy. We cannot be sure that his leprosy was the Hansen’s disease we refer to as leprosy today that is so awful, but while some scholars for decades said it could not be Hansen’s disease, more recent evidence exists that Hansen’s disease is a definite possibility. Whichever the actual diagnosis, the disease was serious and more than an inconvenience. Granted, many diseases could be leprosy, some temporary, some painful, some disgusting, some deadly; we will soon see that his king was willing to spend millions of dollars to seek to redeem and prolong Naaman’s life. He didn’t just have a rash, he was likely to die from this disease, and soon.

Leprosy–with any diagnosis–is contagious. It means you cannot sleep in the camp with your soldiers, in bed with your wife or in the house with your family, you cannot attend meetings with your king, and if you are following the biblical laws, you are very careful to keep everyone away from you. Loneliness, discouragement, and despair are sure to follow. And while Naaman was cut off from the living God by distance, tribe, and sin, he would also be excluded from being in the presence of God by his leprosy (2 Chronicles 26:21, Numbers 5:2, Leviticus 13:46).

While treatable since the mid-1900s, Hansen’s disease was incurable in Naaman’s day. It was a death sentence, and not only a death sentence, an agonizing and ghastly way to waste away. It was and is such a horrible disease that death would become a release, so long as it is not accompanied by hell.

Paul Washer emphasizes the horrid nature of leprosy and what it turns men into,

Have you ever been around lepers?

I have. A full blown, untreated case of the worst kind of leprosy is one of the most horrid things you could ever imagine. A body of wounds and sores and pus and blood and body fluid. You would smell a leper before you even walked into this hall if one was standing behind this pulpit.

Naaman had gained the whole world and yet was living in a hopeless situation. He was in imminent danger of losing everything. His body was failing him, his social capital was depleting by the minute, and he was a worshipper of a false god Rimmon (also known as Baal or ‘Adad/Hadad) who could not heal his body, let alone his soul.

Naaman was as great as the world could make him, and yet the basest slave in Syria would not change skins with him. ~ Matthew Henry

If I was going to use one word to describe Naaman, it would be irredeemable. He was without hope, without God in the world, and without anyone to tell him about the God who works miracles. But God.

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[1] Aram is an alternate name for Syria, depending on your translation it may use either. I will exclusively use Syria for continuity throughout this book.

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Irredeemable - Seeking the Cure, Finding the Christ

This is the introduction to a new book, Seeking the Cure - Finding the Christ, which is the book version of multiple sermons preached from 2022-2025. Since this book was meant to bless the church I am also making it available on this blog.

Irredeemable
Naaman the Leper
The Servant Girl
Naaman's Wife

Introduction - Irredeemable

On the banks of a muddy, mucky river we meet a young man who is felling a lodgepole so he can build a humble dwelling place while he attends school to learn the things of God.[1] To his horror the axe head comes loose from the handle and flies straight into the water. Shock and dismay spread across his face as he stares at the vanishing ripples in the river. He looks from handle to water and realizes what has happened; not only has he lost an expensive tool, but he has lost an expensive tool that belonged to someone else. It was borrowed and would require an account.

If there is any consolation, it didn’t hit someone (Deuteronomy 19:4–6)! But that doesn’t help his countenance much. Now he can’t finish his job, he has incurred a debt, and his day is ruined.

You might think that he could wade to the spot and find the iron axe head, but the river is deep, the current is formidable, you can’t see even an inch in front of you under the water; the bed is a deep soup of silty mud that certainly swallowed that axe immediately, and that’s assuming he could even get to the spot, because the banks are steep.

When I was a teenager I jumped off the back of a boat into about five feet of pristine Lake Powell water to feel my glasses pulled off my face by the water. Six of us looked for hours for those glasses and never found them, even though we could see at least ten feet underwater on a semi-solid lake bed. It made for a blurry three-day trip. To give you an idea of how clear the water was, from the boat we could watch fish approach and strike at our hooks. The glasses did wash up scratched beyond usefulness just a day after I departed and a friend brought them to me. Even in ideal conditions, finding a lost valuable under the water proved impossible.

