Maybe, like me, you grew up in Sunday School hearing the same Bible stories over and over again. The men healed from leprosy, the faith of the Centurion, the paralytic and his persistent friend, and Peter walking on water are so ingrained in our minds that we, oftentimes, gloss over these accounts, excusing them away as stories of our youth, over-used in our journey with Jesus. Perhaps, like me, you go through seasons of feeling your prayer life becoming dry and your communication with God stale. We both could also use a fresh perspective on how God’s word opens the lines of communication with our Creator; the One who masterfully wired our hearts for deep and ongoing connection with Him.
Jeannie Blackmer’s book, “Talking to Jesus”, might be exactly the tool we need.
Jeannie states,
“Based on well-known accounts of Jesus taken from the New Testament, this book shows that the people who met Jesus had the same worries, hopes, and questions that we have today. Through this collection of biblical encounters, we can take a fresh look at conversations between Jesus and those who believed that he could help them. The heartfelt requests of these people show Jesus’s love for everyone, from the earliest believers who spoke with him in person to modern believers who pray to him today. “Talking to Jesus” reminds us that we can take to Jesus anywhere, anytime, about anything, because he is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
“Talking to Jesus” provides a short summary of 21 well-known texts and couples it with a personal response and some reflection verses. At the end of each chapter you have the opportunity to answer a couple observations of your own, helping connect your unique, intimate story back to God’s word. The easy-to-read layout and stand-alone chapters make this book an excellent supplement to your daily Bible reading plan or morning routine.
Maybe you are a new believer without much Biblical knowledge, or perhaps you are just investigating Christianity and this guy called Jesus for the very first time. “Talking to Jesus” would be an excellent place to introduce you to a variety of people who, like you, were also searching for hope in a weary or unsteady season of life. This book can also help you better understand how to reach out in heart-felt prayer for perhaps the very first time.
Whatever your history with God’s word, this book is a good fit for you.
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“Talking to Jesus” is a great prayer resource and provides a fresh perspective into well-known and loved Bible accounts. Because I believe this book can help all people take their prayer life to the next level, I am giving away a free copy to one of you. To enter this giveaway:
- Comment below and share the biggest obstacle/struggle to your prayer life. It could be:
- distraction
- loss for words
- not knowing where to start
- never done it
- feeling like it is useless/doesn’t work
- something else??
AND
- Sign up to receive email updates in the subscribe box to the right.
This giveaway will run Thursday, December 7th, 2017 through Sunday, December 10th at 10:00pm PST. A winner will be randomly drawn on Tuesday, December 11th and will be notified by email within 24 hours.
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8
The biggest obstacle/struggle I have with my prayer life is busyness as well as not paying attention to when He answers my prayers and then praising Him for the answers. This tends to lead me to just praying for small things, easy things, instead of praying for everything that I need to talk with Him about.
You are so right. Pausing long enough to see all the ways He is answering our prayers changes how we approach His throne again. We can trust Him for the small and for the big. Thanks for sharing!
Wow that was fast! 😉 The biggest struggle I have is distraction! Even when I sit down to purposefully pray, it’s hard to keep my mind from running off. As such I was going to pursue prayer as a topical theme for study as my current study ends – thank you for the timely book suggestion and the descriptive review!
I am glad that God brought this book to your attention then! I love how His timing is perfect!
The biggest obstacle would be when God takes a very long time to fulfill His will, allowing agony for years before He finally answers, which He always does! It’s the waiting in the midst of unrelenting agony, where it’s hard to breathe, where prayer is most difficult. Praise can get us out of the agony temporarily.
I can totally relate to what you said. The persistent prayers are oftentimes the hardest. Praise is a good antidote while we wait.
Sarah, thank you for reviewing Talking to Jesus. I’m thrilled because you express so well the desires I have for this book. I truly hope it helps people in Talking to Jesus in real, authentic and intimate ways as if we’re with him face-to-face. I hope this book breathes new life into prayer lives and helps others see how relevant the Bible is for us today. Keep talking to Jesus!
You are very welcome! Thank you for your obedience in penning this message. I am praying God uses in to bring many back to Himself.