Both Heather Moore and Michele Ashman Bell have posted great reviews of David’s recently published book, I Need Thee Every Hour: Applying the Atonement in our Daily Lives, on LDSReaders.com and micheleabell.blogspot.com In case you think that this is “just another book on the atonement,” you might be interested in Jeffrey Needle’s review that appeared today on the Association of Mormon Letters list today. I have copied it here, for those who don’t belong to the list:
Reviewed by Jeffrey Needle
A case can be made that we have enough books about the atonement. We
can easily figure it all out with what we have. We need no more. But
is this really true? When you have a subject as all-encompassing as the
atonement of Jesus Christ, when do we really exhaust ways of
understanding this central event in human history? As the author quotes
on page 25:
"The Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ is the heart and core and center
of revealed religion." (Bruce R. McConkie)
Using many personal experiences as models for his understanding of
Christ and of the Church, the author projects from these experiences and
extrapolates teachings which, if learned and lived, will surely bring a
person closer to Christ. Sometimes this means giving up old, outmoded
models. There are as many wrong notions about salvation and acceptance
with God as there are right models. Vandagriff provides a much needed
corrective to the schemes of Gospel understanding that so typified a
generation of young Christians — schemes that were heavy on guilt and
perfectionism, and light on the dynamic power of the atonement to lead
and guide Christians in living their daily lives.
But let’s not confuse the author’s thesis with easy-believism. He
retains a certainty that obedience and growth are necessary in your
journey back to God. He doesn’t want lazy Christians who see the
Atonement as Jesus having done all the work for them. Instead, we all
must "work out our own salvation in fear and trembling." But along the
way, we can be assured that Christ’s atoning life and death are with us
as fellow-travelers.
Some readers will recognize the name Vandagriff. G.G. Vandagriff writes
LDS fiction that has been read by many here. G.G. is the author’s wife.
She plays a prominent role in this book. References to the popular
writer will delight fans of G.G.’s writing.
The author sums up his thesis with this healing thought:
"Whether we are wounded by terrible trials or scarred by vile sins,
Christ takes our wounds and makes them His. He lifts them off us if we
will allow Him to do so and enables us to heal and find peace. If we
can learn and never forget this fundamental and most important truth, if
we can get it into the deepest parts of our soul, we can enjoy the
excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. We will truly know Him and
the power of His redemption through the intimate fellowship that we gain
through His and our shared sufferings." (p. 111)
Perhaps some have moved past the point where they can feel within
themselves the healing nature of the presence of God in our lives. But
many who fill the pews each Sunday go away feeling a bit more religious,
but not even a bit more spiritual. It takes a willing heart, and an
open mind, to allow the love of God to embrace us and encompass our lives.
And this, according to Vandagriff, is where a knowledge, and an
internalization, of the atonement becomes a vital necessity.
Vandagriff has penned a deeply personal, and often moving, account of
how he has discovered in his own life the power of the atonement to
bring meaning to life. This is not a profound doctrinal book, neither
was it designed to be so. This is a pastoral work that many readers
will find comforting and informative





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