If I was going to pick one word to describe this axe head, it would be irredeemable. The axe head was gone forever, hopeless, lost.

The story of this axe head is near and dear to my heart because I was privileged to preach it to a group of about a hundred drug addicts, alcoholics, career criminals, and dead-beat parents. It didn’t take much for them to draw the line between the lost axe head and their irredeemable lives.

But God is not limited or constrained to words like irredeemable or impossible. The prophet Elisha was there to disciple these young men on the banks of the Jordan, and he asked whereabouts the axe had fallen.

The young man gestured to the abyss, and Elisha could have dove into the water and searched for it, and–with God’s help–emerged with the iron in hand. We could have told gospel stories about how Jesus dove into the world to rescue us and we could call others to dive into missions. This certainly would have been a powerful miracle, but the naysayers could have said, “Elisha got lucky in finding it.” Or “The young man overreacted, it wasn’t irredeemable, it was just difficult.” Or “Elisha was extremely adept at finding lost things.”

But instead, Elisha cut off a branch and threw it into the spot, and the axe head floated on top of the water–not carried off by the current–and was quickly recovered by its very thankful handler. If God can make a branch to float, then he can make iron to float.

How did God do it? That is on my list of things to ask in heaven: Was the water so dense that the axe head became buoyant? Did God change the molecular structure of the iron so it floated like pumice? Did a sudden surge of magma deep below the earth’s crust cause a shift in the magnetism and repel the axe head to the surface of the water? However God did it, he did it. Who did it? It was not Elisha, nor was it the young man; it was God. Elisha had no interest in receiving the glory, else he could have gone in after the axe head or taken it up himself after it floated. He was merely a means to redeeming the irredeemable.

Now, why is this story in the Bible? By itself it just seems silly. But, the Bible is to be taken as a whole, not just a collection of stories. This illustration style is common in the books of the Kings and the Chronicles in that it illuminates a bigger principle. In this case, the story of the axe head directly illustrates two stories, 2 Kings 5 (the healing of Naaman) and 2 Kings 6:8–28 (the redemption of Elisha with his servant and the deliverance of the Syrian raiding party). Could Elisha’s servant in Dothan be the same man who lost and recovered the axe? Another question to ask in heaven.

Is God concerned about irredeemable pieces of inanimate iron? What about the good name of his prophets-in-training? What about his prophets? Yes, of course, but he’s so much more interested in the irredeemable souls of people that he created with redemption in mind.

When I preached this passage at the drug and alcohol ministry and illustrated it with Naaman I knew it had the power to change lives, and so I was not much surprised when I gave the invitation and a dozen people rushed forward to the makeshift altar. Their urgency did shock me: Minutes passed and more people came, then some of the first responders went back to their seats. The worship team continued to play and then some of the original responders returned, more came. I was unprepared to give an extended invitation, but God was not unprepared to redeem the irredeemable.

On that day this passage became doubly true for me; first, I believed it was the redemption story of God, but then I saw that it can still be used to redeem men and women today. This book was born in the hope that the message might reach more hopeless people.

God is still in the business of redemption and people are still in need of redemption; many of the most irredeemable and lost people on the planet are just waiting for someone to tell them how to be redeemed.

In a much grander sense this story illustrates that God is able and willing to save sinners, and the ultimate story it illustrates is the story of Jesus Christ, the story to which all other redemption stories point, and the pinnacle of God’s power to redeem.

And so, let’s pick up the story of a man who was lost and with no hope of redemption: Naaman.

---

[1] Read the unabridged story in 2 Kings 6.

Next - Naaman the Leper

Books Read January-March 2026

Books I've listened to or read from January-March 2026 (contains Amazon Affiliate Links)

Books that were amazing and made me think:

Before You Say I Don't - Lou Priolo

Read it again because it's short and very good, makes you really dig into God's Word and promises

 

The Power of a Praying Husband by Stormie O'Martian

Sort of Pentecostal, but great scriptures and things to think about. I prayed for my wife in ways I have never prayed for her before!

