You Don't Have To Be Blind To See

You Don't Have To Be Blind To See, by Jim Stovall
subtitle: Find and Fulfill Your Destiny Regardless of Your Circumstances

Jim Stovall, a Christian businessman, desires that everyone should fulfill their destiny regardless of health, finances, or any other excuse we wish to use to keep
from achieving a fulfilling life and/or career. In challenging us to that end he tells his own story of how he was born with sight and gradually went blind. He tells of the challenges and struggles he went through while going blind, and the challenges he meets daily, his faith in God. But also, that the challenges are, in most ways, pretty much the same as the challenges that we are met with each day. The difference was his faith, his motivation and his attitude. Plus, he did have to add extra effort.

Jim Stovall went on to become an Emmy winner for building a television company that enabled blind people to “watch” television. He built a successful business at which he enjoys working.

Here is a quote from page 235, “…[V]irtually everybody else on the planet is going to think your idea is stupid. A few close friends or family members may embrace your idea, but they may embrace it only because it is important to you and not because they think that your idea or your dream is the greatest idea or dream they have ever encountered. … Prepare to face the hard, cold reality that nobody is going to be a continual source of motivation. You are going to have to become your own source of motivation.”

“Candidly evaluate why you do what you do.” “Choose to be a positive person. … Stay positive. Even if you fail, look for the lesson learned and apply it to your life.”

This book is staying on my bookshelves.


278 pages, easy reading.
ISBN-10: 0-7852-7737-4

The Harbinger

The Harbinger, by Jonathan Cahn
subtitle: the Ancient Mystery that holds the Secret of America’s Future

This book is written as a narrative novel, but is author Jonathan Cahn’s way of getting out the message of some fascinating revelations from the 9/11 terrorist attack on New York. He brings both Biblical history and United States history together in a revelation garnered from Isaiah 9:10 & 11. (Even the reference may be mystical.)


The style of writing is not to my liking, but the intricate details that Cahn has discovered and revealed were more than enough to keep me reading. A detailed, 2-day interview can be seen on Sid Roth’s It’s Supernatural television show, archived on the Internet.

Why is this man able to write this story at this time? Cahn is a Messianic Rabbi (for those who don’t know, that means he is an Israeli pastor/teacher who believes that Jesus IS the promised Messiah). Cahn grew up and still resides in the New York City area.

There are nine harbingers that the narrator reveals as he relates his experience and conversations with a prophet or angel to a publisher. In these harbingers he reveals how an earlier experience of Israel’s is now being repeated in the USA and for us to get the message and get our country right with God, quickly.

Read all of Isaiah chapters 9 & 10 for contextual reference to the details in this book. Then check out the historical connections.

Is Cahn a modern day prophet? Will he speak and, just as in the days of Israel’s prophets, we won’t listen, but instead, will we laugh and scoff?


262 pages, easy reading
ISBN 13: 978-1-61638-610-8


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Port of Two Brothers

Port of Two Brothers, by Paul Schlener

This is the true story of two brothers, Paul and John Schlener and their families,
who gave up the comforts of home here in the United States and spent 40 years as missionaries in Brazil, in the Amazon jungles.

This is a lively account of their lives there and the many challenges they confronted. Well written and entertaining, they tell of their experiences delivering God’s love, more by demonstration than by Word, to a lost people. The book includes black & white photos.

How do you get 40 years of life into just 443 pages?
This author is one of the few still surviving veterans of World War II.

To all of my friends in Moses Lake, Washington, especially – get this book. He lives among us. (Yes, I’m trying to emulate Paul’s humor.)

443 pages, easy reading.
ISBN-10: 1888796219
ISBN-13: 978-1888796216

Age of the Fallen

author Mark Olmos
novel, fantasy, spiritual allegory

The characters include:
a group of 8 teenage spiritual warriors led by Aiko
Akira, their teacher
demons and angels demons and angels
many others

In Ephesians 6:10-18 we are told to put on the full armor of God. In Age of the Fallen
the armor of God becomes very real and full of power. The battle being fought is not how we have given thought of what the battle is, but changes the spiritual battle into a new reality. The armor God really comes to life in this allegory. It shows to us the battle our prayers are truly supposed to be fighting.

I am a fan of Frank Peretti’s books. If you have read Frank Peretti and enjoyed his books then think of this as Frank Peretti to the next level.

Aiko and her friends have spent some time fighting demons who are attacking individuals with drugs and self-deprecation, taking away the individual's willingness to live life. They have fought several battles like this but this new battle will take them beyond what they feel are their limits. Through prayer, their own and other warriors, God will supply them new strength to complete the battle of their life.

This book opened my eyes to how Satan has used depression and drug addictions to his advantage and for the destruction of mankind. If you are looking for a new awareness to the spiritual battle going on around us I recommend that you read this book. And don't forget to read your Bible while you're at it.

Mark Olmos, I’m looking forward to your next book.

278 pages, riveting reading.
ISBN-13: 978-1-933204-90-1

Obeying the Voice of God: Jack MacDonald’s Journey

The characters include:
Jack MacDonald and his family, as well as other persons he either had experience with or respected from history.

Just as a novel/a storybook, well written makes the characters come to life, so a book about the love of God, demonstrating His love through a contemporary’s life, when well written, brings God to life for the reader.

