I was asked if I'd be interested in reviewing The Power of the Prophetic Blessing. I agreed to review the book.
I wasn't sure what to expect. I haven't read very much by John Hagee, if anything. I know he's well thought of in many regards. Lately, I've found books written by pastors to be hard to read. Many of them write like they're in the pulpit, the material is soft or basic, and they repeat themselves and add in a bunch of stories. I often struggle with stories and anecdotes, since they tend to be subjective, especially in spiritual matters. Just because a pastor can produce a story that seems to agree with his point doesn't mean the point is a universal. So lately I've been real picky about the pastor written books I read.
I did enjoy The Power of the Prophetic Blessing. Of course, it has many "pastorisms" in it, but they didn't detract too much. I found a few assumptions I wasn't sure I agreed with, but for the most part, it's well written and the stories aren't too subjective.
The book is divided into three sections. The first section is "Defining the Prophetic and Priestly Blessings". Section two is "The Prophetic Blessings" and Section three is "Releasing and Receiving the Blessings".
As usual, I argued a little bit with the author, which I am prone to do. One page 4, Pastor Hagee says that Solomon dedicated the second temple. I asked in my notes if he was defining the tabernacle as the first temple. I've seen this before. It didn't detract from the book. I was just curious.
The definition of the Prophetic Blessing, the subject of the book, is in the next paragraph: "The Prophetic Blessing is a spoken declaration by a spiritual authority over the life of an individual." It's a very simple definition, and at the time I wondered if it was worth an entire book, but that's just my pastor/author bias showing through.
One thing I love about books is when I learn something new from them. I did learn some new things, and make connections I'd never made before, like the significance of 8 beatitudes. I knew there were 8, but I never gave much thought to why 8 or what it means, even though I've been through plenty of Chuck Missler studies counting the significance of groupings of 7 in Scripture.
I'm facing a few personal struggles right now, like having to work a few states over from my family, so as I read the book and began to make some connections, I started to ask questions in my notes of a personal nature. I asked a question at the end of Chapter 1 that I don't think was directly answered "Can a man speak a blessing over himself?"
Pastor Hagee explains the difference between the priestly blessing and the prophetic blessing. The priestly blessing is what Numbers 6:22-27 is called "The LORD bless you and keep you..." He goes through the Genesis Blessing and Abrahamic Blessing. He provides an exposition of Jacob's blessings over his sons and Joseph's sons in Gen 49, and an entire chapter on an exposition of the beatitudes. I learned quite a bit from both of those chapters.
Section three is where the book begins to come together. One chapter in this section is on releasing the prophetic blessing through the spoken word. Another chapter is on releasing the prophetic blessing through touch, which is probably overlooked. Then he explains receiving the blessing, and finally proclaiming the blessing.
In the final chapter, on page 292, he provides some "scripts" of proclamations you can make over areas of your own life and your family and those under your spiritual authority. He lays down 6 rules for releasing the prophetic blessing, such as it must be spoken boldly, it must be done while standing, it must be done with hands uplifted and in the name of the Lord, and it must be face to face.
There are some books I read once and never think of again. There are some books (like Covey's 7 Habits) I keep coming back to time and time again. There are still other books that, while I might not read through all the way again, I will probably pick up and look through my notes. I think this will be the latter. I'm going to refer back to it as I work through some areas where I would like to receive a blessing, as well as looking for ways to bless others.
Of course, it wouldn't be a 21st century American Evangelical Christian book without the "Sinner's Prayer". This section of the book is very short though. I get annoyed when I buy a Christian book and find it written mostly to "beginners". The Power of the Prophetic Blessing is not guilty off this. It is written at a level far about "Jesus loves me, this I know..."
I enjoyed it, I will be referring back to it, and I will also recommend it to you. 5 Stars.
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
I wasn't sure what to expect. I haven't read very much by John Hagee, if anything. I know he's well thought of in many regards. Lately, I've found books written by pastors to be hard to read. Many of them write like they're in the pulpit, the material is soft or basic, and they repeat themselves and add in a bunch of stories. I often struggle with stories and anecdotes, since they tend to be subjective, especially in spiritual matters. Just because a pastor can produce a story that seems to agree with his point doesn't mean the point is a universal. So lately I've been real picky about the pastor written books I read.
I did enjoy The Power of the Prophetic Blessing. Of course, it has many "pastorisms" in it, but they didn't detract too much. I found a few assumptions I wasn't sure I agreed with, but for the most part, it's well written and the stories aren't too subjective.
The book is divided into three sections. The first section is "Defining the Prophetic and Priestly Blessings". Section two is "The Prophetic Blessings" and Section three is "Releasing and Receiving the Blessings".
As usual, I argued a little bit with the author, which I am prone to do. One page 4, Pastor Hagee says that Solomon dedicated the second temple. I asked in my notes if he was defining the tabernacle as the first temple. I've seen this before. It didn't detract from the book. I was just curious.
The definition of the Prophetic Blessing, the subject of the book, is in the next paragraph: "The Prophetic Blessing is a spoken declaration by a spiritual authority over the life of an individual." It's a very simple definition, and at the time I wondered if it was worth an entire book, but that's just my pastor/author bias showing through.
One thing I love about books is when I learn something new from them. I did learn some new things, and make connections I'd never made before, like the significance of 8 beatitudes. I knew there were 8, but I never gave much thought to why 8 or what it means, even though I've been through plenty of Chuck Missler studies counting the significance of groupings of 7 in Scripture.
I'm facing a few personal struggles right now, like having to work a few states over from my family, so as I read the book and began to make some connections, I started to ask questions in my notes of a personal nature. I asked a question at the end of Chapter 1 that I don't think was directly answered "Can a man speak a blessing over himself?"
Pastor Hagee explains the difference between the priestly blessing and the prophetic blessing. The priestly blessing is what Numbers 6:22-27 is called "The LORD bless you and keep you..." He goes through the Genesis Blessing and Abrahamic Blessing. He provides an exposition of Jacob's blessings over his sons and Joseph's sons in Gen 49, and an entire chapter on an exposition of the beatitudes. I learned quite a bit from both of those chapters.
Section three is where the book begins to come together. One chapter in this section is on releasing the prophetic blessing through the spoken word. Another chapter is on releasing the prophetic blessing through touch, which is probably overlooked. Then he explains receiving the blessing, and finally proclaiming the blessing.
In the final chapter, on page 292, he provides some "scripts" of proclamations you can make over areas of your own life and your family and those under your spiritual authority. He lays down 6 rules for releasing the prophetic blessing, such as it must be spoken boldly, it must be done while standing, it must be done with hands uplifted and in the name of the Lord, and it must be face to face.
There are some books I read once and never think of again. There are some books (like Covey's 7 Habits) I keep coming back to time and time again. There are still other books that, while I might not read through all the way again, I will probably pick up and look through my notes. I think this will be the latter. I'm going to refer back to it as I work through some areas where I would like to receive a blessing, as well as looking for ways to bless others.
Of course, it wouldn't be a 21st century American Evangelical Christian book without the "Sinner's Prayer". This section of the book is very short though. I get annoyed when I buy a Christian book and find it written mostly to "beginners". The Power of the Prophetic Blessing is not guilty off this. It is written at a level far about "Jesus loves me, this I know..."
I enjoyed it, I will be referring back to it, and I will also recommend it to you. 5 Stars.
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
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