 

The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges

Great book on how grace calls us to live holy lives, gives excellent scriptural proofs and practical information.

 

Walking in God's Will by Costi Hinn

Wonderful look at God's will with powerful personal stories. I really liked it, but I think a better treatment of the topic is Kevin DeYoung's "Just Do Something"

 

The Cross and the Switchblade by David Wilkerson

Wonderful look at how love and boldness for Christ can change people and pull them out of hopelessness. The emphasis on being baptized in the Spirit is not particularly helpful, but since it's truthful to the way that Wilkerson did it, it is very interesting. The movie is unfortunately not accurate to the book.

 

​The Cost: My Life on a Terrorist ​Hit List by Ali Husnain

​A raw and painful look at one young Muslim's conversion to Christianity. If you're looking for a polished and theologically solid testimony, this is not it, but if you're looking for a real person who paid a real cost for following Jesus in imperfect ways, you'll cry and grow with Ali.

 

​Shepherds for Sale by Megan Basham

​A very good look at how Christianity and the SBC especially have been inundated and infiltrated by people who only know about Jesus, but who only know about him. Masterfully examines the damage done by men like Gavin Ortlund, Russell Moore, and Beth Moore in their liberalism and lust for power and prestige. This book is a little more political than I'd like, but it does share the gospel over and over, and I especially appreciated hearing Megan Basham's testimony at the end.

 

​Has Christianity Failed You? by Ravi Zacharias

​This is my first time reading or listening to something by Ravi Zacharias since he died and was accused of horrendous things after he could no longer defend himself. Ravi had a way of saying things that brought great clarity and power to biblical concepts. This book is no different, my favorite story was when he shared the gospel with Hamas leaders, explaining that until we all understand that God did not spare his own Son on Mt Moriah we will continue to sacrifice our sons. A very powerful book, and worth a second look at Ravi.

 

Books that were ok:

Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright

Quite long and without hope, how can people live like that? But they do; so it's good to know that people want to know that freedom is possible, they just won't look to Jesus.

The Right Side of History by Ben Shapiro

Interesting worldly book on how Judeo/Christian/Greco/Enlightenment writing has formed the west.

 

9 Things You Simply Must Do to Succeed in Love and Life by Henry Cloud

Interesting look at people who are succeeding. Enough scripture to be good, but could definitely have a lot more Jesus. Great principles though of humbling yourself to serve others!

 

Help is Here by Max Lucado

Lucado is a great storyteller, but sometimes his emphasis could be more biblically based. I gleaned more than I expected I would, but nothing groundbreaking.

 

How to Destroy America in Three Easy Steps by Ben Shapiro

Interesting and patriotic, but totally stuck on freewill and hopelessly secular. Needs more Jesus.

 

Book that wasn't very good:

The Bible as Improv by Ron Martoia

​This might be the dumbest book I've ever read, not just recently, of all time. The main premise is that the Bible doesn't mean what you think it means because your lenses are all wrong. What does the Bible mean then? There isn't a replacement, it's just tearing down. “Did God really say?” Ironically at the end the author tries to tell us what Philippians actually means. A classic example of what happens to preaching when men think that men are the authority behind the writing/meaning of the Bible and that our spirituality is evolving. Reads like N.(o).T. Wright but a little less capable of hiding the heresy behind it.

James Webb Proves a Young Earth Creation

I haven't kept up with the James Webb Space Telescope like I expected I would when it launched in 2021; we loved watching it launch and I knew that it would provide faith strengthening data.

I was talking to a man who holds multitude PhDs recently and he was sure that the images of galaxies beyond Red Shift 14 were proof that we were all wrong about the age of the universe and that some new theory needed to be invented. I couldn't convince him that this proves a young creation (if you can call 6000 years young), but I was greatly encouraged by Jason Lisle's presentation:

"A little science distances you from God, but a lot of science brings you nearer to him." ~ Louis Pasteur

"The universe is rich enough in mystery without us having to invent things." ~ Carl Sagan

Looking for a Book to Read? Books I Read in 2025!

