I understand that it's difficult for the Christian community to face the fact that hundreds of thousands of them convert to Islam... but please understand that there is a reason for it. Anyone who researches Islam and learns about the true religion will see the light. This is what such book hope to deter... they hope to keep christians from learning about Islam and to encourage hate. Muslims and Christians are both people of the book, both children of Abraham, both believers in One God. Why do Muslims face such a crusade of hate from Christians as appears in this book?

Knowing and liking this book, I was sad to hear the two earlier reviews from Muslims, which were very anti- this Christian book. No Muslim of course will be able to accept this book, neither will the Christian author agree with the religious views of the two reviewers.

Despite many similarities, Christianity and Islam are not compatible. It is unfashionable to stand up and say "My God is the only true God". But both religions claim this, and therein lies the incompatibility. And so too, surely a Muslim will never like what is said in this book.

I have lived in a Muslim country and found many Mulsim friends, but have had to disagree with them about our faith. I have never made the mistake of seeing all Muslims as the same, it's sad to see Christians as one indistinguishable mass as do the reviewers.

This book is useful in facing the difficulties of being a Christian where it is against the law to speak out about one's faith to Muslims. But it helps by showing the common points as well as where we differ, and this is where many conversations between the faiths can at least have a measure of agreement.

But it is a Christian book with the aim of teaching the word of God. Only by ignoring his stated purpose could the author hope to win the praise of the reviewers.

I found this rather small text to be very big on insights. Having read a number of other texts on Islam (which were more academic), I found this particular brief to be rather refreshing. Written by a missionary who spent 43 years ministering to the Muslim people of Iran, it comes across with a genuine love and respect which only a person who actually lived amongst the Muslim people of Iran, could convey. It is absolutely NOT vindictive. Nor is it in the slightest disrespectful to the Islamic faith. It IS however, honest and forthright. The author is often times found sharing his personal experiences. These include conversations with his Muslim neighbors and aquaintances (some of whom converted to Christianity, some of whom did not), which was very insightful. For it was through these talks (many of which were initiated by his Muslim friends) that he alerts us to the confusion which too often exists amongst Islamic people about true, Biblical Christianity. A small book -- a small price to pay for some very GOOD information.

Hosea's wife's name was Gomer, rhymes with Hagar. Webmaster, please edit the mistake in two places in the review.

You can see why I did not fill out the opportunity to become a recognized reviewer....

Mea Culpa

Marietta Pope, Plymouth, NH

Glenn I. Miller was a military chaplain and counselor before becoming a parish minister. In his years of military service, he gathered many case histories of those whom he served as marriage counselor.

In his book, Chaplain Miller shares bits of this experience where relevant, always anonymously. He makes the point that commitment in the presence of God is the most important element in marriage.

In the Bible story which shapes the book, Hosea's wife, Hagar, left him and became a prostitute. He wanted to reclaim her and by the time he located her, she was another man's property. His love for Hagar was so great that he forgave her. He had to pay her owner a sum of money.

Upon their return home, he established a period during which there would be no intimate relations. The couple would reestablish their respect and love for one another and set standards for their relationship.

Actually, in the case of Hosea, he set the standards. It would take a remarkable twenty-first century man to set this period of time and these standards. There are some remarkable men left. It would be even better, however, in this reader's opinion, if the standards were mutually proposed and agreed upon.

The book offers guidelines for standards. It is thought-provoking and useful. Chaplain Miller cites many instances in which the Hosea model has saved or shaped marriages.

