Monday, November 11, 2013

Why Christ Came - A Review

"Our salvation does not depend on our performance but on Christ's." - Joel Beeke and William Boekestein, "Why Christ Came - 31 Meditations on the Incarnation"

I've read several books by Joel Beeke.  I've enjoyed all of them, but many are written with a college level in mind.  This book was different, but that doesn't mean it was a theological lightweight.

I was drawn to the concept.  Beeke and Boeestein explore 31 reasons Jesus came.  While timely for the advent season, this book is much deeper than the Baby in the Manger.  Much like John Piper's "Fifty Reasons Jesus Came to Die,"  this book explores topics outside of the normal meditations.

I really appreciate how scripture-soaked the book was.  Every topic is bathed in Bible passages.  This (1) adds credibility to the arguments, and (2) gives a starting point for further meditation. 

To give a little flavor of the Gospel-rich writings, I quote this from Chapter 26, "To Restore Human Nature to Holiness":

"Many people are quite satisfied with a religion of external rules and ceremonies because they have a superficial view of sin.  Perhaps they have fairly loose rules, such as a minimum requirement to attend public worship now and then. Or maybe they have stiff and complex rules consisting of behaviors almost as  intricate as a Japanese tea ceremony.  Either way, changes in behavior cannot purify the heart, for it is the seat of our corruption."


The authors continue to explain the Gospel in clear, concise terms.

This book would be great all year, although Advent or Lent would be great times to read.  The chapters are relatively short, which would make this a great devotional.  Fathers, if you're looking for a good family devotional for your older children (maybe 12+), this would be great; younger kids probably wouldn't grasp some of the ideas, but it's not inappropriate for that age group. 

I highly endorse this one.  Well done, Mr. Beeke and Mr. Boekestein.

Note: I received a review copy of the book from the publisher.  I was required to provide an honest, not necessarily favorable, review, and the opinions expressed are mine.

Friday, November 01, 2013

AsaSure

Now that ObamaCare is the law of the land, and now that the bill's been passed and we can now see what's in it, I've decided we need to propose something similar for auto insurance.  I hereby introduce AsaSure.

First of all, everyone will need to participate in AsaSure.  If anyone chooses to drive without insurance, it drives up the cost for everyone. If you don't drive, you'll still need AsaSure, in case you do. But don't worry, if you like your current insurance, you'll be able to keep your insurance, provided it meet some common-sense standards. 

Every policy will need to cover some basic, common-sense standards.  Body work, collision and routine maintenance will need to be covered.  So will window-tinting, filters, fluid changes and roadside assistance. Custom wheels and high-performance tire replacements will be covered under AsaSure.

Even though the very young drivers have traditionally cost more in claims, we cannot burden this very vulnerable age group.  Therefore we will switch to a community rating system, where everyone in a geographic area will pay the same, regardless of claim history.

Oh, and to protect drivers (and potential drivers) from those evil insurance companies, we'll preclude pre-existing incidents.  But don't worry; drivers are too honest to add AsaSurance after the accident.

Again, like I said at the outset, if you like your insurance, you can keep your insurance.  Unless, of course your policy is underinsurance (meaning you don't have roadside assistance or prepaid fuel); then, if your policy changes, even the premiums fluctuate a few cents, your policy will no longer be valid, and you'll have to purchase an AsaSure.

One final benefit of AsaSure.  We'll set up private exchanges for AsaSure-eligible companies to compete for your business.  Oh, sure, we'll collect ALL of your information in our secure (as we define secure) system and will know whether you purchase.  And we promise the exchange will be fully functional with no major outages.

AsaSure.  The better way to insure driving.