Below you will find a list of books I read in 2025, some were incredibly helpful and I would recommend, and others I would not recommend. As finances are tight for everyone, I've included Amazon Affiliate links for all of these books, if you are planning to buy anyways, please consider buying after clicking the link.

I have listed books in order of how I enjoyed them under certain categories. The top book will always be my favorite in the category! Each book will contain a brief synopsis and if I didn't like the book a clear "not recommended." The not recommended books will all be at the bottom of their categories.

Theology / Christian Living Books

Jerry Bridges - The Pursuit of Holiness

I wish I had found Jerry Bridges sooner, his call to holiness is powerful and is filled with personal examples and powerful use of the scripture. Perhaps my favorite thing about Bridges is he has no formal training, so his exhortation is deeply biblical. Will read again in 2026.

Jerry Bridges - Respectable Sins

Prepare to say "ouch" when you can't say "amen". Bridges again speaks clearly from the scriptures and exhorts hearers to put away all sin.

Carl Trueman - The Real Scandal of the Evangelical Mind

Trueman points out that "evangelical" is a term that gets thrown out everywhere, but doesn't really mean anything. He gives a very good definition that many "evangelicals" wouldn't agree with, though many would. The real scandal is that evangelical can mean whatever you want and has lumped very strange beliefs together. The best take-away from the book is that you should know what you believe and be able to define it, and that we should probably stop calling ourselves evangelical without defining what that means.

Gene Edwards - A Tale of Three Kings - Mostly Not Recommended

Sort of a poem, sort of a brainstorming exercise, this is the first time I've been exposed to the writing of Gene Edwards, which takes some effort to read. Edwards explores the emotions of King Saul, King David, and Prince Absalom as they wonder about the other's roles in their lives. It steps well outside of biblical fidelity and orthodoxy, but it did make me think deeply about those three men. I don't recommend reading it from a view to the truth, but to consider how you'd react in their shoes, and how the correct response is repentance towards God and faith in Jesus Christ.

Carl Trueman - Strange New World - Mostly Not Recommended

This is the abridged version of The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to Sexual Revolution. It examines how we've gotten here, from men like Hegel, Marx, and Niezsche; all of this is likely true, but a scriptural foundation would have been more helpful. It makes us victims if we blame Freud for where we are, it makes us victors if we can repent of our own sin and call our neighbors to repentance.

Lee Strobel - The Case for Miracles - Not Recommended

An interesting study to determine if their is a scientific basis for miracles. It has some very entertaining moments, such as retelling the stories of atheists experiencing miracles, but the theology is weak and the case unconvincing from a scientific standpoint.

Ross Douthat – Believe - Not Recommended

Ross Douthat takes the idea from CS Lewis that if you offer genuine service to an unholy god, your service will be counted as righteousness to the true God. It is as anathema today as it was when CS Lewis said it, and yet Douthat has built a whole worldview on the idea that trying your best by picking and choosing from the world's leading religions will always get you a positive outcome. The scriptures are not considered, the truth is not approached, and overall this might be the worst book I read this year, if not ever. There was one very helpful statement, that the movements of the enlightenment, Marx, and Darwin did nothing in comparison to the sexual revolution to lead people astray.

Parenting

John MacArthur - Being a Dad Who Leads

This book should be much more popular, it includes so many useful principles and techniques. If you aren't a dad, or don't have a dad, it's still worth reading as MacArthur writes in a very fatherly way. I will read this book again in the near future. Note - I'm sorry this book is so expensive, I got it at the library and recommend you look there as well, but it is worth the price!

Clare Morell - The Tech Exit: A Practical Guide to Freeing Kids and Teens from Smartphones

Clare Morell has categorized the dangers of smart phones, especially in younger kids and teens, and makes a masterful argument to delaying the giving of smart phones. As an added bonus it greatly helped me to ween myself away from many time-destroying, relationship-hindering apps. Again, sorry it's so expensive, but it is definitely worth the price!

Gary Chapman - 5 Love Languages for Children

I've never put much stock in the 5 Love Languages, but I was surprised at how helpful this book was. It gives all sorts of great practical advise on how to interact with kids who are motivated by other things. As a bonus, it includes a very helpful last chapter on the disaster of divorce for kids feeling loved.