The Becomers examines the problems of living the Christian life from a layman's view of psychonanalysis, specifically from Freud's theories. It would be most useful to pastors, councilors, and other lay leaders hoping to understand the natural change process so that they can help their parishioners grow spiritually. Individual Christians may also find it helpful. My rating of a 6 is based on the author's admission of oversimplifying Freud and on a personal preference toward a more hands-on approach to Christianity

Using Old and New Testament Scripture this book highlites some of the changes that have occurred over the past fifty years in how our society views itself. The book is designed to be a nine week group study guide and includes a time frame, based on a one hour meeting, for each section of each chapter. Strong leadership is needed to keep on this time frame, or a longer meeting time will be necessary. "Culture Shifts" is well written and the scripture is well choosen, but the questions asked in each chapter sometimes seem vague or irrelevant. More can be accomplished by not following the questions to the letter but sticking to the spirit of the subject.

I ordered this book thinking it would help me to clarify job decisions and what I found instead was an irritatingly religious, moralizing, Christian work on finding your "mission"/ job. That is fine if that is what you are looking for; otherwise stay far away.

It was an unpleasant surprise for me to open this book and find an irritatingly religious, moralizing, Christian guide to clarifying one's mission/best job fit. If that is what you're looking for, fine. Otherwise, I would stay away . . .far away.

This book had a profound impact on my professional and personal life. It helped me to identify those inherent gifts (talents) which I possess and gave me specific insights into how best to apply them. In fact, after reading the book, I contacted Rallph Mattson and went through his Motif process (based upon the book). From this report they prepared a "best use" analysis which I regularly share with my management in discussions of next assignments and promotions. It has helped me and them to jointly make career decisions that benefit me and the company. The book's philosophical basis is supported by a new book (1999) by Gallup "First Break all the Rules". After interviewing 40,000 people in 800 companies, they found that the one thing that most negatively impacts an organization's ability to reach its full potential is its inability to tap into and utilize the unique, inherent talents of each person in the organization. The one thing Gallup does not offer is a means of identifying those talents and putting them to use. Ralph Mattson (who published his book well in advance of Gallup's) has a proven, effective means of doing that. I strongly urge anyone who is or has ever wondered if there was something else that would make them feel fulfilled or give them a sense of peace and contentment, to read this book.

Let me first start by saying I am *not* "anti-Christian". Good, now that that's straight, if you are looking for good fiction writing that's appropriate for any reader/age, you can do better than this book.

That this title is out of print is no surprise, when the Bible, the Lord or any other number of Christian references are being made to such a degree that you cannot proceed more than 5 PAGES without being clubbed over the head with it. Further, the writing seems to jump into the pulpit on more than one occasion, getting overly preachy to the point of tedium.

Generally, I can enjoy *any* book, despite most religious or political views, but when the publication openly attacks another group, I need to draw the line. Case in point in this book is when the herione, Alexis Albright, confronts a shady Japanese national, citing his choice in religion (Shintoism) and proudly proclaiming that since "her God is the *only* true god, her God therefore *made* his God". I mean, this is totally unnecessary for the continnuance of the story and demeans those whose views are different, yet end goal is essentially the same. To sum up, unless you enjoy being innundated with biblical and Christian references (and I know a number of Christians who even thought this book was over the top), sniff The Plum Blossoms and move on to greener pastures.

This book contains a limited amount of truth backed up by scripture, but it is only used as background material. The bulk of the text appears to be made up of the author's opinions, which he is unable to qualify by scripture or by any survey results. He attempts to catagorize families into good and evil, leaving no room for human fallibility or for God's grace, but instead leaving a bitter taste in the reader's mouth. While there may be a need to tackle this subject, this particular endeavor threatens to divide families rather than unite them.

The Psalms in Worship is a selection of Psalms or Psalm parts divided to be read by leader and congregation, by two voices, by chorus and solo voices ... etc. While I am fond of antiphonal Psalm repetition and while Psalm scholarship has shown that some Psalms are intended to be done in various voices, I fail to see how the divisions proposed by the authors of this volume enhance or emphasis the meaning and structure of the Psalm.

The final section of this book includes responsories based on Psalms which are well done. For example a call to worship based on Psalm 34:3 has the leader say "Glorify the Lord with me" to which the people respond "Let us exalt his name together".

I do not, however, find this portion sufficient to justify recommending the book.