Book Review: The One Year Book of Healing

The One Year Book of Healing: Daily Appointments with God for Physical, Spiritual, and Emotional Wholeness is a devotional that reads more like a Chicken Soup for the Soul book. The stories are all about people who received different types of healing. The formula for each day is a Bible verse, a story, "Today's RX" (some advice), and a prayer. In the introduction, the author points out that healing comes in different ways. 

Sometimes, God heals us partially by removing our disease or fixing our wounds. Sometimes, he heals us completely by taking us to our forever home in heaven. Often, he uses modern medicine... to accomplish his healing. How God's healing work will be accomplished cannot be predicted--only that it will happen.

Although I agree that healing comes in different ways, I do not agree that healing will happen. For instance, sometimes people are sick or bitter for their entire lives. Sometimes people die and go to hell. 

I also do not agree with all of the comments in the RX sections. Here is a sampling:

God has the power, and the will, to snatch us from the very jaws of death.- October 18

Whether God heals us here and now or then and there, his answer to our prayer for healing is always "yes!" -July 17

When you're holding the Lord's hand, even if you stumble, you won't fall. -February 6

Depression often happens when we focus on the past. Focus on the future, and God's promises will help to brighten your day. -January 5

Expand your mind so you can know how much God loves you. -May 23

God doesn't always have the will to snatch us from the very jaws of death. People die. God doesn't always heal. Sometimes we DO fall. Depression can't always be fixed by simply focusing on the future. And extra-Biblical advice such as "expand your mind" is entering into dangerous territory. 

Most of the issues I have with this book are because of the how-to devotional format as the reader might be tempted to pick up this book in lieu of the Bible, which is all that we need to learn about God's healing. I wish the format of the book had been a simple book of testimony instead. However, I very much enjoyed reading the stories, as they serve as reminders that our God is Jehovah Rapha, the God who Heals.

To learn more about the author, click HERE. 

I received this book from Tyndale House Publishers for this review.