Reviews and Endorsements
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[Bookshelf Review]
- Every three months, with the new Sabbath school lesson, we advertise a new book as a companion to the new quarter’s study. Usually written by the author who was the primary contributor to the lesson pamphlet, these generally expand on each week’s Bible study, but also allow the author to take their subject matter further, stepping outside the strict format of the daily and weekly study guide.
Despite their formulaic covers and even for those who are not closely following the Sabbath school curriculum, many of these are worthwhile books, written by some of our church’s leaders and scholars, bringing in more of their faith, insight and experience. Deeply informed and shaped by the Bible study that became the lesson study, these books allow more time and attention to the application of the Bible’s teaching to our lives, our church and the world around us. The current quarter’s companion book—God’s Mission, My Mission—is one such book.
Written by Gary Krause, director of the worldwide church’s Office of Adventist Mission, God’s Mission, My Mission surveys the Bible’s teaching and stories of the mission of God and colours it with stories from the history of Christian mission and particular examples of Adventist mission today. But, as well as the dramatic and pioneering stories, there are also examples of everyday mission and faithfulness in the face of seeming failure. Mission is portrayed as something in which we all are and can be involved, even in small choices and moments. It is both easy and inspirational reading.
These companion books can be read week by week to expand on your engagement with and application of the week’s lesson study.
They can be used as a resource for leading a Sabbath school class or study group. But they can also serve as an accessible resource for the topic of study—whether a biblical theme or specific book of the Bible—beyond the quarter in which they are featured and apart from the lesson study.
As are many of these companion books, God’s Mission, My Mission is worth reading as a stand-alone book, even if not following it week-by-week across the quarter.
— Nathan Brown, book editor, Signs Publishing