The Beloved Disciple

Title: The Beloved Disciple
Author: Beth Moore
Genre: Christian Living

The book jacket covers it all…”following John to the heart of Jesus”. Beth Moore does a very in depth character study on the life of the apostle John. Known as the “disciple Jesus loved”, through Beth’s writings, we are able to peek in on intimate conversations between Jesus and John, study the passion of John, and apply it to our own lives.

Beth also applies the historical aspect of the various Jewish customs of that day making it much easier to understand the time period. She not only follows John’s life through the three years he was a disciple of Christ, but all the way through his Island of Patmos experience.

This book makes an excellent companion book as you study the Biblical books of John, I John, II John, III John and Revelation. There is also a workbook available for separate purchase. This was my first introduction to Beth Moore’s books and I look forward to studying more of her books in the future. If you would like to learn more about Beth Moor and The Beloved Disciple, or even participate in an online Bible Study, check out: www.bethmoore.org.

Dreams and Visions

Title: Dreams and Visions
Author: Jane Hamon
Genre: Christian Living

This book provides a balanced approach to understanding dreams and visions from a Biblical perspective. Chapters in the book include "God's Purpose for Dreams and Visions", "False Dreams and Visions", "Natural Dreams and Visions", "The Language of Symbolism" and many more.

One thing that I appreciated about the book is that the topic itself is covered in an overview manner. She touches the surface on many aspects of dreams and visions, so if you are just getting interested in learning about the dreams and visions, Jane Hamon covers a lot of material. Now, one thing this book is not, is a psychology book. While she does talk about how some dreams can be "soulish in nature", she does not go into detail from a psychological perspective on how a soulful dream originates. But, by the end of the book, with prayer, you will be able to discern if a dream contains a message from the Lord.

As I mentioned before in a previous post, when learning about dreams, the most important source you can go to is the Bible, followed by prayer to God. After that, use sources that are Biblically based and contain a balanced approach.