Category Archives: Books & blogs

Mosaic Bible review

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Tyndale sent me a review copy of the Holy Bible: Mosaic. The Kitchen will be an official stop on the blog tour tomorrow. Kevin O’Brien will be doing a Q&A session about the Mosaic Bible at that time, so I thought I’d go ahead and do a review today.

The Mosaic Bible combines a copy of the New Living Translation Bible with a “mosaic” of Christian writings and art covering every century of Christian history and representing believers from every continent. The extra materials are built around the Christian year, with suggested Scripture, Christian writings and Christian artwork for each week.

The Bible itself is printed in a format with reference text in a center column and extra space in the margins for note-taking. There are notes for further study of words in the original language, cross references, alternate readings… basic study aids in a non-intrusive format.

There is a lot of confusion about the NLT itself; I originally thought it was merely a new version of the Living Bible rather than an actual translation of the Bible. I’ve learned better.

That’s a brief description. Now here are my thoughts:

  1. I kind of wanted to dislike this Bible, partly because they say that most reviews on the Internet are overly positive. I was disappointed in that I liked the Mosaic Bible. I plan to start using it when the readings begin in December.
  2. I was intrigued by the Christian artwork. I’m pretty hopeless when it comes to fine art, be it paintings, opera, ballet or whatever. The variety of art presented really caught my imagination, however, possibly because of my love of cultural studies. It wasn’t your traditional Bible art.
  3. I come from a fellowship that has resisted any sort of “Christian calendar.” I look forward to working through these readings that follow ancient traditions as to what to study at a given time of the year.
  4. I join those who wish that Mosaic were available as a standalone book. I understand the reasoning of including the Bible, but, as I wrote earlier this week, I wonder if purchasing another Bible is good stewardship for the average Christian.
  5. I think the choice of the NLT was an appropriate one for this Bible. They needed a highly readable Bible to go along with the other readings they included. For this project, the NLT fit the bill.
  6. I asked myself honestly if I would purchase this for myself. I wouldn’t. I might buy it in an electronic format, but I wouldn’t spend the money on yet another Bible.
  7. I also thought about whether I would purchase this for someone else. Under the right circumstances, I might.
  8. I would heartily recommend buying the Advent section that Tyndale is selling separately. Buy it. Work through it. Decide for yourself if it’s worth it to you to buy the complete Bible. Tyndale even lets you examine the Advent section online, although I can tell you from experience that it’s not the same.

Here’s another way to try the Mosaic Bible. Tyndale not only gave me a Mosaic Bible, they are also letting me give one away to one of my readers. Just leave a comment tomorrow saying that you’d like to be entered in the drawing, and you’ll have a chance to win a copy of the Mosaic. Then you can write a review…

As I mentioned before, I’ve been participating in the Tyndale Blog Network, reviewing products that I receive from Tyndale. This time I’m a part of one of their virtual book tours, the Mosaic Bible blog tour. Tomorrow, October 16, The Kitchen will be hosting the tour, with Kevin O’Brien doing a Q&A session about the book.

In addition, Tyndale will be giving away a copy of The Mosaic Bible to one of the readers of this blog. On Friday, leave a comment indicating that you would like to be in the drawing for the giveaway.

Today’s stop on the blog tour: My Book Addiction and More

B&B Friday: The BibleStick

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I was contacted by a group called Faith Comes By Hearing, wanting me to evaluate a product they have called BibleStick. It’s basically an MP3 player that comes preloaded with an audio New Testament. Along with the BibleStick, the box I received contained a CD with an audio New Testament. The CD had a Flash program that linked to the files so as to help you listen to the entire New Testament in 40 days.

I found the MP3 player a bit difficult to use. Younger eyes would probably have an easier time, but I couldn’t distinguish the markings on the buttons on the player. The instructions that came with it had no drawing to help me figure out what was what, so I had to use trial and error. For some reason, the player was set to 1 Corinthians, and I gave up trying to find a quick way to get back to Matthew.

