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He Loves Me by Wayne Jacobsen
(A Book Review by Virginia H. Lane) Several years ago, I asked a pastor friend "How do I know that God loves me?" The answer "You just have to know that he does" didn't do it for me. I went away in frustration. The answer I was looking for is now freely available on the web in the ebook He Loves Me by Wayne Jacobsen. Jacobsen of Lifestream Ministries answers many of the questions I've had during my life concerning God. In a well thought out presentation, he addresses such questions as: What happened in Eden? Why God the Father is perceived as a harsh God? Why did Jesus have to die? and What is the Wrath of God? The subtitle The Relationship God has Always Wanted with You reveals the heart of the message. God never wanted people to be scared of him. Instead he wanted to have a loving relationship with mankind, beginning with Adam and Eve. In 19 chapters, Jacobsen debunks traditional beliefs about God being a harsh God. He paints him as a loving Father who really cares about us. We are his children. Just as we should come to know any family member, we also should form a relationship with God, our creator. As our Maker, God has a love for us that far exceeds the love that a human father (ideally) has for his children. Jacobsen addresses how we can come to understand that love. God's love for us/me is not something which can be earned. Certainly not something any of us deserve because of how great we are. Christianity has often presented God as one who loves someone because of their obedience. Jacobsen likens it to a child plucking petals off a flower, "He loves me, he loves me not. At any given moment, He may love us or not love us. One gets on a repent, sin, repent cycle which ends up in defeatism because we never think we are good enough to keep His love. If human parents can love us despite our faults, why do we think that God is any less forgiving? What is the balance between grace when one sins and the behavior that a child of God should have? What is it that God really wants from us? When one truly surrenders to Him, a transformation occurs in the heart. Jacobsen shows us how and why this happens. He Loves Me is a great way to study the kind of relationship God wants to have with mankind. Each chapter is a complete study on one aspect of the topic of God's Love. Jacobsen encourages the reader to put the ideas to use. The last section of each chaper is For your Personal Journey in which Jacobsen encourages the reader to put the ideas to use. In addition, at the end of the book is an appendix with study questions. I highly recommend this book for a group study. This ebook (pdf) is readily assessible through the Lifestream website and is also available in our links area under the Free Online Books section at the bottom of our Faith Based Resources page or click on He Loves Me . For those who prefer, printed copies are available for a nominal fee from Lifestream Ministries . Bio from last page of manuscript: Wayne Jacobsen directs Lifestream Ministries and travels the world teaching on themes of intimacy with God and relational church life. He is a Contributing Editor to Leadership Journal and the author of The Naked Church, In My Father's Vineyard and Tales of the Vine. Wayne also works as a trainer and mediator in public educaiton, helping build bridges of cooperation and understanding where the issues of church and state collide. He resides with his wife, Sara, in Oxnard, Californa. |
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