Dialogue with Jesus

books:


	• Once Upon a Prayer: How to Hear God in Your Heart David Manuel McDougal Publishing Company, 2004 - 111 pages average customer review:based on 1 review view larger image
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Dialogue with Jesus

In this valuable book David Manuel provides his operational definition of what is involved in having a personal relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Often what this relationship means to born again Christians is not so clear. The life described in Once Upon a Prayer is at once radical and at the same time is available to all who believe and call upon the name of the Lord. It therefore should be a source of great encouragement to new believers as well as those wanting to enter deeper into the fullness of what the Lord has for them.

Relationship is based on communication, and communication in the context of relationship is bidirectional; it involves both sending and receiving. Yet, all too often, the prayer life of Christians seems only to be a one way street - we ask and hope that the Lord hears and in some way will respond to our prayer. But how many of us have the faith to believe that the Creator is ready to engage in intimate ongoing conversation with each of His children?

This is the essential thesis of this book - and to Manuel, while radical, it is not exceptional. As he writes, "There are more than four thousand instances in Scripture of God walking with man, talking to man, communing with man". But he goes on to observe, "Yet most of His children today do not believe they can actually hear him in the depths of their being, let alone carry on a conversation with Him".

Avoiding the dry pretension that might accompany a "how to" guide on a subject like this, Manuel unfolds the process through his own personal life testimony. The result is both authentic and accessible. And, as the reader stops to contemplate the potential in his or her own life of engaging with the one true living God, the prospects are indeed awesome.

Some may be surprised at the level of detail in which the Creator of the universe is willing to get involved in the lives of His children. Manuel describes, for example, receiving details of the plot of a mystery novel he was working on as well as a process for writing this first time work of fiction.

For those who may worry that they could be hearing other voices, or simply the thoughts of their own souls, the author provides a biblical process to discern the origin of what is being heard. And he makes the point that believers should be confident in this, quoting John 10:27, from the chapter in which Jesus describes himself as the Good Shepherd, "My sheep hear my voice...". And in verses 4 - 5 of the same chapter we read, "...his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice."

This book is recommended for those who know the Lord, read His word, and want to go deeper in their walk with Him.

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