Be Wise: God’s Way

A couple of years ago, I was putting together some material for a Bible class on the writings of Solomon. As the amount of material continued to grow, so did the idea of putting the material in book form.

One of our Bible classes studied the material and made some suggestions about how it could be improved. After several revisions, I showed the book to Riddle Creek Publishing. Now, after several more revisions, I am proud to say that Be Wise God’s Way is in print.

The book is designed to walk Junior and Senior High School students through the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. While there are hundreds of lessons to be learned from these two great books, Be Wise was designed to find those that would be most helpful for young people.

The 97-page book contains 13 chapters, making it useful for Bible school material. Each chapter title shows the emphasis that Solomon had on working. The chapters are:

• Chapter One: Wisdom Commences
• Chapter Two: Wisdom Acts
• Chapter Three: Wisdom Avoids Sexual Temptation
• Chapter Four: Wisdom Recognizes Right and Wrong
• Chapter Five: Wisdom Teaches about God
• Chapter Six: Wisdom Learns about Morals and Character
• Chapter Seven: Wisdom Avoids Evil
• Chapter Eight: Wisdom Keeps Integrity and a Good Name
• Chapter Nine: Wisdom Stays Active
• Chapter Ten: Wisdom Helps Human Relations
• Chapter Eleven: Wisdom Recognizes Wisdom in Others
• Chapter Twelve: Wisdom Sees the Danger of Materialism
• Chapter Thirteen: Wisdom Remembers What is Important

Questions are included at the end of each chapter to facilitate discussion in Bible classes. Also, each chapter contains a prayer to help the students make the lessons learned more personal.

It is also special that the book features two young people from 9th Avenue on the cover. Cheyenne Logan and Trent Williams agreed to pose in the Thinker position for the front cover. Also, four young people from 9th Avenue have short thoughts published in the book. Cristina Knight, Heather Fortenberry, Orry Moody and Rylan Terry all have short inserts that go along with some of the themes of the book.

For more information, or to place an order, contact Riddle Creek Publishing.

Looking for a Book?

Yesterday at the area-wide preachers’ meeting, I was making a presentation about building a preacher’s library (on a preacher’s salary). Near the end of that discussion, I mentioned that, as with anything that costs money, one should “shop around” when looking for books. After all, building a library is not cheap.

Brother Ted Burleson, from the Hamilton church of Christ, mentioned a website that I had not previously visited. It is Best Book Buys. You simply type in the book (or author or ISBN) you are wanting, and the site finds matches.

Then, click on

and you can see what several websites are charging for the book–including shipping!

The site searches many that are probably already favorites of yours, like Amazon.com and Christian Book Distributors. It also searches sites like Wal-Mart, Barnes & Noble and many textbook sites.

If you are looking for any book, not just a religious book, this site is a great one to add to your favorites!

Your Input is Needed

On Monday, February 26th, I will be addressing an area preachers’ meeting. I am excited about the opportunity, but I am nervous about the assignment.

I have been asked to address the basic topic of “Building a Preacher’s Library.” Specifically, I have been asked to give some practical suggestions (which I think I can do) of how to build a decent library on a budget…and not Bill Gates’s budget, either!

Now, here’s where I am looking for your help. I have also been asked to lead a discussion dealing with books every preacher should own and, if time allows, books every young preacher should own. I have a very short list started in my head, but I would like your input.

I am hoping to have a list prepared for the meeting that will be comprehensive but also not over-the-top expensive.

Here’s what I’m asking for. Please leave a comment listing a book (or books, but list no more than 5) that you bought (or that was given to you) at or near the beginning of your ministry that you still refer to often. Please do not list the Bible as, hopefully, that is a given!

I appreciate any help you can give. I love books and I love building a library. Just because I have certain books in my office, though, doesn’t mean that I have the best.