Jack MacDonald, with the help of his wife, Donnie MacDonald, walks us through his experience in the Vietnam War and the many miracles he experienced that saved his life. Jack’s walk with God is so close that it is in every conversation he has with every person. He wants you to know his Friend. The miracles don’t stop in Vietnam; they didn’t start there either. They have been a part of his life since he began his relationship with God.

Life was not easy for Jack, but his rest and his peace were in God. Jack demonstrates his relationship with God showing us how we are to get a close relationship with God ourselves

I do recommend this book. It is a book that I shared with my whole family. Shop for it at http://obeyingthevoice.com/.

After receiving it and reading it one person wrote, "Your book was an inspiration to me as God has been putting me through some serious testing. … I failed but God is faithful. He brought me through the valley of the shadow of death. He is good to me. Reading your book affirmed a few lessons the Lord has been teaching me lately and all my Christian life - that He is my provider. And through the words in your book, God reaffirmed His love for me and that He still has a plan for me and that is not to abandon me. I am thankful for the opportunity to read it."

Another person told me over the phone, "The day the book arrived our Bible Study group had just finished a study on Listening to God's voice. They were there when I opened the package and we saw the book Obeying the Voice of God. They were awe-struck. This is truly God making a point."

350 pages, easy reading.
ISBN-13: 978-0-9778545-1-6

I read the book first. Eventually, I sent it out as gifts to my family. My brother, Dean, actually beat me to writing a review of this book. He did such a fine job that I asked him if I could quote his review here. I didn’t. You can see his review at cominus.com and www.amazon.com

A reminder to everyone that you can share through the “comments” on this blog and register as a “follower.” If you have read a book and would like to share your thoughts (review) of it, please email me . I would love to post it here.

The Truth of the American Form of Government

If you want to know what our Founding Fathers had in mind for our government, a Republic, and what it really should feel like and be like, then I encourage you to check out this blog The Truth of the American Form of Government


No, it's not a book, but I feel it is important to pass it on. For many it will be a refresher course and for many others it will be new information. The video will only take 11 minutes to view for those who have high-speed connections. If you don't, then you will probably want to let it download completely (abt 1-2 hours) before watching.

There is a screen-quarter-screen button that will enlarge it to full screen size. I hope everyone visiting my site will also visit the video.

The Teeth of the Tiger (Jack Ryan)

The characters include:
Jack Ryan, Jr., adult son of the former President Jack Ryan
Fraternal twins Dominic Caruso and Brian Caruso, who are also Jack Ryan, Jr.’s cousins

Dominic Caruso after studying to be an attorney works for the FBI as an agent. After a crisis happens he is contacted about taking a brand new position with an investment corporation. His twin brother is a Marine officer. He also is contacted by the investment corporation for a position after he proves himself in Afghanistan. The investment company is a cover for a new secret services organization, very secret because it is a private corporation instead of a government agency and the investments are how its secret ops are funded.

The agency was set up by the former President, Jack Ryan, who had been a former CIA agent. He assigns his best friend to run the agency, especially since his gift is making large sums of money from investments. The agency’s purpose is to disable enemies, terrorists, of the United States.

Jack Ryan, Jr. is hired as an ops analyst. The Caruso brothers are hired to be assassins. I felt that the hiring of Jack Ryan, Jr. was realistic considering the explanation for his exposure to secret agents while growing up, but how did he discover the existence of this secret agency? The answer to that was not plausible.

And I did not feel realism when the other 2 new recruits just happen to be 1) brothers, and 2) Jack Ryan Jr.’s cousins.

More unbelievable events:
The dialogue and nicknames the brothers used for each other (it was also annoying). Although the other characters might use additional references usually, an author will choose one pseudonym to refer to each character during his narrative and stick with that throughout, but Clancy bounced around with three pseudonyms for each character, which made following the characters (who is doing what) annoying.

Jack Jr. is talking to his cousins before their first mission and discusses the case and the target. It’s secret ops. Jack Jr. shouldn’t even know his cousins are involved, yet. Plus, none of them have been given permission to talk to the other (analyst vs. assassins) about the mission. Reported by A. Stephen Collins at Amazon.com, “I immediately assume that Jack will soon be in big trouble for his "loose lips." Nope. Clancy never deals with it at all, even though the twins tell their superior that Jack filled them in. (Oh, you told them about this super-classified info without authorization? No problem, kid.) What nonsense.”

I felt the brothers should “vacation” in each location before moving on to the next. It seems to me that as quickly as they were moving and the assassinations were taking place that the “bad guys” might soon notice a correlation. After all, the spy guys in the U.S. do (according to the story).

Rookie Ryan is assigned to be the Caruso brothers’ handler. No agency would have assigned a rookie to be anyone’s handler.


There were only two scenes that I would call action scenes, the rest of the book involved activity but not action, a lot of motion but no real tension.

Unless you’re following the life of Jack Ryan and his family I don’t recommend this book.

496 pages, heavy reading.
ISBN-10: 0-425-19740-9
ISBN-13: 978-0425197400

Again tell me, did you like the way I created this review? Was it helpful in any manner? Do you want to see more reviews like this or should I change the style?

A reminder to everyone that you can share through the “comments” on this blog and register as a “follower.” If you have read a book and would like to share your thoughts (review) of it, please email me . I would love to post it here.