The Sacrament of Happy - by Lisa Harper: Book Review

Title: The Sacrament of Happy. What a Smiling God Brings to a Wounded World
Author: Lisa Harper
No. Pages: 208
Publisher: B&H Publishing Group
Release Date: 1.06.2017

It is a liberating book, giving people permission to break away from the grumpy and gloomy attitude we think we must have in order to prove we are good Christians.

Lisa Harper makes a case for the happy God that changes a forlorn Christian into a happy one. Although I enjoyed reading this book, especially because there were a lot of Bible passages from various versions, as well as personal anecdotes, I still think that the happy the author talks about is deeply grounded in the joy we Christians hear a lot about. Despite these nuances, it was a good reminder that there is more to the Christian life, and that there is always the choice to approach each situation in two ways, one of them being the choice of happy.

This was the second book by Lisa Harper I read and I enjoy her writing style. It's not pretentious, but it comes from a good and happy heart who deeply loves God. She sounds like a genuine and relatable person, and this makes her books easy to read.

4/5 stars

I received a free advanced e-book copy of this book from the publisher via Net Galley. All thoughts expressed here are my own.

Believing Jesus - Lisa Harper: Book Review

I was looking forward to reading Believing Jesus because I knew it will be about the First Church, but linked to the modern Church.

Lisa Harper's book focuses on the book of Acts. Each of the 10 chapters has the same structure: it starts with a story from the author's life, then it focuses on a scene from the book of Acts, and then it changes focus on how the reader could best relate to what was discussed and how it could be applied in the everyday living.

My favourite part of this book was the big portions of Scripture that were quoted. I've missed reading a book where Scriptures were actually the important part. She uses different translations of the Bible, but every time they are used just right and are easy to understand.

Her story telling style is filled with humour and she's not afraid to just tell it as it is. This is the first book of hers that I've read, and it gave me an idea about her style. I've once heard her talk in a podcast from Cross Point Church in Nashville; her writing style is similar to her speaking style.

In this book she makes good points, although not necessarily revolutionizing, but I took her book as a nice reminder of the applicability in the everyday life of this sometimes (at least for me) overlooked book in the Bible. For those looking for a more conservative approach to the book of Acts, maybe this is not the book you were looking for, but I'd say give it a try; the apostles must have laughed too.

4*

I was offered a free e-book of this book from Thomas Nelson via Net Galley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts expressed here are my own.