Because...
Laurie, a well-received radio Bible teacher and pastor, offers a disappointing daily devotional on basic theological and life issues. Despite Laurie's dynamic on-air knack for mesmerizing audiences with spirited relevancy and uncompromising adherence to biblical principles, this text lacks depth and originality. The content covers the expected topics for Christians: prayer, holiness, faithfulness, commitment, temptations, spiritual warfare and the like. In one page-plus miniessays, Laurie includes a brief reading, Bible verse(s), an abbreviated prayer, faith action suggestions and space for personal reflections. Given Laurie's penchant for expressive teaching, many of his devotions feel stale and are sure to let down faithful listeners. However, Laurie's take on wearing the "necessary armor" for effective spiritual warfare is one highlight. His words are specific and vivid as he describes the importance of putting on the entire suit of heavenly armor, a package deal including belt, breastplate, shoes, shield, helmet and sword. As he points out, believers can't simply pick and choose which pieces to become proficient in using; rather, every Christian must learn to skillfully employ them all. Laurie has a large fan base eager for new material on important Christian living topics; sadly, this book simply does not live up to his reputation for delivering cutting-edge teaching tools.(Dec.)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.