Believe by Randy Frazee

Believe: Living The Story of the Bible to Become Like Jesus by Randy Frazee is a hybrid volume which is a cross between a bible study and NIV selection sampler.  The bulk of the 507 page text of the book are selections from the NIV ranging from page long excerpts to individual verses of scripture.  The NIV selections are grouped by topics.  The topical material is organized just as a bible study or a discipleship pamphlet. 

This book is sure to be an eye opener, helping the reader to make sense of the major purpose of the bible.  The book is divided into three major sections: Think, Act and Be. There are subtopics addressing major questions and issues of faith.  This is the perfect concept for anyone who finds himself overwhelmed at the full bible. An alternate, and more efficient method of presenting the material could have been in the form of a pamphlet or small booklet with a "where to find"  themed topical scripture guide. The same format could have been used leaving out all the scripture blocks for a more streamlined product that would be more affordable and more accessible to greater numbers of people.  Had the material been presented this way, as a streamlined booklet, the reader could find the verses and passages for the particular topic in his own bible rather than putting pages of scripture into a thick book.  Personally I feel the information contained in Believe could have a far greater impact if this was designed as a more costly mass produced booklet which  include the references of where to find the passages rather than a 500 page hardcover volume that retails for $24.99. 

This book would be a perfect companion to the bible for any new Christian or for anyone who is first introduced to the bible.  The content of this book is reminiscent to a statement of faith and perhaps it can be adapted as an impromptu catechism for any non denominational or start up bible church.  As a blogger for Booklook I received a copy of this book for the purpose of writing this review.  This book is published by Zondervan.