Spritual Warfare: A Biblical & Balanced Perspective - A Review

Many books on spiritual warfare either greatly emphasize Satan or completely ignore his operation in the life of believers.  Either ditch poses grave danger to the believer.  Brian Borgman and Rob Ventura navigate this thorny, yet very important, topic. 

I was a bit skeptical about this book, and I'm glad I gave it a shot.  This is one of the best books I've read in the past two years (ranking, for sure, in the top 3, and it contends for the top spot).  I've read others on the topic of spiritual warfare, much to my detriment. Some overly emphasize the role of the demonic.  Some emphasize the believer's walk.  In the forward, Steven Lawson states, "there are three formidable foes with which we contend - the world, the flesh and the devil."  Borgman and Ventura lay out a model for fighting, regardless of the front.

I was impressed with the expository approach they take to the topic.  The book is anchored on Ephesians 6:10-20, and they take one topic per chapter.  Each topic is explained, sometimes from several viewpoints, and then practical ways to employ the topic are expressed.

One unusual aspect to the book is notable: the enemy isn't given much print space.  He is not ignored, but, starting from the position that we fight from a place of victory in Christ, the adversary isn't given the press he gets in other books.

As I stated, Spiritual Warfare quickly rose to the top of the books I've read, both on this topic and others.  The principles expressed I'm employing immediately.  If you are in a spiritual battle (hint: if you're breathing and have a pulse, you are), I cannot commend this book to you enough. 

Thank you, Pastors Borgman and Ventura.  This book has been a true gift to me.


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.

Why I'm Unfriending Facebook (even for a time)

I'm unfriending Facebook. This may be for a time, and it may be for good.  That decision will come later.  For the time being, however, I'm leaving Facebook.  Why I'm leaving will take some explanation.

I don't know when it happened, but there was a decided shift in our culture. Somewhere along the line we confused disagreement with dislike, and we substituted debate for hatred.  In the wider culture, if someone disagreed, it was a sign the person didn't like the other person.  To engage in debate is now considered hatred, and, depending upon the topic, it's labeled as "hate speech" and can be a crime.

Facebook was different.  It was originally set up by college students for college students.  In the very early days (before I joined), it was a place for upcoming graduates to connect with employers.  It was a tool that was later replaced by LinkedIn (and others) as a method of networking.

It evolved from there to chronicle the lives of students (and maybe even record what the students couldn't remember).  This may not have been the healthiest of uses, and it was quickly replaced by likes of SnapChat and other, seedier, social media outlets.

Its further evolution took it into, what I term, a "Wild West college" phase; this was a time when Facebook was a place with few rules and lots of debate. Unlike the university system, honest debate happened. Sometimes it got ugly, but it was more open and honest.

As time went on, some of the culture's views on debate crept in.  I saw it from the faith community first. Disagreement on some theological issues was viewed as "unloving" or "divisive".  Disagreements were to be discounted; outright heresy was was to be ignored.  The only acceptable answers to anything theological was to praise the comment, regardless of its theological value.  Even a non-like on a re-post must be an indication of divisiveness.

Next, I saw this creep into social topics. It seemed the only topics and views allowed were those championed by the editorial board of the New York Times.  To disagree meant you must be one of a host of "-ophobe's".

My comments, and my responses to others' comments, have damaged relationships.  It's not that it was my goal, but it's the way of our society; to disagree with a comment apparently means I hate the person. My real-life relationships are more important to me than my online presence.

I'm unfriending Facebook, at least for a time.