Imagine if our lives were marked by contentment rather than coveting. Imagine if we gravitated towards generosity rather than grasping for more. Imagine if we felt peace about our finances, rather than anxiety.

That’s how Graham Beynon begins his new book, Money Counts. Instinctively it’s an appealing vision, but, as Graham acknowledges, that perspective on money often seems so far from the reality.

Of course, it doesn’t help that we’ve somehow made money a taboo subject in our churches. Early on in the book, Graham tells of an experienced pastor who shared that though he’d had people come and ask for help with almost every pastoral situation imaginable, he’d never had someone come and ask for help with how they handled their money.

Similarly, in my experience you struggle to find decent, simple Christian books looking at the matter of money. We don’t like talking about money, and so there’s not much writing or reading about it. And yet evidently our experiences would suggest we could do with some light on the subject.

That’s why Money Counts is such an important addition to The Good Book Company’s Live Different series. And rather than just filling a gap, it’s a brilliant read. It’s straight-forward and utterly readable, yet a thoroughly rich guide to getting our heads round money from a Christian perspective.

In fact the book’s strapline is a fair summary of the strengths of the book: ‘How to handle money in your heart and with your hands’:-

Firstly Graham recognises that ultimately money is a heart issue. He seeks to open up the Bible and illuminate the gospel, rather than simply give a few budgeting tips, money-saving tricks, or a prescriptive set of financial rules. And as he does so it becomes clear that the danger with money is that it can act as a wannabe god in our lives, holding out to us false promises of security and satisfaction.

Of course the problem isn’t that money is inherently bad, but that we let it sit comfortably on the throne of our lives, calling the shots on our desires and worries and ambitions. Yet Graham writes in a way that gently exposes the tug of war in our hearts and takes us back to the gospel and the goodness of letting God be our joy and comfort and King. He shows how the Bible engages with the allure of greed, as well as growing generosity in our hearts.

And yet, secondly, the book is practical too. Graham wants us to envisage how this issue ‘cashes out’ (boom boom), and so he gives personal examples, and at the end of each chapter asks practical, yet heart-engaging, questions. Likewise he doesn’t make assumptions about the financial situation of the reader, and the book ends with some useful appendices on debts, loans, mortgages and insurance, as well as a helpful list of ‘go to’ resources.

Along the way Graham unpicks much of the wrong thinking about money that can be associated with Christianity, whether it’s the untruth that Jesus promises financial prosperity, or the untruth that God is against money and simply favours poverty.

What I found particularly helpful is that the book prods those of us who have never really questioned our own approach to money. If that’s you, this is the perfect book. Likewise, if you’re finding yourself subtly consumed by wanting more, or constantly anxious about not having enough, this is a simple, solid and searching read.

Money Counts would also make for a great accompanying resource to a teaching series on money, or a book club, or even for a newly-married couple to read together. Likewise, why not chew it over as you begin a new year?

You can pre-order the book from its publisher here, ahead of its release in early Jan 2016.

Full disclosure: The publisher sent me a copy of the book for free, but I hope this is still a fair and honest review!

One of the paradoxes of our age seems to be that although we place a great emphasis on authenticity (“just be yourself”), we’ve also created endless opportunities to hyper-manage our own image through the likes of social media, etc. This state of affairs makes a resource like Faker really valuable. It’s a very readable little book offering a refreshing and practical invitation to reject a life of “faking it,” for the ‘real reality’ that knowing Jesus brings. Author Nicholas McDonald, the man behind the website Scribblepreach.com, begins like this:

“Have you ever felt a faker? I have. I’ve felt like no one in the world knew who I was. I’ve felt like I had to be someone I’m not. I’ve felt like, no matter who I was, no one would care… I’ve felt like I was living with a mask. Maybe you’ve looked around your work or school and thought: ‘What are we all doing? Why are we all trying to impress each other? Why can’t anyone accept me for who I am?’

Faker is humorously laced with McDonald’s own story, including typically teenage struggles (as well as present battles), but the heart of his book sees him explain and apply the short parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, which Jesus tells in Luke 18:9-14. His conviction is that much ‘faking it’ is rooted in both fear and self-righteousness, and it is only an encounter with Jesus that confronts these.

Every chapter begins with a quotation from a contemporary film or book, from Tony Stark in Iron Man through to Gaga and The Hunger Games, with McDonald illustrating how the issues the parable raises are weaved into our culture and world. The clean font and blog-style paragraphing, along with quirky little line drawings by André Parker all mean Faker is a pleasant and easy read. The style and tone means McDonald is definitely writing for a ‘youthful’ reader, but that could feasibly be anyone from 14-30, and even beyond that.