Lee Strobel - The Case for Christ for Kids

This book was fun and got the kids thinking. Great kid level questions and answers.

Canyon Shearer - The Character of Creatures

I've been working on this book for about six years, it's nice to finally have it done. It uses various animal illustrations to drive home scriptural points. Including here because to publish I read it about ten times.

Canyon Shearer – A Saviour for Shepherds in David’s City

An interesting Christmas devotional told from the point of view of the shepherds outside of Bethlehem the night Jesus was born. It explores why these shepherds were so eager to find the Christ child!

Neil Gairman - Fortunately, the Milk

This is a weird fun book in a sort of Douglas Adams style that is non-sensical and ridiculous. At the end you find out it was all made up. The kids really paid attention and loved to retell the story.

Robert Smith - The Body God Gives: A Biblical Response to Transgender Theory - Mostly Not Recommended

This new book attempts to set a biblical narrative against the Transgender Theory. In my mind that is a simple proposition and I don't think I could write a book of this length. Many reviewers state that you need to read this book with a careful eye...I will be honest that of all of the books on this list, I was most distracted reading this book. A much better and easy to follow book is Laura Perry - Transgender to Transformed: A Story of Transition That Will Truly Set You Free.

Doug Wilson - Andrew and the Firedrake - Not Recommended

It's been a while since I read this, so one word really comes to mind: forgettable. I thought it was going to be a great book to read with the kids, but I shelved that idea. If I remember right, the interactions between the dragon are without suspense, and the main point didn't drive home a moral. I really can't believe how little I remember of this book.

Marriage

Gary Thomas and Debra Fileta - Married Sex

A very helpful look at the biblical commands and the emotional connection behind sex. The first chapter starts out a little vulgar (not too much, but makes you think it's not going to be a good book) but then the rest of the book is very helpful. The frequently asked question section is especially helpful both for long-time married couples, and those just starting out.

Jay Payleitner - 52 Things Wives Need From Their Husbands

This is a profound book full of levity and helpful suggestions. Many of the principles seem like just common sense, but Payleitner has a way to tying them to scripture. He also gives great exhortation when he needs to. I'll reread this book sometime in the future. There is also a companion book that I haven't read yet, but I expect is equally good: Jay Payleitner - 52 Things Husbands Need from Their Wives: What Wives Can Do to Build a Stronger Marriage.

Biography

WA Criswell - Standing on the Promises

WA Criswell masterfully tells his story while encouraging everyone from parents, to aspiring pastors, to professors, to church members to invest in the local church and individual Christians to turn the world upside down. One of the most incredibly biographies I've read in a long time!

Amy Carmichael – The Gold Cord

I adore Amy Carmichael and have had this book on my shelf for quite some time. It was nice to finally open it. This book reads more like a journal than a polished biography, some of the chapters are out of sequence, and some of the characters are never introduced, you're just expected to know them. Worse, many of the stories that seem like they would have a resolution are never resolved. It makes for a difficult read, but highly encouraging nonetheless. It will break your heart for the millions and billions of people worldwide who live utterly cut off from the light of the gospel.

Ronald White - American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. Grant

It's written in such a way that during the Civil War chapters if you let yourself get caught up in it, you're not sure who is going to win and the suspense builds and builds. Three things especially jumped out at me: 1) Grant learned late in life the formal definition of a noun and a verb and the difference between the two. He argued with his friend Mark Twain that his name was a verb, not a noun. I am resolved that my name shall become more of a verb than a noun. 2) He had a horse named Jefferson Davis that he used to defeat Jefferson Davis. No real moral to this one, just made me laugh every time I read it. 3) Despite growing up in the Methodist Church, spending much time with chaplains, quoting parts of the Bible regularly, and being well versed in God's sovereignty, there is no clear evidence of his being born again. Resolved, to speak and live in such a way that when I die, people won't wonder or hope for my eternal state.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn - One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovitch

More vulgar and hopeless than I remember, it was still good to reread this sort of biography, sort of historical fiction. When you are presuming on God to owe you something, read about people who seemed abandoned by God. I was greatly encouraged by the Baptists in the story who I didn't know were there, and their handwritten scriptures and indelible faith.