Still, the BibleStick makes for an interesting distribution tool. They say that they have given out over 15,000 to U.S. military personnel. As I’ve written in the past, I believe in the power of hearing the Word of God (more than reading), so I like this approach.

I especially like the Faith Comes By Hearing website. They have over 400 different audio Bibles available for free download. The recording I listened to was well done; I think most people would enjoy listening to these downloads. I hope that many people become better acquainted with God’s Word through this ministry.

As part of the Tyndale Blog Network, I will be reviewing the Mosaic Bible here in the next few weeks. They’re even allowing me to give away a free copy; I’ll give some information about that later. For now, check out the Mosaic Bible here: http://bit.ly/8xF3P

B&B Friday: Bloggers and others discuss alcohol and the Christian

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bible_in_handsThis B&B Friday will be dedicated to blogs, somewhat, though not in a review. To cap off the series on alcohol and the Christian, I wanted to offer some links for those interested in reading more.

B&B Monday: Every Man’s Bible

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[I decided to use Labor Day Monday instead of Friday for our book and blog feature] I received Every Man’s Bible from Tyndale for review. I thought, “Reviewing a Bible should be fairly simple.” I was wrong. But I’ll take a stab at it.

This Bible is part of the Every Man’s series which began with the book Every Man’s Battle by Stephen Arterburn, Fred Stoeker, and Mike Yorkey. That book dealt with sexual tempation. This Bible tackles a broader range of subjects like homosexuality , drinking, marriage, women, etc.

In addition, the Bible provides a simple introduction to each book, with standard information like author and date, as well as suggestions of key verses to be learned from the book, approximate time of reading, and so forth. Those looking for in-depth scholarly discussion will be disappointed, but the information is useful for beginning students. Also included are a Bible reading plan and a topical index.

Those looking for a first Bible should look elsewhere. The articles and study aids, while helpful, intrude extensively on the text. I wish more of the articles had been printed on a half page, allowing the biblical text to flow from page to page. Because of that, Every Man’s Bible should only be used as an additional study Bible, not as the primary version read. The translation used is the New Living Translation. (As came out in a previous discussion on this blog, this is not the original NLT, but a later revision)

The choice of using shades of brown throughout the book was not a wise one. The print size will also limit this Bible’s usability by older readers.

I’d highly recommend this Bible for younger Christians, especially young men. Follow the reading plan, read the articles, and, above all, study the text.

B&B Friday: Books that have impacted my life

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booksRather than review a book or a blog this week, I want to write about some of the books that impacted my life. Most of them are several decades old, but here goes…

• He Loves Forever by Tom Olbricht. OK, it wasn’t just this book; it was also the fact that I had Dr. Olbricht in class at that time. He taught me to let the Bible itself define which subjects are most important. That may sound obvious, but it was a concept that had a major effect on my understanding of the Bible.

• How To Read The Bible For All Its Worth by Douglas Stuart and Gordon Fee. Again, a book that taught me about how to interpret the Bible. The idea of discerning the different genres within Scripture had a major impact on how I read the Bible.

• Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster. I received this as a gift from the first couple for whom I performed a wedding ceremony. I didn’t grow up studying spiritual disciplines like fasting, meditation, etc. Foster’s book opened my eyes to these practices. The chapter on simplicity was also important in my development.

• Language Acquisition Made Practical by Thomas and Elizabeth Brewster. This book not only discussed non-traditional language learning but also introduced the concept of bonding to me. This had a major role in helping me decide to skip going to a language school before going to Argentina. I’ve never regretted that decision.

• Friendship Factor by Alan Loy McGinnis. While I’m still basically a shy person, this book came along at a time when I was learning to interact with others more effectively. It’s a book I read several times during my college years.

These are by no means all of the books that influenced my development over the years. But I think they are books that have had a place of significance in leading me to where I am today.

Feel free to share some of the books that have impacted you.