40 Loaves by C.D. Baker

First my review, then a bit more from the publishing company about the book. For the record, Waterbrook Press gave me this book free for review, though I am not paid for the review itself.

Forty Loaves: Breaking Bread with Our Father Each Day is a wonderfully insightful little book. Each of the "40 loaves" is a sermon-ette, a nugget of Biblical wisdom. The author poses a question in each segment that many people will relate to, questions related to life and faith. He then answers those questions with a combination of short stories, his personal life experience, and most importantly Biblical wisdom. Each segment is a quick read, and any of them can be read individually as needed. But I would encourage you to read them all. Struggle with the tough questions that are asked, like "Why do I want Jesus in my life?" or "Why is my life such a mess". Each segment is just a couple of small pages long, but each segment packs great faith shaping and Biblically grounded wisdom. I definately recommend this book, and I suspect I will be using it as a gift book in the very near future!

Summary:
Why don’t I have more faith?

Why am I so bored with Jesus?

Why don’t I feel connected at church?

These are the types of questions the religious establishment often makes it uncomfortable, if not impossible, to ask. And by asking them, C. David Baker, author of Forty Loaves: Breaking Bread with Our Father Each Day hopes to start a conversation in people’s hearts, then with others, and ultimately with God. Many circles of Christianity have led us to believe that certainty and confidence are the proof of true spirituality; questions are discouraged.

But Jesus offered his followers an ongoing conversation—a relationship built around a free, open-ended discussion. Questions were encouraged. They were often impertinent, sometimes alarming, and the religious establishment was distinctly uncomfortable with them … just as it is today.

“40 Loaves is something of a collection of the kinds of questions I felt finally free to ask of myself and of my relationship with Christ,” says Baker. “It’s my belief that these questions are shared by many others who long for the freedom to simply ask them out loud. I hope this book becomes a platform that frees others to search their hearts more deeply and be fed with the Bread of life.”

Each “loaf” here is a big question that stimulates discussion, investigation, and contemplation; it will take hours—or days—to digest. Conversational, inviting, disarming, and real, 40 Loaves nourishes self-examination and offers validation for those who feel discouraged, guilty, or even shamed when the realities of their lives don’t match up with the ideals of the Christian establishment.

Author Bio:

C. David Baker founded an award-winning business before redirecting his career to write full-time from his small farm in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. He is the author of eight books, including six novels, one of which was nominated for a Christy Award. He has contributed articles to the Christian History Institute’s international publication Glimpses, and to Christian Singles magazine. Baker has a Master’s degree in theological studies from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.

Learn more about this book at Random House Publishing.