Fredrick Buechner Telling The Truth Analysis

Many may believe that reading a book about religion would be challenging to accomplish for someone who is not religious. But those people have never read Anne Lamott’s, Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith. If one were to ask non-religious college students to read a book by a random author about spirituality and “Finding God” through conversion, they would most likely roll their eyes and bear through it. In Lamott’s series of essays, one does not have to “suffer through the readings” because her writing style is one of a kind. She has strategically chosen every word because she is aware of how important her spiritual experiences are to so many people, religious or not.

As the preacher continued to speak of the presence of Jesus, some of Hughes’s peers begin to rush towards the preacher—wailing and crying. While the rest of the children, including

The author appeals to his audience’s emotion when writing this sermon. Specifically, he targets

I personally felt that this book is not only for Christian ministers or leaders but for everyone and anyone because, as mortal human beings, we live in a societal world where caring or helping each other is indispensable. I like the way Nouwen makes us see the four chapters of this book, as entering into four different doors, each representing the ‘problems of ministry in the modern world’ (Nouwen, 2010, p.3). I’ve categorized my reflections on this book into three particular headings. The Human Condition Nouwen starts the first chapter by portraying Peter, a young man going through the contemporary human condition, which is, the search of meaning to their life.

[the sermon was] all about brotherly love” (Twain 111). In this quote, Twain shows how people

Introduction For this pastoral interview, I interviewed Andrew O’Brien. He has been serving as the missions pastor for North Ridge Church for two years. O’Brien lives in Falls City, Nebraska with his wife, Emily, and two young sons. Being a child of missionaries in Mexico, he has always had a heart for missions.

Writing about controversial subjects can often be difficult; however Hughes executed his story, Salvation, in an intriguing manner that is suitable to all audiences and religions. In this story, the writer retells an experience from his childhood describing his journey to Jesus Christ. Discussing the complications, the main character, Hughes, faced while trying to come to Jesus is what makes the story interesting to read. On many occasions, you will read a story or watch a movie that shows the main character coming to Jesus and having an immediate and obvious realization of their Savior. For this reason, I found this story to be unique and relatable in the way that it shows a journey that countless Christians face, but you are not often granted the opportunity to read about this type of experience.

Christians often view salvation as a heavenly resting place; in reality, however, salvation is a lifelong journey that can bridge the gap between Heaven and Earth. This spiritual bridge can be crossed through faith coupled with good works. “Bridge”, a short story by Daniel O’Malley, features a young boy who struggles to comprehend salvation as well as find his own. This motif of salvation is achieved through the use of biblical allusions which also help support the fact that the bridge is a physical representation for the motif of the path to salvation which the narrator fails to cross. O’Malley starts his story with two biblical allusions, “...but also about the flood and locusts and frogs and other plagues that had happened before and could happen again…(192).

This is knowledge which grants eternal happiness and meaning cannot be philosophized by the castaway; it must arrive in the form of news, which is the Absolute Paradox. By faith, this news must be heard and heeded. The Christian faith is neither knowledge nor science nor a “miraculous favor which allows one to… believe the impossible” (146). Faith is a form of communication from God, which is delivered by an apostle whose message, while transcendental and paradoxical, is believable and necessary. Jesus, who comes to bring news across the seas does so with authority and steadfastness to the point of martyrdom.

He comes to terms at the end, saying that “sin was what you took and didn’t give back.” This literary work is told through the use of several rhetorical devices, including imagery, symbolism, and

One Life, by Scot McKnight, was an appealing testament of how we should go about life in a way that reflects God’s mission and plans for His people. The purpose for this book was so common people reading are, hopefully, influenced to live out their “one life” for God. McKnight explains, in great detail, of what God’s intentions are for us. He also provides the reader with many options on how to overcome temptations we face. This book was discussing several obstacles that may seem as a concern, but are also great descriptions on what every human may run into; however, it is also very clear in McKnight’s writing, that we can abstain from those worldly desires.

The sermon begins with an introduction to the story of Peter Healing a Lame Beggar and emphasizes on Acts 3:1-8. Bishop Jakes discusses that the man in the story was only expecting to receive something, no matter what it was, as long as it was something. He then goes into how people are afraid of disappointment, how to have the courage to raise your expectations, and how to break your patterns. He describes how the environment you are in can affect your success and how it’s beneficial to surround yourself with others who are better and who have different things than you do. To be able to want better and receive better, you have to surround yourself with better.

During the interview with Timothy Hughes, Pastor of the First Baptist Church, many difficult and probing questions were asked to discover the heart of his decision making process. The pastor, making himself available for this interview answered with much openness and transparency revealing how he makes decisions regarding a variety of issues. In regards to fear and its impact on his decision making, one could ascertain that this pastor uses acknowledgement of his fear to provide balance in this process. Decision made in regards to sermon preparation time is deemed to vary as he tries to “utilize a variety of sermon methodology or sermon preparation.”

“The deep truth is that our human suffering need not be an obstacle to the joy and peace we so desire, but can become, instead, the means to it. The great secret of the spiritual life, the life of the Beloved Sons and daughters of God, is that everything we live, be it gladness or sadness, joy or pain, health or illness, can all be part of the journey toward the full realization of our humanity” Henri

One of the themes in the novel, The Old Man and the Sea, is that one should persevere even in the most challenging situations. The old man’s, Santiago’s, lone struggle with the fishes and the forces of nature over a period of almost three months demonstrated an almost mythical persistence. The purpose of this essay is to evaluate whether this theme has any value compared to God’s word. The Bible often discusses the theme of perseverance in the midst of adversity. Even though one views Santiago’s endurance and tenacity with admiration, the root causes of that perseverance is different from the reasons for a Christian’s perseverance in the world.