Book review

Long post again....sorry!

This review was originally going to be about a fiction piece I just finished call "A Voice In The Wind". But, after what I've read today, I think it'll be enough to comment on this one:

I started and finished this book today. Not because it was good, however. In fact, I was mortified. I'm just getting into blogging and reading other folks' blogs. One blog I read lately mentioned a book called "Supernatural Childbirth". (Note -- this blog belongs to a good friend of ours and I have NOT had the opportunity to talk to this family about this book. What follows is my opinion and I in no way want to offend anyone with my comments!) In the introduction, the author talks about a conversation she had with her husband. She does not say for what reason(s) but she mentions to him that she can't have children. Her husband asks her who told her she couldn't have kids. She said the doctor's did. His response -- "Oh, I see. Well, God said you can have babies. Even though I thank God for doctors and hospitals, and medical science is always advancing, they are not our source, our final authority; God is, and God said you can have children....The Bible is full of Scriptures about children. He said He makes the barren woman to keep house and be a joyful mother of children. He said your children will be as olive plants and your wife as a fruitful vine. The Bible says there will be neither male nor female barren among God's people. We will have all the children we want." (No scripture reference given; this quote found on pages 13-14) Whoa -- I hadn't even gotten to the part of giving birth yet and I was speechless! The book goes on -- and I hope I'm not giving it a misrepresentation here -- and the author says this: "You see, once we made up our minds and determined in our hearts that we were going to have a baby, that we could pray, that God would hear and answer that prayer because it was His will, that's what God did. God will meet you at your level of faith -- whatever that level is -- and that's where our faith was." (page 19). I came away with the notion that this author believes that you can have whatever you want if you believe it. In fact, she says that all physical pain is under "the law" (of the Old Testament) and that "Jesus bore that sorrow, that grief so we don't have to....I dont' have to bear sorow and grief! We believe He redeemd us from sin, sickness and poverty. "By His stripes we are healed." If that healing delivers us from pain, then that's what it does. It doesn't matter if the pain comes in the form of cancer, migraine, headaches, stomache aches, or childbearing." (page 26) Now, I have CHRISTIAN friends who, for reasons known and unknown, are unable to have children. My best friend has 1 daughter who's 8 and hasn't been able to get pregnant again. She has a disease called PCOS and she's currently in treatment for that and prayerful that they will be able to conceive again. Listen -- I FIRMLY believe that God hears and answers prayer and I admit that my faith seems weak compared to my best friend's faith. Her faith is not weak! She has prayed fervantly for YEARS for more children, to be healed from her disease, but it isn't happening. Is that because her faith is weak? This book is saying that because she doesn't believe it or claim it, in Jesus' name, then she doesn't have it. I don't believe that -- but I do admit to chew on this for a few days and I fully intend to talk to my Dad about it (he's a pastor). GOD is in control -- He does answer prayer but he does not ALWAYS give us what we ask for. Is that because our faith is weak? Perhaps, at times. Is our unanswered prayers ALWAYS because our faith is weak? Absolutely not -- sometimes, our prayers are unanswered because what we were asking for was not part of God's plan for our lives!! [As far as the "childbirth" part is concerned, this couple claims that they conceived when they "believed God" for it, that they had the labor they wanted and the delivery even before the certain time they "claimed", and with 3 of her pregnancies, had painless deliveries all because they "believed God for it".]

My heart is heavy...time for bed. I'd like to comment further on why I believe what I believe but I need to chew on this a little while longer first.