Janet and Geoff Benge – William Booth: Soup, Soap, and Salvation

I was surprised that I would put this book this far down the list, but this biography tends to focus much more on the later life of Booth after he started to run the Salvation "Army" than the early victories for which I consider him such a great evangelist. You'll walk away wondering if Booth wasn't on the verge of starting a cult.

Margaret Troutt - The General Was a Lady: The Story of Evangeline Booth

A very interesting and well written account of Eva Booth's life and ministry. Just enough overview and personal stories that it definitely kept my attention. Doesn't touch on the theology of her appointment or preaching, and the sermons are usually just described as powerful rather than giving details. You get a different view of William Booth's autocracy when it's shaking up "Army" posts all over the world, and not for the good.

Josh McDowell - More Than a Carpenter

I didn't quite know where to put this book, but I think it is mostly a biography of how McDowell came to faith in Christ. He brings up frequently asked questions and does a pretty reasonable job of answering them. If you're exploring Christianity, you'd be interested to learn how McDowell arrived at the truth.

Malcolm Gladwell - Bomber Mafia

I wrestled with if this book should go higher on this list. Very well researched and presented, you'll be taken all over the battlefields of WWII and understand some of the more controversial tactics used by the Americans to win the war. Probably the best takeaway is that if we won't be demoralized by being bombed to smithereens, why would we expect our enemies to give up because their civilians are bombed?

Starr Smith - Biography of Jimmy Stewart

This book is a good introduction to how Jimmy Stewart faced his own battle just to get into World War II, and then how he inspired so many men and had some fun while doing it. You will have a different view of this great actor when you're done with the book. It's low on this list though because it's pretty matter-of-fact without personal stories that I would like to take-away.

John Perry - Sergeant York: A Biography of an American Patriot and World War I Hero

I read this book while researching Conscientious Objectors. That section of the book is phenomenal, however, the post war events really drag on and while Sergeant York is worthy of emulating in a lot of ways, he also failed to let his faith guide him later in life.

John Perry - George Washington Carver: A Biography of a Scientist, Botanist, and Former Slave

Another book that I expected to be higher on the list, and maybe it should be. George Washington Carver lived an amazing life. I'm putting it low on the list because I was greatly discouraged by how selfish and prideful Carver was. However, the best take-away from this book was when Carver prayed that God would show him everything there was to know about science, to which Carver realized one lifetime could not accomplish that, so he asked to know everything about the peanut, which was still too much for one man to learn, but he did his best!

Alfred Lansing - Endurance

1) If you ever find yourself feeling ungrateful, consider that you don't have to have fruits/vegetables, a dry/warm bed, continual and infinite opportunities for conversation and learning, running water (& Toilet Paper!), and GPS/radios/cell-phones. 2) How are you redeeming your time? Several members of the expedition read their Bibles from cover to cover multiple times, others had deep conversations on many subjects, some wiled away the time on fleshly considerations. 3) Consider your role, are you like Shackleton charged with leading two dozen men on an impossible task, or are you being a good follower who maintains hope in hopelessness? In my pride I read it from Shackleton's standpoint, and I would have failed miserably, if I read it again I'll consider from a nearly anonymous crewmember. 4) If you ever feel important or powerful or larger than life, consider what you'd do if you had to cross the Drake Passage on a 22 foot lifeboat.

Critiques: 1) The Bible and God clearly played a massive role in the story, but are nearly absent from the book; what was the spiritual story of the crew? Was it, like is so important, "The easiest time to say Jesus is all you need is when Jesus is all you have!" Or was it something completely different? Major oversight on the part of the author not to spend at least a few sentences considering. 2) What did the lives of the men look like after the expedition? To spend almost two years in abject isolation and constant peril must have produced extremely interesting aftermath, which unfortunately is not considered. 3) What was gained from the expedition; the author states that it was more important than the planned transantartic expedition, but was it really? Am I more inspired to do hard things because of Shackleton and his crew, or is it an anti-moral? Are the things I'm living for worth Christ dying for?

