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Ammiel’s awakening began the week before he turned 29. Despite having all of the things that constituted the good life according to society’s standards, he knew he was missing something. Even within his own family, he felt terribly alone. Something was changing inside him that would spell the end of the person he had always been.
Using the prose entries of Ammiel’s journey of self-discovery as a framework, the author’s collection of inspirational poetry describes three stages of a person’s spiritual transformation: “Born of Flesh,” “Born of Water,” and “Born of the Spirit.” Poems such as “Life’s Mirror” and “Shattered” chronicle the despair of discovering who we really are (as opposed to the image we hold of ourselves) and then reaching out to God for help. Others like “Leaving the Dirt Behind,” “New Creature,” and “The Blueprint” show the process of repentance, becoming a changed person in Christ, and discovering our true purpose in life. Closing out this metamorphosis are poems such as “The Ultimate Road Trip (God at the Steering Wheel)” and “Beyond Our Wildest Dreams,” which depict the joy of living for God on a daily basis.
Christian’s poetry frequently has an almost rap-like rhythm to it. Yet he also seems determined not to let his verse become controlled by a set meter or rhyme scheme if doing so would weaken the thought he is trying to get across. Unashamedly evangelical, the selections he includes strive to convict without coming across as pushy. The result of his efforts is a carefully controlled collection of well-constructed poems that are deeply spiritual, powerful, and thought-provoking.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review