I, Isaac, Take Thee, Rebekah

My friend gave me this book when I first started dating the man I am now engaged to - I read it once when we started dating, and then again a year later when we were engaged. It is absolutely amazing and I wish I would've read it when I younger (late teens) because of it's powerful message about purity and keeping your heart safe. I would give this book to any girl in her late teens, in a relationship, or engaged. I can't say enough about it, great relationship coach!

I bought and read this book last summer, going through some difficult mental and emotional battles involving not dating anyone or being married yet. This book was brilliantly and beautifully crafted and gave me hope and practical principles I could use now to prepare for marriage later. I picked it up again this summer, not intending to read it again, but somehow finding myself engrossed once again. I think I could read this book once every few months to remember--whether I'm single, dating, or married. I so appreciate Zacharias' delicate yet bold handling of modern issues including homosexuality and divorce. These aren't themes, but they are issues approached in an inoffensive manner. I have read many other books on dating and marriage and this one by far is the best thus far. I know there is a bookcase of books on this subject out there and can't say this is the best out of all of them, but that is only because I haven't read all of them. I'm sure this one would come out near the top no matter what.

I picked up Ravi's book after reading an article where he told the story of his brother getting married through the process of arranged marriage. Ravi approached his brother prior to the marriage and basically asked him, "Brother, what if this girl is ugly?" His brother scolded Ravi and said, "Mark this down. If you will to love someone, you can." That intrigued me because today, we're of the mindset that you can only love someone physically beautiful. While I believe it's good our own dating system affords us the chance to have a beautiful mate, I wanted to know more about Ravi's take on willing to love. This book is fantastic! Ravi lifts marriage out of our own cultural context and puts it in the place God intended it. While it is true that dating/marriage will have aspects of the culture buried within it, Ravi asks us to accept those only to a point. He points us to the story of Isaac and Rebekah - two "kids" who: 1) aceepted the need for a mate and allowed the parents to be involved, 2) willed to love each other, 3) sacrificed their lives for each other, 4) committed to sexual purity prior to marriage (his discussion in this chapter focuses on the believer's body being the temple of God and is very illuminating), 5) left the home of mom and dad, 6) had the great need for daily, genuine personal prayer and bible study, and 7) remained committed to each other even in the hard times. As I mentioned before, this book will lift your thought of marriage on to a totally new plane. You'll find yourself questioning what you actually believe marriage is. You'll be left with much thinking to do, but will come to appreciate that marriage is a huge commitment in rejecting your own desires, accepting God's desires, and fulfilling your wife's desires (as she, in turn, fulfills yours). It's a beautiful book, in my opinion. Highly recommended. -andy

Ravi hits a home run with his latest book. Clear and straight to the point. A great read for any parent who wants to help guide their children in these difficult decisions and a must read for anyone who plans to marry or wants to improve the relationship of his/her marriage.