About the Book
Book: The Kingdom of God: Our life with Jesus the King
Author: John Avery
Genre: Christian Devotional, non-fiction
Release date: March 1, 2023
What is the kingdom of God? Many people only vaguely understand (or misunderstand) it. Is it a future heavenly existence where the nicest dreams come true and nightmares are miraculously purged? After all, it is sometimes called the kingdom of heaven. Perhaps we dismiss it as an irrelevant ideal. Pastors typically prioritize topics like salvation, grace, eternal life, faith, and prayer. Yet, the kingdom was central to the messages of John the Baptist, Jesus, Paul, and other New Testament writers. Their words and behavior show that the kingdom theme is the framework uniting those topics and the entire mission of Jesus and His followers.
God’s kingdom centers on the King. It’s a life journey shared with other kingdom subjects.
This collection of 38 short pieces (2-3 pages each) explores vital questions like:
- How well do we understand Jesus’ view of the kingdom of God?
- What did Jesus mean when He spoke of being in (or outside of) the kingdom?
- Does the kingdom make any difference to our lives right now? Should it?
- Will the kingdom grow automatically, or do we have a part to play?
These pieces can be read quickly; they’re relaxed too—but think carefully and deeply.
Click here to get your copy!
About the Author
John Avery is the author of The Name Quest: Explore the Names of God to Grow in Faith and Get to Know Him Better (Morgan James Publishing, 2015). The Name Quest won the 2016 Oregon Christian Writers’ Cascade Award for nonfiction. A compilation of short pieces, The Questions of Jesus, was published in 2022.
John is a trained teacher with over thirty years’ experience as a Bible teaching pastor, small group leader, missionary, and disciple maker. He has lived in England, Israel, Africa, and the Caribbean, ministering with Youth With A Mission (YWAM), international student ministry, and local churches. He and his wife, Janet, now make their home in Oregon. John likes to hike, snowshoe, and cross-country ski. John writes short, thought-provoking Bible devotionals at www.BibleMaturity.com many of which will be compiled into books like this one. He maintains a comprehensive resource for all the names of God at www.NamesForGod.net.
More from John
This book is a collection of short devotional pieces. They’re relaxed, but they challenge the reader to think carefully too. What is the kingdom of God? What does it mean for our lives?
Many people only vaguely understand (or misunderstand) the kingdom of God. Is it a future heavenly existence where the nicest dreams come true and nightmares are miraculously purged? After all, it is sometimes called the kingdom of heaven. Perhaps we dismiss it as an irrelevant ideal. Pastors typically prioritize topics like salvation, grace, eternal life, faith, and prayer. Yet, the kingdom was a priority for Jesus.
God’s kingdom centers on the King. It’s a life journey shared with other kingdom subjects.
The pieces explore vital questions like:
- How well do we understand Jesus’ view of the kingdom of God?
- What did Jesus mean when He spoke of being in (or outside of) the kingdom?
- Does the kingdom make any difference to our lives right now? Should it?
- Will the kingdom grow automatically, or do we have a part to play?
Author Interview:
What role does God play in your writing career?
I could not write what I do without God. Almost every piece begins in my own times with Him and reading the Bible. I might check what I sense against commentaries or reference works sometimes, but the main message comes from those times with Him. Also, my goal is for people to know Him better and for Him to be glorified.
Do you have a team or do you manage all aspects of writing by yourself? How do you balance writing, marketing, social media, etc.?
Some of this is new to me. I enjoy the writing a lot and find it sad that so much time now has to be spent marketing and trying to make social media work for me. I hope to learn enough with the first book or two to develop a system and a team of interested people (like bloggers and reviewers) who I can quickly fall back on.
What do you like to do when you aren’t writing?
I balance my time between running a painting business, doing Discovery Bible Studies with unbelievers or new believers, writing, my wife and friends, and hiking or cross-country skiing (depending on the season). Sometimes everything is quite squeezed.
What projects are you working on currently?
Over the last eight years or more I have been writing devotional blogs. I now have perhaps 300 completed and another 300 ideas that need developing. So, I have enough to form several compilations. The next one is likely to be on the topic of being like Jesus, or prayer, or being a disciple. There will perhaps be ten or more in the series.
What’s one fun thing you’d like your readers to know about you?
I am originally from England but now I have lived half my life in the USA and half there. But I enjoy travelling to other places too.
What’s one thing you’d tell your younger self?
Focus on God’s leading as soon as you can.
Would you rather always be an hour early or be constantly twenty minutes late?
I like to be punctual or early, probably not an hour though.
Would you rather have an endless summer or an endless winter?
I love dry weather. Summer is great, winter dry works too if it is not too cold.
Have you ever thought about what it would be like to focus on seeing
Would you like to be a part of a membership where everyday you are pointed back to God and seeing Him in your everyday life?
If that sounds like something you’re interested in, I invite you to come check it out!
Don’t forget to check out the other blog spots listed below for your convenience.
Blog Stops
Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, March 10
Blossoms and Blessings, March 11 (Author Interview)
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 12
Splashes of Joy, March 13 (Author Interview)
Texas Book-aholic, March 14
Guild Master, March 15 (Author Interview)
Vibrant Wings by Valerie, March 15
deb’s Book Review, March 16
A Reader’s Brain, March 17 (Author Interview)
Cover Lover Book Review, March 18
For the Love of Literature, March 19 (Author Interview)
Locks, Hooks and Books, March 20
Spoken from the Heart, March 21 (Author Interview)
Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, March 21
Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, March 22
Artistic Nobody, March 23
Giveaway
To celebrate his tour, John is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Amazon gift card and a copy of the book!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.
I’m really looking forward to reading this book!
I enjoyed the author interview. John Avery is a new-to-me author.