Customer Reviews

The Art of Compassion

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Great, personal stories from songwriters which share their hearts and inspirations to help others in this broken world.

Through all the stories told by the Christian artists in this book, there is no doubt that they feel very strongly about this new journey God is taking them on. Each one has a similar opinion on poverty, and what it's going to take to turn things around. I was especially moved by Martin Smith's chapter when he felt God calling him to take this step. He and his wife wrote a diary of their experiences in third-world countries, and their longing to make a difference.

In addition to the book, all of the Christian artists got together and recorded a CD. All of the proceeds from the book and CD will go directly to Compassion Art charities around the world....WOW! Talk about amazing....not one of these artists is in it for themselves. Not a one of them is getting a single dime for their efforts, and they wouldn't have it any other way. After reading each chapter and each artist's thoughts on worship and music, I really want to get a copy of this CD. From what I've gathered from the book, the CD isn't the typical worship music that you hear in church or on the radio, but rather songs that have a deep message and a call to action for all Christians.

Most often publishers are cautious about accepting a manuscript for publication, but in this case, they seemed more concerned about getting the book to market than being sure it was well-written. As a professional writer, I felt like I was reading the raw material and was about to plunge into editing it into a lucid, heart-felt telling of the Compassion Art story ... but instead it remained as raw material, and so surprised me the publishers weren't watching more closely. The genuine story of Christian artists coming together to produce a compilation of music whose entire proceeds would be given to relieve world poverty seems a compelling, even noble, idea, but it was difficult to wade through and sustain the reader's interest and engagement in their project.

I have been a fan of Christian music for a long time. Quite a few of my favorites participated in this project, so I was really interested in reading it. The book is a collection of short stories written by each artist about poverty around the world and. Some describe what they saw in South Africa, while others write on poverty in general. Many of the authors really look at poverty and how the church today deals with it. It is a very inspirational book and gives us a glimpse of the heart of each of these artists. It's a great companion piece to the CD.If you're a fan of Christian music this will probably appeal to you.

Recorded here are the results of twelve Christian musicians who collaborated to make a difference in the world. First, they met at a retreat in Scotland where they were challenged to write a new set of worship songs that would eventually be recorded. The profits from these songs would go to fund charities around the world. The motive is to love the world enough to make a difference. They pledged to tackle a world filled with great need. This book grew from that song-writing retreat.

Each story of compassion is told in its individual chapter, so that the book reads like a short story collection. These artists put worship into action. Their inspirational stories are diverse and interesting to read.