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Author Hernandez has composed a unique exploration of Christian faith based on the concept of what she refers to as the acronym of the word “fellowship” as a model for the many virtues a spiritual seeker may wish to cultivate and the pitfalls that may lie ahead on one’s path to peace and acceptance. Initially, she offers a variety of meanings for the word, including its commonly understood reference to “association” and “organization.” But she states Christian fellowship has a mission and purpose. It comprises a Code of Regulation (the Holy Bible) and a Code of Ethics (the Ten Commandments).
Building a relationship with God entails creating fellowship with him. Each of the letters of this significant word can stand for spiritual qualities, presented here as faith, endurance, love, light of glory, obedience, worship with wisdom, speech, humility, intimacy, and prayer. The central body of her well-considered narrative explains and extols each of these essential aspects. Faith, as an essential need and the beginning of the acronym, will allow one to see good relationships as models to follow and to avoid negative connections. Endurance opens the door to the ability, with God’s help, to bear the suffering of life’s many trials. Love is essential for all spiritual endeavors, and the light of glory surrounds us even if we are sometimes blind to it. Obedience is often cited in the Holy Bible as proof of one’s religious conviction. Worship—with wisdom, as the author has designated—should be continuous, not merely reserved for special days or times. One’s speech can powerfully influence others, so it is necessary to choose one’s words carefully and sometimes to remain silent. Humility is enmeshed within the understanding of one’s role in life and one’s reverence for God. Intimacy implies the companionship that Jesus has gifted to humanity even after his physical death. Last but not least, prayer can be both a habitual and a spontaneous expression of one’s wishes and one’s acceptance of God’s greater wisdom.
Hernandez skillfully and emotively presents her model of fellowship as the crux of Christian belief and practice, beginning with her opening sentence, a forthright profession of faith. She expresses the wish that, through her dynamic examination, readers will become more receptive to the crucial need for a solidly grounded relationship with God. Each quality highlighted in her fellowship acronym is accompanied by useful exercises that include personal questions for the reader to utilize, biblical references, and enjoyable “word find” games emphasizing the central concepts examined. Each is seen in the light of scripture, with numerous stories and analogies given in support gleaned from the pantheon of religious knowledge that Hernandez has gathered. Her work can be used for promoting discussion in group settings and for individuals engaging in private study who can make time to “stop reading” and “take a moment,” as Hernandez advises, to look into one’s heart for a sense of personal connectivity to the book’s central theme: the zeal to develop closeness God has the power to create a direct, binding, satisfying, and eternal relationship.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review