laughter is good medicine

Mike had us all laughing so hard at this Amazon review (see below) of this book on Sunday night at small group.... 

A Story of God and All of Us: A Novel Based on the Epic TV Miniseries "The Bible" 

Summary from Amazon: Scripture's greatest stories and most compelling characters come to life in this sweeping new novel by Roma Downey and Mark Burnett. Beginning with the creation of man and ending with the revelation of a new world, readers will revel in this epic saga of warriors, rebels, poets, and kings, all called upon by God to reveal His enduring love for mankind. Ultimately, God's plan is fulfilled in the story of Jesus the Messiah, whose life, death and resurrection brings salvation to one and all.  A STORY OF GOD AND ALL OF US is a companion to The Bible, the epic ten-hour mini-series produced by the authors and televised around the world.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

312 of 345 people found the following review helpful

Finally, all the Bible's stories in one place!

By 旅史 on March 13, 2013

Format: Hardcover

When I watched the first episode of the epic TV miniseries "The Bible," I remember thinking to myself, "This is spectacular, but what if I want to engage with these stories on a deeper level." After watching and re-watching and re-re-watching the entire series, it still felt like something was missing...

Thank God for this book! Finally, all the stories from the Bible have been gathered into a single text! Now I can go right to the source to get the news straight from the horse's (or donkey's) mouth, as it were. If you want to relive the fall of humanity alongside Adam and Eve, the story is here. If you want to be captivated time and time again as Moses turns water into blood, look no further. If you are looking for THE comprehensive account of just what God has been up to these last 5,000+ years, you must buy this book.

And that's not all! Recently, a small group of friends and I have been getting together to study the stories here. What a blessing it's been! We're even thinking about gathering a larger group once each week and having a few gifted leaders teach us important truths based on this wonderful book. Who would have thought that a single text could be so life-encompassing and applicable.

Don't get me wrong, this isn't a perfect resource. I do have a few complaints/suggestions:
- Is there a leather-bound version available? I hope there will be soon.
- I'd like to have even more detail, if possible. Why not add more stories, along with genealogies, poetry and maybe even a few letters?
- What would really be cool is if there was some sort of reference system to allow readers to connect parts of the book to other parts, when appropriate.
Certainly not damning criticism by any means, just some thoughts I had...

I any case, I give this book two thumbs way, way up! If you've spent your entire life wondering if there is a God that you can put in a box, consume in small, easy-to-chew quantities and exploit in order to feel some arbitrary (albeit fleeting) sense of meaning and happiness, this is the book for you.

If, on the other hand, you're looking for a true representation of the real God, the God who is worthy of your entire allegiance and all your praise, the God who will use both blessing and suffering to transform you into the person you were made to be and who will ultimately give you eternal joy and infinite satisfaction, I've heard you can find him in the actual Bible... but really, who's got the time to read that old rag, or the courage to encounter such a God, for that matter?