Homeschool Review: The Pray-ers / Book1 "Troubles" #hsreviews #prayersnovel #christianfiction

When the opportunity to review The Pray-ers / Book 1 Troubles written by Mark S. Mirza and published by CTM Publishing Atlanta arose, I was quick to jump right on it.  I mean, I like to read and I like prayer, so I thought it would be a perfectly simple task to get through the pages of the book.  And then the book arrived.  Beginning with the opening pages that describe what the book is -- and what it isn't -- and continuing throughout the chapters, I have been challenged.  That simple task?  Not so simple.  Because, if anything, reading a book about people who pray -- people who TRULY devote their lives to prayer and not just the hit-and-miss prayers at supper and in times of distress -- will make you take stock of your prayer life in a completely new way.  And you may not like what you see.

For review purposes, I received the physical paperback book (you KNOW I love the feel of paper in my hands) and there is an ePub available for download if reading digitally is your cup of tea.  Either way, I want to recommend that you get a copy and begin reading as soon as possible.  Just know it will challenge what you know about yourself -- and how you feel about the time spent on your knees or in your closet before the FATHER.  The Pray-ers is a novel, but it is so much more than that.  It's Christian fiction packed with Christian truth.  It's also a guide to prayer and an encouragement tool for people who want to do more than say a short prayer as they rush out the door or head off to bed.  This book aims to teach what prayer is.  It will encourage you to become a PRAY-er:  one who PRAYS Heaven down.  And shouldn't we all?  Not only is The Pray-ers all of those things, but it is a reference manual for Scripture that points you directly to GOD's Word on every page.

Unlike the way I read most novels, I read The Pray-ers with pen in hand.  I did that so that I could underline passages that spoke directly to my heart because I knew that I needed to remember.  I also read it with my Bible close at hand so that I could look up and mark the Scriptures referenced as I read.  (See what I mean?  Prayer and Bible study all written right into the pages together.  Talk about good for the soul.)

Considered historical fiction (but don't let that throw you off), The Pray-ers takes the reader on a journey that interweaves three different eras of history through the eyes of both demons and angels as they attempt to distract or develop a relationship with Christian men from each era.  These men, the Pray-ers,  (1st Century) Christian Epaphras, (19th Century) preacher Brother Alexander Rich, and (Current Era) Coach Dale Riley, teach us how to pray as we read the words they utter to the FATHER.   Their relationship with the KING of KINGS reminds us of what we can all have.  The story line is not complex although it does take just a bit to understand the flow of the book due to the non-capitalization of the names of those characters from the demon underworld.  I delight in the fact that author Mark Mirza chose to uphold his conviction that demons deserve no respect even through the conventions of capitalization and that he reminds his readers not to allow their focus to become too centered on the demons but instead on the fact that faith overcomes the world.  We take away from The Pray-ers first and foremost that our life must be about trust in GOD.
Book Two in the series is expected to be published for Christmas 2016 and will focus on Spiritual Warfare -- what it is and what it is not.  For more information about The Pray-ers series, please jump over to the following Social Media pages: Facebook Twitter

I was given the opportunity to review  The Pray-ers / Book 1 Troubles  as a member of the Homeschool Review Crew.   You can check out the Crew Review and see what other members of the Homeschool Review Crew thought of the book (or just click on the banner below.)

Pin It Now!