Review of Even Christians Stumble and Fall
Posted: 28 Feb 2022, 08:33
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Even Christians Stumble and Fall" by Branch Isole.]
Our journey of faith as Christians is never a walk in the park. Staying faithful and focusing on the goal isn't always as easy as it may sound. We all wish it would just be a one-time conversion thing to a path of utmost holiness, but that isn't the case. It is therefore prudent that we understand that we will fall on a number of occasions. Branch Isole writes to strengthen our resolve in the walk and help us make decisions about taking the next steps after we have fallen or stumbled. In his book, Even Christians Stumble and Fall: Musings of a Struggling Believer, he encourages us to grow, learn, and get enlightened on a daily basis in our walk.
The book is a collection of 52 short free-verse poems arranged in alphabetical order. The poems address various aspects of faith and aim at achieving different results. Some aim at uplifting the readers, some aim at challenging the reader, and others aim at answering common questions asked by Christians. They all have very creative titles that prepare the reader for their content. Given the author's background in Theology, he addresses major theological concepts in these poems. A dominant concept in the poems was that of grace. The author passionately reminds us of God's unending love and compassion for us even when we fall.
Most poets fail to communicate because they try to make their work as complex as they possibly can. Isole doesn't go with this trend, he writes poems that are simple and easy to comprehend. It was easy to figure out what was happening in the poems and what the author wanted to put across. I found the poems not only enjoyable to read, but also profound and quite insightful. I also loved the empathetic and friendly tone in most of the poems.
Most of the poems were great and, therefore, picking a favorite was hard. I, however, particularly loved the one titled 'Fundamentalists'. It spoke to the fickle nature of humans and how everyone struggles to prove things to the other. It then emphasizes the faithfulness of God. The other two notable poems for me were 'Lost' and 'Hamlet Wondered'.
One thing I disliked about the book was its general appearance. The poems were congested on one side of the page and written in a continuous unattractive form. I believe more effort should have been made to make the work appealing and attractive to the readers. I also did not agree with some of the author's theological concepts. For instance, the author advances the idea that one can sin for most or all of their life and turn to God at that final moment, and it would be okay. In the poem, Peaceful Rest, he says that the point is to finally come to Him. I think this is an overstretch of God's grace. A misinformed reader would take it as a license to sin and hope for the right timing of their return to God. It could be misleading.
I, therefore, give the book a rating of three out of four stars. Despite the above concerns, it was still insightful, uplifting, and well-written. I believe it was professionally edited as I found very few errors. It, therefore, deserved nothing less than three stars. I'd recommend it to Christians who love poetry. It will surely challenge, inspire and entertain them.
******
Even Christians Stumble and Fall
View: on Bookshelves
Our journey of faith as Christians is never a walk in the park. Staying faithful and focusing on the goal isn't always as easy as it may sound. We all wish it would just be a one-time conversion thing to a path of utmost holiness, but that isn't the case. It is therefore prudent that we understand that we will fall on a number of occasions. Branch Isole writes to strengthen our resolve in the walk and help us make decisions about taking the next steps after we have fallen or stumbled. In his book, Even Christians Stumble and Fall: Musings of a Struggling Believer, he encourages us to grow, learn, and get enlightened on a daily basis in our walk.
The book is a collection of 52 short free-verse poems arranged in alphabetical order. The poems address various aspects of faith and aim at achieving different results. Some aim at uplifting the readers, some aim at challenging the reader, and others aim at answering common questions asked by Christians. They all have very creative titles that prepare the reader for their content. Given the author's background in Theology, he addresses major theological concepts in these poems. A dominant concept in the poems was that of grace. The author passionately reminds us of God's unending love and compassion for us even when we fall.
Most poets fail to communicate because they try to make their work as complex as they possibly can. Isole doesn't go with this trend, he writes poems that are simple and easy to comprehend. It was easy to figure out what was happening in the poems and what the author wanted to put across. I found the poems not only enjoyable to read, but also profound and quite insightful. I also loved the empathetic and friendly tone in most of the poems.
Most of the poems were great and, therefore, picking a favorite was hard. I, however, particularly loved the one titled 'Fundamentalists'. It spoke to the fickle nature of humans and how everyone struggles to prove things to the other. It then emphasizes the faithfulness of God. The other two notable poems for me were 'Lost' and 'Hamlet Wondered'.
One thing I disliked about the book was its general appearance. The poems were congested on one side of the page and written in a continuous unattractive form. I believe more effort should have been made to make the work appealing and attractive to the readers. I also did not agree with some of the author's theological concepts. For instance, the author advances the idea that one can sin for most or all of their life and turn to God at that final moment, and it would be okay. In the poem, Peaceful Rest, he says that the point is to finally come to Him. I think this is an overstretch of God's grace. A misinformed reader would take it as a license to sin and hope for the right timing of their return to God. It could be misleading.
I, therefore, give the book a rating of three out of four stars. Despite the above concerns, it was still insightful, uplifting, and well-written. I believe it was professionally edited as I found very few errors. It, therefore, deserved nothing less than three stars. I'd recommend it to Christians who love poetry. It will surely challenge, inspire and entertain them.
******
Even Christians Stumble and Fall
View: on Bookshelves
