William Carter, Jr. Eat Your Ps. Crosslink, 2018. See here to buy the book.
William Carter, Jr. is a pastor and has worked in the Christian music
industry. This book discusses seven “P”s of the Christian life:
praises, purging, prayers, promises, persecution, proverbs, and purpose.
Carter artfully ties each “P” to a variety of pea, using a
characteristic of that pea to make a homiletical point about the “P.” At
the end of the book, he gives a recipe for black eyed peas and rice.
This book stood out to me because Oprah’s Dad recommends it. You hear
about Oprah’s book club. Well, here is a book that Oprah’s Dad likes!
Also recommending this book is the President of the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference, a group that was instrumental in the
1960’s Civil Rights Movement.
But what especially made me want to read this book is the author’s
multidenominational background: his father was a Methodist, and his
mother was a Holiness/Pentecostal. People’s religious journeys interest
me. Maybe that is because I enjoy reading about different beliefs and
have myself traversed the wild world of religion in my own searches for
churches.
One of the endorsements on the back cover says, “It’s hard not to
feel like you’re walking with a friend when you read his words.” I found
that to be true in reading this book. It has its shares of anecdotes
and insights, along with a friendly tone.
There were two parts of the book that I especially enjoyed. First,
there was Carter’s delineation of the differences between the Methodist
and the Holiness churches of his upbringing. The Methodist church was
accepting, whereas the Holiness Church was intense. Carter appears to
gravitate towards the Holiness view. Second, there was Carter’s story
about the co-worker who mocked his frequent church attendance, and how
that co-worker came to accept Christ. That story made me want to keep
reading, wondering what would happen next.
The book tends to stress what we can do for God, rather than what God
in Christ has done for us. I tend to lean more towards the latter,
thinking that it glorifies God more. This book, however, has a “do more,
do more” attitude. Still, Carter conveys a thirst for God and a
devotion to God, and to what he believes God is doing in the world. That
is edifying to read.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through Bookcrash. My review is honest.