Straight to the Heart Series

Since becoming a pastor's wife, I have become intrigued by I & II Corinthians in a whole new way: they were a very messed up church, but Christ loved them and served them as His bride.  Kregel Publications was having a blog tour for a devotional, I & 2 Corinthians by Phil Moore (part of his Straight to the Heart Series).  I signed up right away, eager to learn more about the church God sent Paul to faithfully and lovingly serve.

This devotional is separated into four sections of I Corinthians (Remember Whose Church It Is, Sex in the City, Remember Whose World It Is, Church in the City) and three sections of II Corinthians (Remember Whose Mission It Is, Cash in the City, Remember Whose Power It Is).  As you can see, the sections have a catch-y, repetitive nature.  The devotions are written in sequential order so you can read the books I & II Corinthians along with this devotional.  It is written with some overlap (but it's not repetitive in nature); the author often takes a large chunk of Scripture (I Corinthians 8:1-10:33) one day and then breaks it down other days (9:1-23 and 9:24-27).

The first five devotionals were very good; I felt like it was exactly what Brian and I needed as a boost of encouragement as we serve one of God's not-so-perfect-churches (but aren't they all not-so-perfect?!).  For example, in the first devotion on I Corinthians 1:1-9, Mr. Moore shows how the gospel transforms Paul's view of his messy church as Paul was reminded of God's promises for future work in the hearts and minds of the people.  And Mr. Moore writes, "But if seeing God at work could give Paul strength to love, persevere and give thanks for the troublesome Corinthians in 55 AD, it is more than able to give us strength to cope with our our setbacks and disappointments today..." (pg 21); the author is always giving application to the readers.

But after the first five devotionals, I noticed my pen stopped underlining nearly altogether.  The author started writing detailed and unusual stories at the beginning of the devotionals.  For example, he compares God to Rikki-Tikki-Tavi.  I'm not sure this is wrong, but it's not necessary.  God cannot be compared!

To whom will you compare Me?  Or who is My equal?” says the Holy One.

Isaiah 40:25 

So throughout the rest of the devotional, I was peeved by little things like this - unnecessary comparisons, unusual stories, etc. I'm not not recommending this - it's OK but, if you're going to spend the money, get a devotional that is truly Reformed so you know you're getting sound theology and not Rikki-Tikki-Tavi fluff.