Thursday, October 18, 2012

Dreams and Visions by Tom Doyle

Dreams and Visions by Tom Doyle
I was interested when I first saw this book because I have heard many similar stories through various conversations with people. I wanted to hear the first hand accounts, and this book delivers what I was hoping to read. Not only does it provide us with well documented stores of encounter from around the world (and it is divided as such), the author gives us a good explanation of the culture around which this is happening; understanding the context enhances the power of these encounters. 
Tom Doyle clearly has taken the time to research and understand the culture behind this particular people group. This has allowed him to thread these stories together seamlessly.

The premise of the book is that, there are Muslims around the world that are unreachable, so Jesus is taking it into his own hands and reaching out to them in dreams, visions and encounters.

You will read about extreme Muslims and those you would lease expect, turning to Jesus. You will also encounter Jesus heart for people as you read this book. Jesus' central message in the dreams and visions is simply, "follow me because I'm the true God" and "I love you" over and over again.  We then see him providing many ways for them to receive answers to their questions, through other Christians in disguise and Bibles showing up when they need them.

The only flaw with the book is that it often goes into too much detail that does not always seem necessary. It could have got to the points a lot quicker with slightly less background of the individuals and had more impact. Ideally it could have been a bit more like "Foxe's Book of Martyrs" style, with the main points of the events stated in a short summary.  If you don't know much about Muslim people and God's plan for the nations, I would recommend picking it up. 4.5 stars.