My husband attends the Pastors’ conference in Trinity Baptist church on an annual basis now. He appreciates the fellowship with the other men as well as the excellent speakers they have every year. It truly is a special week of the year for him. For me, there is always the thought of a few new books coming home and this year he didn’t disappoint.
Pastor Martin is the former Pastor of Trinity Baptist Church and I’ve appreciated his 0n-line teaching for many years.
His recent book (August 2011), published by Cruciform Press, is his first written work for the lay person and I value this book and it’s contents so much I hope and pray Pastor Martin puts pen to paper again.
In this book Martin recounts what he experienced and learned through the death of his wife, Marilyn at age 73, after nearly 50 years of marriage. After laying his foundational perspectives Pastor Martin opens up the subject of grieving by helping us to understand the Intermediate State and therefore better understand what has happened to our loved one, then he opens up some Focal points for Biblical grieving namely:
*What Christ has gained through our loss.
*What our loved one has gained through our loss.
*The shared hope of Christians.
*God’s purposes in Us through This Death
*What we have gained.
At 116 pages this is a brief book, certainly easy to read and could also be of use in guiding our children through a grieving process. I earnestly recommend this book to you, as my former Pastor used to say “to be forewarned, is to be forearmed”.
Grief is never an easy stage in life, but it is surely a reality in life, as Christians we have a responsibility to grieve to the Glory of God, in this book Pastor Martin has given us the Biblical basis to do just that.
Having already experienced the loss of a loved one in Christ, I believe this book has truly prepared me much more for a similar experience.
A few of the commentators have said “Whether you are a pastor or counsellor, one who is experiencing the pangs of grief, or a member of the church who wants to be useful to others, you need to read this book”. Joseph Pipa
“Al Martin weaves together personal tenderness and biblical teaching in this sweet book of comfort. Buy it and give it away, but make sure to get a copy for yourself, too. We can never be too prepared for the trial of losing a loved one” Dr Joel Beeke.
(Another very helpful book on preparing your family for grief and for eternity is Homeward Bound by Ed Hartman – thoroughly recommended).
Home but not Alone 