Daring to Draw Near

Book: Daring to Draw Near: People in Prayer
Author: John White
Audience: Adult
In a Nutshell: from bargaining to dancing, famous prayers in the Bible and what they show us about God and ourselves

I've gotten a little backlogged again on updates, so these will be short and sweet. White examines 10 prayers in the Bible, and by "prayer," he doesn't just mean kneeling with eyes closed and hands folded. All sorts of divine-human interactions qualify: Abraham pleading for the people of Sodom, Jacob wrestling with God, Hannah crying out for a child, David dancing before the ark of the covenant, Jesus' last words on the cross, and more.

I found that oodles of the ideas that I read here were stuck in my head for days, and some are even sticking with me permanently. One main point of the book is that prayer is always initiated by God, and we are responding to him. The way he reaches out and the way we respond both vary wildly, but God is always the one to initiate. It's often through a situation in our lives which creates a need or a question that we bring to him. Whatever the further meaning is behind what's happening to or around us, God's foremost desire is that everything draw him and us closer together. It's something to think about. For those who believe in Christ and want to be challenged and inspired in their prayer life, or for those outside the faith interested in learning more about what prayer really means in Christianity, try this book. I know I'll be coming back to it many times in the future.