Chaplaincy

Tim Townsend - Mission at Nuremberg: An American Army Chaplain and the Trial of the Nazis

A wonderful look at Henry Gerecke who was charged with leading condemned Nazi war criminals for forgiveness in Christ. Most of the book is about the horrors of the Nazi regime and worth reading for that reason, there is also a great personal look at his upbringing and reason for joining the army so late. Gives you a lot of think about on how you would minister to war criminals and if Jesus truly is able to save even the chief of sinners. Right in the middle of the book is a completely unhelpful examination of a biblical critique method known as the "documentary hypothesis", which has long since been abandoned.

Canyon Shearer - The Better Chaplain Devotional - Not Released Yet

Keep a look-out, I've been working on this book for a long time and read it through about five times this year! If you'd be willing to write a review when it releases in February, I'll send you a copy of the manuscript!

Jeff Struecker - The Road to Unafraid: How the Army's Top Ranger Faced Fear and Found Courage through "Black Hawk Down" and Beyond

Jeff Struecker is a retired army chaplain who did much to inspire my generation of chaplains. He tells his story from the ground in Mogadishu. His polished delivery will keep you on the edge of your seat, and then he masterfully tells how he became a chaplain and the leap of faith that took.

Doris Bergen - The Sword of the Lord: Military Chaplains from the First to the Twenty-First Century

An interesting look at little vignettes of chaplaincy through the ages. Mostly Roman Catholic, but still inspiring. The best part of the book is the critique of Nazi chaplains who didn't stand up for God, truth, or faith in the midst of such wickedness in their ranks. It could have spent time on those Nazi chaplains who did pay with their life for standing against Hitler. I have heard that another of her books does examine this topic, I may read it in the future: Between God and Hitler: Military Chaplains in Nazi Germany.

Leadership

Justin Irving – A Healthy Leadership for Thriving Organizations: Creating Contexts Where People Flourish

Justin Irving gives a masterful overview of various leadership styles while examining scriptures as he goes. A great leadership book for every career field.

John MacArthur - Called to Lead

MacArthur adeptly uses the Apostle Paul to point out that leadership is discipleship. He uses many of the stories in the book of Acts and elsewhere to call Christians everywhere to lead in their capacities and point people to Jesus Christ.

John Maxwell - Think on These Things: Meditations for Leaders

A nice concise book on the importance of thinking deeply about important topics, starting with getting your heart and mind right before God. The stories he tells are entertaining, but for younger readers a lot of the context is missing because his stories all revolve around the leaders of the last generation.

Tod Bolsinger - Canoeing the Mountains: Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory

Not my favorite book, but interesting none-the-less. Bolsinger follows the trek of Lewis and Clark across the country drawing leadership lessons as they go. Light on Bible and heavy on vulgarity, you're not going to get much Christian leadership out of this book, but I'm non "not recommending" it because of the historical value. Readers should know that Meriwether Lewis committed suicide; a fact glossed over by the book and most of history.

John Cotter - Leading Change - Not Recommended

A leadership book that spells out an effective 8-step model, but the authority is all from anecdotal evidence, not science and definitely not the scriptures.

Simon Sinek - Start With Why - Not Recommended

I love the idea of this book, the title alone is everything you need to know, that a person who knows their why is likely to find a how. Like Cotter's book above, it's all anecdotal, and while the premise is true, I didn't get much from the book.

Mike Bonem, James Furr and Jim Herrington – Leading Congregational Change: A Practical Guide for the Transformational Journey - Not Recommended

Like everything that comes out of Rick Warren's and Bill Hybels's churches, this book feels like someone said, "Write a book about Christian leadership based on what you've read on Facebook and seen on TBN; but under no circumstances pick up a Bible." This book is vapid at best and antichristian at worst.

