Posted in Books

I have recently finished reading The Second Mayflower.  What a powerful book.  This is a book that has the potential to shift paradigms and inspire change in the hearts and lives of readers.  In the times in which we live, it is so easy to become fearful.  As we look around us at such matters as rising food and oil prices, the moral decline of our culture, the rights of Christians being taken away on every front, and the uncertain outcome of the upcoming presidential election, it is tempting to become pessimistic about the future.  However, as Kevin Swanson, the author of this excellent books reminds us, God is in control and His Kingdom will ultimately prevail.

In his book, Mr. Swanson puts forth a vision of victory for Christ's people and Kingdom which is inspiring and solidly Scriptural.  After briefly cataloging the facts about the sad state of our current culture, he harkens back to the time of the Puritans and Seperatists, recalling the vision of the first Mayflower and what the Pilgrims fathers set out to accomplish as they settled in the New World.  He then goes on to cast a vision for what he calls a Second Mayflower, a movement in which Christians will act as salt and light in changing the culture for the Kingdom of Christ.

"The Second Mayflower starts today where the first Mayflower started--in the hearts of those who envision something better than this world.  It starts with those who cannot live with the status quo, nor can they live without a dream for something better.  It starts with those who can see where they are and have set a vision for that 'something better' by the standards of God's transcendent law."

"Those who play the part of the Pilgrims and Puritans will see the stark contrast between what is and what ought to be.  If the First Mayflower gives birth to the second, some part of the vision will be discernable from the original founding of this nation.  But not all of it.  Indeed, the vision to which we chart our voyage cannot be a replay of the First Mayflower either geographically or idealogically.  We do not face the identical problems nor do we share the same geo-political and social situation as the early founders of this nation.... Times have changed, but the ultimate standard of truth and ethics has not changed.  That standard is the law of God.  According to Proverbs 29:18, our vision comes by the law of God.  And that vision is clarified only as we come to understand God's truth and walk in it."

This vision is for our children and our grandchildren and our great-grandchildren.  We are laying the foundation; they are the ones who will someday see the fruits of our labor of today.  And the foundation starts with the education of our children.

"Our children's education must begin with a heart attitude of fear towards God....  For the Chrisitan, the process of education must be centered around fear of God, faith in God, love for God, and the character that flows out from these things.  If God is reality and He has created man for relationship with Himself, education will be far more focused on discipleship rooted in relationships than in learning the bare facts about geography, geology, and geometry."

The foundation continues in a proper understanding and appreciation for the specific God-designed roles of men and women.  It grows in the strength of the family as the basic building block of society.  The covenental unity of family-life and the proper function of each member within the home is essential to the vision of the Second Mayflower.

Kevin Swanson's vision is encouraging and inspiring.  It is purposeful and powerful.  It is a vision for the future triumph of Christ's Kingdom through the commitment of His people to follow His Word in their own lives.

"Without reformation of heart and life, there will be no Chrisitan community; there will be no 'city on a hill'.  Spiritual maturity will come by way of the powerful, convicting preaching of God's Word in the church (2 Tim. 4:2), the daily study of God's Word in the home (as individuals and families), and, of course, in the application of it in our lives.  It comes by faith in Christ's salvation and passionate love for Christ and His kingdom."

"In truth, [the Second Mayflower] is nothing more than living life the way God designed to be lived in family and church.  It is simply returning to the sufficiency and life relevance of God's Word, and incarnating it into real life and real relationships....  It is a life of victorious Christan living!  It is a life of blessing."

The Second Mayflower is a book many Christians will read and find fresh hope in.  It's message is timely and necessary.  It is a clarion call we cannot afford to ignore.