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Displaying items 1-5 of 33
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  1. David Gough
    Alexandria, VA
    Age: 55-65
    Gender: male
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Identifying with those who truly suffer for Christ
    April 5, 2014
    David Gough
    Alexandria, VA
    Age: 55-65
    Gender: male
    Quality: 5
    Value: 4
    Meets Expectations: 5
    I was drawn to this book after reading Nik Ripken's "The Insanity of Obedience." Like that one this volume was also difficult to put down. Using a pseudonym for security reasons, the author is a master storyteller. Following fifteen years of investigative research among persecuted Christians in various parts of the world, he recounts their experiences of suffering for Christ (as well as his own reactions) in vivid detail. I cannot imagine how a genuine believer can read this book without being convicted as to his own minimal level of commitment. What the Western church refers to as "persecution" pales in comparison to what multiplied thousands of our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world go through everyday in order to keep the flame of the Gospel burning brightly. Ripken's plea is that we not only seek to identify with these fellow-believers through prayer, but to be willing to suffer with them wherever we are. While our first--and perhaps most natural--response is to work for the release of those held captive by enemies of the faith, the author proposes that we take a step back in order to evaluate how the Lord is using their suffering for the spread the Good News of salvation. That is a fully biblical concept that those of us living within the bubble of our own "comfort zones" tend to overlook! In that respect, "The Insanity of God" (as well as its companion volume) take dead-aim at the so-called "prosperity gospel," which is a gross perversion of New Testament teaching that has unfortunately been imported from America to the rest of the world. An amazing quote that I took from the book is one that of a man who had spent years enduring the loss of all for the sake of Christ told Ripken. It is a message that we who have been given much should take to heart. Referring to the faithful witness of the power of the resurrection, he said, "Don't ever give up in freedom what we would never give up in persecution." The author leaves us asking--or, if we are not, we should be asking--why is it that Western Christians suffer so little for our faith? Several days after closing the book, I am still asking that question. Ripken is clear...the leading cause of Christian persecution is believers' testifying to the reality of Jesus Christ. Were that to stop, persecution would cease. The author admits to sometimes being asked if he thinks Christians in America will one day experience similar persecution as their fellow-believers in other places are now enduring. His reply: "Why would Satan want to wake us up when he has already gotten us to shut up." Anyone with a heart for Christian mission, and especially the persecuted church, should read this book. But be prepared to emerge from its pages a changed person...one whose heart will either be softened or hardened.
  2. jennyrjd
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    The Insanity of God
    August 22, 2014
    jennyrjd
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    This review was written for The Insanity of God - eBook.
    A must read for believers. I have never done a book review but this book needs to be read by all believers. It made me want what the authors family has and I am pursuing God like never before.
  3. Glen
    Lynchburg, VA
    Age: 55-65
    Gender: male
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Destined to become a missions classic!
    February 19, 2013
    Glen
    Lynchburg, VA
    Age: 55-65
    Gender: male
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    First, I need to alert the reader that I personally know the author behind the pseudonym, "Nik Ripken". I've attended conferences he's led on the persecuted church. I've met his wife. I actually went to seminary with his brother-in-law. I once even enjoyed a leisurely breakfast on the rooftop terrace of his home in east Africa. I first heard about Nik Ripken some ten years ago at a training conference for strategy coordinators led by representatives of the International Mission Board of the SBC. At an isolated conference center in the Oxfordshire countryside west of London, I listened in amazement to accounts of his research on the persecuted church. I was part of a select group of mission strategists privileged to actually read his report–a document so explosive–so sensitive in nature–that even now I dare not list its title in this review. And I have long been frustrated that those amazing stories of faith persevering and thriving in the teeth of brutal persecution could not be publically shared for fear of adding to the suffering of God's people. The Insanity of God has finally relieved some of that frustration.

    Nik Ripken conducted the most important and comprehensive research on the persecuted church ever attempted in 2,000 years of Christian history. Decades from now, when it is finally safe to publish that research in its entirety, future generation will place it alongside other mission classics such as the Journal of William Carey and Roland Allen's Missionary Methods: St. Paul's or Ours? It will be required reading in seminaries. Missionary candidates will comb its pages for wisdom as they develop strategies for evangelizing the unreached. Until then, if you are not one of the few included in that very limited "need to know" group, may I heartily recommend The Insanity of God.

    In its pages the author shares some of the more poignant stories of faith under persecution that were a part of his original research. To do this he has had to change names and some other identifying details in order to protect those involved from needless reprisals. In one particular case I happened to know the story told in considerable detail, so I can personally vouch for the fact that the thrust of what is told in The Insanity of God is absolutely accurate. And believe me, there is no exaggeration in these pages. What made it into print is an understatement of what actually happened. The full story is even more incredible than what you will read.

    Even though I had studied the original research, I learned a great deal reading The Insanity of God. It was especially revealing about the background of Nik Ripken. This gave me a fuller appreciation of his life and work. Nik is not a physically imposing guy. He seems altogether ordinary when you meet him. But appearances can deceive. We're talking Mr. Rogers here: with the valor and audacity of a Navy SEAL.

    Reading that original research was an emotionally and spiritually shattering experience for me. Reading The Insanity of God will similarly affect you. It will inspire, horrify, and convict you. You will be amazed by what God is doing in some of the toughest mission fields on earth. You will be shaken by the relentlessness of the enemy. You will be moved to tears–both of sorrow and of joy. It will strengthen your faith. And it will shame you for the shallowness of your own discipleship when confronted by the incredible sacrifices of believers in these places of persecution. And just maybe–and I know this is the desire of the author–it will persuade you that the life of a missionary, be it on the other side of the street or on the other side of the world, is the life you need to be living. This is a dangerous book to read. Approach with caution.
  4. Myrach
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Awesome, soul stirring
    April 14, 2016
    Myrach
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    It seems that we have become too comfortable in our lives. This book should awaken every heart and soul from their slumber and make them wonder why as Americans we have not suffered for Christ. Why we sit in our comfortable church pews and houses listening and reading our works of literature and Bibles. We should be stirring up our souls to find where Christ is at work. We should be finding our missions and do what Christ called us to do, seek and save the lost. This book makes you yearn for the faith of those persecuted. To want to find the same passion for the lost. It stirred my soul.
  5. Nancy Stewart
    Houston TX
    Age: 45-54
    Gender: female
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Wake up, Church! Comfortable lethargy is NOT what God calls us to!
    January 18, 2016
    Nancy Stewart
    Houston TX
    Age: 45-54
    Gender: female
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    Ripken writes of his own family's experience trying to help Somalis in their collapsed country and how that led to a lot of other problems. He decided to try to write a guide for new missionaries trying to work in hard situations like Somalia, and he got the idea of going to visit different regions of the world where Christians are persecuted and getting their input on how to be helped. Needless to say, he was blown away by the answers he got, and he ended up writing a very different book than what he had expected! YOU NEED TO READ THIS BOOK! It is vital for the life of the Church that we western Christians get a different view of the Christian life than what we currently have.
Displaying items 1-5 of 33
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