Thomas Neff and James Citrin - You’re in Charge, Now What? The 8 Point Plan - Not Recommended

I picked up this book because a friend recommended it. First--and age isn't always a bad thing--this book is twenty years old and tells the story of companies that have long since slid from the top of their fields. Further it uses Enron consistently as a bad example, but Enron hasn't been at the forefront of my mind for two decades. Ultimately though, the lessons are based on metrics such as earnings and growth, not on biblical fidelity. If you're a chaplain reading this, please don't run a chapel like this book recommends. I did like, however, that your 'state of incompetence' should be temporary, and that you should be growing in and into your new role.

Counseling

John MacArthur - Anxious For Nothing

A really great look at Solomon and the Sermon on the Mount on how it's not just wrong to be anxious, it's a sin. In this world where there is so much to be anxious about, this is a clarion call to give all your burdens to Jesus.

Alfred Poirier – The Peacemaking Pastor: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Church Conflict

Jumping off of Ken Sande's The Peacemaker this book takes it inside the church and gives a really solid biblical reason why Christians don't have an option to live at peace with each other, they must live at peace with each other. Filled with stories of difficult situations, most of which were resolved, I loved reading this targeted book and hope more pastors put it to work! Be advised though, it will make you mad because so many pastors don't even try to make peace.

Todd Sorrel - Unwasted Sorrow: How To Suffer Well For Your Own Sin

A very helpful little book on the consequences of sin. The main takeaway is that God is working in the consequences and that the Christian ought to be serving God because he's worthy to be served, not to gain rewards. Super helpful book for counselors, and those who are living the consequences of their sins. One sin (or many) does not negate God's faithfulness or the Christian's ability to work and serve.

Lou Priolo – Divorce: Before You Say "I Don’t"

Lou Priolo is a wonderful pastor and counselor and so it's no surprise that this short little book is full of wisdom, biblical truths, and hope. Written for those considering divorce, it dispels the rumors and gives dire consequences for divorce. The main takeaway is that divorce is going to hurt, and so is marriage, but one is blessed by God.

Edward Welch - Blame It on the Brain?: Distinguishing Chemical Imbalances, Brain Disorders, and Disobedience

A great examination of emotional, spiritual, and physical problems. Welch is ultimately driving towards the fact that God can work in every circumstance, but every circumstance can't be healed physically, which is why we have to point all people to Jesus.

Edward Welch - When People Are Big and God Is Small: Overcoming Peer Pressure, Codependency, and the Fear of Man

A great look at how the fear of men is not just a sin, but it leads us into sin.

David Powlison - Speaking Truth in Love: Counsel in Community

I need to reread this one again, as I was distracted in the reading, but the main point is worth the book, that speaking truth is absolutely important, but so is speaking in love, and that the two are not mutually exclusive. Powlison was a phenomenal counselor, and this book motivated me, which is one of the reasons I need to read it again to make sure I've gleaned everything I can from it.

Fred Stoeker - Every Young Man's Battle: Strategies for Real World of Sexual Temptation - Not Recommended

I'll be upfront, this is the only book I couldn't get through this year; it comes at sexual sin as a victim, not a victor, and there were quite a few times I felt the main author was bragging on his earlier exploits, despite him trying to say how unfulfilling they were. I've never been a fan of Every Man's Battle but wanted to see what an updated version might say. After being told so many times that all men are victims of this sin, and the fact that it's quite a long book, I gave up. A much better resource is Heath Lambert - Finally Free: Fighting for Purity With the Power of Grace.

Fiction

Miguel de Cervantes - Don Quixote - Not Recommended

I finally finished "Don Quixote" after reading it for literally years. What a weird book, if you've read through the Battle of the Windmills you've read enough, it's all downhill from there.

The main premise (and the moral of the story from the last chapter) is that reading books about pretend heroes will only make you at best a pretend hero, and you'll overlook all sorts of lies and deceit to believe what you want to believe.

James Fennimore Cooper - The Last of the Mohicans - Not Recommended

This is my second time reading this, and both times I've been disappointed. In a very rare case indeed, the movie is truly better than the book. The ambush scene in the book is extremely disturbing but worth a chaplain or pastor knowing about to remind us of the evil that exists in every human heart and that Jesus is the only hope for all of humanity.