However, don’t read any of that as suggesting Faker is ‘light’. McDonald isn’t afraid to unpack concepts that he considers critical to understanding Jesus’ parable, even when they aren’t necessarily everyday concepts. He shows why the tax collector’s cry for “mercy” is actually a plea for propitiation, and what that word means anyway (and why it matters)! He reflects on why a God of love is not at odds with a God of holiness, and how that can be. He’s a clear and engaging teacher who can tell a good yarn, and evidently he has a real passion for seeing young people engage with the gospel in such a way that its embedded into everyday issues and currents.

If you’re looking for a short but stimulating summer read, something to give to a young friend or relative, or even something for a camp bookstall, Faker is a worthy choice. It’s published by the Good Book Company, and available from their website, as well as most book retailers.

Full disclosure: The author sent me a copy of the book for free, but I hope this is still a fair and honest review!

Here are a few lines that stood out:

– “It’s pretty tough to love God or anyone when you’re afraid they won’t approve of you.”

– “Being a faker is ugly. Not only does it cause us to live on an emotional roller-coaster, it also causes us to look down on others when their masks aren’t as pretty as ours.”

– “Let me ask you: is your religion making you real, or fake.”

– “According to Scripture, simply looking in the mirror and saying ‘I’m great’ isn’t going to work. We don’t need more of our opinion – we need less of it!”

– “See, the God of the Bible is a God I wouldn’t have made up. He’s a God who’s over me, not a god who’s under my thumb. He’s a God who confronts me about my claim to the throne of my life.”

– “If we want to give up our masks, we need to swap stories. We need to forget the silly story about our fame, and soak ourselves in the true story of Jesus.”

– “Self-righteousness is never satisfying righteousness.”

– “It’s a bit like the Pharisee stepped into God’s throne room to build an altar to himself.”

Water of the Word is a collection of nearly 250 prayers, weaved from Scripture, put together to be prayed specifically by a husband concerning his wife. And if you’re someone who has been given the particular privilege and responsibility of being a husband, then I don’t know why you wouldn’t want it by your side. It’s a gem.

Reviewing a book like this is, on the one hand, a little strange. That’s because essentially it’s a book rammed-full of Scripture. As the author (or should that be editor) Andrew Case says, “if you like the Bible, you’ll like this book”. Fill it with the word of God and you can’t really go wrong!

On the other hand, I still want to publicly ‘review’ this book because it’s so excellent and so helpful. Case knows that it is easy to be a sleepy and lazy pray-er, and thus a sleepy and lazy pray-er for one’s wife. But he was inspired by George Mueller’s commendation to “pray Scripture” and so began to read the Bible seeking to pray it back to his heavenly Father about his wife. As a result, each page consists of one prayer, perhaps six or seven sentences long, and each rooted in a passage of the Bible. Case’s wording is deep and fresh, but the result is simple and brilliant.

Case writes in his preface that husbands have a model for such prayer in Jesus’ constant intercession for his bride, his people. So for husbands to love their wives “as Christ loved the church” (Ephesians 5:25) will involve praying for them. The title then comes from Ephesians 5:26, where Jesus is described as making his bride holy by “the washing of water with the Word”. Scripture is part of our God-given means by which we seek our wives’ spiritual well-being. And Scripture + Prayer = this book.

I’ve by no means used every page yet, but I’ve found Water of the Word to be a great aid to my own faltering prayer. Like the popular book, Valley of Vision, it’s just very helpful to be given good words to pray. And in this case all these ‘good’ words are essentially lifted straight from Scripture. So, very good! In particular, I’ve appreciated both the call of this book to not neglect praying for my own wife, but also its support in actually giving those prayers some substance.

As a husband learns to pray for his wife, he is acknowledging that ultimately his wife’s needs are bigger than anything he can meet, and vice-versa. What every person needs most is God, and so what better thing is there than to pray to God for someone. As such I’ll finish off with these words from Case:

Of what good is it to do everything for your wife but the best thing? To bring all kinds of earthly goods before her for substance and honour is commendable, but to what end if you do not bring her before God? Will lifting up her by words of kindness and compliment suffice if you fail to lift her up before her Creator with supplications and thanksgivings? Why should you praise her for her beauty when you omit to exalt her Father for such matchless handiwork? You are not enough for her. Your strength is not strong enough for her. You are powerless to change her heart. Therefore pray.

You can pick up a copy of Water of the Word from its publisher 10ofthose, here, for only £6.99, with free postage. And before you ask, yes, there is a wife’s version now available too.

Full disclosure: The publisher sent me a copy of the book for free, but I hope this is still a fair and honest review!