FRANCINE RIVERS - AND THE SHOFAR BLEW

Author- Francine Rivers
Title- And the Shofar Blew
Genre- Fiction/ Contemporary
Publisher- Tyndale
Street date- May 2003

Things at Centerville Christian centre aren't as they should be. The pastor is aging, the congregation is dwindling, the account is shrinking and most of all the light of hope at the end of the tunnel seems to be a fable of the past. The elders conclude that it's high time to recruit a new pastor to take charge of the pulpit. Young Paul Hudson is appointed Pastor and moves down to take the post. He seems like the perfect person for the Job. Or is he? In the pages of And the Shofar Blew, Veteran author Francine Rivers tells a poignant, yet profound tale to remind us of some essential truths of our Christian faith. Dealing with very sensitive issues on faith, Christian Service, the Church and Hearing from God, And the Shofar Blew delivers a story of twist and turns with realistic characters.
The Shofar is a trumpet usually a ram's horn used in Israel. It is used to announce, to alert or warn of danger, to call to battle, or to call to action. It is still used in Judaism to call the people to accountability on the Day of Atonement. This sets the central theme for the novel on how God calls, speaks to his children and on the various ways he warns them when they are going astray.
One captivating thing about this novel is the transparency and candor employed. How we as Christians can be called followers of Christ but yet fail to yield to the nudging of his spirit in us. How we can turn the place of worship to a place of Sunday entertainment. How we can forget that God is more interested in us than in the work he has committed to our hands. And most of all how we can be mislead that a showy and 'productive' life is a fruitful life. The truths reaffirmed in this book are important and basic ones that have been phased out by the renewing of the Christian faith to meet modern times. But before the end of this book, we would be asking ourselves the same questions the angels whisper to themselves every now and then at the pearly gates 'Does What the Son of God did thousands of years ago at Calvary by any means need a renewal? Didn't he finish the work once and for all?' and also before the end we would soon discover that it's the heart of man that's deceptive beyond cure that needs a constant renewal.
And the Shofar Blew is also a story of second chances and God showing mercy even at the hour of judgment. With this book, Author Francine Rivers beckons with the Shofar of words in this soon to become a classic and long to be remembered book an awakening to fellow Christians. Awaken, Listen to the call And the Shofar blew would indeed blow your mind away.

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